Extract text from Help index files (MSHI)
To convert MSHI index files to another format, you need Visual Studio or other Data software.
To convert other file formats to the "Compiled Help Index" file type, you need software like Visual Studio or a similar tool.
The .MSHI file is a proprietary Microsoft Help Index File. It operates as a component of the legacy Microsoft Help 2 engine. This file stores a compiled alphabetical index of keywords and topics, allowing users to search for specific terms within the associated help documentation.
These files were primarily utilized by older versions of Microsoft Visual Studio and the MSDN Library. To view the help content natively, users typically relied on the integrated Microsoft Document Explorer.
The main disadvantage of the .MSHI format is its rigid, proprietary nature. It is heavily outdated and no longer supported in modern Windows environments. Furthermore, a .MSHI file contains only index metadata, not actual readable articles. It is practically useless if the master HXC (collection) and HXS (compiled content) files are missing.
Because it is a compiled binary index rather than a document, converting an .MSHI file to standard formats like PDF or DOCX is impossible. The only pragmatic conversion target is TXT or CSV, which involves extracting the raw keyword strings using a hex editor or specialized text extraction tool.
Standard online converters fail with this format because it is a closed binary system that lacks standalone readable text. Only the original Microsoft Help 2 engine can properly read or compile this data. Our analyzer will scan the binary structure and expose any embedded raw text, allowing you to extract the keyword list even without the original software.
Convert.Guru analyzes your MSHI file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted MSHC files.
If you want to convert MSHI file to , you can use Visual Studio or similar software from the "Help System Keyword Index" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert files to MSHI, try Visual Studio or another comparable tool in the "Help System Keyword Index" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our MSHI converter.