Extract text from compiled object files (O)
To convert O object files to another format, you need GCC or other Developer software.
To convert other file formats to the "Compiled Object File" file type, you need software like GCC or a similar tool.
A .o file is a compiled object code file generated by a C or C++ compiler, such as the GCC (GNU Compiler Collection) or Apple Xcode. It contains raw machine code, relocatable data, and symbol tables. It serves as a necessary intermediate step before a linker combines it with other files to create a final executable program or software library. Depending on your operating system, it is usually formatted as an ELF file on Linux or a Mach-O file on macOS.
The core disadvantage of the .o format is that it is fundamentally illegible to humans. Because it consists of binary machine instructions, attempting to open it in a standard text editor will only display scrambled text and corrupted symbols. Furthermore, .o files are heavily platform-dependent; a file compiled for an ARM processor will instantly fail if you try to link it on an Intel x86 machine.
Reverse engineers, malware analysts, and developers frequently need to inspect these files to understand the underlying logic. The best approach is to disassemble or decompile the file. For low-level analysis, convert it to Assembly (ASM) or a Hexadecimal dump (HEX). For a higher-level understanding, decompile it back to C code (C), though original comments and variable names will be lost.
Convert.Guru analyzes your O file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted ELF, ASM, SKP, EXE, SAV, XSD, CS and SDL files.
If you want to convert O file to JS, TS, PY, JAVA, CPP, C, CS, PHP, RB, GO, RS or SWIFT, you can use GCC or similar software from the "Compiled Object Code Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert SH, PY, KT, PS1, SWIFT, LUA, PL, JAVA, SCALA, JS, VBS or TS files to O, try GCC or another comparable tool in the "Compiled Object Code Storage" 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 O converter.