Extract text from Library files (OLB)
To convert OLB Libraries to another format, you need OrCAD Capture or other Cad software.
To convert other file formats to the "Schematic Component Library" file type, you need software like OrCAD Capture or a similar tool.
The .OLB file extension primarily represents an OrCAD Schematic Component Library used by Cadence OrCAD Capture for Electronic Design Automation (EDA). It stores symbols, pins, and attributes required for circuit board design. Another major use case is the Microsoft Object Type Library, a compiled COM resource containing type information for Windows applications like Microsoft Office. Minor uses include Oracle Forms Object Libraries and OpenLink database files.
To interact with EDA libraries, engineers use OrCAD or compatible CAD environments. For Microsoft Object Type Libraries, developers rely on the Windows SDK Object Viewer (oleview.exe) or Visual Studio.
These are closed, proprietary formats, which creates significant disadvantages. An OrCAD .OLB file requires an expensive, specialized EDA software subscription to open and edit. It cannot be read by web browsers or standard text editors. Similarly, Microsoft .OLB files are compiled, binary resources that lock type definitions into a Windows-specific architecture, preventing easy cross-platform development.
When converting OrCAD .OLB files, engineers typically target XML (via OrCAD's native export) or migrate directly to Altium Designer formats to switch CAD environments. Note that proprietary attributes and graphical spacing might be lost or altered during migration. Microsoft type libraries are occasionally decompiled into IDL (Interface Definition Language) text files to make the COM definitions readable.
Because these file formats are closed and structurally complex, standard online converters fail to process them. Often, only the original software can properly read or export the data. If our analysis detects a supported underlying or embedded format, viewing or conversion may still be possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your OLB file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted ZIP, DRA, DSN, PDF, DLL, EXE, RPMSG, TSX, OPJ, MIN and SMV files.
If you want to convert OLB file to DWG, DXF, DGN, RVT, RFA, SKP, 3DM, STEP, IGES, SAT, X_T or X_B, you can use OrCAD Capture or similar software from the "Component or Object Library Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert SLDASM, DGN, PRT, IAM, X_B, CATPRODUCT, SLDPRT, RVT, ASM, DWG, CATPART or DXF files to OLB, try OrCAD Capture or another comparable tool in the "Component or Object Library 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 OLB converter.