PREF Converter

Extract text from PREF files


Drop or upload your .PREF file
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How to extract text from your PREF file

  1. Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your PREF file.
  2. You’ll see a preview, if available.
  3. Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.

Convert PREF to another file type

To convert your PREF file to another format, you need Contour Shuttle Driver or other Settings software.

Convert a file to PREF

To convert other file formats to the "Configuration File" file type, you need software like Contour Shuttle Driver or a similar tool.


About PREF files

A .PREF file is a dual-purpose configuration container primarily associated with Contour Design hardware and XML-based application settings. Its most common use (approx. 15% of files) is storing button mappings, macros, and jog-wheel sensitivities for ShuttlePRO and ShuttleXpress multimedia controllers. Video editors and audio engineers frequently share these files to replicate custom workflows in software like Adobe Premiere or Vegas Pro. The second major variant (approx. 12%) is a plain text or XML document used by Android-based tools like ATAK (Android Team Awareness Kit) and streaming apps like OTT-Play. These files define critical parameters such as server connection strings, callsigns, and UI layouts. A common issue is that operating systems treat .PREF as an unknown or binary format, preventing users from inspecting them. While Contour files are best managed via the device's proprietary control panel, ATAK and generic preference files can effectively be "converted" to TXT or XML simply by renaming the extension or opening them in a code editor like VS Code or Notepad++. For archiving or documentation, converting these text-based settings to PDF ensures a static, readable backup.

Convert.Guru analyzes your PREF file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.

Users also converted VDF, USR and ENG files.


FAQ

If you want to convert PREF file to INI, CFG, CONF, CONFIG, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, ENV, PROPERTIES or RC, you can use Contour Shuttle Driver or similar software from the "Application & Hardware Settings" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert ZSHRC, CONF, RCFILE, GITCONFIG, RC, PLIST, BASHRC, CONFIG, PROFILE, INI, PREFS or CFG files to PREF, try Contour Shuttle Driver or another comparable tool in the "Application & Hardware Settings" category.



The PREF Converter Story

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 PREF converter.