.DAT File Extension

In old versions of Minecraft, DAT files were also used to store level "chunks," which are small map pieces the game loads on-demand as a player navigates through a world. This format was introduced in the Minecraft Infdev version. The chunks used a 16 x 16 x 128 map dimension.

Minecraft version 1.3's beta release introduced a new chunk format, called Region. Regions were saved in .MCR files. The MCR format was subsequently replaced by the .MCA format, also referred to as Anvil, in patch 1.2.1.

NOTE: Different versions of Minecraft use differently-formatted DAT files. Therefore, a DAT file produced by one version of the game may not be compatible with other versions.

Most players will never need to open or modify Minecraft's DAT files. However, modders who want to edit Minecraft's DAT files can do so using NBTExplorer, a multiplatform Minecraft save editing tool. For example, a modder could open and modify level.dat to add items to their inventory, change the world's game rules, or place themself in another area of the world.

Those looking to streamline their computer's file system and performance use Piriform apps to identify and delete unnecessary files, automatically keep their computer up to date, and perform other optimization tasks.

If you want to run a Piriform application without installing it to your computer, you can download and run the app's portable version. The portable versions of Piriform applications include a portable.dat file. This file is an empty text file, which Piriform apps use only as a flag telling them to operate in portable mode.

Running a Piriform app in portable mode prevents the app from installing its settings to the Windows registry. Instead, the app will create and store its program settings in an .INI file (named for the app, such as CCleaner.ini).

NOTE: You can manually run an already-installed Piriform app in portable mode by creating a portable.dat file in the program's installation directory (e.g. C:/​Program Files/​CCleaner).

Portable.dat files are empty and not meant to be opened.

Piriform publishes applications that allow PC users to clean up their computers' files and optimize their PCs' performance. For example, CCleaner allows users to clean up their web browser history, identify and delete duplicate files, and automatically update their PCs' drivers.

After you purchase a Piriform application, the application will create a DAT file that stores your registration key. If, for some reason, the application cannot find this DAT file at startup, it will operate in trial mode instead of full mode. For this reason, you should never move, edit, or otherwise alter your Piriform registration key.

NOTE: Piriform also uses Piriform Portable Mode Flag DAT files.

You should not open, edit, or in any way alter a DAT file that contains your Piriform registration key. If you do, the corresponding Piriform program may function in trial mode, instead of full mode.

When you install a Windows program that uses an installer built using Inno Setup, the installer creates an unins000.exe and unins000.dat file. If you uninstall the program, Windows runs unins000.exe, which uses information stored in unins000.dat to locate the program's files and remove them from your computer.

Inno Setup DAT files are not meant to be opened. When you uninstall a program that uses an Inno Setup uninstaller, the uninstaller references its associated DAT file.

One common registry hive file is NTUSER.DAT, which stores user-level registry information. It resides in the following directory:

C:/​Users/​[user]/​

NTUSER.DAT contains important user settings; you should never delete it.

Another common DAT file is SCHEMA.DAT, which is a registry backup and restore file. It resides in:

C:/​Windows/​System32/​SMI/​Store/​Machine/​

In most cases, you should never open, edit, or delete a Windows registry DAT file.

Porteus allows users to save and load changes they've made to the OS from a DAT file, most commonly named save.dat. If you are installing Porteus on a device that uses a Windows file system, you must create and use a DAT file to save and load changes. On these devices, a DAT file is required to retain necessary system data, such as symlinks and Linux permissions.

How to create a Porteus DAT file

To create a DAT file in Porteus:

1. Boot Porteus into the KDE, Xfce, or LXDE desktop interfaces.
2. After the boot is complete, open the Porteus menu and select System → Porteus save.dat manager.
3. Click Create.
4. Follow the prompts to finish creating your DAT file.

Porteus DAT files are not meant to be opened. To use a DAT file with Porteus, open your porteus.cfg file (located at boot/​syslinux) and set the changes= parameter to reference your DAT file. For example, if your DAT file is named save.dat and stored in the /​porteus/​changes directory, set the parameter to changes=/porteus/changes/save.dat.

Read more about Winmail.dat files, including how to open them and prevent them from being sent.

You can open and play DAT files with various media players. Some options include VideoLAN VLC media player (multiplatform), CyberLink PowerDirector (multiplatform), and MPlayer (multiplatform).

You can convert DAT video files to more common video formats with VideoLAN VLC media player, CyberLink PowerDirector, and VCDGear (multiplatform). For example, VLC can convert DAT videos to:

• .MP4 - MPEG-4 Video
• .WEBM - WebM Video
• .TS - Video Transport Stream
• .ASF - Advanced Systems Format

Those applying for a U.S. nonimmigrant visa can do so online, via the U.S. Department of State's Consular Electronic Application Center. After an applicant starts the application process, they are given an application ID.

During the application process, applicants can save the current version of their application to their computer as a DAT file. For example, an applicant who needs to finish their application later can select Save Application to File to save their application to their computer. The applicant can then use their application ID and DAT file to retrieve and complete their application.

To use a DAT file to open your U.S. Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application (DS-160), go to the U.S. Nonimmigrant Visa Application website (linked below) and select RETRIEVE AN APPLICATION. Then, follow the prompts to use your application ID and DAT file to open your application.

Published in 2003, SimCity 4 is the fourth major release in Maxis's SimCity series. The game uses a variety of proprietary game data files, some of which are packaged together in DAT files. For example, the SC4MODEL, SC4LOT, and SC4DESC files used to load a city lot might be saved as a single DAT file.

Player-created SimCity 4 mods are also commonly saved as DAT files. To use these mods, players must place them in SimCity 4's plugins folder (and follow any other instructions included with the mod).

Most players will never need to open SimCity 4's DAT files. However, those who are interested in modding SimCity 4 or browsing DAT files' contents can do so using iLive Reader or DatGen, which are player-created applications.

Wii.dat is a plain text file, so you can open and examine it in any text editor, such as Microsoft Notepad (Windows), Apple TextEdit (Mac), or GitHub Atom (cross-platform).

GameMaker Studio (also known as just GameMaker) is a game development engine produced by YoYo Games. It allows developers to create video games using drag-and-drop development features and a custom programming language known as Game Maker Language.

While developing a game in GameMaker Studio, developers can choose to save the game's audio assets in a separate, audio-only DAT package. This package is saved alongside the game's primary asset package.

DAT files are not meant to be opened by players. However, players who want to view, edit, or add to a DAT file's contents can do so using UndertaleModTool, a modding tool for GameMaker Studio games.

Clickteam Fusion allows developers to create video games and other software for Windows, iOS, Android, and other platforms. While in development, these applications are saved as .MFA files.

As a developer packages their MFA file for the application's target platform(s), the developer may choose to package all the application's assets, including images, music, and other necessary data, into a DAT file. This DAT file can either be stored within the final application or downloaded alongside the application and unpacked during installation.

Clickteam Fusion DAT files are not meant to be opened manually. When you install or run a Clickteam Fusion-created application that includes a DAT file, the application will automatically access the assets stored in that DAT file.

You can open a DAT file created by the Windows or Android version of Geometry Dash with GDColon GDSave Browser (Web), to view the data it contains. Additionally, you can use Geometry Dash CC*.dat Editor (Web) to convert your DAT file between Geometry Dash save formats (including regular, editable XML).

To use a DAT file with Geometry Dash, you must place it in the directory from which your version of Geometry Dash loads DAT files. Note that, if the DAT file you are attempting to use was created by a different version of Geometry Dash, the game may not be able to load your DAT file (since different versions of Geometry Dash save DAT files in different formats).

Prison Architect is a 2D prison construction and management game. It was originally developed and published by Introversion Software and is now developed by Double Eleven and published by Paradox Interactive.

The game includes two DAT files, main.dat and sounds.dat. These files are Zip-compressed archives that contain game assets which players can extract, modify, and replace to customize Prison Architect. For example, a player can replace an audio file found in sounds.dat with a custom audio file (renamed to use the replaced file's filename) to play custom audio in-game.

There are many ways to use DAT files to modify Prison Architect's gameplay. Most commonly, modders use a Zip-decompression tool, such as 7-Zip, to extract a DAT file's contents and produce a data folder. After modifying or replacing assets found in the data folder, modders place the folder in Prison Architect's primary installation directory (~/​Prison Architect). Prison Architect then loads the player's modified assets in place of the original assets stored in a DAT file.

Prison Architect DAT file location

Prison Architect's DAT files are stored in the following locations:

• Windows: ~/​Prison Architect
• MacOS: In Prison Architect.app (right-click the file, select Show Package Contents, and navigate to Contents/​Resources)
• Linux: ~/​Prison Architect

You can open Prison Architect DAT files (to view or extract their contents) with 7-Zip (Windows), The Unarchiver (Mac), or B1 Free Archiver. In some cases, you may first have to change the file's extension to .zip.