.IMA File Extension
Disk Image
| Developer | N/A |
| Popularity |
3.9 | 9 Votes |
What is an IMA file?
An IMA file contains a disk image of a floppy disk, hard drive, CD, or virtual hard drive (VHD). It stores the disk image as raw, unformatted binary data that can be mounted by various disk utility programs, such as WinImage, Nero, UltraISO, and MagicISO, in order for it to be readable by a computer.
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IMA files are typically created by WinImage, a disk-imaging suite used to write, read, and edit disk images. WinImage users may create the IMA file to store multiple types of disk images but most often create the IMA file to store a disk image of a 1.44MB 3.5" floppy disk.
Users can compress IMA files using WinImage in order to save disk space. Compressed IMA files are created as .IMZ files by WinImage.
Programs that open IMA files
Sage ACT! Email Message
| Developer | The Sage Group |
| Popularity |
3.0 | 15 Votes |
HTML-compatible email message saved by ACT!, a contact management application; may contain plain text email message or HTML email message, and may also include one or more attachments.
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The IMA format was introduced with ACT! 6.0.3 to replace the previous .DET email format. Unlike DET files, IMA files may include multiple attachments within a single file. Additionally, IMA files contain standard HTML code that may be viewed in a web browser.
NOTE: Sage ACT! became Swiftpage Act! in 2013.
Programs that open IMA files
IMA ADPCM Audio
| Developer | Interactive Multimedia Association |
| Popularity |
1.0 | 2 Votes |
An IMA file may also be an audio file saved using the Interactive Media Association's (IMA) Adaptive Differential Pulse Code Modulation (ADPCM) compression algorithm. It contains 4-bit audio data, and it does not contain an identifying header. Because IMA files are uncommon and do not contain a header, most media players cannot play them.
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On rare occasions, some programs and devices save audio data compressed using the IMA ADPCM compression standard as IMA files. For example, the program Simplicity Studio, which comes packaged with Silicon Labs' Thunderboard Sense development platform, sometimes saves audio in IMA files.
Unlike .MP3, .WAV, and other common audio files, IMA files do not contain an identifying header, which defines the file's content and attributes. For this reason, most media players cannot play IMA files. Even robust media players that can play audio saved in almost any audio format, such as VideoLAN VLC media player, cannot play IMA files.
How to open an IMA file
While you can import the raw audio data an IMA file contains into an audio-editing program like Audacity (cross-platform), only advanced users will be able to manipulate the data an IMA file contains into a usable state. Less-experienced users should convert their IMA file to another audio format, such as WAV or MP3, using Convertio (Web). Then, they can play the converted file in any media player.