C# Reading a binary text file without knowing the format of the file

Question

Ok so I have a Binary text file written using a BinaryWriter. The format of the file has been lost due to poor documentation.

Im using the BinaryReader to read the file but the only way I can do this is through trial and error by stepping through the file and guessing whether I should be using the ReadInt64(), ReadString() etc of the BinaryReader class.

Is there anyway to step through the file and automatically determine what the next value format is?

There is no such thing as a "binary text file". A file is either binary, meaning that the bytes represent data in some arbitrary (but known) form, or it is a text file, meaning that the bytes encode text characters in one of the known text encodings. — Tergiver
– Tergiver, Commented Jul 31, 2013 at 15:50
You might consider opening the file in a binary (hex) file viewer so that you can examine the format. That's going to give you a much better idea of how to read it than using trial and error with BinaryReader. Visual Studio will display a binary file. — Jim Mischel
– Jim Mischel, Commented Jul 31, 2013 at 16:52

driis · Accepted Answer · 2013-07-31 15:37:45Z

2

No. The BinaryWriter does not pack any type information into the written file, so there is no way to reverse-engineering that - other than trial & error, as you have found out.

answered Jul 31, 2013 at 15:37

driis

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CathalMF Over a year ago

Bah that's not what I wanted to hear.

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