Why convert CFG to INI?
Some programs and scripts only recognise configuration files with an .ini extension, even when the contents are structurally identical to a .cfg. Renaming lets you feed the same settings to that program without rewriting anything.
How to convert CFG to INI
File rename EASIEST
In File Explorer, enable View > Show > File name extensions, right-click the .cfg file, choose Rename, and change the extension to .ini.
Notepad++ FREE
Open the .cfg in Notepad++, add or correct [Section] headers and key=value pairs to match what the target program expects, then save and rename the file to .ini.
About these formats
.CFG
Configuration File
A CFG file is a configuration file that stores settings controlling how a program, game, or device behaves. Most are plain text, so open them with Notepad++, VS Code, or Notepad - never a…
Open .CFG details →
.INI
Initialization (Configuration) File
An INI file is a plain-text configuration file that stores a program's settings as name=value pairs grouped under [section] headers. Open it with any text editor - Notepad++ or VS Code on…
Open .INI details →Quality & what to watch
- This is almost always just a rename - many CFG files are already INI-formatted and no data changes.
- Binary CFG files cannot be renamed to
.ini; if the file shows garbled characters in a text editor, it is a proprietary binary that no INI parser can read. - INI has no official standard - different programs interpret sections, comment characters, and duplicate keys differently, so a valid
.cfgmay still be rejected by a strict INI parser.
Frequently asked questions
Will the original program still work after I rename the CFG?
.cfg intact.
