What is the CXT file format?
.cxt files are used by Adobe Director - through version 11 and the final release, Director 12 (2013). They are the protected counterpart of the unprotected .cst cast format.
Files with the .cxt extension contain multimedia data stored in a protected cast container authored with Director. Such data can include:
- audio tracks and music clips,
- video sequences and animations,
- web-based games,
- interactive multimedia objects,
- start menus for CDs, DVDs, or other media.
Adobe Director, which uses the .cxt extension for its protected cast files, was in many respects similar to Flash software - both were widely used to author interactive multimedia content.
One of the defining features of .cxt files is that they are protected. Data saved in this format can be freely accessed and played back by other users; however, editing or modifying the content of such a file is not possible. This is the reason why .cxt is considered a protected file format. A proprietary obfuscation mechanism - which precludes modifications - secures the multimedia cast assets. Users can access objects saved as .cxt files, but they cannot modify them.
Internally, .cxt uses the RIFX binary container (a big-endian variant of RIFF). Adobe discontinued Director in February 2017, leaving .cxt files as effectively orphaned legacy assets.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWBinary multimedia container; not executable on its own. Old Director projector files (.exe wrapping) carry higher risk, but bare CXT cast files do not execute.
Format details
in a nutshellPrograms that open CXT files
Windows1 app
Adobe Director 12
Paid File → Open to open CXT as part of a Director project. NOTE: Director is discontinued (EOL 2017) and no longer sold; existing license holders only. 
macOS1 app
Adobe Director 12
Paid Same as Windows - discontinued, existing licenses only. Last macOS version supports up to 10.9 Mavericks. Technical details
deep spec| Developer | Adobe Systems (originally Macromedia) |
| Container | RIFX (big-endian RIFF variant) |
| Byte order | Big-endian |
| Magic bytes | RIFX - hex 52 49 46 58 at offset 0 |
| Protection mechanism | Proprietary XOR-based obfuscation preventing cast member extraction or editing; not cryptographically strong |
| Unprotected equivalent | .cst (unprotected cast file; identical RIFX structure, no obfuscation) |
| Internal chunk tags | imap (internal map), mmap (memory map), KEY* (key table), CASt (cast member data), MV93 (version header) |
| Color depth | 1-32 bpp (bitmap cast members stored at their original bit depth) |
| Audio sample rates | 8-44.1 kHz for audio cast members stored within the file |
| Typical file size | 62 KB - 12 MB |
| Last producing software | Adobe Director 12 (2013) |
| Product end-of-life | February 2017 - Adobe discontinued Director; no modern tool reads .cxt natively |
| Encoding | Binary |
| Platform | Windows, macOS |
| Released | Early 1990s (Macromedia Director); widespread use from Director 4/5 |
| Latest version | Adobe Director 12 (2013) - last version to produce CXT files |
CXT conversions
Community Q&A
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