What is the SCP file format?
An .scp file is a raster bitmap image in the ColoRIX format, created by ColoRIX VGA Paint, a popular MS-DOS paint application from RIX SoftWorks in the early 1990s. The .scp extension specifically denotes the 640×480 VGA screen resolution; sister extensions .scg (800×600) and .scx (1024×768) share the same underlying format at different dimensions.
All ColoRIX variants begin with a RIX signature at byte offset 0 - older files use the three-byte prefix RIX, while the newer format uses the four-byte string RIX3. A 10-byte little-endian header follows: image width (2 bytes), height (2 bytes), palette type code (1 byte), and storage flags (1 byte). The high bit of the storage byte indicates compression; the lower nibble encodes the planar mode. Palette data follows the header, then the raw or compressed pixel data.
.scp images are 4 bpp (16-color EGA/VGA palette). The compression scheme is a proprietary RLE-like algorithm deliberately never published by RIX SoftWorks, making compressed files difficult to decode with third-party tools.
The format is now a legacy orphan superseded by .bmp and other general-purpose raster formats. XnView MP and IrfanView remain among the few modern applications that can open uncompressed .scp files.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWSCP (ColoRIX) files are passive raster image data with no executable content. No known security risks. The only concern is that compressed SCP files may trigger errors or incorrect output in modern tools due to the unpublished compression scheme.
Format details
in a nutshell- Secure Copy Protocol script - SCP is also a filename extension for shell/batch scripts used by SCP (Secure Copy Protocol) clients such as WinSCP - a completely unrelated text file.
- Script files (various) - Various programs use .scp for script or configuration files (e.g., dial-up connection scripts in older Windows networking).
Programs that open SCP files
Windows2 apps
IrfanView
Free Open with IrfanView (requires Plugins pack for RIX support). File > Open or drag & drop. 
XnView MP
Free Open XnView MP and drag the SCP file onto the window, or use File > Open. Can convert to PNG/BMP via File > Export. 
macOS1 app
Linux1 app
Technical details
deep spec| Magic bytes | RIX3 (4 bytes, newer format) or RIX (3 bytes, older format) at offset 0 |
| Byte order | Little-endian |
| Header size | 10 bytes: magic signature + width (2B) + height (2B) + palette type (1B) + storage flags (1B) |
| Color depth | 4 bpp - 16-color EGA/VGA palette |
| Resolution | 640×480 pixels (SCP denotes VGA screen mode specifically) |
| Sister extensions | .scg = 800×600, .scx = 1024×768 - same RIX format at different screen resolutions |
| Compression | Optional proprietary RLE-like scheme; algorithm deliberately unpublished by RIX SoftWorks |
| Compression flag | High bit of the storage byte in the 10-byte header indicates compressed data |
| Planar mode | Encoded in the lower nibble of the storage byte |
| Palette location | Immediately follows the 10-byte header |
| Typical size | 50 KB - 500 KB (uncompressed 640×480 VGA ≈ 307 KB including palette) |
| Associated OS | MS-DOS (ColoRIX VGA Paint was a DOS-only application) |
| Released | Early 1990s (ColoRIX VGA Paint for MS-DOS) |
| Latest version | RIX3 (extended header; earlier versions use RIX signature) |
| Specification | www.fileformat.info |
SCP conversions
Community Q&A
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