Файл PKF

.pkf files are generated by Adobe Audition, a professional audio editing application - originally introduced as peak cache files in Syntrillium Cool Edit during the 1990s and carried forward when Adobe acquired Syntrillium in 2003.

Contents of .pkf files

Files with the .pkf extension contain precomputed waveform peak data derived from audio sources such as WAV, MP3, AIF, or FLAC files. This data allows visualization of amplitude on a graph with time on the horizontal axis and sound amplitude on the vertical axis. Rather than re-scanning the full audio on every open, Audition stores arrays of minimum and maximum peak samples per zoom block so the waveform draws instantly. Each .pkf sidecar shares its base filename with the source audio - for example, song.wav and song.pkf sit side by side. Adobe Audition automatically generates .pkf files for audio tracks and new projects, so there is no need to recreate them on every import. Audition also validates each cache against the source file's path, size and timestamp, regenerating it automatically when the audio changes.

Can I delete a .pkf file?

.pkf files are created by Adobe Audition by default upon every audio file import. However, data in such a file is not always needed by users. A .pkf contains no audio - it is a disposable waveform-drawing cache, much like a thumbnail cache for images. Deleting it is completely safe; Audition rebuilds it the next time the audio file is opened. In large projects, accumulated .pkf files can occupy noticeable disk space, which is the most common reason to clear them.