What Is an SRF File?

This article describes the several file formats that use SRF files. It explains how each file is used and how to open or convert it.

What Is an SRF File?

There are several file formats that use the SRF file extension, but the most common one is as a Sony raw image file. These are uncompressed and unaltered, raw image files that Sony digital cameras store photos in, similar to ARW and SR2 files.

The animation software LightWave 3D uses SRF files not for photos like Sony cameras, but to store information on how a 3D surface should appear, such as the color, transparency, and shading. These are called LightWave surface files.

Another use for some files with this extension is as Server Response files, also known as Stencils. They're used by .NET applications and may store script tags and HTML content.

If not any of the above, the file could instead be any of the following: a project file used by Golden Software's Surfer application, associated with Samsung smart TVs, a Steinberg resource file, a Siebel repository file, a collection of images used by Garmin GPS systems to express a 3D perspective of a vehicle on the device, or a Rational Acoustics Smaart data file.

How to Open an SRF File

Given the variety of applications that use SRF files, it's important to have some sort of idea what format yours is in before you try opening it.

As stated above, most SRF files are Sony raw images, so if you got your file from a digital camera, or you know for sure that it's that type of picture file, you can open it with Able RAWer, Adobe Photoshop, PhotoPhilia, or ColorStrokes. Some other popular photo and graphics tools will probably work as well.

Open LightWave Surface Files

If the SRF file is used with LightWave 3D, then that's the program you need to open it. The options this format stores are the ones found in LightWave 3D's Surface Editor window, so that may also be how you open it.

Open Server Response Files

Use Microsoft's Visual Studio software to open Server Response files. It should be clear whether it's in this format because they're just plain text files, meaning you can also open them in a free text editor like Windows Notepad, or even in a web browser (e.g., Firefox or Chrome).

Open Surfer Projects

Is your SRF file a Surfer project? The Golden Software Surfer program can open it. Files created in an older version of the software can be opened in the newer versions, but not vice versa; they're forward compatible but not backward compatible.

Open Steinberg Resource Files

Steinberg Resource files are used with Steinberg's Cubase application to change the way that the interface and plug-ins look. While the Cubase program itself is used to work with audio files, the SRF file format is just an archive of images.

View Garmin Vehicle Images

If you suspect that it's a vehicle image used with Garmin GPS systems, it can be "installed" to the device by copying it to it. You can do this by transferring it into the /Garmin/Vehicle/ folder on the GPS device. If you aren't sure if the SRF file is in this format, open it with Notepad++—the first word should say GARMIN.

Open Other SRF Files

We don't have any information on using SRF files from a Samsung TV, except that they're either encrypted video files or a type of firmware. You might have luck decrypting the recording with DeSTRoi. Keep reading through the next section below for a possible way of converting the video file to a different format.

Siebel repository files use this extension as well. You can read a bit more about them on Oracle's About Repositories page.

Rational Acoustics Smaart data files are used by the audio measurement program called Smaart.

How to Convert an SRF File

Only the trial is free to use, but Ivan Image Converter can convert Sony photos to formats like TGA, PNG, RAW, JPG, and PSD. You can also use the free, online SRF converter at Convertio.

Convert LightWave Surface Files

It's doubtful that LightWave surface files can be saved to any other format because they're closely related to the LightWave 3D software only, and so would be pointless to exist in any other format. However, if you can convert one, it's most likely possible through a File or Export menu within that program.

Convert Server Response Files

Visual Studio's server response files are just plain text, so while you can convert them to any other text-based format (e.g., TXT or HTML) with most text editors, doing so would stop the file from working with the .NET application.

Convert Garmin Vehicle Images

If you want to convert your Garmin SRF vehicle file to a PNG image in order to see what the vehicle pictures look like, you can use this online converter from "nuvi utilities". Just upload it to that site and select Convert it! to have it converted to PNG. The result is a wide image of 36 different perspectives of the vehicle that the GPS device can use together as a 360 degrees view of the vehicle.

Convert Samsung TV SRF Files

SRF files may be a form of an encrypted video file that has been saved to a Samsung TV. If so, you might find useful this tutorial at IvoNet.nl for converting it to an MKV video file. Once it's in that format, you can use a free video converter if you want it to ultimately be saved as an MP4 or AVI video.

Convert Other SRF Files

As for any other format that uses the SRF file extension, the same concept applies as it does with LightWave surface files—the software that opens it is more than likely able to convert the file, but if not, it's likely that the files really shouldn't be in any other format than the one it's currently in.

Still Can't Open the File?

If none of these programs seem to open your file, check the file extension again. You could be misreading it, which means you might be trying to use an incompatible program to open the file.

SRT, ERF, WRF, and SWF files, for instance, have a very similar extension but have nothing to do with these formats, so they might not be able to open with the same software.