What is a .CPIO file?
CPIO is a Unix archive stream, used in Linux boot images and RPM packages.
- Did you know
- cpio is one of the oldest Unix archivers and still lives inside Linux initramfs images.
- The name is short for “copy in and out”, after the way the tool streams files through standard input and output.
- cpio first appeared in AT&T’s PWB/UNIX in the 1970s and is the archive format the RPM package manager wraps its files in.
- What Analyser reads
- Read software packages and Unix archive streams: Python wheels, NuGet, Chrome/Firefox/VS Code extensions, Electron ASAR, Windows APPX/MSIX, Debian (DEB), RPM, RubyGems, conda, Anki, Microsoft CAB, cpio and ar - showing name, version, dependencies and the file tree.
- Depth of analysis
- .CPIO is an identification-grade format: Analyser recognises it from its bytes and decodes the header metadata it carries, rather than opening it in a full viewer. Formats that do get a full viewer are marked "Full" on the formats page.
- Open a .CPIO file
- Drag a .CPIO file onto the Analyser home page (or tap to pick one). It is identified entirely in your browser - nothing is uploaded, there is no account, and it works offline once installed.