Bin and Cue files, together, constitute one form of image file; in other words, they completely describe the geometry and contents of a standard disk (a game or an application) but - until burned or interpreted with the proper software - they certainly don't appear very useful! Like the ISO files I described on another page, they are very COOL in that they allow people to make high quality back-ups of important disks. Also, files traded on the internet are often in the bin and cue format. So.....bin and cue files are two-part "disk image" files. The bin file is the data (and quite large) and the cue file - essentially a text file - is a tiny file that defines some parameters regarding the disk geometry.

You can find a comprehensive overview of various image files formats and the software required for handling them at: creating and managing disk image files.

A FEW NOTES: The bin and cue format is unique - as far as I know, anyway - in that it allows you to create backups of disks that were burned, originally, as multi-session disks (burned twice, adding data a second time). This format was introduced by Golden Hawk Technologies for use with their burning software (CDRwin).

Also: it is not uncommon to download a bin file to find the cue file is missing! At the bottom of this page you can download a handy little program called MakeCue which will read your bin file and create the accompanying cue file.

Finally, this page reflects my own experience, ONLY and there may be other software, techniques, etc. with which I'm not familiar.

Converting Bin & Cue to Standard Files and Folders

So, if we have a file in the bin and cue format we can do one of the following things to render it usable:

1. Burn it to CD (or DVD) using software that can read the "raw data" (image files are termed raw data) and thereby convert the raw data to plain old files and folders. Generally speaking, only certain CD/DVD burning programs will burn certain types of image files. Following is a list of programs that can be used to burn bin & cue files. This list is very likely not comprehensive and ONLY reflects my personal experience. These programs are typically very easy to use and this page will not get into the details of how they operate.

   UPDATE: This page was written a long time ago and more and more burning programs are available which offer the option to burn various image files - like the bin & cue format. Generally speaking, if you have CD/DVD burning software installed just look for an option to burn image files. Also, once you select this option and browse your computer for the image file (well - it's actually two, related files in this case) your burning software will see the cue file which is associated with the larger bin file. In other words, you will highlight and choose the cue file that goes with the bin & cue set which you are trying to burn (to initiate the burn/conversion process).

   • CDRwin - from GoldenHawk Technologies...great program, easy to use, cheap to register.
   • Alcohol 120% - Highly recommended, exceptional in that it burns ALL TYPES of image files and is incredibly easy to use.
   • AheadNero, or "Nero" - packaged with a lot of hardware (if you've bought a CD/DVD burner recently, you've probably got a copy).
   • Ashampoo - hasn't been around as long as some of the above, very simple, and works great!

2. Alternatively, you can "mount" the image using DaemonTools. DaemonTools is a tiny, freeware program that treats your image file (bin & cue, .iso, .nrg, etc.) as a CD or DVD already sitting in a drive on your computer. "Mounting" the image essentially amounts to opening it with daemontools and slipping it into a "virtual", or fake, cd/dvd drive daemontools creates when installed on your PC. If you're unfamilar with DaemonTools you can read my page which describes the program more thoroughly (and download it, as well), right here.

Creating Bin & Cue Backups

There are only two programs that I have ever used to generate bin & cue disc backups; there may be other programs floating around that will do the same but these are the only ones I have ever used. And, though I mentioned earlier that I wasn't going to get into the mechanics of using particular programs (as they're very easy to use) I've added some breif "how-to" notes below:

• CDRwin - in older versions you simply put a disc in the drive and chose "Extract Disc/Tracks/Sectors". This will create your bin and cue file(s). I presume newer versions use the same sort of terminology and operate just as simply.
• UltraISO - this differs from CDRwin in that it is not burning software. Unlike CDRwin, Alcohol 120%, etc. it has no burning engine to work in conjunction with your CD/DVD drive for the purpose of burning disks. As the name implies it is actually designed to allow for the manipulation of ISO files (another form of image file). However, it will read your CD/DVD, extract the tracks, and give you the option of saving the file in either ISO, BIN & CUE, NRG, or IMG formats. You simply put a CD/DVD in a drive, go to "Tools", and then choose "Make CD/DVD Image". An interface pops up and - as I've mentioned - you simply choose to save the data in bin & cue format.

Software Overview

• DaemonTools: Already described above, this is a terrific way to use your bin and cue file without actually having to burn a CD.
• UltraISO: This program DOES NOT BURN NOR MOUNT BIN AND CUE FILES, however, it does a fine job of creating bin and cue files.
• CDRwin: The bin and cue format was actually introduced by Golden Hawk Technology to work in conjunction with their software, CDRwin. With CDRwin you can burn your bin and cue files to CD (converting them to standard data) and, also, create bin and cue file backups of your CDs. I would assume that recent releases work with DVDs although I have no personal experience in that regard.
• Nero: Nero, or AheadNero will burn bin and cue files. In older versions of Nero you would cancel the "burning wizard" and choose "burn image" (under "file"), as I recall. There are so many different releases of Nero and it's packaged as a 3rd party product with so much hardware that it seems everyone has a copy. Consult your documentation for details on burning these with Nero.
• Roxio: I'm speculating here but I would assume any CD/DVD burning program that comes on two entire disks probably burns bin and cue files. I hate bloated programs of this type and actually I don't know that it will burn bin and cue files - it may not.
• Alcohol 120%: This is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED by 'ol Guy! I love this program due to it's elegant, un-bloated design. Incredibly easy to use, I've never found any type of image file it wouldn't recognize and burn. It has an intuitive drag and drop interface that - I promise - will keep from ever having to consult the help files!

In A Nushtell.....

For creating bin and files I would use either CDRwin or UltraISO. For burning these guys I would use either Alcohol 120% or CDRwin. Daemontools is also a terrific thing to have around for mounting these types of image files (without having to burn them).