Opening BAG Files

The BAG file type is primarily associated with ROS.

BAG	File extension: BAG
	File type:	data container

What is a BAG file

BAG files mostly belong to ROS. BAG files are most commonly used by the Robot Operating System (ROS) to record and store data from sensors and system logs. They function as a container that holds time-stamped messages, which can later be played back for debugging or analysis.
Some of these files use the HDF5 structure to hold bathymetry or hydrographic data. For these, a tool like HDFView is used to inspect the contents.
Other versions of BAG files store data for applications such as instant messaging (like AIM contact lists) or binary records from tracing tools. For ROS-based BAG files, additional details and usage info are available at the ROS Bags wiki.
When working with a BAG file, consider the following points:

Identify the source: Check if the data is from a ROS system, an HDF5 dataset, or another application.
Select the right tool: Use rosbag commands for ROS files or HDFView for HDF5-based data.
Backup before changes: Keep a copy of the original file before editing or conversion.

How can I open a BAG file?

You need a suitable software like ROS to open a BAG file. Without proper software you will receive a Windows message "How do you want to open this file?" or "Windows cannot open this file" or a similar Mac/iPhone/Android alert. If you cannot open your BAG file correctly, try to right-click or long-press the file. Then click "Open with" and choose an application. You can also display a BAG file directly in the browser:. Just drag the file onto this browser window and drop it.

Online BAG Text Viewer

Choose your .bag file to analyze

or drag and drop it here

Online File Viewer

✈

Read our privacy guarantee in Filext’s terms and privacy policy

Please allow ads on our site

This helps us keep our servers running. Then re-upload your file to view it.

Click here to see how to disable the ad blocker for filext.com

Programs that open and convert BAG files:

ROS
See the previous paragraphs to learn more about the main application. BAG files are often referred to as ROS data files because this type of file is primarily created or used by this software.
AOL (6 Organizer) by America Online, Inc.
AOL Instant Messenger ((AIM) Buddy List) by America Online, Inc.
The identifying characters used for this association are - Hex: 41 4F 4C 20 46 65 65 64 62 61 67 20, ASCII: AOL Feedbag .
Bag
The identifying characters used for this association are - Hex: 42 41 47 31 31, ASCII: BAG11. This file format is classified as Archive. Related links: File Format
Emperor: Battle for Dune Archive
Related links: Dragon UnPACKer
NoX
Related links: Dragon UnPACKer
OS/2 Netfinity Manager Sysinfo File
File is ADAPTER.BAG.
PMMail 2000 (Mail Index File) by Blueprint Software Works
PMMail is an E-mail client. PMMail 2000 is the Windows version and PMMail/2 is the OS/2 version. PMMail/2 is now owned by V.O.I.C.E. while PMMail 2000 has been retained by its developer Blueprint Software Works.
PMMail/2 (Mail Index File) by V.O.I.C.E. (Virtual OS/2 International Consumer Education)
PMMail is an E-mail client. PMMail 2000 is the Windows version and PMMail/2 is the OS/2 version. PMMail/2 is now owned by V.O.I.C.E. while PMMail 2000 has been retained by its developer Blueprint Software Works.

BAG format details:

Every file has a defined file format, i.e. how the data is arranged in the file. The file format can be deduced from the file extension and the signature. If the file extension does not match the file format, double-clicking on the file will cause an error upon opening. Exact knowledge of the format is therefore important in order to solve problems occurring in files. Below is our analysis of the BAG files:

BAG is a very common file type and mainly uses a special format. The two most common formats are as follows:

80% of all BAG files start with the bytes #ROS crucial for this file format. These are binary files, so they do not contain words or text. BAG files are between 380 KB and 1 GB in size. The file type is relatively new. The keywords #ROSBAG V2.0, chunk_count=, index_pos= and conn_count= are typical for these files. The file name 20180601.bag or 2020-06-01 10-30.bag is characteristic of these files. These files are often associated with data, capture, dataset, markers, onlythermal, bagfile, orig, simulation, release, indoor and drone.
4% of all BAG files save the data in HDF5 file format. HDF5 is short for Hierarchical Data Format version 5. It is an open source file format for storing and organizing large amounts of data. They consist of illegible, cryptic characters. The average file size is 27 MB with most files being between 200 KB and 320 MB in size. Certain words are almost always found in the files, such as TREE. Files like these are sometimes connected to mllw, combined, cube, loch and sdtp, and often consist of personal data.

The remaining 16% of all BAG files are different files with different signatures, often, for example, AOL Instant Messenger buddy list, Westwood game data Archive, XML, JSON, gab and UPGD. Sometimes used for autopost, turtle, localization, detection, recording, udacity, camino, sample, drive, group or video. If you want to find out which format your BAG file belongs to, just click on the button "Choose your .bag file to analyze".

Technical Data for BAG File Extension

File classification:

Data

Identifier:

Hex: 41 4F 4C 20 46 65 65 64 62 61 67 20, ASCII: AOL Feedbag (provided by TrID database)

Related files:

bag, h5, hdf5, aim, active, zip, abi, sal, gz, bak, ply, txt, aut, mov, arl, pages, pag, bz2, skr, tar, htm, xlf, idx, sam, blt, a11, bin, dat

The following listing is compiled from the database produced by the 'Associate This!' program, selected data from the main FILExt database and file extension information submitted by users.

ProgramID: DUP5.Files
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\Dragon UnPACKer 5\drgunpack5.exe

ProgramID: SimplyID.Document
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\SimplyID\SimplyID.exe

a bag data container is a special file format and should only be edited and saved with the appropriate software.

How to solve problems with BAG files

Associate the BAG file extension with the correct application.
Update your software that should actually open data containers. Because only the current version supports the latest BAG file format. Search, therefore, e.g. on the manufacturer website after an available ROS update.
To make sure that your BAG file is not corrupted or virus-infected, get the file again and scan it with Google's virustotal.com.
Click here to open your .BAG file online - secure, fast, and no downloads needed.