All about SID Files

The SID file type is primarily associated with MapInfo.

SID	File extension: SID
	File type:	specialized data file

What is a SID file?

SID files mostly belong to MapInfo. SID files are not a single file type but represent different data formats.
For most cases, these files are used as MrSID raster images in GIS and map applications. The MrSID format stores large, high‐resolution images with advanced compression. This makes it easier and faster to load parts of a big image without having to process the entire file.
Other uses include:

A Commodore 64 music file used by SID players to emulate the original sound chip.

A MATLAB system identification data file for simulation and model analysis.

A JPEG 2000 variant where the file behaves like a JP2 image file.

Game data and disk images used by software like PowerISO.

A Garmin search index file that contains point‐of-interest data.

FilExt.com note: You can visit resources like Precisely support or SIDplayer to find software that opens these files. In every case, it is vital to know the file’s origin so that you use the right application to view or edit it.

How to open a SID file

You need a suitable software like MapInfo to open a SID 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 SID file correctly, try to right-click or long-press the file. Then click "Open with" and choose an application. You can also display a SID file directly in the browser:. Just drag the file onto this browser window and drop it.

Online SID File Viewer

Choose your .sid file to view

or drag and drop it here

Online File Viewer

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How to convert SID files to JPG, PNG, SVG, PDF, ...

If you want to convert or edit a SID file, you can use our free Online SID File Converter (powered by Convert.Guru):

To do this, click the button "Choose your .sid file to view" on this page.
After your file is opened in browser,
click "Save as..." in the menu.
Then choose the image format (e.g. JPG, PNG, TIFF, PDF, ...) you want.
Download the converted file.

Programs that open and convert SID files:

MapInfo
See the previous paragraphs to learn more about the main application. SID files are often referred to as MapInfo raster images because this type of file is primarily created or used by this software.
Commodore64 (C64)
Note: audio/prs.sid is the official registered MIME type for this file type; audio/psid is the file type being considered for use by .SID files under BeOS. The file that starts with PSID is a PlaySID file while the RSID file is a RealSID file. The RSID format was designed to contain tunes that are not PlaySID compatible, but strictly require a real C64 environment to run. The Mime types used with this association are: audio/prs.sid, audio/psid, audio/x-psid, audio/sidtune, audio/x-sidtune. The identifying characters used for this association are - Hex: 50 53 49 44, ASCII: PSID, or, Hex: 52 53 49 44, ASCII: RSID. Related links: Player, File Format
LizardTech (MrSID Photo) by LizardTech, Inc.
MrSID (pronounced Mister Sid) is an acronym that stands for multiresolution seamless image database. It is a file format (filename extension *.sid) developed and patented by LizardTech for encoding of georeferenced raster graphics, such as orthophotos. The identifying characters used for this association are - Hex: 6D 73 69 64, ASCII: msid. Related links: Free Plug-in Viewer, Wikipedia MrSID Page
ScanIt (Document) by AmsterCHEM
ScanIt is a program that facilitates extracting data from scientific graphs. You may import graphs in various image formats or simply by pasting an image (screenshot) from the clipboard. Scanit also provides the opportunity to crop an image. This file is image and meta data for ScanIt (obtaining data from digitized graph). The old file format is binary and program specific (header bytes: ScanIt 1.0 Document file. DO NOT EDIT\r\n). The new file format is ZIP file containing image.png and data.xml (compatible with ScanIt version 1.04 and higher).
Systems Management Server (SMS) (Software Inventory Delta) by Microsoft Corporation
With SMS you can provide your organization a change and configuration management solution to deliver relevant software and updates to users of Microsoft and third-party applications.

SID file format details:

Every file has a defined file format, i.e. how the data is arranged in the file. The initial characters of a file are called signature, sometimes also referred to as "magic bytes". The signature can be used to infer the file format. If the file extension or signature does not match the file format, errors will occur when opening or editing the file. When there is a problem with a file, the first step to solving it is to determine the file format. Below you will find our evaluation of the SID files:

The SID file extension includes different formats for the applicable programs. The following file formats are most commonly found in SID files:

60% of all SID files are LizardTech MrSID photo files. The contents of these files cannot be read by a human; only a computer program can interpret the data. SID files are between 2 MB and 190 MB in size. The file type was created 10 years ago, but is still used today. The following keywords are characteristic: msid. These files are often associated with ortho.
10% of all SID files are SID tune files. The content consists of illegible binary data, which can only be read and interpreted by the associated programs. Most of these files are 2 KB to 26 KB in size. Certain words are almost always found in the files, such as PSID.

All the rest of the SID files (30%) have different formats, such as Real C64 SID tune, MATLAB, NXy and IJn. These files sometimes refer to disk, warfare, modern, duty, call or callof. If you want to find out which format your SID file belongs to, just click on the button "Choose your .sid file to view".

Technical Data for SID File Extension

File classification:

Raster Image

Identifier:

Hex: 6D 73 69 64, ASCII: msid (provided by TrID database)

Related files:

jp2, ecw, mat, psid, c64, map, sdw, zip, sim, iso, aux, xml, sis, etc, cid, jpg, txt, sig, sdocx, tif

Mime type:

audio/prs.sid, image/x-mrsid-image, text/plain

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: ACDSee.sid, FileType: ACDSee SID Image, AppName: ACDSee

ProgramID: FotoCanvas2.SID, FileType: FotoCanvas SID Image, AppName: FotoCanvas2
EXEFile: FotoCanvas2.exe

ProgramID: IrfanView.sid, FileType: IrfanView SID File, AppName: IrfanView
EXEFile: i_view32.exe

ProgramID: sid.Document, FileType: MrSID Image Document, AppName: MrSID Application
EXEFile: MRSIDV~1.EXE

ProgramID: ACDSee.sid
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\ACD Systems\ACDSee\5.0\ACDSee5.exe %1

ProgramID: ACDSee.SID
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\ACD Systems\ACDSee\ACDSee.exe /dde

ProgramID: Deli.SID
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\DeliPlayer\deliplayer.exe

ProgramID: pcA.pcASidFile
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\Symantec\pcAnywhere\SidEditor.exe %1

ProgramID: sid.document
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\MOZILL~1\FIREFOX.EXE -url %1 %1

ProgramID: FotoCanvas2.SID
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\ACD Systems\FotoCanvas\2.0\FotoCanvas2.exe /dde

ProgramID: sid.Document
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe %1

ProgramID: sidImage
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe -nohome %1

ProgramID: XnView.Image
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\XnView\xnview.exe %1

ProgramID: sid.Document
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\LIZARD~1\MRSIDV~1\MRSIDV~1.EXE %1

ProgramID: foobar2000.sid
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\foobar2000\foobar2000.exe

ProgramID: IrfanView.sid
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\IrfanView\i_view32.exe

ProgramID: IrfanView.sid
EXEFile: %ProgramFiles%\IRFANV~1\i_view32.exe

Show all 17 listings To Top

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

How to solve problems with SID files

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