What is an XAF file?
An .XAF file generally contains structured data in an XML format. The most common use is the XML Financial Audit File (based on the Dutch Auditfile standard). Accounting platforms like Exact Online use these files to store and transfer financial audit records.
Another major use for the .XAF extension is in 3D animation. Autodesk uses the 3ds Max XML Animation File format in Autodesk 3ds Max to save skeletal animation data. Open-source 3D tools like the Cal3D library also use .XAF files to store character animations.
Other uses of the XAF format
While most .XAF files contain text, some systems use them as archives. For example, Sega arcade systems use .XAF files as audio archives to store game sound effects. The extension is also used by Web Depo for Affirm Deposition Transcript files.
How to open XAF files?
Because .XAF files can belong to completely different programs, you must know the file's origin to open it correctly. Financial audit files open directly in Exact Online. Animation files open in Autodesk 3ds Max or compatible 3D software.
However, because the most common .XAF files are written in standard XML, you can safely inspect the raw contents using a text editor like Notepad++ or Visual Studio Code.
View XAF files online
Because the .XAF extension has multiple possible meanings, we recommend using viewer.online/xaf to identify the actual format of your file.
viewer.online/xaf analyzes .XAF files to identify their exact format and creator software, shows which programs can open the file, and usually previews it.
Because .XAF files predominantly use the known XML format, viewer.online/xaf can safely open and display them online, eliminating compatibility problems.