TechKnowable
SWF (Small Web Format pronounced “Swiff”) files contain audio or video files and animations, all compressed so that they can be shared online. They are also called ShockWave Flash because they are created from Adobe Flash software.
However, as Flash has become an obsolete format, Windows is now unable to automatically play a SWF. In this tutorial, we give you two quick solutions to open your .swf in Windows.
1. Open a SWF file using Internet Explorer
To view your .swf files, we suggest you go through Internet Explorer which, by nature, performs tasks through Flash.
Before opening your files through your browser, make sure Flash is enabled:
- Open your browser.
- Click on the cogwheel at the top right of the search bar.
- In the drop-down menu that appears, go to Manage Add-ons → Toolbars and Extensions.
- Select Shockwave Flash Object.
- In Status, click Enable → Close.
Once this is done:
- Choose your .swf file, right click on it and select Open with …
- Go to the More apps option
- Select Internet Explorer → OK.
If the .swf file uses ActiveX, then a warning message may be sent to you. To work around this, just click Allow .
You should now be able to view your multimedia or .swf animation files.
2. Open your .swf files with dedicated software
If you’d rather use a third-party app to run your SWFs, then there’s plenty to choose from and most are free.
SWF File Player, for example, is compatible with Windows. Its interface is simple, you just have to select the file to play and click on Play.
You can resort to the very popular VLC player , it also supports SWF folders, among many others.
Finally, there are various web applications for converting .swf to MP4, so that it can be viewed on any device.
The choice is vast and, again, at no cost to you, for example: Online Convert and Files Conversion do a great job.
