AF File

What are AF files and how to open them

Are you having problems opening an AF file or are you simply curious about its contents? We're here to explain the properties of these files and provide you with software that can open or handle your AF files.

What is an AF file?

AF files have multiple uses, and MVP Paint Animation Format is one of them. Read more about the other uses further down the page.

MVP Paint Animation Format

We have not yet analyzed in detail what these files contain and what they are used for. We're working on it.

How to open AF files

Important: Different programs may use files with the AF file extension for different purposes, so unless you are sure which format your AF file is, you may need to try a few different programs.

While we have not verified the apps ourselves yet, our users have suggested three different AF openers which you will find listed below.

Last updated: August 17, 2026

All known file formats using extension .AF

While MVP Paint Animation Format is a popular type of AF-file, we know of 2 different uses of the .AF file extension. Different software may use files with the same extension for different types of data.

SerenityOS Application File Format

SerenityOS Application File Format is a configuration file used by SerenityOS to describe how applications are discovered, categorized, and launched. These files are written by the operating system developers (or application authors contributing to SerenityOS) and are read by the OS's desktop environment when populating menus, application lists, and GUI launchers. Its purpose is to let the system know what executable to run, what category the application belongs to (e.g. Graphics, Utilities), and metadata like the application's name.

When developing or installing a new program in SerenityOS, an .AF file is placed alongside the executable in /res/apps/ (or equivalent directories). The OS reads the file to register the application in its GUI interface - assigning its name, category, icon (if specified), and which binary file to execute. Typically users never need to edit these files unless customizing how the system displays or groups applications.

Technically, each file begins with a header section using INI-style syntax. The first bytes are the ASCII string [App].Name= at offset 0, identifying the beginning of the "App" section. Keywords such as EXECUTABLE and CATEGORY appear elsewhere within the file to define which binary to launch and how to categorize the application.

Various apps that use files with this extension

These apps are known to open certain types of AF files. Remember, different programs may use AF files for different purposes, so you may need to try out a few of them to be able to open your specific file.

Help us help others

File.org helps thousands of users every day, and we would love to hear from you if you have additional information about AF file formats, example files, or compatible programs. Please use the links below or email us at submit@file.org to discuss further.