CAN File

What are CAN files and how to open them

Are you having problems opening a CAN 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 CAN files.

What is a CAN file?

CAN files have multiple uses, and CAN Embroidery Format is one of them. Read more about the other uses further down the page.

CAN Embroidery Format

The CAN Embroidery Format is a design-outline file format used by Husqvarna Viking's older digitizing software (such as VIP or 3-D/5-D Digitizing Creator). It saves the shapes, curves, color assignments and object outlines of an embroidery design but does not contain full stitch data needed for the machine to sew the entire design. Its primary purpose is for editing, combining, or transforming design elements within the digitizing software before exporting to a machine-ready stitch file.

It is created by Viking's or Husqvarna Viking's design-outline editor tools (e.g. 5D Design Creator or VIP Digitizing) when working on embroidery art, object shapes, fills and color outlines. Later this .CAN file is either inserted or imported into a full embroidery file where the editor assigns stitches and commands. Designs saved in this format can be resized, mirrored, rotated or edited further, but cannot directly control the stitching machine.

The Husqvarna Viking / mySewnet software family can load or insert .CAN design-outline files via the Insert command under digitizing features. If a .CAN file includes a background picture, that picture is not preserved when inserting into newer designs. When a .CAN file from older software is opened in newer 3-D digitizing tools, object outlines may change slightly due to improved handling of control points in newer versions.

Files in this format begin with the two-byte signature AA FF at offset 0. Within the files appears the ASCII string "SCOLOURSTITCH" which serves as an internal identifier.

How to open CAN files

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

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

Last updated: August 25, 2026

All known file formats using extension .CAN

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

Cantor Song

Cantor Song files store song data from the music-sequencing software "Cantor Song (version 1.x)" written for the Atari ST by Boris Pradarutti. These files represent a sequenced composition, including musical events and arrangement data, created in that program so that playback exactly mirrors what was composed within Cantor Song.

Such files are saved by Cantor Song and later opened or loaded by the same program. The work flow is: a user composes and arranges tracks and musical events inside Cantor Song, then issues a save command; that produces the data in the Cantor Song format. In Cantor Song one can edit events, adjust sequencing, save songs, then load them back for further editing or performance.

The format is identifiable by its header: it begins with the ASCII string "CantorV1" at the start of the file, followed around byte-12 by a newline byte (0x0A). Those bytes help programs recognise Cantor Song version 1.x files.

Various apps that use files with this extension

These apps are known to open certain types of CAN files. Remember, different programs may use CAN 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 CAN file formats, example files, or compatible programs. Please use the links below or email us at submit@file.org to discuss further.