CP2 File

What are CP2 files and how to open them

Are you having problems opening a CP2 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 CP2 files.

What is a CP2 file?

CP2 files have multiple uses, and PSFTools CodePage Map is one of them. Read more about the other uses further down the page.

PSFTools CodePage Map

PSFTools CodePage Map files store mappings between character codes and Unicode codepoints, used by the PSF Tools suite to define how fixed-width bitmap fonts (PSF1 / PSF2) map their glyphs to Unicode. They support both single-byte and multibyte character sets, including non-standard or extended codepages. These mapping files let PSFTools correctly interpret which glyph in a font corresponds to which Unicode character when displaying or converting fonts.

PSFTools produces these mapping files (named with this format) when it installs or generates external codepage definitions. The file "codepage.txt" within PSFTools releases documents how codepages are identified by number or name, including ISO-8859, standard CP-numbered codepages (e.g. "CP437"), and custom nonstandard sets supplied by the user. PSFTools uses the map during font conversion or manipulation so that Unicode directories get built correctly, or when extracting glyphs for a given codepage.

The format begins with a signature at the very start of the file: the ASCII string "PSFTOOLS CODEPAGE MAP" including a CRLF and a 0x1A (substitute) character, at offset zero.

How to open CP2 files

Important: Different programs may use files with the CP2 file extension for different purposes, so unless you are sure which format your CP2 file is, you may need to try a few different programs.

While we have not verified the apps ourselves yet, our users have suggested ten different CP2 openers which you will find listed below.

Last updated: September 2, 2026

All known file formats using extension .CP2

While PSFTools CodePage Map is a popular type of CP2-file, we know of 2 different uses of the .CP2 file extension. Different software may use files with the same extension for different types of data.

SNATCH-IT Disk Image

SNATCH-IT Disk Image files store a captured image of a floppy disk together with its copy protection metadata, allowing exact restoration of both normal and protected disks. They were produced by the SnatchIt utility from Software Pirates, Inc, which worked alongside Central Point Software's Copy II PC to add hard-disk image saving and loading features that Copy II PC originally lacked. SnatchIt enabled backup and later re-flashing of disks to physical floppy media.

The process involved using Copy II PC to read and duplicate disk content (including protections via hardware tricks to bypass them), while SnatchIt intercepted or extended that functionality in order to write the image to hard disk in the .cp2 format and to write it back out to floppy when needed. These images include low-level disk and controller state so as to preserve behavior that simple file copying cannot.

Files begin with the ASCII header SOFTWAREPIRATESRelease starting at byte offset zero (hex-values 53 4F 46 54 57 41 52 45 50 49 52 41 54 45 53 52 65 6C 65 61 73 65 20). This identifies them as genuine SnatchIt disk image files associated with the Copy II PC/SnatchIt toolset.

Various apps that use files with this extension

These apps are known to open certain types of CP2 files. Remember, different programs may use CP2 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 CP2 file formats, example files, or compatible programs. Please use the links below or email us at submit@file.org to discuss further.