How to Convert a Binary-Encoded File to UTF-8 Using PowerShell

Learn how to convert a file that appears to be binary encoded to readable JSON in `UTF-8` using PowerShell. This guide walks you through each step for better file handling without external libraries.
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Converting a Binary-Encoded File to UTF-8 in PowerShell

Have you found yourself plagued by the problem of converting a seemingly binary-encoded file into a readable JSON format using PowerShell? If so, you’re not alone. A common scenario involves grabbing a file, perhaps from a PBIX format, which contains important data, yet it lacks a clear extension. This guide will walk you through a practical solution for overcoming encoding issues so you can efficiently read the contents of your JSON file.

Understanding the Problem

You may come across an encoded file that doesn't directly allow you to convert it into JSON using PowerShell. This usually stems from the file being saved in an encoding format like UTF-16, leading to unexpected characters like NUL characters appearing throughout the data. In essence, these issues can make your JSON unreadable, limiting your ability to extract valuable information.

Key Points of the Problem:

File Origin: Files can be extracted from PBIX archives, and sometimes these files don’t have a recognizable extension.

Conversion Attempts: Changing the file extension or encoding seems to fail, resulting in errors when attempting to parse the data as JSON.

Final Objective: The ultimate goal is to convert it to a readable JSON format in UTF-8 encoding without third-party tools.

The Solution: Force Encoding in PowerShell

The cause of the NUL characters often relates to how PowerShell reads the original file. By default, PowerShell may recognize the encoding incorrectly. To combat this, you can adjust your approach by using specific parameters in your commands.

Step 1: Reading the File with the Right Encoding

You can read the binary file using PowerShell's Get-Content command while explicitly forcing it to understand that the file is encoded in UTF-16. Here’s how you can achieve this:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Step 2: Save the Output as a JSON File

Once you have the content in a readable format, it's time to save it into a new file while ensuring it is encoded correctly in UTF-8. Use the following command:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Summary of Steps

Identify: Determine that your file is likely in the UTF-16 encoding format.

Adjust Read Command: Use Get-Content with -Encoding Unicode to properly read the file.

Convert Content: Use ConvertFrom-Json to handle the content you read.

Save Output: Use Set-Content to write the data back into a new JSON file in UTF-8.

Conclusion

Dealing with encoding issues in files can be quite challenging, especially when working with formats that don’t come with extensions. However, by understanding how PowerShell handles file encoding, you can effectively convert your seemingly binary files into usable JSON format.

By following the steps outlined above, you should now be able to extract the valuable data from your files without needing to rely on external libraries. Take control of your data, and let PowerShell do the heavy lifting for you!