Revision as of 15:47, 9 November 2024 by Robertvokac (talk | contribs)
EXE is the executable file format developed by the Microsoft company for the following operating systems: Windows, DOS, OS/2.
The EXE file contains series of instructions for the processor to be executed.
Magic number of the EXE file format is: 0x4d 0x5a
Formats of the EXE file
Summary of EXE File Formats by Operating System
DOS
- 16-bit DOS MZ Executable (MZ)
* The original DOS executable format, identifiable by the ASCII letters "MZ" at the start of the file. * Later formats retain an MZ DOS stub header for backward compatibility.
- 16-bit New Executable (NE)
* Introduced in multitasking MS-DOS 4.0. * Used in 16-bit OS/2 and Windows, identifiable by "NE" in ASCII.
OS/2
- 32-bit Linear Executable (LX)
* Introduced in OS/2 2.0 and identifiable by "LX" in ASCII. * Runs only on OS/2 2.0 and higher.
- Mixed 16/32-bit Linear Executable (LE)
* Introduced in OS/2 2.0, identifiable by "LE" in ASCII. * Used for VxD drivers on Windows 3.x, OS/2, and Windows 9x.
Windows
- 32-bit Portable Executable (PE)
* Introduced with Windows NT, structured as "fat binaries" with a DOS-specific and Windows-specific section. * The DOS stub (a minimal DOS program) displays "This program cannot be run in DOS mode." Custom DOS stubs can be created. * The Windows part starts with "PE\\0\\0" (ASCII for "PE" with two null bytes).
- 64-bit Portable Executable (PE32+)
* Introduced with 64-bit Windows, an extended PE format with wider fields. * Often allows code to run in either 32-bit or 64-bit mode. * Includes a DOS stub for compatibility.
Other Formats
- Additional EXE formats include W3 (used in WIN386.EXE), W4 (compressed LE files in VMM32.VXD), and others like DL, MP, P2, and P3 (used by Phar Lap extenders).
External links
https://eshagalawatta.medium.com/analyzing-structure-of-executable-programs-exe-files-821b2d531a4