ExamDiff Pro tutorial · Binary files
How to Compare Binary Files on Windows
Compare two binary files, such as EXEs or DLLs, byte by byte, see the differences in hex, and choose between an exact comparison and a fast byte-by-byte one.
Video
Steps
- Choose Files | New Comparison (Ctrl+E), select Compare Files at the top of the Compare dialog, and pick two binary files, such as two DLLs.
- Click Compare. ExamDiff Pro detects binary files by itself: a file that is not ASCII (ANSI), UTF-8, or UTF-16 text is compared as binary. If the files differ, a message says so.
- Click Show Details to see both files side by side in hex, with the differences highlighted.
- To change how binary files are compared, choose Tools | Options (Ctrl+J) and open the Binary Comparison page.
- Comparison block size is the smallest difference ExamDiff Pro looks for. The default, 1 byte, is the most accurate. For large files a bigger block is faster but finds fewer, larger differences.
- Use fast byte-by-byte comparison compares each byte with the byte at the same position in the other file, and can show the memory address of each row. It is the fastest mode, but it finds only changed bytes, not inserted or deleted blocks.
- On the same page, set the number of bytes per line, the byte format, and the character set. See Binary options in the help.
- To see two text files as binary, use Files | Compare As | Binary Files. To compare all files as binary, turn on Treat text files as binary in the Compare - Advanced options.
Questions
How do I compare two EXE or DLL files?
Open them in the Compare dialog as in step 1. ExamDiff Pro recognizes them as binary and shows the differences in hex.
Which differences does a binary comparison find?
With the default settings, changed, inserted, and deleted blocks of bytes, down to a single byte. Fast byte-by-byte comparison finds changed bytes only.
Can I compare binary files online?
Yes, with DiffNow, which is powered by ExamDiff Pro.