Macromedia FreeHand Document
image/x-freehand
Released 1988
· by Altsys / Aldus / Macromedia
The image/x-freehand MIME type represents document files created by Macromedia FreeHand (and earlier versions by Altsys and Aldus), a highly popular 2D vector graphics editor from the late 1980s through the early 2000s. FreeHand was extensively used for desktop publishing, illustration, and web design layout. Following Adobe's acquisition of Macromedia in 2005, FreeHand was discontinued in 2007 in favor of its direct competitor, Adobe Illustrator. The proprietary binary format stores scalable vector paths, typography, and layout data, but is now considered obsolete.
Technical Specifications
.fh.fh4.fh5.fh7.fh8.fh9.fh10.fh11.ft11
NoneDeflate (Optional in later versions)
application/x-freehandimage/freehand
Magic Bytes & HTTP Headers
AGD1, AGD2, AGD3, AGD4
Browser Support Matrix
| Browser | Status | Min Version |
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Not Supported | — |
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Not Supported | — |
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Not Supported | — |
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Not Supported | — |
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Not Supported | Legacy |
Advantages & Limitations
- Historically one of the most powerful and intuitive vector editors on the market, praised for multi-page support long before Adobe Illustrator implemented it
- Files are generally compact and self-contained
- Completely abandoned proprietary format; Adobe actively blocked native import in modern versions of Illustrator
- No support in modern web browsers; must be converted to SVG
- Versioning fragmentation means parsers must account for wildly different binary structures depending on the specific .fhX extension used
Developer Code Snippets
File Detection Steps
How to programmatically detect a image/x-freehand
file by reading its raw bytes:
- 1 Later versions of FreeHand files (FH8 through FH11) typically begin with the ASCII signature 'AGD' (Aldus Graphic Document) followed by a version digit, e.g., 'AGD3' for FreeHand 10 or 'AGD4' for FreeHand MX (11).
- 2 Earlier versions (FH3 to FH7) have varied, complex binary headers and often rely heavily on the file extension (.fh3, .fh4, etc.) for identification.
- 3 The format is deeply proprietary and effectively requires the libfreehand C++ library to parse the internal node structures programmatically.
Software Support
Conversion Tools
Share & Embed
[](https://freewebptojpg.com/mime/image/freehand)
<iframe src="https://freewebptojpg.com/mime/image/freehand/embed" width="100%" height="280" style="border:1px solid #cbd5e1;border-radius:8px;" title="FreeHand Specs"></iframe>
JSON API
All data on this page is available as a free, open JSON API. Use it in your project, documentation, or tooling.
GET https://freewebptojpg.com/mime/image/freehand.json
Open JSON
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a FreeHand (.fh11, .fh10) file?
It is a legacy vector graphics project file created by Macromedia FreeHand. It contains scalable paths, text, and page layouts commonly used by graphic designers before Adobe discontinued the software in 2007.
How can I open a Macromedia FreeHand file today?
Modern versions of Adobe Illustrator no longer support FreeHand files natively. The best modern, free solution is to use Inkscape or LibreOffice Draw, which utilize the open-source 'libfreehand' library to import and display legacy FreeHand documents.
Why does my file have an extension like .fh8 or .fh11?
Unlike modern software that uses a single unified extension (like .ai or .psd), FreeHand appended the version number directly into the file extension. For example, a file created in FreeHand MX (Version 11) uses the .fh11 extension.