Can a SPINE Binary File Be Fully Restored to Its Original Project File?

KKen7595 · 6일 전

I have a question about SPINE and its binary file format. I have a binary file that was originally exported from SPINE, and I’m wondering if there’s a way to reverse the process and recover it as an editable SPINE project file.

If recovery is possible, will the restored SPINE file be identical to the original project? Specifically, if I export the recovered file again, will it match the original binary file exactly—including the skeleton structure and formatting? Or could there be deviations and inconsistencies?

If anyone has experience with this or knows of any official methods or third-party tools that can help, I’d really appreciate your insights. Thanks in advance!

Spinebot · 6일 전

Recovering a Spine project from a binary file is possible, but it may not be identical to the original project file. You can import the binary file into Spine using the "Import Data" feature, which allows you to create a new project file from the binary data. However, the binary format is less forgiving than JSON, and some information might not be perfectly preserved during the import process. This means that while the skeleton structure and animations should be largely intact, there could be minor deviations or inconsistencies compared to the original project file. It's generally recommended to keep the original .spine project files for the most accurate preservation of your work.

KKen7595 · 6일 전

Additionally, if I had exported the project as JSON along with the binary file, would that allow for a complete restoration? My goal is to fully restore the project without any loss or modifications. Is this achievable?

Misaki · 6일 전

Ken7595 Please read our blog post below first. You will find most of the answers there:
Blog: Importing skeleton data

As described in the troubleshooting section of this article, some information will be lost. For example, the bone icon information is not included in the exported skeleton data, as it is only needed in Spine, so an imported skeleton will use the default icon for all bones. In this sense, it is not possible to fully restore a project from skeleton data without loss or modification. Therefore, it is always recommended to keep the original Spine project.

Nate · 5일 전

The other big reason to keep the project file is you can only import into the same version of Spine. This means you'll likely run an old version to import, save a project file, and then open that with a new version. It's much easier to save the project file.