convert

ECU files come in different "packages". Two common ones — Intel HEX (.hex) and Motorola S-Record (.s19, .srec, .mot) — are not raw bytes at all: they are text files where every line carries an address plus a small safety number (a checksum). The ECU's actual data is hidden inside that text.

convert unpacks those text formats into a flat raw binary — plain bytes, ready for every other tool. A raw dump that needs no unpacking passes through unchanged.

Think of it as unzipping a file: the tools inside OpenRemap usually do this automatically when they read a file (they look at the content, not the file name), but convert is for when you want the unpacked bytes in your hand, saved as a file.

When do I need it?

• When a tool gives you HEX or S-Record and you want the flat .bin.
• When you want to force the interpretation. Rare, but a raw dump that starts with text-looking bytes can be told apart with --format.
• When you just want to know what kind of file you have and how big the real data is — convert reports it.

Try it (2 minutes)

openremap convert boot.hex -o boot.bin

  Intel HEX      4,194,304 bytes
  Saved to boot.bin

(If the input is already raw, it passes through unchanged and the message says so.)

Understanding the answer

Every other OpenRemap command (identify, cook, tune, scan-maps…) reads the content and unpacks automatically — so if a .hex file "just works" everywhere, this is why.

For developers

The same normalisation is one method of openremap.api:

Where to go next