Thread: Is it possible to convert an exe file back to C?

  1. #1
    Registered User soawperL25's Avatar
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    Is it possible to convert an exe file back to C?

    You may find this a ridiculous question. But, I am wondering if that's totally possible. Let's say you have a simple exe program and you want to see its source code. So, you have to convert it back to .c file, right? Is there a way to do that using some software? I googled some software but it doesn't work the way I expected. I want to see the source code of the exe I have. Can someone help me?

    I hope you get what I mean. Thanks.

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    No, once the duck is duck soup, you can't get him to quack ever again.

    You can reverse engineer an exe, and with a very trained eye, you can reconstruct something that maybe resembles the source code, with a lot of work.

    It's far easier to just look up the algorithm, or pseudo code (if available), and write a new program.

  3. #3
    Algorithm Dissector iMalc's Avatar
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    The short answer is 'no'. You baked a cake and now you want the ingredients back!

    The long answer is that anything's possible if you make enough assumptions.
    It's kinda like looking at all the dead leaves at the bottom of a tree and trying to work out the order in which they fell, and precisely where on the tree they fell from...
    You want to assume absolutely zero wind - hey good for you!
    You want to assume they never collided - whatever you want man!
    You want to assume ever leaf lands overlapping another leaf - whatever floats your boat!
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    Advice: Take only as directed - If symptoms persist, please see your debugger

    Linus Torvalds: "But it clearly is the only right way. The fact that everybody else does it some other way only means that they are wrong"

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    Registered User soawperL25's Avatar
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    That sounds make sense. I guess I won't try to find the source code of the exe I have. I will find the source code itself myself. Thanks

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