How to open an MDX file, or Goodbye, cluttered shelves

The MDX format is already interesting because it can stand for different types of files. This extension is used both as a database index file and as a Rational XDE model file. However, such cases are so rare that the likelihood of meeting them is very, very small. Most often, mdx is related to disk images and is an image created using Daemon Tools. Most often, such images are used to distribute electronic copies of discs containing games and applications. So any computer user must know how to open an MDX file – after all, sooner or later he will still have to face it.

Where did this format come from and why use it

The MDX file format is a reincarnation of the mdf + mds combination now implemented in a single file. Remember, perhaps, such formats? The mdf format file stored data, and it weighed quite a lot, while the mds file weighed just a couple of kilobytes and contained only data about the disk itself. Now these two files are merged into one – MDX, so the confusion inherent in the old version of the format has been avoided. As mentioned above, this format is used to distribute electronic copies of discs via the Internet or external drives. In addition, you can store backup copies of important disks in the same format. So, for example, if the disc has to be used quite often (as is the case with games or applications that do not run without a disc), it would be logical to use its electronic copy, which, thanks to the virtual drive of the same Daemon Tools, will be perceived by the operating system as a real disk. So after all, what program to open the MDX file?

How to open it?

So, you downloaded the game, the program, they sent you a backup copy of the disk – it doesn’t matter. The main thing is that there was a need to open the MDX file. How to be in such a situation? You will need to install one of the third-party programs that support working with this format. Here are the most popular ones:

• Daemon Tools 4.35.6 and above. This application is "native" to the MDX format, so there can be no problems with support. Of course, if your image is not corrupted or the original disk was not damaged before the copy was made.
• Alcohol 120%. Perhaps the most famous program for all gamers who had to run the game from a disc. Allows you to easily connect a disk image and work with it like a real one. The good thing is that it supports a large number of files, and 100% compatibility with mdx.
• Ultraiso. This application is known as the most popular tool for creating and editing disc images. Anyone who works with images at least occasionally is familiar with this application. Supports most modern formats, including mdx.

All of these applications allow you to create and edit MDX files, so you won’t have any problems writing to a blank disc. Yes, any mdx image, if it is not damaged, can be written to a blank disk of a suitable size and you will have a copy of the disk. In addition, they all have built-in functions for emulating cd/dvd drives. Thanks to this, you can use electronic copies of your discs in the same way as if they were inserted into the drive.

Probably at least one of these applications is familiar to most of you. And this means that you knew how to open an MDX file, it’s just that the MDX extension baffled you. But now we know that this extension is a fairly popular format that has already become a classic, just in a new package.