An ARF file doesn’t represent just one format, though most often it refers to Cisco Webex’s Advanced Recording Format, which contains more than standard media; instead of behaving like an MP4 with simple audio–video tracks, a Webex ARF can include screen-share streams, audio, sometimes webcam video, and metadata such as chat logs that guide playback inside Webex, making regular players like VLC or Windows Media Player incompatible with it.

The typical way to handle `.arf` is by loading it into the Webex Recording Player/Webex Player and exporting an MP4, with issues usually tied to a wrong player version, and ARF support being stronger on Windows; in rare situations `.arf` is Asset Reporting Format, which you can spot by opening the file in a text editor—XML means a report, while binary junk and large size suggest a Webex recording.

An ARF file is usually understood as a Cisco Webex Advanced Recording Format recording made when someone captures a Webex meeting or webinar, designed to preserve the full meeting experience rather than just a plain video, which is why it can store audio, webcam footage, screen sharing, and metadata like navigation points that help Webex play everything in sequence; these extras make the format Webex-specific, so common players like VLC or Windows Media Player won’t play it, and the standard fix is to open it in the Webex Recording Player/Webex Player and convert it—usually to MP4—unless the file is corrupted, the wrong player version is used, or ARF support behaves more reliably on Windows.

To get an ARF file open, rely on Webex’s own Recording Player because it’s the only tool that can interpret the metadata properly, particularly on Windows; once the player is installed, double-click the `.arf` or manually select it through Open with or File → Open, and if it fails to load, you’re likely facing the wrong player version, in which case a new download or a Windows machine usually solves it, allowing you to convert it to MP4 afterward.

One simple method to determine the ARF type is to check its readability in a basic text editor—if any plain-text app shows clean, structured information such as XML declarations or tag-based formatting, it’s likely a report/export file used by security or compliance systems, but if the editor presents messy, unreadable binary characters, that’s a strong sign it’s a Webex recording file that only Webex tools can interpret.

An additional quick hint is to check its overall magnitude: Webex recording ARFs often balloon into tens or hundreds of megabytes, even gigabytes, while report-style ARFs stay much smaller because they’re text-driven; match this with the origin—recordings coming from Webex pages and report files coming from compliance or auditing exports—and you can usually identify the correct type rapidly and open it with the proper program.