VST File Extension

What is the .VST file type?

The primary function of the .vst filename extension relates to the Microsoft Office Visio Template (.vst) file type and format. Microsoft Office Visio is a vector graphics editor included in the commercial Microsoft Office suite. In Visio, templates are used to add custom shapes, pre-define formatting or settings, and introduce a common style to Visio drawings.

The .vst file is a Visio template, a regular Visio document (.vsd) saved as a reusable template (.vst). It is a binary Microsoft's Composite Document V2 file. Visio templates can be saved in any location accessible to the user, usually the Documents folder. However, for the template to appear in the "New – Create from template" list, the .vst file must be saved in the "Program Files\Microsoft Office\Visio..\....\Solutions" folder.

Besides Visio, VST templates can be opened using other software such as LibreOffice. Since Visio 2013, a different XML-based template format (.vtx) is used by default.

As an abbreviation for 'Virtual Studio Technology,' the .vst extension also occurs as a label for VST Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) plugins on the Apple Mac OS X operating system. Here, the .vst extension is assigned to directories, not files. For instance, the "BC Gain 3 VST(Stereo).vst" directory (from the Blue Cat's Gain Suite) would contain its module's files. On Mac OS X, such VST plugins are normally installed into the "/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST" folder.

On Microsoft Windows, on the contrary, the vast majority of VST plugins comes as Windows-specific dynamic-link libraries (.dll). Windows-style and Mac OS X-style VST plugins are incompatible.

The .vst extension also relates to the TARGA Bitmap Image (.tga, .vst, .vda, .icb) file type/format. TARGA (Truevision Advanced Raster Graphics Adapter) and VISTA were the names of the high-end graphics boards manufactured by Truevision, Inc. The devices used their own 24/32-bit bitmap image format, often referred to as TARGA or TGA. Here, the .vst file is a TARGA bitmap image. TARGA images (.tga, .vst, etc.) can be opened and created/exported by many graphics editors and viewers, CAD systems, and office applications.

Software to open or convert VST files

Internet Explorer

 

Windows® Internet Explorer

 

LibreOffice by The Document Foundation

 

Microsoft Office

 

Adobe Photoshop by Adobe Systems, Inc.

 

Free File Viewer Pro

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