Answers.Body: <p>Well since the protocols creating cbv, cbf and cbh formats are not made publicly available, one will certainly not find any such conversion tool (i.e. unclear how they are encoded to reverse them to pgn).</p>
  
  <p>Other reason maybe that the difference between all these formats is just due to an "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incremental_encoding" rel="nofollow noreferrer">incremental encoding</a>" that is being used, which means that for it to be possible to go backward, to a pgn format, only the chessbase engine can do so!</p>
  
  <p>Until a way around this is found, you can use <a href="http://en.playchess.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">playchess free program</a> or easier the <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20090822130548/http://www.chessbase.com/download/cblight/index.asp?newsid=5654" rel="nofollow noreferrer">chessbase light</a> (which is free), where using </p>
  
  <p><em>choose file->new database and create pgn files</em> </p>
  
  <p>will allow you to obtain pgn formats again. </p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2014-09-28T16:23:30.610Z
Answers.Text: I downloaded CBLight2009 and it has worked. Thanks! PS: there are detailed instructions [here](https://sites.google.com/site/chessdbiphone/support/converting-databases-from-chessbase-format-to-pgn-format).
Answers.UserDisplayName: lodebari
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2014-09-28T11:17:31.960Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2020-03-23T18:44:31.947Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2020-03-23T18:44:31.947Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Ellie
Answers.Body: <p>I wrote <a href="https://github.com/antoyo/uncbv" rel="noreferrer">a cli tool to extract .cbv archives</a>.
  And you can use <a href="http://scidb.sourceforge.net/" rel="noreferrer">scidb</a> to open the resulting .cbh file.
  Scidb will eventually support opening .cbv archives directly.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2018-10-08T17:13:52.747Z
Answers.Text: Reading about it - sounds like it does not actually convert resulting CBH to PGN, does it? Just wanted to double check since it might be misleading given the main question.
Answers.UserDisplayName: Joe
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2018-10-10T15:00:35.283Z
Answers.Text: You indeed need to use the both tools I mentionned. `uncbv` is used to convert the `.cbv` to the files contained in the archive (which could be `.pgn` but is usually `.cbh` with many other files). Then, you can use `scidb` to convert the `.cbh` file to `.pgn`.
Answers.UserDisplayName: antoyo
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2020-01-17T19:09:18.757Z
Answers.Text: It works for me like a charm, thanks for the cli tool !
Answers.UserDisplayName: Olórin
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2018-10-03T11:14:31.017Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2018-10-03T11:14:31.017Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: antoyo
Answers.Body: <p>Here is a simple way to do exactly what you want: </p>
  
  <ol>
  <li>Open the <em>.cbv</em> file in <strong>ChessBase Reader</strong></li>
  <li>Select all the files you would like to convert to <em>.pgn</em> (<strong>Ctrl-A</strong> to select all files)</li>
  <li>Go to <strong>File</strong> at the top left corner and press <strong>Selection To Text file</strong></li>
  <li>You will receive a popup where you should select <strong>PGN</strong> under <strong>Format</strong> and press <strong>OK</strong></li>
  <li>Save the <em>.pgn</em> in your designated area and that's it! </li>
  </ol>
  
  <p>You now have a <em>.pgn</em> database!</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2024-01-08T12:38:47.077Z
Answers.Text: This works! It was a bit hard to find: I opened my Chessbase 14, then I located my database and selected it: this showed the game list. Then I selected `Ctrl+a` all games, then right click and finally `Output->Selection To Txt file`.
Answers.UserDisplayName: Danijel
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2016-02-13T21:01:14.993Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2016-02-13T21:07:59.117Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2016-02-13T21:07:59.117Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Lord Powder
Answers.Body: <p>There is now a CBH to PGN app for Android (only handles CBH files, not cbv) - <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.chess.cb&amp;hl=en" rel="nofollow">https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.chess.cb&amp;hl=en</a></p>
  
  <p>I personally would like to see this available as a command line utility on windows.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2015-04-25T15:42:47.067Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2015-04-25T15:42:47.067Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Joe
Body: <p>While downloading some games I came across some files in ChessBase format:</p>
  
  <ul>
  <li>.cbv</li>
  <li>.cbf</li>
  <li>.cbh</li>
  </ul>
  
  <p>I would like to know if is is possible to convert these files to .pgn format without using proprietary software and how it can be made.</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2016-02-14T18:30:11.327Z
Comments.Text: Remove all special annotations. Copy all games to another pgn file. Simple.
Comments.UserDisplayName: Arun J
Tags: <pgn><chessbase><download-games>
Title: How to convert ChessBase format files to .pgn?
ThreadText: # How to convert ChessBase format files to .pgn?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2014-09-27)
  
  While downloading some games I came across some files in ChessBase format:
  
  * .cbv
  * .cbf
  * .cbh
  
  I would like to know if is is possible to convert these files to .pgn format without using proprietary software and how it can be made.
  
  **Tags:** pgn, chessbase, download-games
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: Remove all special annotations. Copy all games to another pgn file. Simple.  
  
  ---
  
  ## 4 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_2 on 2014-09-28. Score: 6 | Accepted answer
  
  Well since the protocols creating cbv, cbf and cbh formats are not made publicly available, one will certainly not find any such conversion tool (i.e. unclear how they are encoded to reverse them to pgn).
  
  Other reason maybe that the difference between all these formats is just due to an "[incremental encoding](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incremental_encoding)" that is being used, which means that for it to be possible to go backward, to a pgn format, only the chessbase engine can do so!
  
  Until a way around this is found, you can use [playchess free program](http://en.playchess.com/) or easier the [chessbase light](http://web.archive.org/web/20090822130548/http://www.chessbase.com/download/cblight/index.asp?newsid=5654) (which is free), where using
  
  *choose file->new database and create pgn files*
  
  will allow you to obtain pgn formats again.
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_0**: I downloaded CBLight2009 and it has worked. Thanks! PS: there are detailed instructions [here](https://sites.google.com/site/chessdbiphone/support/converting-databases-from-chessbase-format-to-pgn-format).  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2018-10-03. Score: 5
  
  I wrote [a cli tool to extract .cbv archives](https://github.com/username_3/uncbv).
  And you can use [scidb](http://scidb.sourceforge.net/) to open the resulting .cbh file.
  Scidb will eventually support opening .cbv archives directly.
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_4**: Reading about it - sounds like it does not actually convert resulting CBH to PGN, does it? Just wanted to double check since it might be misleading given the main question.  
  > **username_3**: You indeed need to use the both tools I mentionned. `uncbv` is used to convert the `.cbv` to the files contained in the archive (which could be `.pgn` but is usually `.cbh` with many other files). Then, you can use `scidb` to convert the `.cbh` file to `.pgn`.  
  > **username_5**: It works for me like a charm, thanks for the cli tool !  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_6 on 2016-02-13. Score: 5
  
  Here is a simple way to do exactly what you want:
  
  1. Open the *.cbv* file in **ChessBase Reader**
  2. Select all the files you would like to convert to *.pgn* (**Ctrl-A** to select all files)
  3. Go to **File** at the top left corner and press **Selection To Text file**
  4. You will receive a popup where you should select **PGN** under **Format** and press **OK**
  5. Save the *.pgn* in your designated area and that's it!
  
  You now have a *.pgn* database!
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_7**: This works! It was a bit hard to find: I opened my Chessbase 14, then I located my database and selected it: this showed the game list. Then I selected `Ctrl+a` all games, then right click and finally `Output->Selection To Txt file`.  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_4 on 2015-04-25. Score: 2
  
  There is now a CBH to PGN app for Android (only handles CBH files, not cbv) - <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.chess.cb&hl=en>
  
  I personally would like to see this available as a command line utility on windows.
  
  
  ---
  
  