Member Avatar for onestream

So, I have a new computer and old back-up files that I desperately need a document from...problem: the old back was done on Nero Burning, and my new computer does not have the program, and I do not have the program, and all the documents/files on the back up disc are .nco extensions...any ideas? They are "read only" and on a disc, so I can't change the file extensions or rename them.

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Dani AI

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Brief, practical summary tied to the thread: the .nco files on the old disc are Nero BackItUp backup archives (not a mysterious document format). Non‑encrypted .nco archives are ZIP‑based and can be opened by ordinary archivers, but encrypted or version‑specific backups are best restored with Nero itself. (fileinfo.com)

Safer, low‑risk workflow (follows on ’s useful test but adds a few precautions):

  • Copy the .nco files from the optical disc to a local folder first (the disc is read‑only, so any renaming/extraction should be done on disk).
  • Try opening the copied file with 7‑Zip (File Manager or right‑click → Open archive). If that fails to show contents, change the extension to .zip and re-open; many non‑encrypted .nco files are plain ZIP archives under a different extension. If extraction prompts for a password or fails, the backup is encrypted and will need the original password or Nero to restore properly. (7zip.org)

If Nero’s trial installer gets stuck (as reported) or 7‑Zip won’t work:

  • Try an alternative archiver/extractor such as Express Zip, or use Nero BackItUp of the same family/version that created the backup (Nero’s support notes restoring with the original Nero version as the recommended route). If the disc is scratched or drives report read errors, create an image and use a specialized tool (IsoBuster) to extract files from the image. (nchsoftware.com)

Security note: download 7‑Zip only from the official site and avoid look‑alike download pages—trojanized installers have been reported. (7zip.org)

Acknowledgement: ’s confirmation that a free archiver can succeed is on point; the steps above add a safe sequence (copy → inspect → rename → extract → fall back to Nero) and cover encrypted or damaged‑disc cases.

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Member Avatar for gerbil

Ah, a proprietary trap. If you have many such files, you need Nero. If you only wish to use a few at a time, just rclick each and extract to somewhere with WINRAR, or similar. Bulk extraction of a group of files with WINRAR may not extract all files, but may be worth a try. WINRAR is no longer free. Nero uses a compression algoritm [if you left it set so], hence the need for a decompressor like WINRAR. I have not bothered checking exactly which algorithm is used... there are likely free decompressors available which will handle the job. Like 7zip, which I found very good as a general pgm to keep for such zipping/unzipping, but in the end chose WINRAR because it is slightly more comprehensive.
Okay.. I just created some Nero backups, test installed 7zip, and applied it to extracting first one file, then a batch of files, and it succeeded on both counts beautifully. Get 7zip.
The yards I went for you.:)

Edited by gerbil because: n/a
commented: IT IS SO GOOD TO SEE PEOPLE ACTUALLY HELPING EACH OTHER FOR A CHANGE! THANKS, GERBIL! THE EXTRA YARDS ARE SO APPRECIATED! YOU ROCK! +0
Member Avatar for onestream

thanks, Gerbil. I haven't tried it yet, but I did try a trial period of Nero to open them and just got stuck in a loop. I believe it is designed to frustrate me into paying too much for an exclusive program-again! I will try the 7zip, and I owe you one.

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