Canon PowerShot G3 corrupted RAW image
File type: Digital camera RAW file
Files with the apu file extension are associated with the Canon PowerShot G3 digital camera. An apu file contains a corrupted RAW image created when the camera cannot write the image correctly.
Found 2 different file type records with the same apu filename suffix.
File type category:
Digital camera RAW file
Date updated: October 6, 2026
The apu file extension identifies a damaged RAW image from a Canon PowerShot G3 camera. The file is typically created when the camera encounters a problem while writing an image to a CompactFlash card.
An apu file is not a separate image format intended for normal use. Its contents must be recovered or repaired and then renamed to the appropriate Canon RAW extension before compatible image software can use it.
Canon digital cameras commonly use the crw and cr2 file extensions for RAW images. The PowerShot G3 uses the CRW format, so a successfully repaired image will normally be saved or renamed with a .crw extension.
An apu file usually cannot be opened directly in an image viewer or RAW editor because it is damaged. Make a copy of the file and attempt recovery with software that supports damaged Canon RAW images or CompactFlash-card recovery.
After successful repair, rename the recovered file to the appropriate Canon RAW extension, normally .crw for a PowerShot G3 image, and open it with software that supports Canon CRW files. Renaming the original file alone does not repair its contents.
An apu file cannot be converted normally while it remains corrupted. It must first be recovered or repaired; conversion is possible only after the image data has been restored.
Once repaired and available as a Canon CRW image, it can be exported by compatible RAW software to a standard image format such as JPEG or TIFF. If recovery fails, there may be no usable image to convert.
File type category:
Audio and sound file
Date updated: October 9, 2026
The apu file extension is associated with Audacity, cross-platform software for recording and editing sound. It may have been used by an older version of the program, although it is also commonly a mistyped extension for the standard aup project files used by Audacity.
An apu file may therefore contain Audacity project data, but its extension alone does not establish that it is a valid Audacity project. The format is not a standard current Audacity project extension.
Try opening the file with Audacity on Microsoft Windows, Apple macOS, or Linux. If Audacity does not recognize it, make a copy of the file and rename the copy from .apu to .aup, then try opening the copy as an Audacity project.
Renaming the extension does not repair a damaged file. If the file came from Audacity but cannot be opened after renaming, it may not be a valid Audacity project.
There is no known direct conversion for a genuine .apu file. If the file is actually an Audacity .aup project, open it in a compatible version of Audacity and export the audio to a suitable sound format.
Apps designed for playing apu files:
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