PostScript Font ASCII (.pfa)
Type 1 font (ASCII) · MIME: application/x-font · Category: Font
What is PostScript Font ASCII?
A font format used for: Type 1 font (ASCII). The facts below are drawn from the FileFixPro format dataset, retrieved 2026-08-29.
| Extension | .pfa |
| Full name | PostScript Font ASCII |
| MIME type | application/x-font |
| Category | Font |
| Purpose | Type 1 font (ASCII) |
Specifications for .pfa are maintained by the relevant standards body or the format's originating vendor. FileFixPro summarizes the format from general public knowledge of the format family; we do not republish proprietary specification text. See the Spec & MIME section for authoritative sources (retrieved 2026-08-29).
Official spec & structure
The authoritative definition of .pfa is maintained by its standards body or originating vendor. The references below are real official sources, retrieved 2026-08-29. Where FileFixPro has not independently verified a specific URL, we mark it verify-locally rather than guess.
| MIME type | application/x-font |
| IANA registration | Not in the IANA Media Types registry (vendor/format-defined) |
Official specification sources
No single authoritative URL is cited here. Consult the maintaining standards body or the format's official documentation for the spec — verify-locally.
Source set retrieved 2026-08-29. FileFixPro does not host or mirror proprietary specification text; links point to the originating authority.
Common corruption & repair
When PostScript Font ASCII typically corrupts
Syntax errors
Fix PostScript syntax.
Step-by-step recovery path
- Identify the exact symptom. Note what happens when you open the file — won’t open, partial content, garbled characters, or a wrong-extension mismatch. The symptom drives the next step.
- Make a read-only backup first. Copy the original file to a safe location before any fix attempt, so you can retry if an approach makes things worse.
- Try the source app’s open/repair. Reopen the file in the program that created it (or a compatible one) and use its Open-and-Repair or Save-As option, which often rebuilds a damaged header.
- Apply the format-specific recovery steps. Fix PostScript syntax.
- Use a conversion path as a fallback. If repair fails, convert the format using the in-browser converters linked in the Tools section, then re-open the result.
When recovery is not possible
No software can recover a file that has been overwritten or truncated to zero bytes, a container whose core structure is physically destroyed, or a file that is DRM- or password-encrypted without the key (for example DRM-locked WMA or M4V). In those cases, stop writing to the storage medium, restore from a backup or version history, and — for the only copy of something critical — consider a professional data-recovery service. The steps above are general troubleshooting, not a guarantee of recovery.
Recovery decision tool
Always work on a copy. Steps are ordered from safest to deepest.
My recovery plan — PostScript Font ASCII (.pfa)
- 1. Stop using the file. Make a working copy — never repair the original.
- 2. Start with the app's built-in repair (Open and Repair / recover), then try a second app, then a dedicated recovery tool.
- 3. Follow the recovery path for PostScript Font ASCII: Fix PostScript syntax.
- 4. Verify the repaired copy opens and the content is complete before deleting anything.
Format-specific guidance: Fix PostScript syntax.
Generated at FileFixPro · 2026-09-13
Compare with similar formats
These formats are linked from the FileFixPro dataset as related or same-category neighbors. Open any to see its own spec, repair and conversion path.
.pfb
PostScript Font Binary
Font
Format overview →.otf
OpenType Font
Font
Format overview →.ttf
TrueType Font
Font
Format overview →.afm
Adobe Font Metrics
Font
Format overview →.woff
Web Open Font Format
Font
Format overview →.woff2
Web Open Font Format 2
Font
Format overview →.ttc
TrueType Collection
Font
Format overview →.eot
Embedded OpenType
Font
Format overview →Repair & convert PostScript Font ASCII
Use a FileFixPro tool that actually exists for this format. Repair tools diagnose or recover the file on your device; converters change the container. Nothing is uploaded.
Repair / diagnose this format
File Structure Pre-Check
Runs 100% in your browser — no upload.
Open tool →File Extension Fixer
Runs 100% in your browser — no upload.
Open tool →Related formats you can convert to/from
Sources & attribution
- Format facts (extension, name, MIME, category, purpose, issues, recovery, conversion, related formats) from the FileFixPro format dataset, retrieved 2026-08-29.
- Official specification references in the Spec & MIME section point to IANA, the relevant standards body, or the originating vendor; retrieved 2026-08-29. Unverified items are marked verify-locally.
- Recovery guidance is general troubleshooting — it does not guarantee file recovery, and it is not an endorsement of any specific software.
How this format page is built (spec, repair & links)
Each format page lists the failure modes and recovery steps stored in the FileFixPro format dataset for that extension, plus an official-spec section that links to IANA or the format's standards body/vendor (retrieved 2026-08-29). The interactive recovery decision tool combines your selected symptom and file importance into a graded plan and runs entirely in your browser. Per-format version lineage and unverified spec URLs are intentionally omitted to avoid presenting invented facts — items we have not independently confirmed are marked verify-locally.