SWF File Structure

SWF version files are binary files with different types of elements concatenated together in the order shown below:

Header
FileAttributes tag
Definition tag or Control tag
Definition tag or Control tag
Definition tag or Control tag
... 
End tag

Short descriptions of SWF file elements are:

• Header - The first element in a SWF file that contains the SWF signature, version, and other overall information.
• FileAttributes tag - The second element in a SWF file that defines characteristics of the SWF file. FileAttributes tag is required for SWF version 8 and later versions and optional for earlier versions.
• Definition tag - An element in a SWF file that defines one data character like a shape, a text, a bitmap, a sound, etc.
• Control tag - An element in a SWF file that performs an action on defined data characters and changes execution flow.
• End tag - The last element in a SWF file that ends the SWF file.