Open 3D Files from Windows Explorer
A tiny free helper that makes double-clicking a 3D model — STEP, SketchUp, DWG, glTF, STL, FBX and 28+ more — open it straight in the Innerscene 3D viewer. Your files never leave your PC.
⭳ Download for WindowsVersion 1.0.0 · 2 MB · Windows 10 / 11 · no admin rights needed
Prefer not to install anything? Just drag files into the online viewer — it works the same.
On a Mac? There is a macOS version too.
How it works
Run the installer
It installs just for your user account — no administrator password, no system changes. Windows SmartScreen may warn that the app is unrecognized; click "More info", then "Run anyway".
Pick your file types
A checklist shows the 28 supported formats (60 extensions). Everything not already owned by another app comes pre-selected; change it any time later from the Start menu.
Double-click a model
The file opens in your browser in the Innerscene 3D viewer: orbit, measure, explode, share, or convert it. The file is read locally and is never uploaded.
About the Windows SmartScreen warning
The installer is new and not yet code-signed, so Windows may show “Windows protected your PC” on first run. Click More info, then Run anyway. The helper installs only into your own user profile, makes no system-wide changes, and can be fully removed from Settings → Apps at any time.
What the helper does
- Registers file associations for your account only. File types no other program owns (for example
.stepor.igson most PCs) open in the viewer immediately. - Respects your existing apps. If a type already belongs to another program (say
.dwgwith AutoCAD installed), that program stays the default — the viewer is simply added to the right-click Open with menu, and Windows may ask once which app you prefer. - Keeps your files private. When you open a model, the helper hands the file to your browser over your own machine (a 127.0.0.1 loopback connection). Nothing is uploaded unless you later choose to create a share link.
- Tells you about new formats. The viewer gains formats regularly; when new ones appear, the helper shows a small notification so you can associate them too. There is no background service — the check runs only when you open a file, at most once a day.
- Finds textures that sit beside the model. A 3ds Max scene records the paths of its texture images rather than storing the images, so a
.maxopened on its own is untextured in any program. When you open one from Explorer, the helper looks for those images next to the file and in the usualtextures/mapsfolders, and sends them to your browser together with the scene so it renders as intended. They travel over the same local connection as the model. - Gives each file type its own icon. Associated models show a labelled icon in Explorer rather than one generic square, so a folder of mixed formats stays readable.
File types you can associate
28 formats (60 extensions) today — the list grows as the viewer gains formats, and the helper will offer new ones automatically.
| Format | Extensions | Category |
|---|---|---|
| SketchUp Model | .skp | cad |
| AutoCAD Drawing | .dwg | drawing |
| STEP (ISO-10303-21) | .step, .stp | cad |
| IGES | .iges, .igs | cad |
| glTF Binary | .glb | mesh |
| glTF JSON | .gltf | mesh |
| Wavefront OBJ | .obj | mesh |
| Stereolithography | .stl | mesh |
| AutoCAD DXF | .dxf | drawing |
| IFC (Building) | .ifc | cad |
| Polygon File Format | .ply | mesh |
| LAS / LAZ Point Cloud | .las, .laz | pointcloud |
| 3D Studio | .3ds | mesh |
| Autodesk 3ds Max | .max | mesh |
| Blender | .blend, .blend1, .blend2 | mesh |
| Autodesk FBX | .fbx | mesh |
| 3D Manufacturing | .3mf | mesh |
| COLLADA | .dae | mesh |
| USD / USDZ | .usdz, .usd, .usda, .usdc | mesh |
| VRML | .wrl, .vrml, .wrz | mesh |
| X3D | .x3d, .x3dv | mesh |
| Rhino 3D Model | .3dm | cad |
| Autodesk DWF / DWFx | .dwf, .dwfx | drawing |
| Esri Shapefile | .shp | drawing |
| Parasolid | .x_t, .x_b, .xmt_txt, .xmt_bin | cad |
| Autodesk Revit | .rvt, .rfa, .rft | cad |
| Gerber (PCB Fabrication) | .gbr, .ger, .gtl, .gbl, .gts, .gbs, .gto, .gbo, .gtp, .gbp, .gko, .gm1, .drl, .xln, .exc, .drd | drawing |
| LPKF CircuitPro | .cbf | drawing |
Changing your mind later
- Change which types are associated: open the Start menu and search for “Innerscene 3D Viewer file associations” — the same checklist from the installer reopens.
- Uninstall: Settings → Apps → Installed apps → Innerscene 3D Viewer → Uninstall. Every file association and setting the helper created is removed with it.
Looking for the viewer itself? Open the free online 3D viewer — no install required.