Property Lists
Property lists are XML manifests used to describe various configurations, states, and other stored information. Property lists can be formatted in either ASCII or binary format. When formatted for ASCII, a file can be easily read using any standard text editor.
Binary Property Lists
When formatted for binary, a property list file must be opened by an application capable of reading or converting the format to ASCII.
Mac OS X
Mac OS X includes a tool named Property List Editor. This can be launched by simply double-clicking on a file ending with a .plist extension.
Windows
Two tools can help you view binary property lists:
An online tool at http://140.124.181.188/~khchung/cgi-bin/plutil.cgi can convert property lists to ASCII format. The website is a simple wrapper for an online conversion script hosted at http://homer.informatics.indiana.edu/cgi-bin/plutil/plutil.cgi/.
Source code for an open source property list converter is available on Apple’s website at http://www.opensource.apple.com/darwinsource/10.4/CF-368/Parsing.subproj/CFBinaryPList.c. You’ll have to compile and install the application yourself, and an Apple developer account is required. However, registration is free of charge.
Important Property List Files
The following property lists are stored on the iPhone and may contain useful information:
- /mobile/Library/Cookies/Cookies.plist
Contains website cookies saved from the Safari web browser. These can be a good indication of what websites the user has been actively ...