WMA Audio
| Format | WMA Audio |
|---|---|
| Short name | WMA |
| Category | media |
| Platforms | Windows |
| Crush support | Supported (MediaParser) |
| Status | Reviewed |
| Last reviewed | 2026-10-04 |
Forensic relevance
Windows Media Audio — Microsoft proprietary audio format stored in the Advanced Systems Format (ASF) container. ASF is GUID-based: each object begins with a 16-byte GUID and size field. The Header Object contains metadata objects: title, author, copyright, creation date, and codec information. Four codec variants: WMA Standard (lossy), WMA Pro (multichannel/hi-res), WMA Lossless (bit-perfect), and WMA Voice (low-bitrate speech). DRM-protected WMA files (.wma with Windows Media DRM) cannot be decoded without a valid device-bound license — the license store on the original device may be required for decryption. Common on older Windows systems, Windows Phone devices, and Zune players. Rare on modern mobile devices — presence may indicate Windows Phone origin or legacy media library transfer.
Signatures
| Offset | Hex | ASCII (non-printable as .) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| offset 0 (0x0) | 30 26 B2 75 8E 66 CF 11 A6 D9 00 AA 00 62 CE 6C | 0&.u.f.......b.l | ASF Header Object GUID (shared with WMV; distinguished by stream type) |
Known extensions
.wma, .asf
References
- ASF format overview (Microsoft) https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/wmformat/overview-of-the-asf-format
- ASF specification (Microsoft) https://download.microsoft.com/download/7/9/0/790fecaa-f64a-4a5e-a430-0bccdab3f1b4/ASF_Specification.doc
- WMA format description (Library of Congress) https://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/fdd/fdd000027.shtml
- ASF format description (Library of Congress) https://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/fdd/fdd000067.shtml
- Windows Media Audio overview (Wikipedia) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Media_Audio
Cite this entry
Crush Format Reference, “WMA Audio”. https://kalink0.github.io/crush-forensics/formats/wma/ — source: crush/data/build_formats_db.py at commit 640a2a9928f4e36a976b89901512a8dce824d093, built 2026-10-21 06:46:19 UTC.
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