GHO File: Ghost Disk or Partition Image

Quick facts

Extension

.gho

Format

Norton Ghost Image

Category

archive

MIME type

Not reviewed

Standard / developer

Broadcom / Symantec

Open with

Ghost Explorer

What is GHO?

Ghost images preserve disk or partition data for imaging workflows. The .gho file may be the start of a multi-file image rather than a complete backup by itself. Opening an image for inspection does not verify that it can be restored successfully.

How to open GHO

Use version-compatible vendor software and work on a copy. Opening does not prove recovery integrity.

Common uses and compatibility

• Store a Ghost disk or partition image for supported recovery workflows

Things to check

• Public structure, MIME and signature facts remain unreviewed; compatibility depends on Ghost version and image health.

Technical details

Signature

Not reviewed

Encoding

Not reviewed

Container

Proprietary Ghost image

Compression

Not reviewed

Public specification: no public spec.

How to browse a GHO file

Use Ghost Explorer from a compatible Ghost Solution Suite release. Keep any related .ghs files with the .gho image and work from a copy. Browse the image before considering a deployment or restore operation.

Sources: Broadcom Ghost Explorer GHO support article · Broadcom: Ghost Error 651 and GHS span naming

GHO vs GHS: do I need every segment?

GHO is the image entry file; GHS files are additional spans of a split image. A missing span can prevent restoration. Do not concatenate segments with generic file tools or discard them as duplicates.

Sources: Broadcom: Ghost Error 651 and GHS span naming

Why does Ghost Explorer crash or ask for the last segment?

First confirm the segment set and software version. Broadcom documents a specific Ghost Explorer issue in GSS 3.3 RU4 with an upgrade to RU5 or later as its resolution. A last-segment prompt can also occur with a damaged image. These are documented cases, not a diagnosis of every file with that message.

Sources: Broadcom Ghost Explorer GHO support article · Broadcom: last-segment error in Ghost Explorer

Can I convert GHO to ISO or restore it directly?

Renaming a GHO image does not turn it into an ISO. Browsing an image and deploying it to a disk serve different purposes. Preserve the source and confirm the selected target with your Ghost recovery procedure before starting a write operation.

Sources: Broadcom Ghost Explorer GHO support article · Broadcom: Ghost Error 651 and GHS span naming

Related formats

• Ghost Split Image Segment

  Additional image spans required when a Ghost image was split into multiple files.