Drop a protobuf file here
Parsed locally — never uploaded. Protobuf binaries have no schema embedded — fields decode as field N unless you attach the .proto above.
What is a Protobuf viewer?
Protocol Buffers (protobuf) is Google's compact binary serialization format, widely used for gRPC APIs, Kafka messages, and service-to-service communication. Unlike Avro or Parquet, the wire format carries no field names — this tool decodes files entirely in your browser, either as a best-effort raw decode (field numbers and inferred types) or, if you attach the matching .proto schema, with real field names and types.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I view a protobuf file without a .proto schema?
- Yes. Protocol Buffers' wire format doesn't embed field names — only field numbers and wire types — so this tool decodes it "raw": each field shows as field N with a best-effort type (string, number, nested message, or bytes), the same approach tools like protoc --decode_raw use.
- How do I see the real field names?
- Attach the .proto file that defines the message using the "Attach .proto schema" panel — it's parsed entirely in your browser (no protoc install needed), and you can then pick which message type to decode the file as.
- Does this tool support a stream of multiple protobuf messages in one file?
- Yes. If the file is a concatenation of length-delimited messages (the common "delimited stream" shape), it's automatically detected and shown as a table, with each row a decoded message.
- Is my protobuf file uploaded anywhere?
- No. Both the file and any .proto schema you attach are parsed entirely in your browser — nothing is uploaded or sent to a server.