Cue sheet (computing)

Computer file format

A cue sheet, or cue file, is a metadata file which describes how the tracks of a CD or DVD are laid out. Cue sheets are stored as plain text files and commonly have a filename extension. CDRWIN first introduced cue sheets,

In October 2023, a vulnerability was discovered in the libcue library, which parses cue sheets on Linux systems with GNOME desktops. The exploit could give an attacker code execution rights on GNOME systems.

An entire multi track audio CD may be ripped to a single audio file and a cue sheet. However, software audio players and hardware digital audio players often treat each audio file as a single playlist entry, which can make it difficult to select and identify the individual tracks. A common solution is to split the original audio file into a series of separate files, one per track. Another approach is for the audio player to support the cue sheet directly. This may involve providing a new playlist (for example, an extra window) for the contents of the cue sheet, or adding an entry for each track directly into the main playlist.

A cue sheet is a plain text file containing commands with one or more parameters. The commands usually apply either to the whole disc or to an individual track, depending on the particular command and the context. They may describe the layout of data to be written, or CD Text (metadata). The original specification of the cue sheet syntax and semantics appears in the CDRWIN User Guide.

CD ripping programs normally offer the option of creating a separate file for each audio track, with the (pre)gap portion of a track placed at the end of the preceding track's file. This coincides with normal playback operation – the beginning of each file is the beginning of a track, not the gap preceding it – and with the layout described in the disc's table of contents, which doesn't specify gap information at all. The cue sheet format, as specified in the CDRWIN Users Manual, This non conforming cue sheet format, intended only for burning CDs with EAC, is not supported by some other pieces of software, such as the media player foobar2000, which allows the use of cue sheets as playlists.