Burn a BIN/CUE Image with InfraRecorder

Not every disc image is a single ISO file. A BIN/CUE image splits the job in two: the .bin file holds the disc’s raw data, and the small .cue file — the cue sheet — describes how that data is organised into tracks. InfraRecorder 0.53 records both ISO and BIN/CUE disc images, so it can burn these images directly, as long as you give it the pair intact and point it at the right file. Most BIN/CUE failures come from mishandling the cue sheet, not from the burning itself, and this guide explains how to avoid them.

You need InfraRecorder 0.53 from the download page, the complete BIN/CUE pair, and blank media large enough for the image. The program is free under GPL v3, written for Windows 2000 through Windows 7. It is not officially supported on Windows 10 or 11, although many users run it there; the notes in InfraRecorder on Windows 11 about verification are especially relevant when burning images you cannot easily recreate. If your image is a single .iso file instead, follow the simpler ISO burning guide.

The Role of the Cue Sheet

The BIN file alone does not know where its tracks begin and end. The cue sheet is a plain-text file that names the BIN file it belongs to and lists each track with its type (data or audio) and starting position. When you burn the image, InfraRecorder reads the cue sheet first and uses it to lay out the disc correctly. Three practical consequences follow. First, always select the .cue file when burning — not the .bin — or the track layout will be wrong or the burn refused. Second, keep the two files together in the same folder, with their original names: the cue sheet refers to the BIN file by name, and renaming the BIN without editing the cue breaks that reference. Third, never delete the cue sheet after downloading an image, however small and unimportant it looks; without it, a multi-track image in particular cannot be reconstructed reliably.

You can inspect a cue sheet safely by opening it in Notepad. A typical one begins with a FILE line naming the BIN file, followed by TRACK and INDEX lines. If the FILE line names a file that does not match the BIN sitting next to it — a common result of careless renaming — that mismatch is very likely your problem, and fixing the name (or the BIN’s filename) to match is the cure.

Step by Step: Burning the BIN/CUE Image

  1. Check the pair. Confirm the .bin and .cue files are in the same folder, and that the BIN’s file name matches the name inside the cue sheet. Make sure the BIN is fully downloaded — its size should match the source listing exactly.
  2. Insert blank media. Put a blank disc of sufficient capacity in the burner. A BIN file can be slightly larger than the disc’s nominal data capacity because it holds raw sector data; trust InfraRecorder’s size check in the burn dialog rather than the Explorer file size alone.
  3. Open InfraRecorder and choose Write Image. Select the write-image action on the welcome screen, or use Actions > Burn Image.
  4. Select the cue file. In the file picker, choose the .cue file. If the dialog filters by image type and you cannot see the cue file, set the filter to show disc images or all files. Selecting the cue is what tells InfraRecorder to use the track layout; it will open the BIN automatically through the cue’s reference.
  5. Check the burn dialog. Confirm the recorder is the drive with your blank disc, and review the image information — track count and total size should look plausible for the disc you are reproducing. A single-track data image and a many-track audio image read very differently here.
  6. Set the write speed. Choose a moderate speed rather than the maximum, as with any image burn. Version 0.53 fixed a bug where maximum speed was used instead of the selected speed for DVDs, so the speed you pick should be honoured — still, moderate speeds produce more reliable discs on marginal media.
  7. Enable verification. Tick the verify-after-writing option. A BIN/CUE burn that is wrong is usually wrong in its structure, and verification plus a quick test of the finished disc catch that immediately.
  8. Burn and wait. Start the recording and let it finish uninterrupted. When it completes, test the disc for its intended purpose: install from it, play it, or browse its files.

Common Errors, Hedged Honestly

The most frequent problem is the broken pair: the cue sheet names a BIN file that is missing or renamed, and the burn cannot start or cannot find its image. Restore the original names and folder arrangement first. The second is selecting the BIN directly, which bypasses the track information the cue exists to provide — for a simple single-track data image this may appear to work, but for multi-track images, especially audio and mixed-mode discs, the result will be wrong. The third is a truncated BIN from an interrupted download: the burn may start and fail part-way, or verification may fail at the same point each time. Re-downloading and comparing the file size fixes it. Finally, treat single odd errors cautiously — an unfamiliar message with a healthy, correctly paired image is often media- or speed-related, so try fresh media at a lower speed before assuming the image is corrupt.

Related Guides

Single-file images are covered by the guide to burning an ISO file to CD or DVD, and making images of your own discs — in ISO form — is covered in creating an ISO image from a CD or DVD. To duplicate a physical disc end to end without handling image files yourself, see copying a disc on the fly or via an image.

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