R is a statistical language used heavily in data science. While R scripts are typically plain text (.R), they can be saved or distributed in ways that require decompilation or unpacking.
Some REBOL scripts are "encapped" or compressed into a binary executable or binary file.
Decompilation Process:
Before you decompile a .r file, consider the law. The Progress License Agreement typically prohibits reverse engineering:
“Customer shall not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software.” decompile progress .r file
However, if the software was developed internally by your own company and you simply lost the source code, most courts view decompilation for maintenance or interoperability as fair use (citing EU Software Directive 2009/24/EC and US Sega v. Accolade).
Safe path:
Sometimes developers save R variables or functions into a file using save(). The extension might be .r, .rda, or .rds.
Decompilation/Extraction Steps:
| Target Format | Recommended Tool | Difficulty | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | R Data (.rds, .rdata) | R Studio / Base R | Low | | Compiled Lua (.luac) | unluac / luadec | Medium | | Generic Binary (.r) | Ghidra / IDA Pro / Cutter | High | | Game Archives (.r) | QuickBMS / 010 Editor | Medium-High |
.r files are plain text files containing R code. Unlike compiled languages that produce binary executables, R code is interpreted line by line. This means you don't have a traditional compilation and decompilation process as you might with languages like C or C++. R is a statistical language used heavily in data science