A .crdownload file is a temporary file extension used by the Google Chrome web browser (and Chromium-based browsers like Microsoft Edge, Brave, and Opera) to indicate that a file download is in progress. When you start downloading a file using Chrome, the browser creates a file with the same name as the intended final file but appends the .crdownload extension. This file acts as a placeholder and stores the partially downloaded data. As the download progresses, the data is written to this .crdownload file. Once the download is complete and verified, Chrome removes the .crdownload extension, renaming the file to its final intended name and extension (e.g., document.pdf). If the download is interrupted or canceled, the .crdownload file remains, indicating an incomplete download. These files are not meant to be opened directly. Attempting to open a .crdownload file will likely result in an error or corrupted data. The presence of a .crdownload file usually signifies that a download was interrupted and needs to be restarted or removed.