DB file viewer: how to identify and open a .db file
Have a .db file but don’t know how to open it? First check which app created it. The extension alone won’t tell you the format. If it’s SQLite, use a SQLite viewer; renaming a different format won’t make it work.
Start with the file’s origin
Check which app the file came from and how it was exported. If someone copied it manually, find out whether the app was still running. A downloaded backup, a mobile app database and a Windows thumbnail cache can all have database-like names while requiring different tools.
Look at the beginning of the file with a read-only file inspector. The standard SQLite database header starts with SQLite format 3, followed by a zero byte. The SQLite file-format reference documents the signature. An encrypted SQLite file may not show that header, so absence is not a complete diagnosis.
What about .db3 and .sqlite3?
These suffixes are often used for SQLite, but the producer’s documentation remains the authority. Open a verified SQLite file using a connection pointed to its exact location. Do not accidentally create a new empty database at a misspelled path and conclude the original contained no tables.
Keep a consistent copy
If you see adjacent -wal and -shm files, stop treating the main file as a complete standalone copy of a live database. Prefer the owning application’s export or a SQLite-aware snapshot. See our WAL explanation before moving or deleting sidecar files.
Keep the original unchanged and work with an authorized inspection copy. Renaming a file to .sqlite does not repair corruption, decrypt it or transform Access, DBF, EDB, MDF or Thumbs.db data into SQLite.
List the tables first
SELECT name, type
FROM sqlite_schema
WHERE type IN ('table', 'view')
ORDER BY name;This query lists object names. Choose the relevant table, inspect its columns, then read a limited sample. An unfamiliar app database can contain tokens or private records; export only what the investigation requires.
Open it in plainDB
Select a SQLite connection, choose the verified file and enable read-only inspection. The Mac and Windows builds support SQLite browsing; they are not universal file recovery utilities. If the file is unsupported or encrypted in an unsupported way, use a tool that explicitly supports its format.
Continue with the SQLite opening walkthrough and table and column inspection.