DB files are associated with either a database application or a Windows thumbnail cache file. If a file that contains a DB file extension was created using a database program, the contents will typically contain spreadsheet data. In the event the DB file is the latter, then it will contain thumbnail images for the viewer in Windows Explorer or content from folders containing images.
Since there are two different types of DB files, we will start with the .DB file extension that contains database information. These are typically files which are created with a program such as SQLite or browser software such as Firefox or Google Chrome.
How to Open DB Files Associated with a Database
To open DB files associated with a database application such as SQLite, the database browser must be downloaded from a site SourceForge.net. This is one of the largest open source software development sites online. It offers more than two hundred thousand software projects which are built by open source application programmers.
Once you download the database browser software application, which is also known as the SQLite Database Browser, you can extract the contents and proceed to set up the program on your PC by clicking on the executable file. Once you click, you will be stepped through the process of setting up the database browser.
After launching the browser, click on File and then choose Open from the drop-down menu. Click on the DB file you want to access and then press the Enter key. The browser should display the appropriate tables and database structure associated with the DB file.
If you have any problems opening and viewing the DB file, you can also open the file in any text or word processing program that is compatible with Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux.
How to Open DB Files Associated with Windows Thumbnail Cache
If the DB file extension is not related to a database file, the file extension will be displayed as thumbs.db which means it is part of the Windows thumbnail cache. If you have a folder that contains digital images, it is very common to see a thumbs.db file in the folder. The purpose of this file is to prevent Windows from having to render the thumbnail images every time you access the folder. This type of file is typically used with Windows Explorer to help you quickly find files and for any folders that contain images for documents, web pages, and other applications.
To open a thumbs.db file, it is necessary to use an open source program such as Thumbs Viewer or a python script such as Vinetto to view the contents of a thumbs.db folder. These programs are compatible with Windows, Mac OS X and Linux and allow you to extract the thumbnails from the DB folder.
