What is the DB- file format?
Although .db- files are not that rare to find on a legacy Windows system, they are not meant for you to explore or open. A .db- file is a proprietary internal database generated by Norton NProtect - the file-recovery component of Norton Utilities and Norton SystemWorks (Symantec). These files are undocumented and intended only for the software itself to use.
.db- files live inside the NPROTECT folder (typically C:\RECYCLER\NPROTECT\) and catalog what is stored in the Norton Protected Recycle Bin. If you need to recover any file you accidentally deleted, Norton uses these .db- entries to locate and restore your lost data. You can only utilize them with Norton Utilities installed; without it, you cannot open or view these files at will. They carry no published file signature and are related to generic .db databases and .dat data files.
Norton Utilities and Norton SystemWorks were discontinued in the mid-2000s, so .db- files found today are remnants of legacy installations.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWA .db- is passive data and does not execute, so it poses little direct risk. The practical caution is the opposite of malware: it may be Norton's record of files you deleted, so clearing the NProtect folder discards recovery data - only do so if you don't need to restore anything. On modern systems the file is almost always a harmless leftover from discontinued Norton software. Be wary of third-party "open .db-" or "Norton recovery" downloads; legitimate recovery would have come from the original Norton suite, and unknown utilities for an obsolete format are often PUP/adware.
Format details
in a nutshell- Truncated/renamed .db database - Occasionally a .db- is just a regular database (e.g. SQLite, Thumbs.db) whose extension got a stray trailing dash from a rename or copy operation.
Programs that open DB- files
Windows2 apps
Norton Utilities / SystemWorks (legacy, discontinued)
Paid Historically, only the Norton software itself read these via UnErase / Protected Recycle Bin. The classic suite is discontinued, so there is no current consumer way (or reason) to open a .db- directly.
Hex editor (inspection only)
Free Open in HxD only to confirm what it is (e.g. spot a leading 'SQLite format 3' header on a mis-renamed .db). You cannot meaningfully use the Norton recovery data outside Norton. Technical details
deep spec| Developer | Symantec (Norton Utilities / Norton SystemWorks) |
| MIME type | application/octet-stream |
| Format classification | Proprietary binary database (undocumented internal format) |
| Typical file location | C:\RECYCLER\NPROTECT\ on Windows XP; similar NPROTECT subfolder on earlier Windows versions |
| File signature / magic bytes | None published; no documented binary header |
| Primary function | Catalogs and indexes files held in the Norton Protected Recycle Bin for later recovery |
| Encoding | Binary (proprietary; internal layout not publicly documented) |
| Target operating system | Windows 9x, Windows NT, Windows XP (legacy) |
| Software status | Discontinued; Norton Utilities and Norton SystemWorks are no longer sold or supported |
| Identification method | Location-based: recognized by its NPROTECT folder path, not by file content |
| User accessibility | Internal use only; not designed to be opened or read by end users |
| Related formats | .db (generic database), .dat (data file) |
| Third-party support | No documented third-party applications can read or write this format |
| Released | 1990s-2000s Norton Utilities / Norton SystemWorks (Norton Protected Recycle Bin / UnErase) |
DB- conversions
Community Q&A
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