What is the LBX file format?
.lbx is a file associated with Visual FoxPro database management software. .lbx files store label and format definitions in the form of a dBASE table - each record describes one element of the label layout (a field, a line of text, a picture, or a border), along with its position, size, font, and a data expression. The file also contains information about which database entries should be used when printing labels. Labels are typically used for serial printing, and a well-defined .lbx file drives the layout precisely.
An .lbx is always paired with a companion .lbt memo file that holds long text and expression values that do not fit in the fixed-width table columns. Both files must be kept together - the label designer cannot open one without the other. Under the hood, .lbx uses the same report-engine schema as Visual FoxPro report forms (.frx / .frt), and it begins with a standard dBASE table header byte (0x03), making it readable in any DBF-aware viewer.
FoxPro was originally designed as a stand-alone database management system. After Microsoft acquired FoxPro, the product was renamed Visual FoxPro and tightly integrated with Windows. Visual FoxPro fully supports the SQL query language alongside its native xBase commands. Microsoft released Visual FoxPro 9.0 in 2004 - the final version of the software - and ended mainstream support in 2010, followed by extended support in 2015. The format is now legacy; .lbx files are best opened with Visual FoxPro 9.0 or a compatible DBF viewer where available.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWA VFP .LBX is passive table data and cannot execute code on its own. The wider caution is that Visual FoxPro applications can contain executable program code (.PRG/.FXP) and the runtime is unsupported/unpatched since 2015 - run legacy FoxPro apps from trusted sources only. The .LBX file itself is safe to inspect. Beware 'free LBX viewers' from ads; if your file is actually a Brother P-touch label, use Brother's official P-touch Editor.
Format details
in a nutshell- Brother P-touch Editor Label - The most common modern .lbx: a ZIP/XML label-printer file (label.xml + prop.xml). Open with Brother P-touch Editor; rename to .zip to inspect.
- EngView / other label layouts - A few packaging/label tools also write .lbx; unrelated to Visual FoxPro.
Programs that open LBX files
Windows3 apps
Visual FoxPro 9.0
Paid Open the project and run MODIFY LABEL mylabel to edit, or LABEL FORM to print. Discontinued product - only if you still have an installation.
Visual FoxPro runtime / OpenLBM-style tools
Open-source Community VFPX tools and the VFP runtime can open/convert FoxPro report and label tables when the full IDE is unavailable.
dBASE/DBF viewer (e.g. DBF Viewer Plus)
Free Because an .LBX is a .DBF table, a DBF viewer shows the raw records (inspection only - it will not render the printed label). Technical details
deep spec| File structure | dBASE/FoxPro `.DBF`-format table; each record describes one label-layout object such as a field, text string, line, or picture |
| Companion file | Always paired with an `.lbt` memo file that stores long text and expression values; both files are required and must be kept together |
| Magic bytes | `0x03` at offset 0 - standard dBASE table header byte indicating a non-memo `.DBF` table variant |
| Byte order | Little-endian |
| Encoding | Binary (dBASE/FoxPro fixed-width table fields with memo references into the `.lbt` file) |
| Typical file size | 2 KB - 200 KB for the `.lbx`; the paired `.lbt` memo file adds further size depending on expression complexity |
| Layout engine | Shares the same internal schema as Visual FoxPro report forms (`.frx` / `.frt`); both use the VFP report-band engine |
| Layout object fields | Each table record encodes position coordinates, width, height, font name, font size, and a data expression or literal value |
| Labels per file | One label layout definition per `.lbx` file |
| MIME type | `application/octet-stream` (no dedicated registered MIME type exists for this format) |
| Host environment | Windows (Visual FoxPro 9.0); earlier versions ran on MS-DOS under FoxPro 2.x |
| Support status | Legacy - Microsoft ended extended support for Visual FoxPro in 2015; no successor format was released |
| Released | 1990s (FoxPro / Visual FoxPro label designer; format derives from the dBASE label .LBL) |
| Latest version | Visual FoxPro 9.0 (2004; last release before Microsoft discontinued VFP) |
| Specification | learn.microsoft.com |
LBX conversions
Community Q&A
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