What is the PX file format?
Files with the .px extension belong to the category of database files and hold the primary-key index for a Paradox table.
.px files contain a B-tree index mapping primary key values to physical record positions in the companion .db table file. This format is supported by Paradox, which facilitates the management of relational databases in Windows environments. Paradox is a component of the WordPerfect Office suite from Corel - originally developed by Borland International before Corel's 1996 acquisition. Data from .px files are used in the process of communicating with and navigating the database. Paradox software enables the creation of new tables, modification of existing ones, and many other operations on database contents; in all these processes, the .px index is maintained automatically alongside the .db data file.
A .px file cannot exist independently - it is always paired with its companion .db table. Moving or deleting .px separately corrupts the table. Accessing .db and .px files requires the Borland Database Engine (BDE), a 32-bit runtime not officially supported on 64-bit Windows 10 or 11 without compatibility wrappers. Paradox 11, shipped with Corel WordPerfect Office X3 (2006), was the last major release.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWBinary index file; contains no executable code. Poses no security risk. Note: Paradox password protection (stored in the .DB table header) encrypts data access, not the index itself, and the BDE password scheme is considered weak by modern standards.
Format details
in a nutshell- Pixel Image File (various editors) - Some pixel-art and image editors use .px for custom pixel image formats; unrelated to databases.
- Doget Pixel Image - Doget image editor uses .px as its native raster image format.
Programs that open PX files
Windows3 apps
Corel WordPerfect Office (Paradox)
Paid Open Paradox, navigate to the folder containing the .DB and .PX files, open the .DB table - Paradox uses .PX automatically for indexed lookups.
Microsoft Access (via ODBC/BDE)
Paid Link or import Paradox tables via ODBC using the Paradox ODBC driver (requires BDE or ODBC Paradox driver installed; 32-bit only).
DBF Viewer Plus (for migration)
Freemium Can read some Paradox .DB tables; export to CSV or DBF for migration. Does not guarantee full compatibility. Technical details
deep spec| File role | Primary-key index for a Paradox .db table; stores a B-tree mapping primary key values to physical record positions in the companion table file |
| Encoding | Binary, little-endian |
| Container structure | Paradox proprietary B-tree index container: fixed header block (file-type marker, record count, key field count, block size, root block pointer) followed by index data blocks |
| Header type marker | First two bytes: 03 00 - primary index identifier; part of the shared Paradox binary header format |
| File dependency | Cannot exist or function independently; always paired with the companion .db table file - deleting or moving .px separately corrupts the table |
| Format versions | Paradox table format versions 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 5.0, and 7.0; version is stored in the .db table header, not in .px itself |
| Typical file size | 1 KB - 10 MB, proportional to the number of indexed records |
| Table family | A complete Paradox table family shares a base name: .db (data), .px (primary index), .mb (memo blobs), .val (validity constraints), .fam (family list), .x01/.y01 per secondary index |
| Runtime requirement | Borland Database Engine (BDE) - 32-bit only; not officially supported on 64-bit Windows 10/11 without compatibility wrappers |
| Platform | Windows and legacy DOS; Paradox was never available for macOS or Linux |
| Encryption | None on .px directly; optional password protection can be applied to the companion .db table, which indirectly protects the indexed data |
| ODBC access | Third-party ODBC drivers can read Paradox .db/.px tables on systems without a full BDE installation, enabling migration to modern databases |
| Released | 1985 with Paradox 1.0 by Ansa Software; format stabilized under Borland Paradox 4 (1992) |
| Latest version | Paradox 11 (shipped with Corel WordPerfect Office X3, 2006) - last major update |
| Specification | www.nknabe.dk |
PX conversions
Community Q&A
asked by usersNo questions yet - be the first to ask about PX files.
