What is the STR file format?
A .str file is a dBASE Structure List Object - a binary metadata companion generated by the dBASE database family (dBASE PLUS, Visual dBASE, and the legacy DOS lineage). It describes the column layout of a .dbf table: each field's name, data type, character width, and number of decimal places are stored here, independently of the actual row data.
The table's records live in the paired .dbf file. The .str acts as a reusable schema blueprint that dBASE applications can read to validate, recreate, or restructure a table without loading the full dataset. This separation lets developers store or distribute a table definition on its own.
Because a .str holds only field definitions, it stays extremely compact - typically just a few kilobytes regardless of how many records the companion .dbf contains. The format is binary and little-endian, following standard dBASE conventions. There is no widely documented magic-byte signature at byte offset 0; the file is recognized by its role inside a dBASE project rather than by a fixed header stamp.
Modern dBASE PLUS on Windows is the primary environment for working with .str files natively. A .prg program script or the IDE's table designer may generate them automatically. Hex editors can open a .str for low-level inspection. Other files typically present in a dBASE project include .mdx (compound index) and .dbt (memo field data).
Security & safety
RISK: LOWA dBASE .str is passive metadata and won't execute, so it's low risk to open in dBASE or inspect in a hex/text editor. The main pitfall is misidentification: many "str to mp4/avi" converters and download sites target the PlayStation video format, not a database file - running your dBASE .str through them does nothing useful, and untrusted "converter" sites can carry adware. Confirm which kind of .str you have before reaching for a tool.
Format details
in a nutshell- Sony PlayStation STR video / streaming file - On the original PlayStation, .str holds MDEC-encoded full-motion video/streaming data; played/extracted with tools like jPSXdec - unrelated to dBASE.
- Plain-text 'strings' data - Some programs use .str for a simple text strings/resource file (game text, localization), readable in a text editor.
Programs that open STR files
Windows3 apps
dBASE (PLUS / dbDOS)
Paid Open the .str within dBASE alongside its companion .dbf to view or apply the table structure.
A dBASE-compatible database tool (e.g. DBF viewer)
Free Use a DBF/dBASE utility to inspect the table family; note that a .str is structure metadata, best understood next to its .dbf.
Text editor (HxD / Notepad++) - inspection only
Free Open in a hex/text editor only to confirm what kind of .str it is (dBASE structure vs. a plain-text strings file). Not a real viewer for dBASE structures. Technical details
deep spec| Format class | dBASE table-structure definition - stores schema metadata (field layout), not table row data |
| Encoding | Binary, little-endian byte order following dBASE file conventions |
| Companion file | Paired one-to-one with a .dbf table file sharing the same base name in the same directory |
| Stored metadata | Field names, data types (Character, Numeric, Date, Logical, Memo, etc.), field widths, and decimal-place counts |
| Typical file size | Under a few kilobytes - schema only, independent of how many rows the companion .dbf holds |
| Magic signature | No stable documented offset-0 signature; recognized by dBASE application context and .dbf pairing, not a fixed header stamp |
| MIME type | application/octet-stream |
| Developer / lineage | dataBased Intelligence (dBASE); descended from Ashton-Tate dBASE for DOS |
| Operating systems | Windows (dBASE PLUS / Visual dBASE), DOS (legacy dBASE II / III / IV lineage) |
| Version dependency | Internal layout tied to the dBASE engine version that produced the file; not freely interchangeable across all dBASE generations |
| Project role | Reusable table blueprint - allows a table schema to be stored, shared, or applied to recreate structure without the row data |
| Related file types | .dbf (table rows), .dbt (memo field data), .ndx / .mdx (indexes), .prg (dBASE program script) |
| Standalone usability | Not usable as a standalone document; requires dBASE PLUS or a compatible tool to interpret the field-definition records |
| Released | dBASE family (the .str structure object accompanies dBASE/Visual dBASE tables) |
| Latest version | Used by current dBASE (dBASE PLUS / dbDOS lineage) |
| Specification | www.dbase.com |
STR conversions
Community Q&A
asked by usersNo questions yet - be the first to ask about STR files.
