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I've inherited a bunch of dBase (.dbf) files from a legacy application, and I need to import the data into MS SQL or MS Access. I know these programs have built in "import" functions, but the dBase files are protected with a password, which nobody around here seems to know.
Anyone know of any way around the password, or of cracking the password?
(Edit: added C# tag bc that's the language I'll likely use for any programmatic solution)
Bounty awarded: I don't really have a good solution yet, but it's only 2 hours till the bounty closes, so I guess I should award it to the most useful answer thus far. And in that respect, I think the $75 paid solution is probably the most time and energy efficient, even if it doesn't give me the intellectual satisfaction of cracking it myself! :)
I'm going to leave the question "unanswered" for the meantime, until I see if any of the solutions actually work...
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Import data from a dBASE fileSelect External Data, in the Import & Link group select More, and then select dBASE file. In the Get External Data – dBASE File dialog box, select Browse. In the File Open dialog box, locate the dBASE file, and then click Open.
A DBF file is most likely a database file. Open one with dBase, Excel, or Access. Convert to CSV or Excel formats with those same programs.
To open a DBF file, go to the File menu and click the Open command or use shortcut Ctrl-O, or click the corresponding icon on the toolbar. In the file opening dialog box select the file(s), use Ctrl and Shift keys for multiple selection.
A DBF file contains data that are organized in a tabular format of database fields and records. Each database field can contain one type of data, and each record can hold one data value for each field. DBF File illustrates four database fields from CUSTOMER. DBF and highlights a database field and a record.
There is probably a way around the password, and there is certainly a way to brute force access if the password cannot be bypassed. One site offers the a tip about changing certain binary data within your file using a hex editor to disable password protection: http://www.antionline.com/archive/index.php/t-218086.html. Test that on a copy.
It is still not wholly uncommon to see instances where an application respects a security setting, but the security is not particularly relevant. Cases would include where the file has a flag designating protection, but the data is not actually encrypted. If the above doesn't solve your problem, open the file in a hex editor and see if information is recognizable in plain text.
If that doesn't work, I'd suggest grabbing a copy of John the Ripper and writing some bridge code to use the output of JTR's guesses as input for a dbase library's open calls.
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Just found this: http://www.pwcrack.com/dbase.shtml
They want $75 for cracking a dBase password, website seems legitimate.
(I am not affiliated)
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