Opening .gdb database files

Question

I'm trying to open an old interbase .gdb file. This is a new step for me and i don't know where to start any advice would be a great help, I've been searching the internet for the past few days now and i still have to idea how to do so.

Answer 1

Converting the .gdb file to Firebird SQL is a relatively simple path.

Firebird is a well known open source database forked from Borland's open source edition of InterBase. It maintains a good degree of compatibility and has many tools / libraries for data access / management.

There are some free migration tools you could use:

• FBConvert can convert from Interbase to Firebird format (and doesn't require the presence of a Firebird server on the computer).
• FBExport is a command-line and GUI tool for exporting / importing data from Firebird / InterBase databases. It's based on the IBPP C++ library and runs on both Windows and Linux.
• Interbase DataPump allows you to pump data and migrate from native Interbase databases into Firebird databases quite easy.

When you have the .fdb file, the FlameRobin database administration tool allows simple management via GUI.

Take a look at Drivers Documentation page to access data programmatically.

PS if you have a very old Interbase file (Which version of Interbase or Firebird was a database created under?) then your best bet is to get some old installation of Interbase 5.0, perform a gbak and restore the database with your Firebird 2.5 installation.