DBF and FoxPro data extracted and modernized.
InsurCore Data reads dBASE, FoxPro, Clipper, and dBASE-compatible .DBF files — including memo and index files — and converts them into clean, usable, import-ready data for modern platforms.
The Problem
Why this conversion is hard
DBF files from FoxPro, Clipper, and dBASE systems are flat-file databases that modern tools frequently misread or truncate — especially memo fields.
Memo fields (long text, notes, descriptions) are stored in separate .FPT or .DBT files and are often lost when only the .DBF is copied.
Index files (.CDX, .NDX) are required to correctly interpret relationships between tables — missing index files mean lost data relationships.
Character encoding in old DBF files is often non-standard (OEM code pages), causing character corruption if not handled correctly during conversion.
Many FoxPro and Clipper applications have dozens or hundreds of .DBF tables with no documentation of what each one contains or how they relate.
The original software is often unavailable, unlicensed, or won't run on modern Windows versions — making it impossible to export through the application itself.
What We Extract
What InsurCore Data delivers
DBF and FoxPro databases are among the most common legacy formats in industries like insurance, real estate, field service, and manufacturing. We have specialized extraction tooling built specifically for this format family.
The Process
How Every Conversion Works
Data Review
We inspect the source files, database, or export structure to understand what exists and what condition it's in.
Inventory
We identify tables, fields, relationships, record counts, duplicates, and critical business objects.
Mapping
We map the source data to the destination system or desired output format, including any custom field logic.
Transformation
We clean, normalize, restructure, and convert the data using scripts, tools, and custom logic.
Delivery
We deliver clean, structured, import-ready data files with a validation report and audit trail.
FAQ
Common Questions
Can you convert Visual FoxPro databases?
Yes. Visual FoxPro .DBF files use a slightly different format from classic dBASE and FoxPro 2.x, but we handle all common variants including VFP 6 through VFP 9.
What if I only have the .DBF files and not the .FPT or index files?
We can still extract the structured fields from .DBF files alone. Memo fields will be unavailable without .FPT files, and we'll document what was recoverable versus lost.
My FoxPro application has 80+ tables. Can you map all of them?
Yes. We do a full schema inventory as part of the data review step. We document every table, its field names and types, and work with you to identify which ones are needed in the migration.
The data has foreign characters and special symbols that look wrong. Can you fix that?
Yes — that's a code page encoding issue. Old DBF files often use OEM encodings (e.g., CP437, CP850) that modern tools misinterpret. We normalize encoding as part of the extraction.
Ready to move your data?
We offer a free initial data review — no commitment required. Send us a sample file or describe your source system and we'll tell you exactly what's possible.