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Detaching dBASE and FoxPro from links
to missing/corrupted index files

For indexing, dBASE tables have associated .mdx files and FoxPro have .cdx files.

If these index files are lost or get corrupted, the table files blocks from opening even when all data are still intact.
To release dBASE/FoxPro tables from this kind of locking, the link marker embedded into the table must be reset.

The PdxEditor manages this by simple byte resetting (resetting 28th file byte to 00).

Do use this feature with care, as the procedure relies plainly on file type identification by the file's .dbf file extension.
So, don't use it on files if you are not sure the file belongs to the database, ruling out the file being of some other type and by (not so) rare coincidence using this same *.dbf file extension.

For further information on the dBASE file specification,
please see dBASE/xBase specifications.

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PdxEditor Application Help, 18 May 2026; © 2010-2026 Niels Knabe