A .sqlite, .sqlite3, or .db file may be a database rather than a document you can read as plain text. Fileso includes a SQLite browser so you can inspect tables and rows directly on iPhone or iPad. This is useful for a database export, a test fixture, or a copy supplied for troubleshooting.
Prepare a consistent copy
Copy the database into a local Fileso folder and open it. Use an export or backup made by the application that owns the database whenever possible. Copying a database while another program is actively writing can produce an incomplete snapshot.
Some SQLite databases use write-ahead logging, where recent changes may still be in a companion WAL file. If the copied database appears to contain old data, investigate how the snapshot was made before concluding that the browser lost rows.
Inspect the structure before the data
- Open the database in Fileso.
- Review the table list to locate the relevant dataset.
- Inspect the table’s structure to understand column names and types.
- Open rows and check individual values rather than guessing from a truncated cell.
- Compare a few known records with the source export.
An identifier such as created_at does not tell you whether a timestamp is stored as seconds, milliseconds, or formatted text. Check the values and the exporting application’s conventions.
What if the file will not open?
The .db extension is used by many products, so it does not guarantee SQLite format. A file may also be encrypted, damaged, or only one part of a larger database system. Renaming it to .sqlite does not convert it.
If the file came from an archive, fully extract it before opening. If it came from a server, verify that the transfer completed and that you downloaded the database itself rather than an HTML login or error page.
Work on a copy when experimenting
Keep an untouched original for comparison. Browsing a database is different from executing statements that change it; only enable editing when you intend to modify the file. For the basic inspection workflow, table structure and row values are usually enough to answer questions about what the export contains.
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