Program database
Encyclopedia
PDB stands for Program Database, a proprietary
file format (developed by Microsoft
) for storing debugging information about a program (or, commonly, program modules such as a DLL
or EXE
). PDB files commonly have a .pdb extension
. A PDB file is typically created from source files during compilation. It stores a list of all symbols in a module with their addresses and possibly the name of the file and the line on which the symbol was declared. This symbol information is not stored in the module itself, because it takes up a lot of space.
uses PDB files as its primary file format for debugging information.
Another use of PDBs is in services that collect crash data from users and relate it to the specific parts of the source code that cause (or are involved in) the crash. An example of this is SupportSoft's Talkback.
PDB files are usually removed from the programs' distribution package. They are used by developers during debugging to gain time and insight.
.
Proprietary software
Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...
file format (developed by Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
) for storing debugging information about a program (or, commonly, program modules such as a DLL
Dynamic-link library
Dynamic-link library , or DLL, is Microsoft's implementation of the shared library concept in the Microsoft Windows and OS/2 operating systems...
or EXE
EXE
EXE is the common filename extension denoting an executable file in the DOS, OpenVMS, Microsoft Windows, Symbian, and OS/2 operating systems....
). PDB files commonly have a .pdb extension
Filename extension
A filename extension is a suffix to the name of a computer file applied to indicate the encoding of its contents or usage....
. A PDB file is typically created from source files during compilation. It stores a list of all symbols in a module with their addresses and possibly the name of the file and the line on which the symbol was declared. This symbol information is not stored in the module itself, because it takes up a lot of space.
Applications
When a program is debugged, the debugger loads debugging information from the PDB and uses it to locate symbols or relate current execution state of a program source code. Microsoft Visual StudioMicrosoft Visual Studio
Microsoft Visual Studio is an integrated development environment from Microsoft. It is used to develop console and graphical user interface applications along with Windows Forms applications, web sites, web applications, and web services in both native code together with managed code for all...
uses PDB files as its primary file format for debugging information.
Another use of PDBs is in services that collect crash data from users and relate it to the specific parts of the source code that cause (or are involved in) the crash. An example of this is SupportSoft's Talkback.
PDB files are usually removed from the programs' distribution package. They are used by developers during debugging to gain time and insight.
Extracting information
Although the PDB format is undocumented and proprietary, information can be extracted from a PDB file using the DIA (Debug Interface Access) interfaces, available on Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
.