FRM file extension is mostly associated with MySQL database, a free to download relational database management system.
FRM stands for FoRMat, because it is used for formatting and it is one of a MySQL Database File Formats alongside with .SQL and .MYSQL.
A new FRM file begins to exist in the very moment when a new table is created in MySQL. A typical FRM file contains data related to the table it is representing: the formatting information and information about structure of each table. An FRM file usually uses the name of a table it’s connected to; the file formula is “nameoftable.frm”.
FRM files are generally found in the same folder that holds the database the associated with this FRM file table was created in. Sometimes FRM files are stored with an .MYD file which holds actual data from the database. If one of those files is lost, MySQl will fail to recognize this table until files are transferred back or restored.
Unlike regular database files which are commonly a plain text files, an FRM file is a binary file. In short, it means that there is very little chance to open an with Notepad and other text editors. To prevent data losses, it’s a better decision to use special software listed in a section below.
How to Open and Edit FRM Files
FRM format is highly proprietary to MySQL so no doubt it makes the best FRM file viewer in it’s MySQL software. The FRM file format was designed to be opened and edited with MySQL. MySQL supports multiple platforms, is completely free to download and use so there would be no problem to get this FRM editor online.
If MySQL is, for some reasons, is not an option, there aren’t a lot of replacement solutions. Firstly, there is Aryson MySQL Database repair, which is mostly used for troubleshooting any type of MySQL server errors. Secondly, there are a few useful tools such as APEX SQL Clean, but those might be not quite suitable for editing FRM files.
Unfortunately, FRM editors online are non-existent. There is no known way on how to open FRM file online whatsoever.
If a FRM file cannot somehow be opened with the software mentioned above, this FRM file might not be of MySQL DBMS at all. It’s advised to check the file once again: if this file actually opens when Notepad is used, it might be Visual Basic Text Form file. If the FRM is found somewhere around the user’s game directories, it may be Fallout Graphic File which stores game data and should not be tampered with.
How to Convert FRM file to Other Formats
FRM file is a binary file, which is a file that contains encoded information that cannot be recognized with the naked eye. There would be no use changing file extensions to get a converted file and there is a huge risk of a data loss if a one would do so.
FRM files come with an additional .MYD file. Those files hold information about a table they attached to and there is no way that the table will be viewed without one of these files. So it wouldn’t really make sense if a user would want to convert a FRM file. Still, there is an MS SQL to MySQL DB converter that can convert an MDF file to FRM file, so there is a possibility to change them.
There are no FRM converters available online.