ShapefileDBF

ShapefileDBF refers to the attribute data file that accompanies an Esri Shapefile. The .dbf file contains the tabular attributes for each geometry feature stored in the corresponding .shp file. It uses the dBASE III+ format and is read by most GIS software. Each record in the .dbf aligns with a feature in the .shp so that attributes can be joined to geometry.

The file consists of a header and a set of fixed-length records. The header specifies the number of records and the length of each record, plus descriptors for each field. Each field descriptor defines the field name (up to 10 characters), its type, width, and decimal places.

Field types used in shapefile .dbf include C for character, N for numeric, F for float, D for date, and L for logical (boolean). The database does not generally include memo fields; long text data may be truncated or stored in separate formats in some implementations.

Limitations include the 10-character field name limit, a relatively small number of supported field types, and potential interoperability issues related to numeric precision or locale-specific formatting. Some editors may not display all values correctly if not configured for the dBASE dialect used by shapefiles.

In practice, the Shapefile .dbf is widely supported by GIS software and programming libraries, including ArcGIS, QGIS, and open-source tools. It is readable by many database and spreadsheet programs that support the dBASE format, enabling attribute editing and data exchange alongside the .shp geometry.