How to know what table there are in a sqlite file?

Question

I have a sqlite file but I don't know what tables there are in it and thus I can't use a SELECT query.

So, is there a way to know what table are in it ?

P.S. I am under Ubuntu Linux and I have already installed sqlite3 from shell.

mttrb · Accepted Answer · 2012-04-21 07:23:53Z

3

You can open the database using sqlite3 using:

sqlite3 <databasefile>

Once in the sqlite3 shell you can simply type:

.tables

to see a list of all the tables.

You can see the table structure of a particular table using:

.schema <tablename>

You can also omit the table name to see the schema for the whole database.

Information about these commands and more can be seen by typing:

.help

answered Apr 21, 2012 at 7:18

mttrb

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2 Comments

I get this: sqlite> .tables Error: file is encrypted or is not a database

What does file databasefile say in your shell (not in sqlite)? It should say something like "SQLite 3.x database" if it is an SQLite database.