TPS Corporate File last modified: 05/03/2021 12:39 (2,037,266 records)

Technical specification for file formats

The copy of the FPS database distributed to Licensees will contain telephone numbers only; it will not contain name, address or any other information.

1. Full Downloads

For a full database download, the file can be downloaded in one of two formats:

• spaces separating the National Dialing Code from the remainder of the telephone number
• or with no spaces between the National Dialing Code and the remainder of the telephone number

An example of some records in the two formats is shown below:

1.1 With Spaces

Description	Length	Format
National Dialing Code	5	Numeric, left justified, with a trailing blank if required.
Remainder of Telephone Number	7	Numeric, right justified, with a leading blank, if required.
Record Operator	2	Carriage return/line feed pair.

This format is illustrated further below:

Example Number	Telephone Number National Dialing Code					Telephone Number Remainder							Record Separator
0207 3787244	0	2	0	7		3	7	8	7	2	4	4	CR	LF
01635 506160	0	1	6	3	5		5	0	6	1	6	0	CR	LF
0191 5657153	0	1	9	1		5	6	5	7	1	5	3	CR	LF
07775 338653	0	7	7	7	5		3	3	8	6	5	3	CR	LF

Most telephone numbers held on the FPS database will be in one of the first two formats. The last example represents a mobile telephone number.

1.2 Without Spaces

This format is similar to the previous one, except that the telephone number has the spaces between the National Dialing Code and the remainder of the number have been stripped and have been appended as spaces to the end of the number to keep the length to twelve characters.

Description	Length	Format
Telephone Number	Upto 12	Numeric, left justified, with a trailing blank if required.
Spaces characters to keep the length of the record to twelve characters if required.	0 or more	0 or more spaces
Record Operator	2	Carriage return/line feed pair.

This format is illustrated further below:

Example Number	Telephone Number record												Record Separator
0207 3787244	0	2	0	7	3	7	8	7	2	4	4		CR	LF
01635 506160	0	1	6	3	5	5	0	6	1	6	0		CR	LF
0191 5657153	0	1	9	1	5	6	5	7	1	5	3		CR	LF
07775 338653	0	7	7	7	5	3	3	8	6	5	3		CR	LF

 

2. Changes Since

The formats available for the changes since downloads are similar to the options available for the full download except that additions and deletions to each record in the database is marked with the letter "A" or "D" respectively.

This is shown in the example below:

2.1 With Spaces

Description	Length	Format
National Dialing Code	5	Numeric, left justified, with a trailing blank if required.
Remainder of Telephone Number	7	Numeric, right justified, with a leading blank, if required.
Letter to denote update type: "A" for and addition, "D" for a deleted telephone number.	1	Text
Record Operator	2	Carriage return/line feed pair.

This format is illustrated further below:

Example Number	Telephone Number National Dialing Code					Telephone Number Remainder							Update Type	Record Separator
0207 3787244	0	2	0	7		3	7	8	7	2	4	4	A	CR	LF
01635 506160	0	1	6	3	5		5	0	6	1	6	0	A	CR	LF
0191 5657153	0	1	9	1		5	6	5	7	1	5	3	D	CR	LF
07775 338653	0	7	7	7	5		3	3	8	6	5	3	A	CR	LF

2.2 Without Spaces

Again This format is similar to the "Without spaces, Full download", except that that additions and deletions to each record in the database is marked with the letter "A" or "D" respectively.

Description	Length	Format
Telephone Number	Upto 12	Numeric, left justified, with a trailing blank if required.
Spaces characters to keep the length of the record to twelve characters if required.	0 or more	0 or more spaces
Letter to denote update type: "A" for and addition, "D" for a deleted telephone number.	1	Text
Record Operator	2	Carriage return/line feed pair.

This format is illustrated further below:

Example Number	Telephone Number record												UpdateType	Record Separator
0207 3787244	0	2	0	7	3	7	8	7	2	4	4		A	CR	LF
01635 506160	0	1	6	3	5	5	0	6	1	6	0		D	CR	LF
0191 5657153	0	1	9	1	5	6	5	7	1	5	3		D	CR	LF
07775 338653	0	7	7	7	5	3	3	8	6	5	3		A	CR	LF

 

3. SFTP Access -   For more information: click here

The full database can also be downloaded via SFTP. If you have subscribed to receive the full downloads, you can follow the instructions below to download the FPS database in compressed or uncompressed format, with or without spaces.

1. SFTP to ftp.fpsonline.org.uk and type in your username and password when prompted.

2. You can retrieve the readme.txt document found in your home directory, which will describe the files available for download.

3. The table below describes the full database files that you can retrieve and their location. (The exact format of each record is identical to relevant format described previously).

Subdirectory	Filename	Description
\fps	fps.dat	Full uncompressed FPS database, with spaces between the NDC and telephone number
	fps.zip	Full compressed FPS database, with spaces between the NDC and telephone number
	fps_ns.dat	Full uncompressed FPS database, with no spaces between the NDC and telephone number
	fps_ns.zip	Full compressed FPS database, with no spaces between the NDC and telephone number
\fps	fps.dat	Full uncompressed FPS database, with spaces between the NDC and telephone number
	fps.zip	Full compressed FPS database, with spaces between the NDC and telephone number
	fps_ns.dat	Full uncompressed FPS database, with no spaces between the NDC and telephone number
	fps_ns.zip	Full compressed FPS database, with no spaces between the NDC and telephone number

It is the responsibility of the FPS Licensee to integrate use of the database into their everyday working practices. The way in which they choose to do this is entirely up to the Licensee and will not be defined by FPS or its agents. For example, those sites which have sophisticated automatic telemarketing systems, may well adopt a different strategy to those with a more modest set-up.