dBase (also stylized dBASE) was one of the first database management systems for microcomputers and the most successful in its day.[3] The dBase system included the core database engine, a query system, a forms engine, and a programming language that tied all of these components together.

Originally released as Vulcan for PTDOS in 1978, the CP/M port caught the attention of Ashton-Tate in 1980. They licensed it, re-released it as dBASE II, and later ported it to IBM PC computers running DOS. On the PC platform in particular, dBase became one of the best-selling software titles for a number of years. A major upgrade was released as dBase III and ported to a wider variety of platforms, including UNIX and VMS. By the mid-1980s, Ashton-Tate was one of the "big three" software publishers in the early business-software market, along with Lotus Development and WordPerfect.