Is there a utility which do retrieve file format information?

Question

There is a file utility in linux.
The users can get file format information by file.

I'd like to use this program in my application.
Is there a Windows utility? Open source is better.

Answer 1

File has been ported to Windows:

http://gnuwin32.sourceforge.net/packages/file.htm

Answer 2

trid might be a possibility - its used in computer forensics to identify files. Unlike file, it uses a database, rather than magic numbers

Answer 3

Check sysinternals, it is bound to have one that suits your needs. It's not open source, though.