Can I un index a vcf.gz.tbi file?

Question

[HumeMarx]

I am totally lost as to how to merge some vcf files. The problem is they are vcf.gz.tbi files (of individual patients) and I cannot figure out how to unindex them before unzipping them so that I can merge them (so that I can do an association study later)

I have installed vcf tools and tabix but everything I can find on line is to do with creation of .tbi files using these, and not the reverse.

Anyone know what to do? (Please be gentle with the lingo, I am very new to this)

Thanks

Answer 1

[Devon Ryan]

You can ignore the tbi files, they're just an index (yes, like the index at the end of a book) and aren't the actual files you want to merge. The files you actually want to merge end either in vcf.gz or vcf (or something like that).

[HumeMarx]

Thanks.

Is vcf.gz.vcfidx also an indexed file?

Because they seem to be the only two type of files my data comes in.

[Devon Ryan]

That's likely also an index (from vcftools, rather than tabix). Your actual data is elsewhere, perhaps on a remote server. You should ask whomever provided you with this data.

[HumeMarx]

Thank you very much. It saves me from crashing the terminal a couple of times.

[leonardinodigma]

On a semi-related note: if I'd like to convert from the vcf format to plink bed/bim/fam, is the .tbi file at all necessary?