A .hdmp file, also known as a Windows Heap Dump file, is a snapshot of the memory heap of a running process at a specific point in time. It's primarily used for debugging and analyzing memory-related issues in Windows applications. When an application experiences a crash, memory leak, or other performance problems, a heap dump can be generated to capture the current state of the application's memory allocation. This file contains information about all the objects allocated on the heap, their sizes, and their relationships to each other. Developers can then use specialized tools to analyze the heap dump and identify the root cause of the problem. This analysis often involves identifying memory leaks (objects that are no longer needed but are still being held in memory), excessive memory consumption, and other memory-related anomalies. The information within the .hdmp file is crucial for diagnosing and resolving complex software issues, particularly those related to memory management.