You can also use The Unarchiver, which is a free tool for managing archives, functions just like the Archive Utility, and supports .rar files as well. For those that don’t like using a terminal, you’ll be delighted to hear that macOS can open tar and tar.gz files by default with the Archive Utility. Just replace the -x with a -c to “Create,” though I find it easier to remember by “Compress,” even though that’s -z’s job. However, while tools like 7-Zip are free, many more “robust” solutions are only available for a price after a trial period.
Also, its trial version does not have time limitations, and users can still use it even after the trial period has the 10 best places to buy bitcoin in 2021 revealed! expired, with occasional reminders to purchase the license. It just bundles files & directories together while preserving their file structure and metadata. This means it takes all the specified files and puts them together into one container. Once you’ve done this successfully, you’ll notice that the icon for tar.gz files will change to a 7-Zip icon. An advantage of this method is that it can be used on any operating system, whether Windows or Mac, without worrying about native support. To do so, you’ll need to launch WinZip and follow these steps.
What About Opening Tar.gz Files on Windows?
Rather than keep track of a whole folder of files, you only need to keep track of one. Tar files are often compressed after being created, giving it the .tar.gz file extension. Technically these are TGZ files, but nearly everyone calls both .tar and .tar.gz files simple “tar files.”
Method 2
To open such a package, you need to decompress the gzip and extract the resulting tarball. By compressing several files into one Tar GZ file, you’ll be able to send multiple files as one single archived folder. This format can be sent by email or social media platforms that support the Tar GZ file format. In short, a TAR file creates one archive file out of multiple files without compressing them, while the GZ file format compresses a file without creating an archive. Combined into the tar GZ file extension, you can archive and compress multiple files into one.
You may also be interested in learning about the best WinZip alternatives to compress files. These files can be used in incremental backup strategies – where only new or modified files are added to cryptocurrency news crypto markets crypto exchanges and token price 2021 the archive. Gzip compression reduces the overall file size, which makes it more efficient for distribution, backup, and storage purposes. That means users can download and use it for free during a trial period.
- While extracting a .tar.gz file isn’t quite as easy as unzipping a .zip, it’s still pretty straightforward.
- People new to the tar format usually equate it to a .zip file, but a tar archive is notably not compressed.
- With the command prompt open, use the appropriate commands to change the current working directory (cd) to the location of the .tar.gz file you want to unzip.
- As a result, we recommend sticking to free (but trustworthy) tools or simply using the command line.
Some common examples include .tar.bz2 (bzip2), .tar.br (Brotli), and .tar.zst (zstd), among many others. 7-Zip is a free and open-source tool with high compression ratios & supports a wide range of archive formats. It offers AES-256 encryption to protect sensitive data within archives. Users can utilize the 7-zip command-line interface for automated & scripted extraction tasks. To unzip the .tar.gz files, you’ll need to use specific commands and tools depending on your operating system.
Add a file or directory to an existing tarball
As a result, we recommend sticking to free (but trustworthy) tools or simply using the command line. You can also add the verbose output option (-v) to provide detailed listings, including dates, securities/permissions, and more. Otherwise, keep reading to kraken gains first mtf license from fca for crypto futures venue learn how to unzip .tar.gz files in Linux, macOS, and Windows. It also integrates with the Windows Explorer context menu, which enables users to create and extract archives directly from the right-click menu. Once you’ve downloaded and installed 7-Zip, double-click on the tar.gz file that you’re trying to open, and then select “Choose an app on your PC” from the popup dialog that shows up. It’s generally a good idea to convert your TAR GZ file since it might not be compatible with the software you intend to use.
Just like the more familiar .zip files, .tar files compress large files into a single package, making it easier to store and send them through email, servers, and so on. As a result, it has become a common file extension for many open-source software packages and other resources. Mac’s native archive utility supports the file format as well, which means you can just double-click on the tar.gz file in question to extract it. Of course, if that doesn’t work (or you just prefer a GUI tool), you can always download Unarchiver and use it to extract any type of archive files, including gzipped tarballs.
If you want to keep the original file after compression, there are two options. The first is the -k option, and the other uses the -c option to output the compressed file to a different file, preserving the original. You can easily unzip the resulting .tar.gz file with the decompress (-d) option.
Tar.gz has become the standard format used for distributing Linux and open source software since it’s easy to extract on basically any platform that isn’t Windows. Giving you all the benefits of the GZ file format with added accessibility and ease of use. The tar format is just a format, and it’s an open format, so it can be created by more than just one tool. This places all of the files in the archive neatly into the “newfiles” directory.