How to Compress & Decompress a Folder in Command Line

To compress a folder using the command line, you can use various tools depending on the compression format you prefer. Here are a few examples:

1. ZIP Compression:

• Syntax: zip -r your_archive.zip folder_to_compress
• Explanation:
  • zip: Command for creating a ZIP archive.
  • -r: Recursive flag to include all files and subdirectories within the specified folder.
  • your_archive.zip: Name of the resulting ZIP file.
  • folder_to_compress: Path to the folder you want to compress.
  Example:

   zip -r myarchive.zip myfolder

2. GZIP Compression (TAR + GZIP):

• Syntax: tar -czvf your_archive.tar.gz folder_to_compress
• Explanation:
  • tar: Command for creating a TAR archive.
  • -c: Create a new archive.
  • -z: Use GZIP compression.
  • -v: Verbose mode to display progress.
  • -f: Specify the name of the resulting archive.
  • your_archive.tar.gz: Name of the resulting TAR GZIP file.
  • folder_to_compress: Path to the folder you want to compress.
  Example:

   tar -czvf myarchive.tar.gz myfolder

3. TAR Compression:

• Syntax: tar -cvf your_archive.tar folder_to_compress
• Explanation:
  • tar: Command for creating a TAR archive.
  • -c: Create a new archive.
  • -v: Verbose mode to display progress.
  • -f: Specify the name of the resulting archive.
  • your_archive.tar: Name of the resulting TAR file.
  • folder_to_compress: Path to the folder you want to compress.
  Example:

   tar -cvf myarchive.tar myfolder

4. RAR Compression:

• Syntax: rar a your_archive.rar folder_to_compress
• Explanation:
  • rar: Command for creating a RAR archive.
  • a: Archive mode to create a new archive.
  • your_archive.rar: Name of the resulting RAR file.
  • folder_to_compress: Path to the folder you want to compress.
  Example:

   rar a myarchive.rar myfolder

5. 7z Compression:

• Syntax: 7z a your_archive.7z folder_to_compress
• Explanation:
  • 7z: Command for creating a 7z archive.
  • a: Archive mode to create a new archive.
  • your_archive.7z: Name of the resulting 7z file.
  • folder_to_compress: Path to the folder you want to compress.
  Example:

   7z a myarchive.7z myfolder

Remember to replace your_archive with the desired name for the resulting compressed file and folder_to_compress with the actual path to the folder you want to compress.

To decompress or extract a compressed folder or file in the command line, you can use various commands depending on the compression format used. Here are the commands for different compression formats:

1. ZIP Decompression:

• Syntax: unzip your_archive.zip
• Explanation:
  • unzip: Command for extracting ZIP archives.
  • your_archive.zip: Name of the ZIP file you want to extract.
  Example:

   unzip myarchive.zip

2. GZIP Decompression (TAR + GZIP):

• Syntax: tar -xzvf your_archive.tar.gz
• Explanation:
  • tar: Command for manipulating TAR archives.
  • -x: Extract files from the archive.
  • -z: Use GZIP decompression.
  • -v: Verbose mode to display progress.
  • -f: Specify the name of the archive.
  • your_archive.tar.gz: Name of the TAR GZIP file you want to extract.
  Example:

   tar -xzvf myarchive.tar.gz

3. TAR Decompression:

• Syntax: tar -xvf your_archive.tar
• Explanation:
  • tar: Command for manipulating TAR archives.
  • -x: Extract files from the archive.
  • -v: Verbose mode to display progress.
  • -f: Specify the name of the archive.
  • your_archive.tar: Name of the TAR file you want to extract.
  Example:

   tar -xvf myarchive.tar

4. RAR Decompression:

• Syntax: unrar x your_archive.rar
• Explanation:
  • unrar: Command for extracting RAR archives.
  • x: Extract files from the archive.
  • your_archive.rar: Name of the RAR file you want to extract.
  Example:

   unrar x myarchive.rar

5. 7z Decompression:

• Syntax: 7z x your_archive.7z
• Explanation:
  • 7z: Command for extracting 7z archives.
  • x: Extract files from the archive.
  • your_archive.7z: Name of the 7z file you want to extract.
  Example:

   7z x myarchive.7z

Remember to replace your_archive with the actual name of the compressed file you want to extract. The extracted files will be placed in the current directory unless specified otherwise.