- File type: Zip compressed files
- Extension: .Zip
- mime type: application/zip
What is a ZIP File extension
With zip files, you will be able to send many files/folders simultaneously and in the fastest possible time frame. You can attach your .zip to an email and then send to several recipients at once. In addition, it may contain word documents, PDF documents, Picture and Video files/folders.
A zip file may be secured or unsecured. With the latter, anyone would be able to have access to and open it. However, you can secure it with a password. Password protected files ensure that your file would only be unzipped or opened when the password is provided by a recipient or group of recipients.
How to open ZIP Files
Unzipping on Windows OS
Windows OS allows you to create a zip folder or file with ease using a variety of programs. You can use programs like 7Zip, WinRAR or WinZip if you want to compress files/folders under a single .zip. While these programs allow you to create zip files, they are also helpful when you want to open one.
Here’s how you can open a zip on your Windows OS personal computer.
- To extract a downloaded .zip on your Windows OS, you will first need to save it to your hard drive.
- Next, you will highlight the saved file and then “Right Click” on it.
- As you “Right Click” on the .zip, you will see several options. Highlight and click on the “extract all” option.
- By clicking on the “extract all” option, the systems extraction wizard will be opened.
- You should then click on the “Next” button. After clicking on “Next”, choose the location where you would want the extracted files to be saved. For example, you may select the “Document File” on your “C drive”.
- You then select “Make a new folder” option. Usually the folder name may appear as – “IDAutomation.com [FONT NAME]”.
- Click on the “Ok” button. As soon as you do, the extracted files would then be directed to this system directory – “C\Document Files\IDAutomation.com [FONT NAME].”
- Click on the “next” button and the extraction of the compressed file contents to the system directory above will commence.
- Ensure that you select the check-box option to “Show Extracted Files”.
- Once the extraction process has been completed, click on the “Finish” button.
- You can now open the new folder named “IDAutomation.com [FONT NAME]”.
- When this folder is opened, you will see a file named “install.exe”. When you double-click the “install.exe” file, those available common files will then be installed.
- There will be other files/folders in “IDAutomation.com [FONT NAME]” folder. These would include; PCL LaserJet soft fonts, Human Readable folders and PostScript (type 1) Binary and ASCII versions.
how to Unzip on Mac OS
Every single Mac computer is built with a proprietary file archive utility program known as “Archive Utility.app”.
The Archive Utility.app will either create or unzip a zip with ease. You should know that this simple built-in archive extraction software utilizes by default this archive format.
While this is a basic program, you may also wish to use a more sophisticated program like “The Unarchiver” for example. This free to download program for extracting zip files allows you to gain more control of the .zip including its data compression algorithms.
Opening using Archive Utility.app
To open a .zip on Mac OS using the Archive Utility.app, just go to the context menu and then click on the option to “open”.
It is that simple and as soon as you click on the “open” option, the zip file will be unzipped and you can access the first/folders in it.
Opening with The Unarchiver
Similarly, go to the context menu and click on “Open With” option. Highlight “The Unarchiver” and then click on it.
You can download “The Unarchiver” free zip software directly from App Store or the Apple website. Note that it is better to download it from the website as it would be fully functional than if you download from the AppStore.
Also, you can set another third-party to be your Mac OS default archive utility if you prefer.
On Linux
If you want to view this format in a Linux server using SSH, follow these simple instructions.
- First of all, you can either open Terminal or Putty.
- Secondly, using SSH, you should then login to your respective server.
- Next, go to the directory location of the zip after you have logged in.
- To unzip the file, type this command; (unzip [filename].zip).
- Note that by trying the command above, you may unzip the file or you may not. If the latter is the case, you would notice an error message similar to this – (bash: unzip: command not found).
- If you cannot open it directly, you can use the command below for both Ubuntu and Debian.
(apt-get install unzipfor Red Hat Linux/Fedora/CentOS users:)
(yum install unzip). - Finally, you can try once more using the command of (unzip [filename].zip) and it should open this time around.
FAQ
Programs that Open Zip Files
In Windows
- Zipeg,
- 7-Zip
- WinACE,
- PicoZIP,
- WinZip,
- ALTools AlZip,
- Smith Micro Stuffit Deluxe,
- WinRAR,
- PKZip,
- TurboSoft AnyZip,
- Winferno SnapZip,
- Bitberry BitZipper
In Linux
- p7zip,
- funzip,
- unzip
How to create Zip Files and Folders
- Right clicking over a file or a set of files
- Click on the option ‘Create Archive of {filename}’
- The archive file will be created with the ‘filename’ in the same directory as the original files.
Other Related compression files format
- RAR
- 7Z