How to archive a folder. How to archive a folder with files on Windows and Linux

Inexperienced users often encounter difficulties when sending files by e-mail and "pouring" them into various interactive services. Very often this is due to the fact that they are trying to send the folder itself, without having packed it in advance into the archive.

As a rule, loaders simply do not "understand" the principle of downloading a multitude of attached files. Therefore, the question of how to archive a folder is very relevant to this day.

A bit of history

In "gloomy" times Windows-98 users had to deal with archivers most often. The Internet at that time was expensive and slow, and therefore a high-quality compressed file allowed not only to reduce the download time, but also significantly save your money.

File compression is performed by special programs, which are called archivers. Approximately in the same years, which we are now talking about, a famous WinRar application appeared. Its compression algorithm still remains one of the most advanced and effective, and so we will first talk about it.

WinRar

The archives that are packaged with this program have a specific extension: .rar, so it's impossible to confuse them with something else. Before you archive a folder with this application, we recommend that you make sure that you are using the latest version. This is due to the fact that the developer constantly introduces support for new algorithms for compressing and rationalizing the resources of multi-core processors.

How to use it?

Everything is nowhere simpler. Install the program, following the standard prompts of the installation wizard. There are no "bookmarks" in the form of installing additional programs from Mail.ru, so you can just click on the "Next" button.

Before archiving a folder, right-click on it: the "Add to archive" item should appear in the pop-up menu. The WinRar dialog box opens , where you can specify the name of the archive, its location and the compression method.

In the latter case, it is better to choose "Standard", since strong compression modes sometimes fail, so that the user on another computer can not read the information from the file. By the way, for reliability it is advisable to check the box "Add information for recovery".

In this case, the program will write into the archive file some technical information that will help restore it in case of failure. In a word, WinRar is a great program, but it has one drawback. Its price is such that the average domestic user and will not think to honestly pay. Do you have to use broken versions? Fortunately, today there are many free and functional applications.

7-Zip

This archiver appeared relatively recently, but immediately became widely distributed and popular. The reason is not only its full free-of-charge, but also an excellent compression algorithm, which in its efficiency can compete even with the above-described competitor.

So how do you archive a folder with it? In general, the technology is no different from the above. First, install the application, reboot the computer. After that, right-click the desired directory, selecting the item "7-Zip / Add to archive" in the context menu.

Also a dialog box opens, in which you should specify the parameters of the created archive. If you want to achieve the most optimal compression ratio, we recommend setting "7z" in the "Archive Format" drop-down list. Modern versions of WinRar perfectly can work with this format, so that you can read this file on almost every computer.

Important! Unfortunately, this archiver has a small drawback. Before you archive a folder with files, note: do not get carried away with the maximum compression ratio, because in case of a failure, you are unlikely to be able to get something out of the corrupted archive.

In addition, one should also bear in mind another circumstance. The fact is that this program is not at all "friendly" with corrupted archive files. So, if the file was corrupted during downloading, then with WinRar you can still get at least those documents that are in its beginning.

7-Zip in this case simply gives an error, refusing to unpack the information you need. Fortunately, in its menu there is also an option "Add information for recovery". We strongly recommend that you use it.

About stupidities and misconceptions

Our users rarely read help files on the programs they use, and are also almost never interested in the principles of their work. All this leads to comical results.

For example, even experienced users often try to compress the movie, using for this ordinary archiver. It's a pity to disappoint them, but the algorithms of this kind of programs are not designed for such operations, so even if you pack a video file into a couple of gigabytes in size, the win will be 10-15 MB maximum.

For such purposes, you should use only special applications for video encoding, among which there are many free ones. The second similar error is that they think about how to archive a folder of photos. If you seriously think about this, then you again have to disappoint.

Of course, you will add them to the archive without any problems, but you will not get any gain at all. The thing is that the most commonly used format is .jpeg "linux archive the folder" class = "if" height = "437" src = "http: // site /misc/i/gallery/15322/350167.jpg" width = " 457 "/>

How are things in Linux?

Having figured out how to archive a folder with a photo, and after learning about the meaninglessness of this event, we will move to the Linux operating system. What about the packaging of files here?

Until recently, everything was not easy, because almost all the archiving programs worked exclusively in the console mode, and therefore not all users could cope with them. Fortunately, today the situation has changed for the better. In order to archive a folder in Linux, you should use the corresponding utility.

For example, let's talk about Ubuntu, which in this respect is not too different from the OS "Winds". Click on the PCM folder you need (right-click), then select the same "Add to archive" command in the pop-up menu.

That's only with reading the finished archives from WinRar in "Ubuntu" there may be some problems. The fact is that by default this operating system does not contain proprietary file formats, so they should be added separately. To do this simply: open the "Application Store", and in the search field enter the word rar. The system will automatically find the necessary package.

You only need to confirm the installation by entering the root password and clicking on "OK".