You have received an email from a colleague or friend, where he happily informs you that he has sent you documents and photographs. But instead of several docs and jpgs, you are surprised to find in the attachment a single file with the extension .rar. What is this file and how to open it?
Rar – archive file extension. Archive programs appeared almost simultaneously with the advent of the first personal computers. The RAR format was born back in 1993. What are archivers needed for? In the 90s and 2000s, they were mainly in demand due to the ability to compress the volume of transferred data many times over. Floppy disks and even CDs contained a tiny amount of information compared to modern portable HDDs and flash drives. Now their most needed function is to compress information from many files into one for easy movement or storage.
Windows 7 cannot open rar archives by default. To be able to work with such files, you need to install a third-party archiver program on the system. There are a great many of them, and almost all of them can open rar files, and some can archive information in rar format.
We will look at the most popular of them.
WinRAR is the leader among archiving programs
A convenient and beautiful interface, an effective compression method, the ability to decompress almost all currently used archive formats. It can create self-extracting archives in the form of exe files, which can be opened even on a computer without an installed archiver.
During installation, the program is added to the Windows 7 context menu, and when you click on the right mouse button, menu items offer you to compress or decompress selected files or folders:
An unpleasant feature is that it is distributed as shareware, i.e. A pop-up window will urge you to buy the program. You close the window and work, functionality does not suffer.
Download and install WinRAR
Download Russian version for Windows 7 64 bit:
http://www.win-rar.com/fileadmin/winrar-versions/winrar-x64-520ru.exeIf you need another language, then go to the office. website http://www.win-rar.ru/download/
Example of opening files using WinRAR
After installing the program, all files with the .rar extension will look like a stack of books, and when you click on them, they will open like this:
If you click on "Extract", then it will be extracted to the folder you selected. After which, in the future, the files in the folder can be viewed without using WinRAR.
You can also extract files from the archive by hovering the cursor over the file and right-clicking, as shown in the screenshot above.
WinZIP - the very first Windows archiver
The program is very convenient and easy to use, it can be added to the Explorer context menu, and can unpack all major archive file formats, including rar.
Feature – selects the compression level that is optimal for the selected file. Can create password protected archives.
Like WinRAR, it is also distributed as shareware.
7zip is the leader in terms of information compression
This absolutely free utility uses a special algorithm that allows you to achieve remarkable results in compressing archived data. Simple and friendly interface. It is built into the context menu, has a decent file manager, allows you to create self-extracting archives, and also encrypt data.
Can archive truly gigantic files. It handles rar like a charm. However, a high compression ratio has a downside - it works somewhat slower than its competitors.
Files downloaded from many sites are usually downloaded in rar format. They cannot be used immediately, but the contents can be viewed. This extension exists for special purposes pursued by both owners of Internet resources and ordinary users.
Why do you need the rar format?
The rar format was developed by Russian programmer Evgeny Roshal, its main purpose is to compress large files. Almost any file can be archived, that is, compressed or an archive can be created from it, as a result of which its size will be reduced by 1–90%. How many times an element will be compressed depends on the format in which it is written. For example, a music file and a text file will reduce their size by a different number of bytes.
An archive in the rar extension consists of several volumes and can contain any number of folders and files. For example, it is convenient to use for transferring photographs: all images are compressed into a single archive, while their overall size is reduced, which saves both hard drive space and Internet traffic spent on uploading them to the network.
The main use of this format, of course, is to reduce files that are rarely accessed. To work with the contents of the archive, you first need to unzip it (unpack it), and this will take some time. But if access to some files is needed infrequently, then it is better to compress them, saving memory, and unpack them as needed.
Video: working with the archive
How to open an archive
You cannot work with compressed files, but it often happens that content downloaded from a site ends up being archived. In this case it is necessary to apply special program, capable of unpacking it. Since Windows 10 does not have a built-in archiver, you will have to download one of third party applications, who can work with the rar extension.
WinRAR
This application was written by the inventor of the format himself - Evgeniy Roshal. It can work with all types of compressed files in many modes. Using it, you can view the contents of the archive before unpacking it, and also remove only individual files if the entire volume is not needed.
Official website where you can get free version programs - http://www.win-rar.ru/download/. There are versions in almost all languages, including Russian. There is support for both 32-bit and 64-bit Windows.
Having studied the program settings in more detail, you can find many tools for working with the archive. But in most cases they will not be useful to you.
7-zip
7-zip is an analogue of WinRAR that can work with many compression formats. The program also provides all the tools for working with archives. Using it, you can unpack the entire compressed file or part of it. To unzip a single file or the entire archive, use the Extract button, although the method of dragging an element out of the application window also works.
Click the Extract button
The program is available in several languages, but Russian is not among them. But there is support for both 32-bit and 64-bit Windows. The official website where it is distributed free of charge is https://www.7-zip.org/.
In order to create an archive, that is, compress a certain group of files, you will have to resort to using one of the programs described above, since Windows 10 does not have a built-in tool for performing this task. The compression process is the same in all programs, so let’s look at the procedure using 7-zip as an example.
An archive is simply one file into which other files have been stuffed to reduce the overall size. If you still sigh when you receive another file in a ZIP, RAR, 7-Zip or any other archive, then this article is for you.
Let's look at several possible options how to unpack the archive:
- How to unpack a ZIP archive using Windows 7
- How to extract data from a RAR file using 7-Zip
- How to unpack a damaged or multi-volume archive
At the end of the article you can watch a short video on the topic.
The easiest way to extract a ZIP archive
ZIP archives are regular files with a “.zip” extension. In fact, to simply unzip files from ZIP, you don’t need any programs; everything is already built into Windows 7 Explorer. To unzip files, just right-click on the file and select “Extract all...” from the menu.
A dialog box will appear where you will need to specify the path to unpack the files, or leave it as default (current folder). As you can see, in the example I have a file “Checklist.zip” with an archived Word document. You can often find a PDF file in archives.
If you leave the “Show extracted files” checkbox enabled, then at the end of the unzipping procedure, another Explorer window will open with a new folder open.
You don’t have to unzip the files at all, but go to the archive file like a regular folder and open required file from there.
Unfortunately, Explorer cannot work with RAR files. For them you need to install one of the programs that will be discussed.
Using the program is almost as easy as extracting a ZIP using File Explorer. To do this, just right-click on the file and select one of the items from the “7-Zip” submenu:
- “Unpack” – to open the unpack dialog
- “Extract here” – to simply extract the files to the current directory
- “Extract to “Folder Name”” - unzip the files into a folder with the archive name (I recommend)
The simplest are the second and third options, because... do not require any further action. If you select the first option, the following dialog will appear:
Here we can specify our unpacking path. If you select the “No paths” option, then all files from the archive will be in one heap, without subfolders. The “Overwrite” parameter is responsible for the mode of overwriting existing files. By default, the program will ask about each such file.
You can extract files not only from the right-click menu. If you double-click on the file, it will open in the 7-Zip program window. To unzip files simply select them and click the "Extract" button
Alternative free method - Hamster Lite Archiver
I also want to introduce you to one newfangled program, Hamster Lite Archiver. It is even simpler, free and has a modern interface. After installing it, new menu items also appear in the menu.
To unpack a rar or zip archive, right-click on it and select one of the options:
- Extract files… - opens a dialog window
- Extract Here – extracts files into the current folder
- Extract to “Folder name” - unzip to folder
Despite the fact that the context menu items are in English, the program itself is in Russian. Apparently we haven’t gotten around to translating these points yet, but by the time you read this article the situation may have already improved.
The dialogue looks like this:
To unzip all files, simply click the “Unzip” button and select the folder where to put them.
How to unzip a file using WinRAR
The WinRAR program is widely used for working with RAR archives. The program can be downloaded from the developer's official website. Look immediately in the list for the Russian version of the program (Russian). Installing the program is very easy, just click “Next” all the time. The program is paid with a trial period of 40 days. After the trial period ends, the program continues to work, but begins to bother you with a window reminding you about the license every time you start it.
To unpack RAR, or any other archive, just right-click on the file and select one of the options:
- Extract files... - the unpacking dialog will open
- Extract to current folder – contents will appear in the current folder
- Extract to “folder name” - extracts the contents to a new folder with the archive name (recommended)
The simplest options are the second and third. If you select the first option, a dialog will appear in which you can specify the specific path where your files will be placed and a few more parameters:
Click to enlarge
Update Mode:
- Extract with file replacement - if the folder already contains the same files as in the archive, then they will be replaced with new ones
- Extract with file update is the same, but only older files will be replaced
- Update existing files only – only the update will occur, other files will not be extracted.
The “Overwrite mode” items are responsible for the behavior of the program when replacing existing files.
You can also use this dialog to unpack a damaged archive. By default, if a file has an error, it will not be unpacked. If you check the “Leave damaged files on disk” checkbox, the damaged file will be unpacked. If it is a video or music, then it can be opened. But, of course, the completeness of the resulting file will depend on the degree of damage to the archive.
You can also unpack files from the WinRAR program window. To do this, just select the required files and click on any of the buttons: “Extract...” or “Wizard”.
Click to enlarge
Also, the WinRar program will help you organize Reserve copy your information.
Please note that after installing any of the listed programs, the standard “Extract…” menu item in Windows 7 Explorer for zip archives may disappear.
How to unpack a multi-volume archive
Multi-volume archives are created to split one huge archive into several small ones. In this case, there will be numbers at the end of the file names, for example.z01, .z02, .z03 or part1, part2, part 3 or 001, 002, 003, etc. To unpack such a multi-volume archive you will need ALL the parts, otherwise nothing good will come of it. The process of unpacking a multi-volume archive is no different from unzipping regular files.
You just need to unzip the first file in the list in the usual way, and the rest will be picked up automatically.
If, in addition to the numbered parts, there is also a “regular” archive, then this file must be unpacked.
Click to enlarge
Please note that multi-volume ZIP archives created by WinRAR can only be unpacked with the same program!
Other programs give an error and even if you crack! And vice versa, WinRAR does not understand multi-volume files created by other programs.
After unpacking, the unnecessary archive file can be deleted.
Conclusions:
I believe that this article gave a comprehensive answer to the question of how to unpack a zip, rar, 7z or any other archive. This can be done using Windows Explorer (ZIP only) or using free programs 7-Zip and Hamster Lite Archiver or using the paid WinRAR program. Choose a method that is convenient for you and use it for your health!
Imagine how grateful your friends will be if you share this information with them in in social networks! By the way, you can also create your own archives using these programs, but read about this in the following articles.
RAR is a high compression archive format. Let's find out what ways there are to unzip this type files.
You can view the contents and unpack RAR archives using archiving programs, as well as some file managers.
Method 1: WinRAR
Of course, you should start with the WinRAR utility. Its peculiarity lies in the fact that it was created by the same developer (Evgeniy Roshal) who created the RAR format. The primary task of this application is to create, process and unzip the specified format. Let's see how it's done.
There is also an option to open directly from the WinRAR interface.
- Launch WinRAR. In the menu, click on the inscription "File". A list of actions opens. Select the inscription in it "Open archive". Also, the above actions can be replaced by pressing a key combination Ctrl+O.
- The search window opens. Using the navigation tools in it, we go to that directory hard drive, where the desired RAR archive is located. Select the name and click on the button "Open".
- After this, the WinRAR window will display the elements contained in the archive. If the user just wants to run a specific file without unpacking the archive, just double-click on it with the left mouse button.
- The object will open in the program with which it is associated by default, but the archive itself will not be unpacked.
- If you want to work with files without the need to access WinRAR or similar applications in the future, then in this case you need to perform an extraction procedure.
When the user wants to extract an element from the archive to the same folder where it is located, he needs to right-click on it. Then select the item from the menu "Extract without confirmation" or type a hotkey combination Alt+W.
If the user wants to unpack the entire contents of the archive into the directory where it is located, then to do this, you need to select not a specific file, but an icon to go to a higher level in the form of an open folder with two dots next to it. After that, activate the context menu and click on the inscription "Extract without confirmation" or use pressing Alt+W.
In the first case, the selected element will be extracted to the same folder where the archive is located, and in the second case, the entire contents of the RAR object will be extracted.
But often you need to extract not to the current folder, but to another directory on the hard drive. In this case, the procedure will be slightly different.
Like last time, if you need to unpack one element, then select it, activate the context menu by right-clicking, and check the item in it "Extract to the specified folder".
You can also replace this action with a set of keys Alt+E or by pressing the button "Extract" on the WinRAR toolbar after highlighting the name.
If you need to extract all the contents into the selected directory, by analogy with extraction without confirmation, select the icon to go to a higher level, and then click on the inscription in the context menu "Extract to the specified folder".
You can also use a keyboard shortcut Alt+E or pressing a button "Extract" on the toolbar.
- After the specified steps to extract an item or all content to the specified folder, a window opens in which you should configure the path and extraction parameters. On the left side in the tab "Are common" There are basic settings, by switching which you can adjust the update mode, overwrite mode and other parameters. But most users prefer to leave these settings unchanged. On the right side of the program interface there is an area in which you should indicate where exactly the objects will be unpacked. After the settings are completed and the folder is selected, click on the button "OK".
- After completing the last step, the procedure for unpacking the selected content into the specified folder is performed.
Method 2: 7-Zip
You can open RAR contents using another popular archiver - 7-Zip. Although, unlike WinRAR, this application cannot create RAR archives, but it unpacks them without problems.
- Launch the 7-Zip application. In the central part there is a file manager, with which you can navigate the hard drive. In order to view the contents of RAR, go using the specified file manager to the directory where the desired object with the specified extension is located. Just double-click on it with the left mouse button.
Instead, after highlighting, you can click on the key Enter on the keyboard or go through the horizontal menu to the item "File" and select a position from the drop-down list "Open".
- After this, all the elements contained in the archive will appear to the user through the 7-Zip interface.
- To extract the desired file, select it and click on the button "Extract" as a minus sign on the toolbar.
- Then a window called "Copy". If you need to extract to the same directory where the RAR file itself is located, then just click on the button "OK" without changing any other settings.
If you need to specify another folder, then before unpacking, click on the button in the form of an ellipsis to the right of the address field.
- The folder browser window opens. In the central area, go to the directory into which you want to unpack. Click on "OK".
- Automatically returns to the window "Copy". As you can see, in the address field of the directory intended for storing unzipped objects, the path that was selected in the folder browser window is indicated. Now you just need to click on "OK".
- After this, the selected object is unpacked into the specified directory.
Now let's see how to unpack all the contents.
Method 3: Hamster Free ZIP Archiver
Another popular archiver that can work with the RAR format is the Hamster Free ZIP Archiver program. In this application, the approach to unpacking differs significantly from the actions that we described in previous methods. Let's see how to perform this procedure with the Hamster program.
- Let's launch the application. The mode switch in the left vertical menu must be in position "Open". However, it is installed in this position by default.
- After that we open Windows Explorer and go to the directory where the RAR file we need is located. Select this object and, holding down left button mouse, drag it from Conductor in the central area of the Hamster application window.
- As soon as the object enters the Hamster window, it is transformed, splitting into two parts: "Open archive..." And "Unpack next...". In the first case, the object will be open in a window and ready for further processing, and in the second, the contents will be instantly unpacked in the same directory where the archived object is located.
Let's first look at how to proceed when choosing the first option.
- So, after moving the object to the area "Open archive..." the Hamster window will display all its contents.
You can also add an element for processing in a more traditional way. After launching the Hamster application, left-click on the central area where there is the inscription "Open Archive".
Then the opening window starts. In it you need to go to the directory where the RAR object is located, select it and click on the button "Open". After this, all the contents of the object will be presented in the program window in the same way as we saw above when opening by dragging.
- If you need to unzip all the contents, then in this case click on the button "Unpack everything".
- A window opens in which you need to specify the extraction path. Using the navigation tools, we go to the PC folder in which we want the extracted content to be stored. Then click on the button "Select folder".
- The contents will be extracted to the selected directory in a folder whose name will be identical to the name of the archive.
What to do if the user does not need to retrieve all the content, but only a single element?
Now let's return to what happens if, when moving a file from Conductor add it to the area "Unpack next...".
Method 4: File Managers
In addition to archivers, some file managers support working with RAR objects. Let's see how this is done using the example of the most popular of them - Total Commander.
If you need to extract an object to a specified location, then do it as follows.
Now let's see how to unpack all the contents completely.
Of course, not all archivers and file managers that allow you to view and extract the contents of files with the RAR extension are listed above. However, we tried to focus on the most popular of these programs, the likelihood of which the user has is quite high.
Typically people use ZIP files to compress and send files. This standard is used by default in Windows. But this is not the only archive format. A situation may arise when you need to open a RAR file. If you don't know which program to open RAR files, this article will be useful to you. In today's article I will talk about the best programs to open RAR archives.
We will talk about the five best programs for working with RAR files. All of them are easy to use and are great not only for opening, but also for compressing files.
Best Programs to Open RAR Files
Programs that open RAR files exist, both paid and free. All paid programs have a trial version. After trying it, it will be easier for you to decide whether you need it paid version or you can make do with the functionality of a free RAR archiver. At the end of the article, as always, I will voice my opinion.
WinZip
WinZip is a widely used and well-known tool for ZIP files. But the application also opens other archive formats, such as: RAR, 7z, CAB, ISO, etc. The program has a very simple interface. To open a RAR file, simply drag it into the WinZip window.
Along with opening RAR and additional compressed file types, you can convert and protect files using WinZip, which supports 128- and 256-bit AES encryption, resize photos and add watermarks, and quickly save the created file and send it when needed By e-mail or in cloud storage, such as Dropbox or Google Drive.
WinRZip is a program that opens RAR files.
WinZip also allows you to create split ZIP files, compress MP3 files, and use its features with various applications such as Microsoft Office. Overall, WinZip is a great choice. The only drawback is the price.
You can download a free trial of WinZip and use it for 21 days. After that, you can buy it for $29.95. It is currently available for Windows, Mac, and mobile devices.
WinRAR
WinRAR is another popular tool for opening RAR files. Additionally, you can open and extract other compressed file formats such as ZIP, CAB and ARJ. In addition to simply opening RAR files, you can create them, split archives into separate volumes, add passwords, scan archived files, and recover damaged files. WinRAR also features industry standard AES 128/256 encryption for password-protected archives. Password protection is more secure than WinZip.
The WinRAR program interface is very easy to understand and use. At the top there are large selection buttons: “Add”, “Extract..”, “Test”, “View”, “Delete”, “Find”, “Master”, “Information” and “Restore”. The Wizard is a useful feature of WinRAR that will especially help beginners.
WinRAR is a program that opens RAR files.If you're looking for a simple tool to open RAR files that offers so much more, then check out WinRAR. You can download it for free and try it for 40 days. If you decide to buy WinRAR, it is currently priced at $29 and is available for Windows and Android.
PeaZip
If the above two tools are a little out of your price range, you can check out a few free alternatives that can handle any task, be it opening RAR files, creating archives, etc. The PeaZip archiver, like other previous programs, in addition to working with RAR files, can open TAR, ZIP and 7z files.
PeaZip's interface is also very easy to use. Open the application, find the desired RAR file in the main window and double-click on it to open it, or click the Extract button to send the files to another location. You can also convert files to another format, password protect them with encryption, verify them, save a log, and delete files with one click.
PeaZip is an excellent choice for a good free tool that can open RAR files and create your own. PeaZip is released under an open source license and is available for Windows and Linux.
7-Zip
Another free tool for opening RAR files is 7-Zip. Like PeaZip, 7-Zip is open source, meaning that once you start using it, you won't be required to buy the program. With 7-Zip it can open various file formats such as: RAR, ZIP, 7z and CAB. You can also compress files in one of seven formats, including TAR and WIM.
Like other apps, 7-Zip has a neat and clean interface and uses simple, clear buttons. So you can add, extract, test, copy, move or delete with the click of a button. If you plan to compress your own files, you can password protect them using AES-256 as the encryption method.
7-Zip has many flexible settings for compressing your own files. This is another free tool worth trying for quickly opening RAR files and easily compressing files in other formats. 7-Zip is only available for Windows.
B1
Rounding out this list of tools for opening RAR files is B1 Free Archiver. The interface of this application is, in my opinion, the most interesting. You can use it as a file manager and open most file formats from RAR, ZIP, 7z.
You can choose from six formats when compressing your files and split the archive or add password protection. B1 Free Archiver has detailed help that explains everything very clearly.
B1- RAR file openerThe biggest difference between B1 Free Archiver and the other four tools on this list is that it is available for more platforms; Windows, Linux, Mac and Android.
The tool is also available as an online service. So, if you like it, you can use it on various devices.