Essential Linux Commands for File Compression and Extraction – tar, zstd, and unzip

Introduction

Linux offers powerful tools for file compression and extraction. Whether you're backing up data, transferring files, or organizing directories, mastering commands like tar, zstd, and unzip is essential. Below are practical examples and explanations for each.

1. Extracting a .tar.gz archive

Command:

tar -xvzf user.admin.dorgul.tar.gz

Explanation: This extracts the contents of a gzip-compressed tar archive.

• -x: Extract files


• -v: Verbose output


• -z: Use gzip


• -f: Specify archive file

2. Creating a .tar.gz archive

Command:

tar -cvzf ./tar.gz /document

Explanation: This compresses the /document directory into a gzip-compressed archive named tar.gz.

3. Decompressing a .tar.zst file using zstd

Command:

zstd -d filename.tar.zst

Explanation: Decompresses a Zstandard-compressed tar file into its original .tar format.

4. Compressing a file with zstd

Command:

zstd file.txt

Explanation: Compresses file.txt into file.txt.zst using Zstandard.

5. Extracting a .tar.zst archive using tar and zstd

Command:

tar -I zstd -xvf archive.tar.zst

Explanation: Uses tar with Zstandard to extract the contents of archive.tar.zst.

6. Extracting a .zip archive to a specific folder

Command:

unzip file.zip -d destination_folder

Explanation: Extracts file.zip into the folder destination_folder.

Conclusion

Whether you're working with .tar.gz, .tar.zst, or .zip files, Linux provides efficient tools for compression and extraction. Understanding these commands helps streamline workflows, automate backups, and manage data with precision.