In earlier times, ZIP and RAR were the two preferred file formats. However, nowadays, quite a few developers are uploading their files over to the web in .tar extensions. So what exactly is a TAR file and how you could open these files on your Windows 10 PC or laptop? Well, In this guide, we will be answering just that.
Apart from that, we would also throw some lights as to why many people now prefer to upload the files in the said format. So without further ado, let’s check out why TAR files have become the new normal when it comes to open-source software distribution. Follow along.
What is a TAR File?
TAR file or Tape Archive files (also known as tarball) is a file format that is used to bundle in many different files inside a single package. This ends up saving considerable storage space as well as bandwidth. Hence developers prefer this format when uploading many files at once over to the servers.
But don’t mix up with a RAR or ZIP file. These two are the formats for compressed files, whereas TAR in itself isn’t a compressed file, but you could easily compress it using some applications. Once you end up compressing these TAR files, you will be able to save much more storage. But upon doing so, the .tar extension would then be replaced with .tgz or .gz extension.
So if you come across any .tgz or .gz files, then these are nothing but just a compressed version of a TAR file. Well, now that you know what exactly is a TAR file, the next question that might pop up is how to open these files on Windows 10? Well, here are the required instructions set for the same.
How to Open TAR Files on Windows 10
There are many applications that let you carry out the aforementioned task. In this regard, 7ZIP is among the most popular ones. So download the same from the below link and then proceed with the given steps. We will show you how to open the .TAR files as well as its compressed versions, i.e. .tgz or .gz files. Follow along.
STEP 1: Install 7ZIP
- Download and install the 7ZIP application on your Windows PC, corresponding to the CPU architecture: 32-bit x86 | 64-bit x64
- Launch the setup file and install it to your preferred directory.
- Once you have got a TAR file, right-click on it and select 7-ZIP.
- Then select Extract to “<filename>”.
- The contents of that TAR file will now be extracted to the desired location.
- If you come across a compressed TAR file, then there is an additional step that you need to carry out.
- First off, right-click on that .tgz or .gz file and select 7-ZIP.
- Then select Extract to “<filename.tar>”.
- The .tgz or .gz file will then be decompressed to a TAR file.
- You could now further extract this TAR file by right-clicking on it and selecting 7 ZIP > Extract to “<filename>” (similar to what we did in STEP 2).
That’s it. This is all from this guide on what are TAR files and how to open these TAR files on your Windows 10 PC. If you have any queries, do let us know in the comments section below. Rounding off, here are some equally useful iPhone Tips and Tricks, PC tips and tricks, and Android Tips and Trick that you should check out as well.
