my-docs/Linux/Basic-Administration/11-tar.md

Linux Compression & Archiving Cheatsheet

Tar Command Basics

The tar command is used to create, extract, and manage archive files.

Syntax:

tar [options] [archive_name.tar] [file(s)/directory]

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Create a .tar Archive

tar -cf archive_file.tar file1 file2 dir1

Options:

• -c: Create a new archive
• -f: Specify the archive file name

Create with Verbose Output

tar -cvf archive_file.tar file1 file2 dir1

• -v: Verbose mode (shows progress)

Extract a .tar Archive

tar -xf archive_file.tar

or

tar -xvf archive_file.tar

• -x: Extract files

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Gzip Compression

Gzip (GNU zip) is a fast and widely used compression tool.

Create a .tar.gz Archive

tar -czf archive_file.tar.gz file1 file2 dir1

• -z: Compress using gzip

Verbose Creation

tar -czvf archive_file.tar.gz file1 file2 dir1

Extract .tar.gz

tar -xzf archive_file.tar.gz

or

tar -xzvf archive_file.tar.gz

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Bzip2 Compression

Bzip2 provides better compression than gzip but at the cost of speed.

Create a .tar.bz2 Archive

tar -cjf archive_file.tar.bz2 file1 file2 dir1

• -j: Compress using bzip2

Verbose Creation

tar -cjvf archive_file.tar.bz2 file1 file2 dir1

Extract .tar.bz2

tar -xjf archive_file.tar.bz2

or

tar -xjvf archive_file.tar.bz2

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XZ Compression

XZ offers the best compression ratio but is the slowest option.

Create a .tar.xz Archive

tar -cJf archive_file.tar.xz file1 file2 dir1

• -J: Compress using xz

Verbose Creation

tar -cJvf archive_file.tar.xz file1 file2 dir1

Extract .tar.xz

tar -xJf archive_file.tar.xz

or

tar -xJvf archive_file.tar.xz

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Compression Format Comparison

Feature	gzip	bzip2	xz
Compression Speed	Fast	Slow	Slowest
Decompression Speed	Fast	Slower	Moderate
Compression Ratio	Good	Better	Best
File Extension	.tar.gz	.tar.bz2	.tar.xz
Common Use	General/Web	Backups	Archival