libarchive
libarchive is a free and open-source library for reading and writing various archive and compression formats. It is written in C and works on most Unix-like systems and Windows.[3]
| Initial release | 2003[1] | 
|---|---|
| Stable release | |
| Repository | |
| Written in | C | 
| Operating system | cross-platform | 
| Type | library | 
| License | New BSD License[3] | 
| Website | libarchive  | 
History
    
libarchive's development was started in 2003 as part of the FreeBSD project.[1] During the early years it was led by the FreeBSD project, but later it became an independent project.[4] It was first released with FreeBSD 5.3 in November 2004.[5]
libarchive
    
libarchive automatically detects and reads archive formats.[6] If the archive is compressed, libarchive also detects and handles compression formats before evaluating the archive.[6] libarchive is designed to minimize the copying of data internally for very optimal performance.[7]
Supported archive formats:[8]
Utilities
    
libarchive provides command-line utilities called bsdtar and bsdcpio.[3] These are complete re-implementation based on libarchive.[9][10] These are the default system tar and cpio on FreeBSD, NetBSD, macOS and Windows.[5]
There is also bsdcat, designed to decompress a file to the standard output like zcat.[11]
Users
    
libarchive was originally developed for FreeBSD, but is also used in NetBSD and macOS as part of those operating systems.[5]
bsdtar has been included in Windows since Windows 10 April 2018 Update.[12] In May 2023, Microsoft announced Windows 11 will natively support additional archive formats such as 7z and RAR via libarchive.[13]
References
    
- "ReleaseNotes". GitHub. Archived from the original on 12 March 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
- "Release 3.7.2". 11 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
- "libarchive". www.libarchive.org. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
- "ReleaseEngineering". GitHub. Archived from the original on 30 April 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
- "LibarchiveUsers". GitHub. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
- – FreeBSD Library Functions Manual
- "ZeroCopy". GitHub. Archived from the original on 30 April 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
- "Libarchive Formats". GitHub. 17 January 2020. Archived from the original on 11 September 2020.
- – FreeBSD General Commands Manual
- – FreeBSD General Commands Manual
- – FreeBSD General Commands Manual
- "Tar and Curl Come to Windows!". Microsoft Community Hub. 21 March 2019. Archived from the original on 15 April 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
- Panay, Panos (23 May 2023). "Bringing the power of AI to Windows 11 - unlocking a new era of productivity for customers and developers with Windows Copilot and Dev Home". Windows Developer Blog. Archived from the original on 25 May 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2023.