TAR Creator
Bundle files into a .tar or compressed .tar.gz archive, preserving folder structure and file modes.
What is TAR Creator?
A TAR writer for the archive format used across Unix, Docker images, npm packages and Linux releases. Folder structure, file modes and modification times are recorded properly.
How it works
Each entry gets a 512-byte ustar header with octal size and mode fields, a checksum, and the file's bytes padded to the next block boundary. Parent folders are emitted as their own entries the way GNU tar does, and .tar.gz simply pipes the finished archive through a gzip stream.
- Add your files. Drop files (or a whole folder) onto the drop zone. Browsers hand the contents straight to the page, so nothing is uploaded.
- Choose the options. Pick the format, compression, naming rule or split size. Any change re-computes the preview immediately.
- Download the result. Run the tool and grab the archive, the extracted files or the report. Multi-file results come back as a single .zip.
Examples
A 240 MB photo folder → a 52 MB .zip
JPEGs are already compressed, so the archive only saves 10–15% — but adding the folder structure and a manifest makes the upload verifiable.
A download cut off at 1.4 GB
The File Splitter cuts it into 500 MB chunks that fit the host's limit, and the File Joiner reassembles them, refusing any set with a missing part.
A release bundle with checksums
The Manifest Generator writes sha256sum-style lines next to the files, so the recipient can prove the download arrived intact.
Common mistakes
Expecting ZIP to shrink photos, video or audio
Those formats are already compressed; deflate typically saves single digits on them. ZIP is at its best on text, JSON, CSV, logs and source code.
Treating ZipCrypto as real encryption
Traditional ZIP encryption is legacy and breakable. It stops casual snooping only — for secrets, encrypt the contents with AES-256 first.
Renaming extensions to convert a file
Changing .png to .jpg does not change the bytes inside. Some programs will refuse the file, or display garbage. Use a real converter when the format must change.
Splitting without keeping the suffixes
The parts carry .001, .002 … suffixes on purpose: the joiner orders them by number and fails loudly when one is missing, instead of producing a corrupt file.
Frequently asked questions
Why do some servers ask for .tar.gz instead of .zip?
TAR preserves Unix file modes, ownership fields and symlinks, which ZIP handles only partially. Packaging conventions — npm tarballs, Docker layer contents, source releases — are built on it.
What happens with very long paths?
Paths up to 255 characters are stored using the ustar prefix field, exactly as GNU tar does. Anything longer is reported as an error rather than silently truncated, because a truncated path can extract over the wrong file.
Can the archive be opened on Windows?
Yes — Windows 10 and later ship a bsdtar-based tar command, and 7-Zip, WinRAR and WinZip all open .tar.gz. macOS handles it natively too.