I need to set passwords and compression levels when I create an archive on Mac OS X. This was trivial on Windows with 7zip. But I can't find a compression utility on Mac OS X that supports setting encryption passwords or compression levels. 7 zip for mac, 7 zip portable, 7z file mac, 7zip command line, 7zip vs winrar, download winzip free full version for windows 7, free zip file opener, free zip software, how to use 7zip, is 7zip safe, zip file opener online.
Just about every PC user encounters compressed files in formats such as ZIP and RAR at one time or the other. The most common format is ZIP and Windows has a built-in function for managing ZIP files. However, it is a pretty minimal feature. You don’t have to be a power user to find that you prefer to install and use one of the free multi-featured file archivers. Several good programs are reviewed and 7-Zip is the editor’s choice. This happens to also be my own personal choice and I have been using 7-Zip for years.
Although 7-Zip is a very popular utility, many people probably just install it and use the default setup. However, 7-Zip can be configured in various ways and you may want to set it up so that it better fits the particular way that you work. Here is how to get the best use from 7-Zip. Configure file associations Normally, Windows Explorer is the default application for ZIP files but that's about it. Clicking other archive types such as RAR will trigger a “Windows can’t open this file” message.
However, 7-Zip can be made the default program for a number of archive types. The archived contents of files that with 7-Zip can then be viewed and managed with 7-Zip by double-clicking the file. Here is the procedure. Go to the All Programs list and open 7-Zip File Manager. In Windows Vista/7, you’ll need to right-click the 7-Zip entry and choose “Run as administrator” in order to change file associations. When the 7-Zip file manager opens, click the “Tools” menu and choose “Options”.
The dialog box shown in Figure 1 will open. With the tab “System” selected, put a check by all file types you wish to associate with 7-Zip. Click “Apply” if you want to go on to make the changes given in the next section or click “OK’ and close the file manager if you are done. Setting 7-Zip file associations Configure the context menu entries It is common to use 7-Zip from the Windows Explorer right-click context menu. (BTW, users with 64-bit operating systems should install the 64-bit version of 7-Zip to get proper shell integration.) A number of 7-Zip functions can be put in the context menu but you may not want all of them. It is easy to choose just the ones that you find useful.
Continuing from step 3 or step 5 in the section above, select the tab “7-Zip”. (Remember, you’ll need to be running 7-Zip as administrator in Windows Vista/7). The dialog box shown in Figure 2 will open. If you want entries for 7-Zip to appear in the Explorer context menu, check the boxes by “Integrate 7-Zip to shell context menu” and “Cascaded context menu”. Conversely, if you do not want any entries in the context menu, remove any checks by these boxes and skip to step 5. Place checks by any entries that you want to appear in the context menu. Click “OK” and close the file manager.
7-Zip context menu entries And there you have it; 7-Zip configured your way. Get your own favorite tip published!
![7zip For Mac How To Use 7zip For Mac How To Use](/uploads/1/2/5/4/125499871/158673282.png)
Know a neat tech tip or trick? Then why not have it published here and receive full credit?
This tips section is maintained by Vic Laurie. Vic runs several websites with Windows how-to's and tutorials, including a and a site for learning about. For more items like this. Better still, get Tech Tips delivered or alternatively, have the direct to your in-box. Please rate this article.
NEW UPDATE 2017.11.30 Hi there, Thanks for reading this SoftwareHow tip. It's been two years since I first published this post. Things have changed a lot when it comes to unrar apps for Mac. I was hoping that OS X (now we call macOS) could add this feature to its built-in Archive Utility app, unfortunately, it seems that Apple macOS team doesn't plan to do this.
My MacBook Pro is now with the latest 10.13 High Sierra, and I have to rely on third-party apps to extract RAR files. As for the best rar extractor app for Mac, the recommendation stays the same —. It's still free to download and use. However, it's worth noting that the app has been acquired by (the maker of, an awesome Mac cleaning app) and is now part of the MacPaw family. You can read more from the press release.
Also, I just found a more powerful app called — which allows Mac users to not only extract many types of archives, but you can also use it to create archives or preview content of an archive without extracting. Those additional features are not available in The Unarchiver or Archive Utility. I recommend BetterZip to those of you who often need to handle a different kind of files on a PC and Mac. Note: BetterZip isn't freeware ($24.95 for the paid version), but a free trial is offered.
You can or download it from its official site. What about the other apps listed below? I tried to check them now and then, just to make sure they're usable and the information is accurate.
But I find it so time-consuming because every year or so Apple releases a new version of macOS (to date, it's High Sierra 10.13.2), those apps that fail to be updated often can't run or malfunction. Therefore, I'd discourage you to check them out unless you are interested. That said, I'll try my best to keep the content on this post as fresh as possible. Thank you for understanding. RAR is a compressed file short for Roshal Archive; it's a proprietary file format developed by, a genius software engineer.
Simply put, a.rar file is like a big data container that holds a set of individual files and folders inside. Because it reduces the size of your files and folders while keeping all the content 100% intact.
With a RAR, it's much easier to store on removable media or transferred over the Internet. According to this comparison image provided by Compression Ratings, RAR files achieve much higher compression, especially on multimedia files. They are also easier to split or to recover once corrupted than other alternatives like ZIP or 7Zip files. Unlike other archive files, for example, a ZIP archive can be directly created or extracted by using the default function on Mac , a RAR file can only be opened using third-party software.which, unfortunately, Apple hasn't built into the Archive Utility, yet. That's why there are plenty of third-party applications available on the Internet that claim to be able to do that. Some are dated, while some require you to pay. Thanks to those smart, yet kind developers, we have quite a lot of free options to get the job done without taking a penny out of the pocket.
I've tested many and here are the 10 best free apps that still work. 10 Free RAR Extractor Apps That Work on Mac.