Linux: tar Extract Files

Extract or Unpack a TarBall File

To unpack or extract a tar file, type:

 
tar -xvf file.tar
 

To save disk space and bandwidth over the network all files are saved using compression program such as gzip or bzip2. To extract / unpack a .tar.gz (gzip) file, enter (note -z option):

 
tar -xzvf file.tar.gz
 

To extract / unpack a .tar.bz2 (bzip2) file, enter (note -j option):

 
tar -xjvf file.tar.bz2
 

Where,

• -x : Extract a tar ball.
• -v : Verbose output or show progress while extracting files.
• -f : Specify an archive or a tarball filename.
• -j : Decompress and extract the contents of the compressed archive created by bzip2 program (tar.bz2 extension).
• -z : Decompress and extract the contents of the compressed archive created by gzip program (tar.gz extension).

How Do I Extract A Single File Called foo.txt?

To extract a single file called foo.txt, enter:

 
tar -xvf file.tar foo.txt
tar -xzvf file.tar.gz foo.txt
tar -xjvf file.tar.bz2 foo.txt
 

You can also specify path such as etc/resolv.conf, enter:

 
tar -xvf file.tar etc/resolv.conf
tar -xzvf file.tar.gz etc/resolv.conf
tar -xjvf file.tar.bz2 etc/resolv.conf
 

How Do I Extract a Single Directory Called etc?

To extract a single directory called etc, enter:

 
tar -xvf file.tar etc
tar -xzvf file.tar.gz etc
tar -xjvf file.tar.bz2 etc
 

Sample outputs:

etc/
etc/pulse/
etc/pulse/default.pa
etc/pulse/client.conf
etc/pulse/daemon.conf
etc/pulse/system.pa
etc/xml/
etc/xml/docbook-xml.xml.old
etc/xml/xml-core.xml
etc/xml/catalog
etc/xml/catalog.old
etc/xml/docbook-xml.xml
etc/xml/rarian-compat.xml
etc/xml/sgml-data.xml
etc/xml/xml-core.xml.old
etc/xml/sgml-data.xml.old
etc/mail.rc
etc/Wireless/
etc/Wireless/RT2870STA/
etc/Wireless/RT2870STA/RT2870STA.dat
etc/logrotate.conf
etc/compizconfig/
etc/compizconfig/config
.....
...
....
etc/python/
etc/python/debian_config
etc/ConsoleKit/
etc/ConsoleKit/seats.d/
etc/ConsoleKit/seats.d/00-primary.seat
etc/ConsoleKit/run-session.d/
etc/ConsoleKit/run-seat.d/
etc/opt/