How To Uncompress a *.7z File in Ubuntu and Preserve Directory Structure

In this tutorial, we will guide you through the process of uncompressing a *.7z file in Ubuntu while preserving the directory structure. The *.7z file is an archive format that stands for 7-zip, you can compress multiple files into a single *.7z file.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, you need to have a Ubuntu system running on your computer. You also need to have administrative privileges to install necessary packages.

Installing the Necessary Package

The first step is to install the p7zip-full package. This package provides a command-line utility that can work with 7-Zip files. To install it, open a terminal window and type the following command:

sudo apt-get install p7zip-full

The sudo command allows you to run commands with administrative privileges, apt-get is the package handling utility in Ubuntu, and install is the command to install a new package.

Uncompressing a *.7z File

Once you have installed the p7zip-full package, you can use the 7z command to extract the files. If you want to extract the files with the full path, use the x option:

7z x <archive_name>.7z

Here, 7z is the command to run the 7-Zip utility, x is the option that tells the utility to preserve the directory structure, and <archive_name>.7z is the name of the *.7z file you want to uncompress. Replace <archive_name> with the actual name of your *.7z file.

Using a Graphical Interface

If you prefer a graphical interface, you can use Nautilus, the default file manager in Ubuntu. After installing p7zip-full, Nautilus should have an option to uncompress 7-Zip files. Simply right-click on the *.7z file and select the appropriate option.

Using the dtrx Tool

Another option is to use the dtrx tool, which stands for “Do The Right eXtraction”. This tool can handle various archive formats and is known for its simplicity. To install it, use the following command:

sudo apt-get install dtrx

Then, you can extract the archive by running:

dtrx <archive_name>.tar.XX

Replace <archive_name>.tar.XX with the name of your archive.

Using the p7zip Package

If you are using Ubuntu 17.04 or later, you can install the p7zip package instead of p7zip-full:

sudo apt install p7zip

To extract the files, use the -d command:

p7zip -d <archive_name>.7z

Be cautious with this method, as it will delete the input file by default. To preserve the input file, use the --keep option:

p7zip -d --keep <archive_name>.7z

Conclusion

In this article, we have discussed several methods to uncompress a *.7z file in Ubuntu while preserving the directory structure. We hope this guide has been helpful to you. If you have any questions or run into any issues, feel free to leave a comment below.