How to create tar.gz file in Linux using command line

The tar command in Linux and Unix-like operating systems is used to create compressed and uncompressed archive files. It is a versatile utility that can combine multiple files and directories into a single archive file, which can then be compressed to save space or to make it easier to transfer. Below, I’ll explain how to use tar to compress and uncompress files with examples.

Table of Contents

• Basic tar Commands
  • Compress (Create Archive)
  • Uncompress (Extract Archive)
• Common Use Cases
  • Archive and Compress Multiple Directories:
  • List the Contents of an Archive:
  • Add Files to an Existing Archive:
  • Exclude Specific Files/Directories:
• Summary Table

Basic tar Commands

Compress (Create Archive)

The basic syntax to create a tar.gz archive is:

tar -czvf archive.tar.gz directory

Uncompress (Extract Archive)

To extract an archive, use the following syntax:

tar -xzvf archive.tar.gz

Common Use Cases

Archive and Compress Multiple Directories:

tar -cvzf archive.tar.gz /dir1 /dir2 /dir3

This command archives and compresses multiple directories into a single file.

List the Contents of an Archive:

tar -tzvf archive.tar.gz

This will list the contents of the specified archive without extracting them.

Add Files to an Existing Archive:

tar -rzvf archive.tar.gz new-file

Adds a new file to an existing archive.

Exclude Specific Files/Directories:

tar --exclude='*.log' -cvzf archive.tar.gz directory

Excludes all .log files from the archive.

Summary Table

These commands provide a comprehensive guide to using tar for compressing and uncompressing files and directories. With tar, you can easily manage file archives and compress them for efficient storage and transfer.