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atool — A script for managing file archives of various types. `atool` uses external archiver programs but pr

Submitted by: @import:tldr-pages·Mar 2, 2026·

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commandatoolforclimanagingfilescriptarchives

Problem

How to use the atool command: A script for managing file archives of various types. atool uses external archiver programs but provides a consistent command-line interface for listing, extracting, creating, and managing archives. More information: <https://manned.org/atool>.

Solution

atool — A script for managing file archives of various types. atool uses external archiver programs but provides a consistent command-line interface for listing, extracting, creating, and managing archives. More information: <https://manned.org/atool>.

List files in an archive:

atool {{[-l|--list]}} {{path/to/archive.zip}}

Extract an archive (safely creates a subdirectory if needed):

atool {{[-x|--extract]}} {{archive.tar.gz}}

Extract an archive to a specific directory:

atool {{[-X|--extract-to]}} {{path/to/output_directory}} {{archive.rar}}

Display a specific file's content from an archive to stdout (like cat):

atool {{[-c|--cat]}} {{archive.tar}} {{path/to/file_in_archive.txt}}

Create a new archive from specified files and/or directories:

atool {{[-a|--add]}} {{new_archive.zip}} {{path/to/file1 path/to/file2 ...}}

List files in an archive and send the output through a pager:

atool {{[-l|--list]}} {{[-p|--pager]}} {{large_archive.tar.bz2}}

Extract multiple archives at once (each to its own subdirectory if needed):

atool {{[-x|--extract]}} {{[-e|--each]}} {{archive1.zip}} {{archive2.tar.gz}} {{*.rar}}

Repack an archive from one format to another (e.g., .tar.gz to .tar.7z):

atool {{[-r|--repack]}} {{old_archive.tar.gz}} {{new_archive.tar.7z}}

Code Snippets

List files in an archive

atool {{[-l|--list]}} {{path/to/archive.zip}}

Extract an archive (safely creates a subdirectory if needed)

atool {{[-x|--extract]}} {{archive.tar.gz}}

Extract an archive to a specific directory

atool {{[-X|--extract-to]}} {{path/to/output_directory}} {{archive.rar}}

Display a specific file's content from an archive to `stdout` (like `cat`)

atool {{[-c|--cat]}} {{archive.tar}} {{path/to/file_in_archive.txt}}

Create a new archive from specified files and/or directories

atool {{[-a|--add]}} {{new_archive.zip}} {{path/to/file1 path/to/file2 ...}}

Context

tldr-pages: common/atool

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