The zip command is another compression utility, but unlike gzip, xz, and bzip2, it also features file archiving functionality. In fact, zip is a combination of an older compression utility called compress and the tar archive command. Files compressed with zip frequently have the .zip file extension. The zip command has several options.
| Option | Used To |
|---|---|
| -d | Delete entries in a .zip archive. |
| -e | Encrypt the contents of an archive. |
| -F | Fix a corrupted .zip archive. |
| -r | Enable recursion. |
| -T | Perform an integrity check on the archive file. |
Syntax
The syntax of the zip command is:
# zip [options] [file names]
zip Command Examples
1. Add files/directories to a specific archive ([r]ecursively):
# zip -r path/to/compressed.zip path/to/file_or_directory1 path/to/file_or_directory2 ...
2. Remove files/directories from a specific archive ([d]elete):
# zip -d path/to/compressed.zip path/to/file_or_directory1 path/to/file_or_directory2 ...
3. Archive files/directories e[x]cluding specified ones:
# zip -r path/to/compressed.zip path/to/file_or_directory1 path/to/file_or_directory2 ... -x path/to/excluded_files_or_directories
4. Archive files/directories with a specific compression level (`0` – the lowest, `9` – the highest):
# zip -r -0-9 path/to/compressed.zip path/to/file_or_directory1 path/to/file_or_directory2 ...
5. Create an [e]ncrypted archive with a specific password:
# zip -r -e path/to/compressed.zip path/to/file_or_directory1 path/to/file_or_directory2 ...
6. Archive files/directories to a multi-part [s]plit zip file (e.g. 3 GB parts):
# zip -r -s 3g path/to/compressed.zip path/to/file_or_directory1 path/to/file_or_directory2 ...
7. Print a specific archive contents:
# zip -sf path/to/compressed.zip