ZIP cannot store any of these other than plain old DOS attributes (read-only, hidden, system). times) and thus makes it a good full backup tool with decent compression capability. Besides that, RAR can store NTFS file system attributes (such as streams, full acl permissions, change / access / etc. What does it mean? Well, you can split a large file into two or more different RAR files. RAR also archives files with smaller sizes compared to ZIP archives, which makes RAR a better alternative than ZIP.Īnother nice thing about RAR files is that they can be split into multiple parts. It means that RAR uses a compression algorithm that is significantly better and more efficient than the DEFLATE compression method used in ZIP. In general, the RAR format can compress a file much better than when it is done using ZIP format. The main reason people use RAR for Mac and other computers is the compression ratio. What are the reasons to use RAR vs ZIP files? However, RAR is a proprietary archive format and to open rar on Mac you will need a third-party application. password protection of the contents of the archive is provided.ability to create a multivolume archive (consisting of several parts).the maximum size of the archive, as well as the files in it, is practically unlimited.Let's list the other advantages of the RAR format: You can usually compress almost any type of file, including images, documents, videos, and software.The main advantage of this format is to save space, since the information is in a 'packed' form. Some RAR files have passwords or are encrypted to protect the files inside. It has become popular for sharing and downloading various types of files because it compresses the contents of a folder to reduce the file size.Ĭompressing files speeds up downloads and makes file sharing easier. Like other archives, RAR contains one or more files or folders. RAR stands for Roshal Archive Compressed file and is named after its Russian-born creator Eugene Roshal. What are the reasons to use RAR vs ZIP files?.

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