How to Unzip Rar Files in Ubuntu

Support for RAR files is not included with Ubuntu, but can be installed.

The RAR format is a popular solution for compressing files and distributing them online, largely because of the success of the WinRAR file compression utility for Windows. However, Ubuntu does not include support for the RAR format because of licensing issues. Because RAR support is not included, it is necessary to install a utility to extract RAR files. Install the UNRAR utility to extract RAR files in Ubuntu.

Instructions

Installing UNRAR in Ubuntu

1. Click the "System" menu at the top of the screen, then click "Administration" and "Synaptic Package Manager." You are prompted for the administrator password for your computer. Type the password and press "Enter" or click "OK."

2. Type "unrar" in the "Quick Search" box at the top of the screen.

3. Click the box next to "unrar" on the list of search results, then click "Mark for Installation."

4. Click the "Apply" button at the top of the screen. A summary window appears explaining that UNRAR will be installed. Click the "Apply" button at the bottom of the summary window. The package is downloaded and installed. Click the "Close" button then close Synaptic Package Manager when the process is complete.

5. Browse to the location of the RAR file that you want to extract. Right-click the RAR file, then click "Extract Here." The contents of the RAR file are extracted in the current folder.

Tips & Warnings

• RAR files may also be extracted from the command line after UNRAR is installed. To do this, open a Terminal window, navigate to the location of the RAR file and type "unrar x (file name)." Include the .RAR extension at the end of the file name.

• The instructions in this article are specific to Ubuntu version 9.10. The method for extracting RAR files in previous versions of Ubuntu may differ slightly.

References

• Webmaster Tips: How to Open a RAR File in Linux