Compressed files take up less disk space and can be transferred to other computers much faster than uncompressed files. Working with packed files and folders in Windows looks the same as with uncompressed files and folders. To make it easier to share a group of files, you can combine them into one compressed folder.
How to pack a file
If you want to package a file, several files or a folder, open File Explorer from the taskbar. Right-click the file or folder you want to package, then select Send to> Compressed (zipped) folder. A compressed folder will be created.
How can I archive files using WinRAR
First, start WinRAR by double-clicking or pressing the Enter key on the WinRAR icon. You can also start the program in the Windows Start menu: select “Programs”, then “WinRAR”, then run “WinRAR”.
After starting the program, it will display a list of files and folders in the current folder. Select the folder containing the files to be backed up. You can use the CRTL + D key combination, the disk list under the Toolbar, or click the disk icon in the lower left corner to change the current disk. Press BS, CRTL + PgUp, the “Up” button under the Toolbar or double-click on any other folder to open it. The Crtl + key combination will set the disk’s source folder as the current one.
After entering the destination folder, select the files and folders to be archived using the Shift + arrow or mouse key combination (in Windows Explorer and other Windows programs). You can also choose files in WinRAR using the Spacebar or Ins keys. The “Gray +” and “Gray-” keys on the numeric keypad allow you to select a group of files using the file mask.
After selecting one or more files, click the “Add” button at the top of the WinRAR window, press the Alt + A key combination or select “Add files to archive” in the command menu. Then select the archive name in the dialog box or accept the default name. In the dialog you can also choose the archive format (RAR or ZIP), compression level, volume size and other archiving parameters. The command is described in detail in the topic “Name and parameters of the archive”. Click OK to create the archive.
During the compression process, the process window will be displayed. To stop the compression process, click “Cancel” in the command window. To minimize WinRAR, click “Work in the background”. After compression, the command window will disappear and the newly created archive will become the default file selected.
You can also add files to an already created RAR archive using the “drag and drop” method. Select the desired archive in the WinRAR window and press Enter (or double-click) on its icon. RAR will read the archive and display its contents. You can then add files to the archive by dragging them from another program and dropping them into WinRAR.