It doesn’t take much for your hard drive to become cluttered or disorganized. With family photos, large documents, or other files, you can quickly run out of storage. A practical space-saving and organizing solution is to archive some of these files by “zipping” them.
Zipping a file isn’t unique to Windows 10. Many computer systems allow you to archive documents, but depending on the program you have, it might work differently.
ZIP a single file
You’ll want to use this method if a single file is enormous, such as a video shoot with a smartphone or digital camera. Zipping the file will reduce its overall size and make it easier to handle. Here’s how you can get started.
Step 1: Locate File Explorer on the Windows 10 taskbar (the folder icon).
Step 2: Locate the file you want to compress.
Step 3: Right-click on the file.
Step 4: Select Send To on the menu.
Step 5: Select Compressed (Zipped) Folder in the next menu.
Step 6: Rename your new ZIP file, and press the Enter key.
ZIP multiple files
This method is handy for cramming multiple files together, for both size and organizational reasons. Not only is this a smart idea when you’re sending files, and also just to keep files together to free up disk space.
Step 1: Locate File Explorer on the Windows 10 taskbar (the folder icon).
Step 2: Locate the files you want to add to a single ZIP file.
Step 3: Select all files by holding down the mouse button and dragging the pointer across the screen. Your mouse will create a blue selection box. All files within this box are highlighted with a light blue colour.
Step 4: Release the mouse button and right-click on the light- highlighted files.
Step 5: Select Send To on the menu.
Step 6: Select Compressed (Zipped) Folder in the next menu.
Step 7: Rename your new ZIP file, and press the Enter key.
ZIP an entire folder
If you want multiple files in a single folder, this is the method you choose. When unpacked, all files will unload in a folder created during the compression process.
Step 1: Locate File Explorer on the Windows 10 taskbar (the folder icon).
Step 2: Locate the folder you want to add to a single ZIP file.
Step 3: Right-click on the folder.
Step 4: Select Send To on the menu.
Step 5: Select Compressed (Zipped) Folder in the next menu.
Step 6: Rename your new ZIP file and press the Enter key.
Unpack a ZIP file
Unpacking a ZIP file is just as important as knowing how to ZIP the file. In Windows 10, your actions follow a specific algorithm that scans your file, mitigates repetitive information, and establishes a brand-new file that boasts a smaller size and a new extension. The following steps demonstrate how to accomplish this:
Step 1: Locate File Explorer on the Windows 10 taskbar (the folder icon).
Step 2: Locate the file you want to decompress.
Step 3: Right-click on the file.
Step 4: Select Extract All on the menu.
Step 5: On the next pop-up screen, select where you want Windows 10 to unload the files by clicking the Browse button.
Step 5: Once you choose a location, click the Select Folder button.
Step 6: Finally, click the Extract button.
Windows 10 will scan the file to convert it back to its original state. It will then see what was removed and insert the repetitive information back into the file. You’ll then have an unpacked ZIP file.
This content was originally published here.
