.tar — Tape Archive
Archive application/x-tar
What a .tar file is
A container that bundles files and their permissions without compressing anything. Almost always paired with a compressor, giving .tar.gz or .tar.xz.
How to open it
tar -xf archive.tar.gz on any Unix system; 7-Zip on Windows.
Worth knowing
Unlike ZIP, a tar preserves Unix ownership and permission bits — which is why it is still the default for source releases.
How to identify a .tar file
A file's extension is only its name — renaming a.png to a.tar changes nothing inside. What software actually reads is the magic number, the first few bytes of the file.
| Signature | 75 73 74 61 72 at offset 257 |
| MIME type | application/x-tar |
| Category | Archive |
ASCII "ustar" — unusually, not at the start of the file.
# what is this file really?
file mystery.tar
# look at the first bytes yourself
xxd mystery.tar | head -2
head -c 16 mystery.tar | xxd
# Windows PowerShell
Get-Content mystery.tar -AsByteStream -TotalCount 16 | Format-HexFrequently asked questions
What is a .tar file?
A container that bundles files and their permissions without compressing anything. Almost always paired with a compressor, giving .tar.gz or .tar.xz.
How do I open a .tar file?
tar -xf archive.tar.gz on any Unix system; 7-Zip on Windows.
Is .tar safe to open?
The archive itself is inert, but its contents may not be. Extracting a .tar from an unknown sender is how a lot of malware arrives — check what is inside before running anything.
Can I change a file's extension to convert it?
No. Renaming changes the label, not the bytes. The one place it appears to work is between formats that genuinely share a container — renaming .docx to .zip works because a DOCX is a ZIP. Everything else needs a real converter.