What This Tool Does
This tool decompresses a GZ file back into the TAR archive it wraps. A .gz file is a compressed stream, almost always a compressed TAR, and this converter recovers that underlying TAR so you can open it directly.
The result is a plain TAR. To go back to a compressed state, any gzip tool, or the other converters on this site, can re-wrap it.
How It Works
The compressed stream is decoded in memory, producing the original TAR bytes. The recovered TAR is then opened with the archive engine to confirm it is a readable archive before the download link is offered.
Step by Step
- 1
Upload the GZ file.
- 2
Click Decompress GZ.
- 3
Wait for the stream to be decoded.
- 4
Download the recovered TAR.
Compatibility
- Standard gzip streams are supported.
- The recovered TAR must be a readable archive; otherwise the stream is still offered as a file.
- This tool never fakes a TAR from arbitrary data.
Troubleshooting
- Corrupt GZ streams fail explicitly instead of producing truncated output.
- By design, GZ usually wraps TAR; that is the assumption of this converter.
- The recovered TAR opens like any other tar on your system.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is inside a GZ file normally?
Almost always a TAR archive. This tool recovers that TAR by decompressing the stream.
Is decompression lossless?
Yes, gzip decompression restores the exact original bytes.
Can GZ wrap something other than TAR?
It can, but TAR is the overwhelming convention. The tool frames the result as the underlying stream.
What if the TAR is itself large?
Decompression is streamed and bounded by the platform size safeguards.
Do I need software to open the TAR?
Standard operating tools open TAR; the page only prepares the file for you.