An archive file is a file that is composed of one or more files along with metadata that can include source volume and medium information, file directory structure, error detection and recovery information, file comments, and usually employs some form of lossless compression. Archive files may also be encrypted in part or as a whole. Archive files are used to collect multiple data files together into a single file for easier portability and storage.
Archive files are sometimes accompanied by separate parity files that allow for additional error detection and recovery, particularly in recovery of missing package files in a multi-file archive.
Archives can have extensions like .zip, .rar, .7z, .gz, etc.
History
Archive files were originally used to store important files on alternate media (such as tapes) for preservation and recoverability. Archive files are now commonly used for transferring files and for software distribution and installation. A hard drive volume, RAID, and shadow copy/snapshot can also be considered archive files. The operating system would be the file archiver.
