Files · Windows 10 and 11
Open RAR files
RAR files come from WinRAR, and big downloads often arrive as several of them: .part1.rar, .part2.rar and on. Octoolo opens them all, with the RAR code from WinRAR's makers built in, and takes out every file or only the ones you pick.
How to open a RAR file
- 1
Open it
In Files, press Choose an archive… under Extract, or drop the RAR on that box. For a split archive, any part will do: Octoolo starts from the first.
- 2
Unlock it, if asked
A RAR that hides its file names asks for the password before it opens. One that only locks the files shows a lock beside them and asks when you extract.
- 3
Extract
The Extract all box shows the folder the files will go to; change it with Change… if you like, and press Extract. For only some files, press Cancel, tick them and press Extract selected.
- 4
Open the folder
When it is done, Show in folder opens it in File Explorer.
Split RAR files
A RAR split into parts is one archive. Keep every part in the same folder, then open any of them: Octoolo goes to the first part (.part1.rar, or .rar for the older .r00, .r01 naming) and reads on through the others. If one is missing, it says which, for example “Movie.part3.rar is not in the same folder”, instead of failing halfway.
Once it is open, the title says how many parts were read, and Test checks every file against the archive's checksums, a quick way to know a long download arrived whole.
Passwords
RAR can lock an archive two ways. Locking the files leaves the list of names visible: you can browse it, and Octoolo asks for the password when you extract or open something. Locking the names as well hides everything until the password is typed, so Octoolo asks before showing the list. Either way, a wrong password is caught and you can try again, and Octoolo keeps the right one while that archive is open.
Why Octoolo cannot make RAR files
The RAR format belongs to RARLAB, the makers of WinRAR, and only WinRAR can create RAR files. RARLAB lets other programs use its UnRAR code to open them, which is what Octoolo does. To send files on, make a ZIP, which opens anywhere, or a 7Z, which is usually smaller: see zip a folder. To turn a RAR you have into a ZIP, see RAR to ZIP.
Windows 11 can open some RAR files in File Explorer since a 2023 update; Windows 10 cannot open them without an app.
Octoolo or an online tool?
| Detail | Octoolo | A typical online tool |
|---|---|---|
| Your files | Stay on your computer | Usually uploaded to the site's server |
| Without internet | Works | Does not work |
| File size | No limit | Often capped on free use |
| Watermarks and ads | None | Common on free plans |
| Cost | $4.99 a month, all 17 apps | Free with limits, or a plan per site |
Questions, answered
Do I need WinRAR to open a RAR?
No. Octoolo opens RAR 4 and RAR 5 files itself.
Can I extract a RAR from the right-click menu?
Yes. Right-click it in File Explorer, choose Octoolo, then Extract here, and the files go into a folder beside it. On Windows 11 the menu is under Show more options.
Can I open only one file from a RAR?
Yes. Double-click it to open it in its app, or tick it and press Extract selected. In a solid RAR, the files before it are unpacked along the way, so it can take a moment longer.
Is it safe to open RAR files from the internet?
Octoolo never runs a file by itself, asks before opening a program, refuses names that point outside the folder and makes no links, and keeps Windows' download mark on what it takes out.
Can I check a RAR is not damaged?
Yes. Test unpacks everything and checks it against the archive's checksums without writing anything.
Can I make a RAR file?
No. Only WinRAR can create RAR files. Octoolo makes ZIP and 7Z files.
Open RAR files, and 16 more apps.
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