Open TAR.GZ on Mac
A .tar.gz is a TAR archive compressed with gzip; .tgz is a common shorter extension for the same combination. On Mac, tar can list and extract it directly. Kernir can open, create and edit TAR.GZ archives too.
Two layers, one command
The TAR layer contains the paths and files. The gzip layer compresses that archive. You do not have to create an intermediate .tar on disk just to reach the documents: the Mac's tar reads both layers during extraction.
A standalone report.csv.gz is different. It normally expands to one file rather than a folder tree. Use the GZ guide for that case. Changing .gz to .zip does not convert either kind of file.
List and extract a tarball
For Project.tar.gz in Downloads, open Terminal and run:
cd ~/Downloads
tar -tf "Project.tar.gz"
mkdir "TGZ output"
tar -xvf "Project.tar.gz" -C "TGZ output"
Use your actual filename in both commands; Project.tgz works in the same positions. The Mac's libarchive-based reader detects gzip from the data. The listing lets you inspect the folder layout before extraction.
Choose a new destination if TGZ output already exists. The -C option puts the result there, but it does not protect existing matching files from replacement. Wait for the command to finish and resolve errors before treating the extracted folder as complete.
Source releases often include an outer directory with the project name and version. Keep that directory when following the project's instructions: configuration files, source and resources may use relative paths. Extraction alone does not build or install a project.
Create a TAR.GZ
From the directory above a folder called Project, run:
tar -czf "Project-copy.tar.gz" "Project"
tar -tf "Project-copy.tar.gz"
Use an output filename that does not already exist. -c creates the archive and -z requests gzip compression. The resulting file includes the outer Project folder. Check its listing and keep the source folder until you have tried extracting the copy.
Do not use a simple append command as if this were an uncompressed TAR. Updating a compressed tarball generally involves writing a new compressed archive. Kernir handles edits through its save operation.
Use Kernir for selected files
The Mac download is coming soon. You can view the source and build instructions on GitHub. These steps describe the current app workflow.
Choose File › Open… (⌘O) and select the TAR.GZ or TGZ. Browse the tree, select what you need and choose File › Extract… (⌘E). To change the archive, add or remove entries and save. File › Save As… (⇧⌘S) lets you choose TAR.GZ and a separate output file.
TAR.GZ is writable in Kernir; a standalone GZ stream is read-only. Neither TAR nor its gzip compression adds password protection. If you convert an encrypted ZIP to TAR.GZ, check the result knowing that the ZIP password cannot be retained in this output format.
If extraction stops
An unexpected end of data can mean the download is incomplete. Compare the downloaded size or checksum with one provided by the publisher, if available, and download again when appropriate. A folder containing some expected files does not prove the remainder was extracted successfully.
To try a small file with known contents, use the sample archive library. Substitute the downloaded sample's filename in the commands above.
Kernir.dmg, signed and notarized. Requires macOS 14 or later.
Related guides
App steps were checked against Kernir source code. Command examples were checked with test archives on Linux using libarchive and the named utilities, not in a new macOS session. Updated .
