WinRar has a "test" option for corrupted files. Does this option only work for compressed rar files? Does it not efficiently test 7z, xz, and zip? Is it necessary to have multiple software from each format developer to test?
WinRAR’s Test command is designed for RAR (and fully supports ZIP). For other formats (7z, xz, etc.) WinRAR only provides basic support (view/extract/info), so its “Test” is either limited or not as thorough as the native tools.
What WinRAR actually does when you click Test
The Test command performs a dummy extraction (it tries to read/decompress files and checks checksums) and reports errors. That is the documented behavior.
WinRAR has “complete support” for RAR and ZIP (so testing/repair works best for those formats). For other formats (7z, xz, gz, tar, bz2, etc.) WinRAR provides basic operations (view/extract/show info) but not full-format management. That means Test may not exercise format‑specific checks/repair the way the native tool does.
Practical recommendations (what to use)
RAR / ZIP: WinRAR is fine — use Commands → Test (or Alt+T) and WinRAR’s Repair when needed. WinRAR also supports RAR recovery records (and can use them to repair archives).
7z: use 7‑Zip’s test (GUI or command line 7z t archive.7z) — 7‑Zip is the authoritative tool for 7z and its test is designed for that format.
xz and other single‑file compressors: use the native tool (e.g. xz -t file.xz) — these tools implement the format’s integrity checks.
Do you need multiple programs?
Not strictly necessary. Many multi‑format tools (WinRAR, 7‑Zip, PeaZip, Bandizip) can open and do basic checks for many archive types. But for the most reliable integrity testing and any repair you should use the native/format tool (RAR ↔ WinRAR, 7z ↔ 7‑Zip, xz ↔ xz-utils). In short: one multi‑format tool is convenient, but keep the native tool(s) for critical verification/repair.
Quick commands you can run
Test with WinRAR (GUI) — Commands → Test (Alt+T).
Test with WinRAR (CLI): rar t archive.rar or winrar t archive.zip (command line equivalent is t).
Test with 7‑Zip (CLI): 7z t archive.7z (or 7z t archive.zip).
Test xz: xz -t file.xz.
Extra tips
For critical data, keep checksums (SHA‑256) of the original files and verify after extraction.
For RAR archives you can add recovery record or create external parity (PAR2) for stronger repair capability.
If you want, tell me which archive types you work with most and I’ll give the exact commands or a short script to test a folder of mixed archives.
Como o 7‑Zip testa um arquivo (.7z): o comando de teste (7z t arquivo.7z) tenta ler e descomprimir os fluxos dentro do arquivo e compara os checksums/somas que estão armazenados no próprio arquivo com os dados descomprimidos — se houver discrepância, o teste acusa erro. Ou seja, o teste re‑calcula/verifica as somas internas previstas pelo formato durante uma “extração de teste”.
Testar .7z com 7‑Zip (recomendado): 7z t arquivo.7z.
Testar .rar/.zip com WinRAR (funciona bem para esses formatos): usar Test no GUI ou rar t arquivo.rar.
Observações úteis:
Erros CRC/CRC32 e “arquivo corrompido” são comuns quando o checksum dentro do arquivo não bate com os dados; às vezes outro extrator (7‑Zip vs WinRAR) dá mensagens ligeiramente diferentes, mas a origem costuma ser a mesma — checksum inválido ou download / armazenamento corrompido.
Para verificação máxima, mantenha checksums externos (SHA‑256/MD5) dos ficheiros originais ou use a ferramenta nativa do formato (7‑Zip para .7z, xz-utils para .xz, WinRAR para .rar).
Se quiser eu mostro passo a passo (com screenshots) para testar um arquivo especĂfico que vocĂŞ tenha — pode enviar o nome/extensĂŁo do arquivo ou o prĂłprio arquivo e eu te guio.
Mensagens tĂpicas: “CRC error” / “Cyclic redundancy check”, “Data error”, “file is broken”, “Can't read from the source file or disk”, ou avisos tipo “Unexpected end of archive” (ou em portuguĂŞs: “arquivo corrompido”, “erro de verificação”). Esses tipos de mensagens aparecem frequentemente em threads de fĂłrum quando um arquivo foi corrompido no download ou tem setores defeituosos no disco.
2) Diferença entre ferramentas (WinRAR vs 7‑Zip / xz‑utils)
7‑Zip / ferramentas nativas do formato vĂŁo relatar erros especĂficos do formato (por exemplo 7‑Zip mostra “Data Error” / “CRC failed” quando a soma interna nĂŁo bate) e tĂŞm comando de teste (7z t arquivo.7z). Muitos usuários e guias recomendam usar 7‑Zip para .7z.
Se houver erro de leitura do disco (ex.: “Can't read from source file or disk”), rode CHKDSK / verifique SMART — problemas fĂsicos no disco causam corrupção repetida.
Se for um RAR com pequena corrupção, WinRAR permite “Keep broken files” / usar Repair (reconstruir _rebuilt.rar) — isso ajuda só para RAR/ZIP e nem sempre recupera tudo.
4) Resposta direta Ă sua pergunta final
“Qual o erro”: geralmente “CRC error”, “Data error”, “arquivo corrompido” ou “Can't read from source” — depende do tipo de falha (integridade vs leitura fĂsica).