zip and unzip in Linux CLI - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to create a zip archive named archive.zip from the file file.txt.

Linux CLI

zip [1] file.txt

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Afile.zip

B-r archive.zip

C-x archive.zip

Darchive.zip

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using '-r' when not zipping directories.

Naming the archive with the wrong extension.

The command 'zip archive.zip file.txt' creates a zip archive named archive.zip containing file.txt.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to unzip the archive named data.zip.

Linux CLI

unzip [1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aarchive.zip

Bdata.zip

C-d data.zip

D-l data.zip

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using '-l' which only lists contents.

Using the wrong archive name.

The command 'unzip data.zip' extracts the contents of data.zip in the current directory.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the command to zip all files in the folder docs into docs.zip.

Linux CLI

zip [1] docs/*

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A-r docs.zip

Bdocs.zip

C-x docs.zip

D-d docs.zip

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Omitting '-r' when zipping folders.

Using '-x' which excludes files.

The '-r' option tells zip to include files recursively, needed when zipping folders or multiple files.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to create a zip archive named backup.zip including all .txt files and exclude all .log files.

Linux CLI

zip [1] *.txt [2] '*.log'

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A-r backup.zip

B-x

C-d

D-o

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using '-d' which deletes files.

Using '-o' which overwrites without prompt.

Use '-r' to recursively include files and '-x' to exclude files matching a pattern.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to unzip archive.zip into the folder extracted, overwriting existing files without prompting.

Linux CLI

unzip [1] -d [2] [3]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aarchive.zip

Bextracted

C-o

D-x

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using '-x' which excludes files.

Omitting '-d' to specify extraction folder.

The '-d' option specifies the target directory, and '-o' overwrites files without asking.

Practice

1. What does the zip command do in Linux?

easy

A. It extracts files from a compressed archive.

B. It compresses one or more files into a single archive file.

C. It lists the contents of a directory.

D. It deletes files permanently.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of zip

   The zip command is used to compress files into one archive to save space or organize files.

2. Step 2: Differentiate from other commands

   unzip extracts files, ls lists files, and rm deletes files, so these are not correct.

3. Final Answer:

   It compresses one or more files into a single archive file. -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   zip = compress files [OK]

Hint: Zip means pack files together into one compressed file [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing zip with unzip command
• Thinking zip lists files
• Assuming zip deletes files

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax to create a zip archive named archive.zip including all files in the folder docs recursively?

easy

A. zip -r archive.zip docs

B. zip -x archive.zip docs

C. unzip -r archive.zip docs

D. zip archive.zip docs

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the option for recursive zip

   The -r option tells zip to include folders and their contents recursively.

2. Step 2: Check command correctness

   zip -r archive.zip docs correctly creates the archive including all files inside docs. Other options are incorrect or for unzip.

3. Final Answer:

   zip -r archive.zip docs -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Use -r to zip folders recursively [OK]

Hint: Use -r option with zip to include folders recursively [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using unzip instead of zip to create archive
• Forgetting -r to include folders
• Using -x which excludes files

3. What will be the output of the command unzip -l archive.zip?

medium

A. It lists the contents of archive.zip without extracting.

B. It deletes archive.zip after listing contents.

C. It extracts all files from archive.zip to current directory.

D. It compresses files into archive.zip.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the -l option in unzip

   The -l option lists the files inside the zip archive without extracting them.

2. Step 2: Differentiate from other actions

   Extracting files uses unzip without -l, deleting is not done by unzip, and compressing is done by zip, not unzip.

3. Final Answer:

   It lists the contents of archive.zip without extracting. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   unzip -l lists archive contents [OK]

Hint: Use unzip -l to peek inside zip without extracting [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking unzip -l extracts files
• Confusing zip and unzip commands
• Assuming unzip deletes files

4. You run unzip archive.zip but get an error saying "cannot find or open archive.zip". What is the most likely cause?

medium

A. The zip archive is corrupted and cannot be opened.

B. You used the wrong command; unzip cannot extract files.

C. The archive.zip file does not exist in the current directory.

D. You need to use the -r option with unzip to extract.

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the error message

   "cannot find or open archive.zip" means the file is missing or path is wrong.

2. Step 2: Check command and options

   unzip is correct to extract files; no -r option is needed. Corruption would give a different error.

3. Final Answer:

   The archive.zip file does not exist in the current directory. -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   File missing causes cannot find error [OK]

Hint: Check file exists in current folder before unzip [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming unzip command is wrong
• Using -r option with unzip incorrectly
• Ignoring file location or name typos

5. You want to create a zip archive named backup.zip that includes all files and folders inside project, but exclude all .log files. Which command will do this correctly?

hard

A. zip backup.zip project/*.log

B. unzip -r backup.zip project -x '*.log'

C. zip -r backup.zip project --exclude '*.log'

D. zip -r backup.zip project -x '*.log'

Solution

1. Step 1: Use recursive zip with exclusion

   The -r option includes folders recursively, and -x '*.log' excludes all .log files.

2. Step 2: Validate command correctness

   zip -r backup.zip project -x '*.log' uses correct syntax. zip backup.zip project/*.log only zips .log files, C uses invalid --exclude, and D uses unzip which cannot create archives.

3. Final Answer:

   zip -r backup.zip project -x '*.log' -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Use -r to recurse and -x to exclude files [OK]

Hint: Use -x '*.ext' to exclude files when zipping recursively [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using unzip instead of zip to create archive
• Wrong exclude syntax like --exclude
• Not using -r to include folders