What is 7 Zip File | How to Create Multiple Compressed Folders using 7 Zip at Once?

7 Zip is a free and open-source file compression tool. 7 Zip File uses .7z as the file extension and has similar to other archive formats, such as ZIP, RAR, and ISO. The biggest standout feature of a 7 Zip file is that it uses a higher compression ratio, along with AES-256 encryption. This means 7Zip creates smaller and safer archives compared to other archiving applications. 

In this article, you will definitely learn how to make use of 7Zip like a pro. You will get to know how to compress multiple folders containing multiple sub-folders that can be packed at once separately. Apart from that, you will be able to archive and unarchive multiple files using 7Zip.

What can 7Zip do that Winzip cannot: 

• 7Zip is free to use whereas Winzip is not.
• Winzip can create archives only in .zip format. On the other side, 7Zip can create compressed files in 7z, bzip2, gzip, tar, zip, etc. 
• 7Zip compresses better than Winzip though the time taken is slightly more. As 7Zip uses a high compression ratio in 7z format with LZMA and LZMA2 compression.
• 7Zip frees up more space in your hard drive as the compression rate is quite high. 
• The best part of 7Zip is, it supports up to 16 Billion GB file sizes! Winzip does not support huge files. 
• According to reviews and statistics, the 7Z format is 30-70% efficient than the ZIP format.

How to Use 7Zip to Create Multiple Compressed Folders at once? 

The below-mentioned method is applicable for Windows 10,8,7.

To be able to create multiple compressed folders using 7 Zip go through the following steps:

• Install 7-Zip on your PC. 
• Create a folder where all the Folders or Multiple Folders that you want to compress at once are present.
• Go to Notepad Application.
• Enter the following command in Notepad.

for /d %%X in (*) do "c:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe" a "%%X.7z" "%%X\"

This command will pack the files in a .7z extension. But if you want to pack the files into Zip format then use  "%%X.zip" instead of  "%%X.7z".

• Then click on File > Save. Save the file with the .bat extension. So you are saving a batch file that consists of a command to execute for the PC through Windows Command Prompt. 

• Copy the BAT file and Paste it in the location where the multiple Folders which need to be compressed are present. 
• Double click on the .bat File and soon Command Prompt Window will appear and run the program automatically. Then 7-Zp will compress all the folders. 
• Once the process is done, you will see the 7Z Compressed Folders located in the same directory or location. To check Right-click on any Compressed folder and Select 7Zip > Test Archive/ Open Archive. 
• You can check the contents of the Archived Folders. 

Extra Info: If your compressed 7 Zip or ZIP file is corrupt and you are unable to extract them, then quickly repair them by using Remo Repair ZIP. Additionally, this tool recovers all types of files contained in the compressed format including audio, video, documents, pictures, etc.

How do I compress multiple files in 7Zip?

To be able to create multiple compressed folders using 7 Zip go through the following steps:

1. First and foremost install 7Zip on your system. By default, it will be downloaded in "C:\Program Files\7-zip\7z.exe."
2. Open the 7 Zip application and select the files you want to compress and click on Add. 
3. Then you can manage the settings as required in the Add to Archive window. 

• Archive — will have the name of your archive file.
• Archive format — choose the file’s format. For the best compression rate, choose 7z
• Compression level — It will let you decide the compression level which is directly proportional to compression time. The range provided to you is from Store (fastest compression) to Ultra (slowest compression time with the most space saved).
• Compression method — select the LZMA option(Lossless data compression) as it is the best method for handling the compression process.
• Split to volumes, bytes — lets you split the large file into small archive files. (For example, if you have a 500 MB file you can split it into five 100 Mb compressed files) 
• Encryption — allows you to secure the compressed file with a password.

4. Then you can click on OK to create a 7Z file.

How to Extract Multiple ZIP Folders at Once Using 7-Zip?

To extract multiple files from a Compressed File through 7Zip follow the steps below: 

1. Right-click on the archive file. 
2. Select 7Zip > Extract Here.
3. The files will be extracted in the same location as the original archive folder. 

Sometimes, when you download the archived file from an unknown or unreliable source you can encounter a virus attack. Even due to some downloading error, there comes a possibility where the 7Zip file might get corrupted and you are unable to open it. In such scenarios, there is no need to panic because there is a reliable utility to fix corrupt 7Zip files.