What is WinRAR?
WinRAR is a file compression program that got its name from WINdows Roshal ARchive and it compresses files into .rar format. RAR is a type of data compression file format that was developed by a Russian software engineer named Eugene Roshal. RAR files (shown in .rar format) can only be created by the WinRAR software available for Windows operating systems. It was first released back in 1993, but has since made some improvements and is still widely used today.
Whats it used for?
Basically this program is a unique, and safe, way to compress large amounts of data to save space. WinRAR makes it easy to not only alter the security features on your newely compressed file, but it also ensures that transferring the data will be a lot faster.
Some common uses for WinRAR include the compression of movies, large amounts of pictures, large text files, and the compression of other random stuff to save space on your computer. Also you compress to send files as well. You can attach these to emails, send them via IM, or even use one of the free uploading sites to send your data to another party.
How do you change the security features on a compressed file?
Many people like to protect their privacy, and they might have used the WinRAR program to not only compress valuable information, but also to add extra security features to it so that no one else can view it. Another reason you may want to alter the security features is to remove any of your personal computer information so that if you send this file to anyone else on the internet then your privacy is protected.
If you want to alter the permissions each group has for the compressed file then follow the directions below:
- Right click on the compressed file.
- Go down to the ‘Properties’ option.
- Go to the ‘Security’ tab.
- From there you can alter the permissions for each user/group
To make it read only to prevent any of the data from being tampered with and altered, then simply:
- Right click on the compressed file.
- Go down to the ‘Properties’ option.
- Go to the ‘General’ tab.
- And selected the check box at the bottom for ‘Read Only’.
Here is also a link to a visual example for compressing/changing security features/ and extracting your .rar file.
Visual file compression example
How do I download WinRAR?
If you want to download WinRAR then go to the site below and click on the download button. Don’t pay at first because you can use it for around 30 days or so, and afterwards you should pay, but don’t have to.