TAR
An archive format originally developed for Unix systems that combines multiple files into one stream without providing compression itself.
General information
- Format name
- Tape Archive
- Extension
.tar- MIME type
application/x-tar- Category
- archive
- Data type
- Binary
- Introduced
- 1979
File signatures
| Offset | Hexadecimal | ASCII | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 257 | 75 73 74 61 72 | ustar | POSIX ustar identifier. This signature does not apply to every historical TAR variant. |
Common uses
Unix and Linux archives
Source-code distributions
Software packaging
Backup archives
Bundling files before compression
Format identifiers
- PRONOM
x-fmt/265- Media type
application/x-tar
Related formats
Technical resources
| Resource | Publisher | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Tape Archive (tar) File Format Family | Library of Congress | Open resource ↗ |
Record information
- Verified
- October 3, 2026
- Last updated
- October 3, 2026