tar --help

tar Command Builder

Stop guessing tar flags. Pick your operation and options to get a correct, copy-ready command.

Generated tar command
tar -czvf archive.tar.gz .

Quick Reference

Operations
-cCreate
-xExtract
-tList
-rAppend
Compression
-zgzip
-jbzip2
-Jxz
--zstdzstd
Common flags
-fArchive file
-vVerbose
-pPreserve perms
-CChange directory

Linux tar Syntax Reference

Use this tar command builder to generate correct archive commands for Linux backups, deployments, and data transfer without memorizing every flag combination.

tar FAQ

What does the tar command do in Linux?

tar creates, extracts, and inspects archive files. It is commonly used for backups, software distribution, and moving groups of files between systems.

What is the difference between .tar.gz and .tar.xz?

.tar.gz uses gzip compression, which is fast and widely supported. .tar.xz uses xz compression, which produces smaller archives at the cost of more CPU time.

How do I extract a specific file from a tar archive?

Run tar -xf archive.tar.gz path/to/file to extract only that file. You can also use --wildcards to match patterns.

How do I exclude a directory when creating a tar archive?

Use --exclude=dirname or --exclude='*.log' to skip files matching a pattern. The exclude flag must come before the target path.

More Linux command tools

Crontab Generator Build cron schedule expressions visually, with plain-English previews of when your job will run. systemd Unit Builder Generate systemd service files with restart policies, dependencies, and sandboxing options. chmod / chown Builder Work out permission octals and ownership commands with a visual rwx matrix. rsync Builder Build rsync sync and backup commands with delete safety, excludes, and SSH transport options. SSH Config Builder Generate ~/.ssh/config host blocks with keys, jump hosts, and connection keepalives. find Builder Compose find commands with type, name, time, and size filters, plus prune lists and safe actions. /etc/fstab Builder Build fstab mount lines with the right options, dump, and pass ordering for disks and network shares. OpenSSL CSR Builder Generate certificate signing request commands with subject fields and SAN entries filled in. journalctl Query Builder Compose systemd journal queries with unit, boot, priority, time-range, and grep filters. docker run Builder Build docker run commands with ports, volumes, env vars, and restart policies. Podman-compatible. ufw Rule Builder Build ufw firewall rules with allow/deny/limit actions, source restrictions, and comments. systemd Timer Builder Generate paired .timer and .service units with OnCalendar schedules, persistence, and randomised delay. WireGuard Config Generator Produce matching server and peer configs with AllowedIPs, DNS, keepalive, and NAT forwarding rules. Reverse Proxy Config Builder Write nginx or Caddy config for a self-hosted service, with TLS, WebSockets, and forwarded headers. Docker Compose Generator Build a docker-compose.yml with volumes, environment, ports, restart policy, and healthcheck. nftables Rule Builder Generate nftables rules and a stateful starter ruleset for the inet filter table. Samba and NFS Share Builder Create an smb.conf share block or an /etc/exports line, with the client mount commands. useradd / usermod Builder Build user creation and modification commands without accidentally wiping group membership. sed Command Builder Compose substitution, deletion, and insertion commands with safe in-place editing and backups. LVM Command Builder Get the full command sequence for creating, extending, and snapshotting logical volumes. restic / Borg Backup Builder Build init, backup, retention, and restore commands for restic or BorgBackup repositories. tcpdump Filter Builder Assemble BPF capture filters by host, port, and protocol, with rotation and Wireshark output. dd Bootable USB Builder Write an ISO to a USB drive, with the device identification and checksum checks to run first. ffmpeg Command Builder Convert, compress, trim, scale, and extract audio with the arguments in the right order. umask Calculator See what a umask produces for new files and directories, and where to set it persistently. GPG Command Builder Verify signed downloads, generate keys, and sign files or git commits without guessing flags. Subnet Calculator Work out network, broadcast, host range, and masks for any IPv4 or IPv6 CIDR block, and split networks into subnets. curl Command Builder Build curl requests with methods, headers, JSON or form bodies, uploads, auth, retries, and timeouts. ssh-keygen Builder Generate Ed25519, RSA, or FIDO2 security key SSH keys, then install them with ssh-copy-id. sudoers Rule Builder Write sudoers.d rules with run-as targets, NOPASSWD, and limited command lists, validated with visudo. logrotate Config Generator Generate /etc/logrotate.d files with rotation schedules, retention, compression, and postrotate reloads. Podman Quadlet Generator Turn a container into a systemd service with a Quadlet .container file, rootless or rootful. Netplan Config Generator Write Netplan YAML for static IPs, DHCP, bridges, and VLANs on Ubuntu, applied safely with netplan try. grep Command Builder Build recursive grep searches with regex modes, context lines, and include or exclude filters, plus the ripgrep equivalent.

View all tools →