How to Install Unrar on Arch Linux with Pacman

This guide provides a quick and straightforward walkthrough on installing the unrar utility on Arch Linux using the native pacman package manager. By following these steps, you will update your system repositories, install the official RAR extraction tool, verify the installation, and learn the essential commands needed to unpack .rar archives.

Step 1: Update System Repositories

Before installing new packages, ensure your package database is up to date:

sudo pacman -Syu

Step 2: Install Unrar

Arch Linux includes the official freeware version of unrar (developed by RARLAB) in its official extra repository. Install it by running:

sudo pacman -S unrar

When prompted, type Y and press Enter to confirm the installation.

Step 3: Verify the Installation

To verify that unrar was installed successfully, check its version:

unrar --version

If installed correctly, the terminal will display the current version of the utility and copyright information.

Step 4: Basic Unrar Usage

Once installed, you can use unrar to manage your archives using the following common commands:

• Extract with original directory structure (recommended):

  unrar x archive.rar

• Extract all files into the current directory (ignoring folder paths):

  unrar e archive.rar

• List the contents of an archive without extracting:

  unrar l archive.rar

• Test the integrity of an archive:

  unrar t archive.rar