Test RAR Recovery Volumes Without Extracting

This guide explains how to force the unrar utility to test and verify recovery volumes (.rev files) without extracting the contents of the archive to your disk. Verifying these files beforehand ensures that your multi-volume archives are complete or repairable before you commit time and disk space to a full extraction.

The Command

To force unrar to test recovery volumes without extracting files, run the test command (t) directly against the first recovery volume file rather than the main archive:

unrar t archive_name.part01.rev

Replace archive_name.part01.rev with the actual filename of your first recovery volume.

How It Works

  • The t Command: The t switch stands for "test." It instructs unrar to simulate extraction in memory and calculate CRC/checksum data to verify file integrity, completely bypassing writing any files to disk.
  • Targeting .rev Files: When you point unrar to a primary .rar volume, it only looks for recovery volumes if it encounters a missing or damaged part. By explicitly targeting a .rev file instead, you force unrar to read the parity and error-correction blocks contained in the recovery set immediately.
  • Integrity Validation: Running this command checks whether the .rev files themselves are intact and verifies how many missing or corrupted volumes they can successfully reconstruct if needed.

Example Usage

If you have a segmented archive containing files such as backup.part01.rar, backup.part02.rar, and recovery files starting with backup.part01.rev, run:

unrar t backup.part01.rev

If the volumes are valid, unrar will display All OK upon completion without leaving any unpacked files in your working directory.