After decades depending on third-party programs to be able to work with certain formats, Microsoft has added support for up to 11 new extensions natively. Among them, both 7-ZIP and RAR stand out especially, in addition to many others. From now on, it will no longer be necessary to download historical applications like WinRAR, although with certain limitations, as we will see in this article.
Although it was already customary for Windows users to have to resort to third-party programs to be able to work with certain extensions, the reality is that it was still surprising that Windows did not integrate native compatibility with some of them, especially with those with which it was common. work, as is the case with the .rar or 7-ZIP formats. Making applications as simple as WinRAR, for example, among some of the most used if we were used to using different types of files.
Now, Microsoft has stated that in its latest update it has natively incorporated support for 11 news formats. Among which are .rar, .7z and .gz, among many others. While it is true that it could be considered a minor change if we take into account the advances that Microsoft itself is making in other areas, such as Artificial Intelligence, the reality is that it will have a direct impact on the user experience. user, by completely freeing us from the need to resort to external solutions.
No third party apps
Although Microsoft already announced the intention to incorporate this change on its official blog last May, the reality is that we had not yet found any update that mentioned it until Build 22631.2199 was recently released on the Beta Channel .
Furthermore, Microsoft has not only announced that through this new update users will be able to use this type of formats. But it will also offer an improved experience with respect to the third-party applications that we were used to working with until now. At the moment, without specifying which ones. It is important to know that although we can open .rar files natively, for example, we will not be able to compress them without using this type of resources if necessary. Therefore, we will continue to be obliged to download external apps if we want to perform such an action.
All formats available
Since 1998, Microsoft users have been able to work with ZIP files without the need for any additional downloads. However, the problem came when we wanted to interact with other types of formats that, over time, have become common for different profiles. Among them, .7z, .rar or .gz, as we have previously mentioned. In addition to these, Microsoft has added native support for the following: .tar, .tar.gz, .tar.bz2, .tar.xz, .tar.zst, .tgz, .tbz2, .tzst, .txz.
As it is a minor configuration, in order to download it, users will have to access the Settings menu and go to the Windows Update tab to later access the search for updates. If it is not available now, it will be in the next few days. Therefore, it is advisable to stay attentive to this menu to be able to have this new update as soon as possible.
