Extract TAR and TAR.GZ Archives Safely — Built for Developers
Developers regularly deal with TAR archives for source distributions, build artifacts, and deployment packages — and a malformed or malicious archive can wreak havoc on a local environment. Deliteful extracts TAR, TAR.GZ, and TGZ files in an isolated server-side environment, blocking path traversal attacks and skipping dangerous file types before you ever touch the contents.
TAR archives from third-party sources, CI pipelines, or legacy systems can contain symlinks, hard links, or path traversal payloads that quietly overwrite files outside the target directory. Extracting these locally — even with reputable tools — requires careful flags and awareness. Deliteful handles this automatically: symlinks, hard links, and device files are skipped entirely, and extraction is sandboxed per archive into its own temporary directory.
The extraction limit is 5 GB of uncompressed output per task, with automatic stopping if the threshold is reached. Folder structure inside the archive is preserved, so you get a clean, navigable output. For developers auditing unfamiliar packages or inspecting build artifacts before deploying, this is a fast, safe alternative to spinning up a VM or trusting a script.
How it works
- 1
Sign in with Google
Create your free Deliteful account in about 3 clicks — no credit card needed.
- 2
Upload your archive
Upload a .tar, .tar.gz, or .tgz file up to 50 MB.
- 3
Let Deliteful extract safely
The archive is unpacked server-side in an isolated directory with path traversal and symlink protections active.
- 4
Download extracted files
All extracted files are returned for download with the original folder structure intact.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Deliteful protect against tar bomb or path traversal attacks?
- Yes. Path traversal attacks are blocked at the extraction layer — no file can be written outside its isolated output directory. Symlinks, hard links, and device files are skipped entirely. Extraction also stops automatically if the total uncompressed output exceeds 5 GB, preventing tar bomb scenarios.
- What TAR formats does this tool support?
- The tool supports .tar, .tar.gz, and .tgz archives. Other compression formats like .tar.bz2 or .tar.xz are not currently supported.
- Is the folder structure inside the archive preserved?
- Yes. The original directory hierarchy inside the archive is preserved in the extracted output, so nested folders and files appear exactly as they were packed.
- What is the file size limit for uploaded archives?
- Archives up to 50 MB can be uploaded. The total extracted output is capped at 5 GB per task, with extraction stopping automatically if that limit is reached.
Create your free Deliteful account with Google and safely extract TAR archives without touching your local environment.