ZIP Files and DEFLATE Compression

ZIP files primarily use the DEFLATE compression algorithm, which is a combination of LZ77 and Huffman coding. Here's a brief overview of how DEFLATE works in ZIP compression:

DEFLATE Algorithm Components:

  • LZ77 (Lempel-Ziv 1977): This algorithm replaces repeated occurrences of data with references to a single copy of that data existing earlier in the input data stream.
  • Huffman coding: A method of encoding characters based on their frequency of occurrence. More common characters are represented by shorter bit sequences.

DEFLATE Process in ZIP Compression:

  1. The data is first compressed using LZ77, which identifies and eliminates redundant data.
  2. The compressed data is then further encoded using Huffman coding to reduce the overall file size.
  3. The resulting compressed data is packaged into the ZIP file format along with metadata about the original files.

DEFLATE provides a good balance between compression ratio and speed, making it suitable for various applications, including ZIP archives. While other compression methods can be used in ZIP files, DEFLATE remains the most common due to its efficiency and widespread support.

Understanding the DEFLATE algorithm can be helpful when working with ZIP files, especially when considering compression ratios or troubleshooting issues related to file compression and decompression.

 

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