Archive Assistant
(AppleScript)
[Manual updated: 2017-04-23] Installation 1
What the Script does and how it works 1 Step by step 2
Explained 4 Add to Existing Archive 4 Run in Terminal vs normal mode 4 Metadata 5 No-metadata archives 6 POSIX archive types (cpio, tar, pax) 6 cpio or tar? 6 xar 7 zip/gzip 7 bzip2 7 lzma2 8 Solid block size 8 Dictionary size 8 Word size 9 Conclusion for best compression ratio 10 Disk Images 10 Metadata 10 Compression 10 Expandability 11 Resize 11 How to add fles to a disk image 12 Removing fles 12 Encryption 13 File encryption 13 File and header encryption (full encryption) 13 Multithreading 13 Why uncompressed archive formats? 14
Common errors 14 Archive/image creation fails because of existing fle 14 No new archive is written 15 Password error / Operation not permitted 15 Filename too long for tar archives 15 Verify of disk images fails 15
Programs used by this AppleScript 15 Installation
The usual way to install AppleScripts is to drop them into the User Scripts Folder (~/Library/scripts). The script will sit unobtrusively in the AppleScript menu:
(If not already done you might have to activate the AppleScript menu in the preferences of the Script Editor application.)
You may also launch the script with any launcher of your choice (LaunchBar, FastScripts, Keyboard Maestro, Alfred, etc.). These launchers allow you to assign a shortcut or an abbreviation to the script.
What the Script does and how it works
This AppleScript provides an easy and fast way to create a wide variety of compressed and uncompressed archive formats on your Mac. It is not an unarchiver.
Although easy to use this script is not intended for the novice user who is not familiar with different archive formats to a certain degree. For users who have no need for advanced archiving/compression I highly recommend to use the Finder’s Compress in the contextual menu. This delivers metadata-friendly and universally compatible archives, although at a low compression ratio.
The script was written to comply with the following functional specifcations:
▸ Effcient archiving while preserving all Mac metadata (all extended attributes) ▸ Secure encryption solutions (only AES, no weak zip encryption) ▸ At least one effcient solution for metadata-free archiving (transfer to Windows users) ▸ Careful selection of the most sensical format options ▸ Easy access to useful but little-known formats or features (e.g. xar, shadowed dmg)