When I double click a zip file in finder, I expect the file to expand into the same directory that the zip file was in. Instead, the file expands into the Downloads folder. Brand new MacBook Air running Seqoia 15.5.
Is there any way to control or correct this?
[Edited by Moderator]
Original Title: Why do Zip files expand into downloads folder?
In my setup .zip is uncompressed to the same folder. Try to configure Archive Utility settings (open it via Spotlight):
I have Archive Utility Settings set to "Save expanded files: into same directory as archive". So that's not it.
However, I have discovered that zip files are only *sometimes* expanded into the Downloads folder.
My theory is that it depends on the "Where from" property associated with the zip file. It appears that if "Where from" indicates the file was downloaded, then it gets expanded into Downloads. That's probably a security feature, and it makes at least some sense. Would be nice if it was documented somewhere to avoid confusion!
Can you double check whether this happens on all zip files? For me I've discovered that it only happens sometimes, and my theory is that it happens if the zip file was downloaded.
I have never touched the Archive Utility Settings and by default, when I double-click a downloaded .zip file, it expands into a folder in the Downloads folder. A folder if that is how the zip was politely created. All implementations of macOS here work as I have described.
clymbon wrote:
Can you double check whether this happens on all zip files? For me I've discovered that it only happens sometimes, and my theory is that it happens if the zip file was downloaded.
I had never before touched Archive Utility settings but nevertheless all my downloaded .zip files uncompress to the same folder.
FWIW I have Safari settings to download to ~/Desktop and NOT to open downloaded "Safe" files, if that matters here.
I believe it also has to do with where and how the .zip file was created.
Let's say someone used the UNIX tar(1) utility and carelessly zipped up paths to the intended Zip content. Double-clicking that zipped tar bundle would extract the path and create missing interim folders in the process. The UNIX tar command has a switch --strip-components n that strips n path components from individual files in the zipped tar bundle. An example of this is shown in How do I extract files without folder structure using tar. Although the example is for Linux, it is supported in the macOS tar utility too, and must be done with tar from the Terminal in that folder containing the tar *.tgz zip container.
For the zip files that I download from vendors and other trusted sites, all have an enclosing folder that is written via a double-click to the Downloads folder when the Zip file is in the same folder.
Why do Zip files expand into downloads folder on my MacBook Air running macOS Sequoia 15.5?
