Compressed (zipped) files cannot be extracted in Windows 7

What program are you trying to extract the files with in Windows 7?

Designate "Compressed (zipped) folders" as the application for handling ZIP files on Win 7.
This should solve your issue.

Already designated before submitting question. Makes no difference on either Windows 7 machine.

Did you try with WinZip/gzip or any other extraction tools?

The problem is that this is "first installs of Windows 7" for this client and it must be "out of the box". He had enough problems with tweaking Vista and has said that he will bring all new machines in and configure them with XP if ANY tweaks have to be done. AS I said orignally, the downloaded files can be previewed and extracted on any OS except Windows 7 using the extract function. Also, the extract function will open any zip file that is generated on this machine using the extract function. Only downloaded files have problem.

Are you using 64 bit version of Win 7?
I have heard that people faced issues while trying to open a compressed folder created on 32 bit machine, on a 64 bit machine and vice-versa.

64 bit AMD Athlon X2 240 running 32 bit Windows 7.

Downloaded files were successfully opened using extraction tool on XP sp2, XP sp3, Win2k advanced server, Win2k3 Standard server, Win2k3 R2 Standard server, Win2k3 R2 64 bit on 64 bit machine.

I generated compressed files of a similar type from xp sp3, win2k3 sp2, win2k sp4, win2k3 and win2k3 R2 and retested all the combinations and Windows 7 extracted them as well.

If I compress files in Windows 7 and extract them on the other machine, those files are extracted properly.

I downloaded the files from a site again to eliminate a bad download possibility and everyone except Windows 7 extracted the files properly. It looks to me like Microsoft has enhanced Widows 7 extraction so that it does not work properly.

If anyone at M$ can explain this I would really appreciate it. It is driving me bananas.

I have windows 7 profesional, at first zipped files would not extract then I created a folder placed the zip files inside installed winrar and also a little tool called 7zip
now any files I download off the internet in zipped form will extract inside a folder with the main zip
http://www.7-zip.org/

Are you trying to open the files directly from the website or saving them and then extracting?
Windows Vista and 7 disable the Administrator account by default and all kinds of S*it hits your fan when trying to use Temporary Internet Files as the source.

I haven't used Windows 7, but know that on XP SP3 with IE7 (don't know if it was the SP3 or IE7 that added the behaviour) files saved to the computer "from another computer" have data written to them in the form of a MetaData value "Zone" that identifies the source as an Internet download or other outside source.  The data only persists in the file if stored on an NTFS drive, not FAT32.  That's what causes the security prompt on opening such a file, but the security prompt has a box to uncheck so that the prompt isn't shown again.  You can also open the file's Properties dialog and click the "Unblock" button that is added for such a file.

I read your question, and am aware of what you have tried so far, but if Windows 7 supports that same security tag, perhapsit takes it a step further and doesn't allow you to view or unpack the contents until you have actually "unblocked" the file.

Check the properties and see if there is an "unblock" button, then try again.  Moving it to a FAT32 drive (even a flash drive) and then back again removes the security tag, so you could do that to test also.

BillDL
Thank you for your response.
Unfortunately the files are not blocked. All the systems are using NTFS file formatting and ONLY Windows 7 has a problem with native extraction. Copying the problematic files to flash and then back does not address the issue for some reason that I have been unable to discern. However, as you say there is a slight change in the header when moved to memstick and back to NTSF.

Merete:
As I said in my post update, the client is fed up with M$ and workarounds and merely wants the product to work. As such, I CANNOT ADD IN KLUGES OR other things to compensate for"Vista Revisited" -- client words -- from M$

DavisMcCarn
Thank you for your response but the files are all placed in the same folder on the root of C:. I am aware that sometimes M$ does not understand temp internet files and how to work with them.

Are there any spaces in the filename?

No
S_111iwe55qzlgyjfzkcdwlmjs.zip

If IE8 added that underscore character because there was a space, there are tons of hits on that causing problems.

Not added it is actually in the name proper

Can you temporarily install another utility like Winzip or 7-zip on the Win 7 machine to see if it can extract the contents of the file, just to confirm that the copy of the file on that machine is OK and that you don't have some kind of basic permission problem or something?

 One or both of those utilities should also have a "test" function that you could try, just to see if it reports any problems with the zip file on the Win 7 machine.

 You could also use them to list the contents of the zip file and check the compression methods used and see if you see anything unusual there.  My first guess would be that something in the zip file was compressed using a method that Win 7's built-in decompression doesn't understand, although if Win XP can handle it, I would expect that Win 7 could as well.  But you never know.

 Also, you said that you d/l'ed the file from a Web site.  Is the file publicly available?  If so, can you post a link to it, or just tell us where we can find it (hotlinking directly to a file is sometimes frowned upon), so that we can take a look at it?

 James

You also said these are compressed folders
May I ask what's the source of the folders? are they from an xp system or a windows 2000 that used some type of backup?  refs to>>Windows 7 compressed folders on two new Windows 7 installs..
It maybe that the option for compressed folders is turned off on these windows 7
How to Disable Windows Explorer Folder View of Zip Folders in Windows 7
 http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/13619-zip-folders-enable-disable-windows-explorer-view.html
 

James0628 and Merete
In Windows 7, any program that is installed will act as the "new" master unzip and now creates a problem reverting to the vanilla Windows 7 (check on google and you will find thousands of Win7 reversion problems). On my test machine in my office, I verified the difficulty in reverting to the Vanilla version. The uninstall does not clean the registry nor does add/remove. The reassociation becomes troublesome. It was actually faster (in my test environment) to blow it away and reload than try to clean up what was left behind.
I have opened the file with two different hexeditors and only found one byte difference when I did the Fat save followed by an NTSF save. I did the same with a file that was generated on win7 and the same byte was changed.
Unfortunately the file is from a secured site and not for public distribution. I have checked with the site manager and they are using the same native compression that they have been using since Win2k3R2 released. I also have confirmed that the site security is applied only to access to the downloaded file and not to the file itself.
Unless Win7 turned compressed foder viewing off by itself, it should be at default -- ON. I will doublecheck just as a precaution.

I ran into a thread wherein files being zipped and downloaded from several websites were erroneously being downloaded by Win7 & IE8 as ASCII which would strip the top bit and the fix was to edit the .HTACCESS file on the webhosting end.
I assumed this wasn't your problem as you had said you could copy the files to another system running XP and they were fine.  Please confirm that you have either copied them across the LAN or used a flash drive to test the zip files, OK?

DavisMcCarn
The file can be downloaded from the site on any of the machines mentionned previously and extracted there without difficulty.
1. If the file that works on any of these systems is copied across the LAN, pasted on a mem stick or burnt onto a CD and then loaded onto Win7, no contents. But other files can be extracted.
2. Similarly if the file is downloaded from the website and extracted on Win7, no contents.
3. I recently went to my IE6 (reliable file download machine) to see if the browser was corrupting it. Still no joy. The file just won't extract on Win7.

I don't think 7-zip should just automatically become the default handler for zip files unless you tell it to during the installation, but it's been a while since I installed it, and maybe things are just different under Win 7.

 I'm not sure what else to suggest at this point.  You might try a command line version of an unzip program.  I have to figure that Win 7 isn't going to make a command line program the default application for handling zip files, besides which, you'll probably just be copying the command line program onto the Win 7 system, as opposed to running an installation program.  There's a command line version of Winrar that you could try.  I don't know if other programs like Winzip or 7-zip have a command line version/option.

 James

But; if you copy a file downloaded on the Windows 7 box over to a Win XP box, it will unzip properly? ( I just want to verify the Win 7 box is downloading the file properly)
I might also suggest trying the tests in a normal folder rather than a compressed folder.

I'm lost, the details about the problem are not clear,
Like please explain this>>
I have opened the file with two different hexeditors and only found one byte difference when I did the Fat save followed by an NTSF save.

Merete, I'm sure the references to FAT and NTFS go back to my comment ID: 33243953.  I had wondered if the "Zone" metadata (in INF File syntax) that is written to a file when it is downloaded from a server and causes the security prompt when opening, was treated differently by Windows 7 when the file was a ZIP file.  Moving to a FAT32 drive and then back to NTFS gets rid of that metadata.  See accepted solution and my follow-on comment here:
https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/24970005/Are-you-sure-you-want-to-execute-this-file.html

James0626 - Yes, 7-Zip has a command line executable in the form of "7z.exe".  http://downloads.sourceforge.net/sevenzip/7za465.zip (7za.exe in the download).

Guys,

 I think that everyone, myself included, is getting lost in the amount of detail. I will recap as follows:

Problem: two virgin windows 7 machines can extract all kinds of zipped files using the built-in native extraction utility with the exception of files from a particular site (proprietary site access and confidential data in file). Client was severely burnt by Vista and his previous tech support firm trying to get Vista to work reliably. (He now calls Vista "wasta. Wasta money, Wasta my time, wasta effort"). He is unwilling to have ANY "kluges" to get the extraction working. It must work out of the box or with a M$ hotfix.

Investigation:
1. Files downloaded from proprietary site include different types of compressed files (doc files, compiled help files and these confidential files).
2. Win7 can extract all files from this source except the confidential files. The confidential files have been compressed using the same utility on a Win2k3 enterprise server since 2003. Archived confidential files also will not extract on Win7. This precludes any problem that might be introduced by downloading on the Win7 machines.
3. With the exception of Win7, any OS that I tested these files on, correctly extracted the files regardless of how the files were accessed -- via network, memstick, download or CD. OS tests included XPsp2, XPsp3, Win2kAdvanced Server with Winzip, Win2k3 Std sp2, Win2k3 enterprise sp2, Win2k3 SBS, Win2k8 32 and 64 bit flavours using both a 32 bit os on a 32 bit machine and then installing the 32bit OS on a 64 bit machine.
4. The files are downloaded to a standard folder used to hold all of the compressed files. The folder itself is not compressed.
5. Extraction was attempted from the machine using the file stored on various locations (the local hard drive, SAN, memstick and/or CD). Same result -- does not extract in Win7.

I hope that this clarifies things for everyone.

6. If I copy an encrypted file downloaded on the Win 7 system to a Win XP system, it unzips fine (????)

All files were downloaded from site using Win7 during the intial tests. So the answer is yes.
Subsequent downloads have been a mix of downloads using Win7, XP, W2k, win2k3 and win2k8 along with cross file matrix testing from various OS downloads amongst each other. So far the matrix is almost a complete 7x7x7 test config. I have lost a complete years revenue trying to solve this. I may end up going to a working OS (XP) after all and bite the bullet for a year. Frustration reigns when dealing with "Good Enough" software from M$. I think that the next generation should be called Windows GE (Good Enough).

An awful lot has been laid at M$ feet which wasn't really their fault.  If there is supposed to be a flag in those encrypted zip files that isn't there, for example, .......

With all due respects DavisMcCarn, with what I have tried, who else do we assign responsibility to -- the little old lady from Pasedena? or the quirky cat next door?
I say if it looks like a dog, smells like a dog, barks like a dog, it probably isn't a camel and it might just be a dog!
Millenium Edition -- nicknamed ME -- Missing Everything
Vista - nicknamed "Waste-a" for "Waste-a-my-time,waste-a-my-money,waste-a-my-effort"
Win7 - a game of chance - chances are it might work if you don't do anything fancy or have high expectations -- like it actually working.

Time to upgrade to something from M$ that actually worked reasonably well -- XP -- the eXperimental Program that worked once SP2 and SP3 were released.

While I do think that the cat next door seems suspicious, especially given that your Win 7 systems apparently closely resemble dogs, let's assume, for the moment, that it's not the cat.  :-)

 Have you tried a command line version of one of the decompression utilities, like Winrar or 7-zip?  Something that you presumably won't have to install, so you don't have to worry about it replacing Win 7's built-in decompression as the default.  In fact, you could probably run the command line program directly from a flash drive, in which case you wouldn't even have to copy it to the Win 7 system.

 What kind of path is used for the files in the problem zip files?  Do they just extract to the current folder, or do they have a full path?  I'm not sure if this is possible in Windows, but if the contents tried to extract to somewhere like C:\Program Files\xxx, even though the zip file was somewhere else, like on a flash drive, that could be a problem.  I've read that Win 7 is picky about programs writing to the C:\Program Files\ hierarchy.

 James

One question.  Do the ZIP files in question expand in Windows Explorer to show the contents?
I'm not talking about extracting the contents at the moment, I'm talking about the native and default behaviour that has existed since Windows XP (possibly 2000 also) where ZIP files expand to show the contents as though they were standard folders in the Folder Pane at the left when clicked on.

James0628

I will be on site tonight to do some more testing with the clients' machines. In my test system, any of the external apps winzip, 7-zip, arj etc. works from command line. I suspect that it will also work on site but cannot be certain.

As for where they are extracted to, I have tried default location, current folder, SAN drive, %systemroot%, local partition other than %systemroot%, root of a mapped drive, a folder on a mapped network drive, a standard existing folder on %systemroot%, a standard folder that app must create. when I use Win7 native it is the same as before -- no joy for any of the above paths.

BillDL
In every operating system except Win7, the contents are visible in explorer without doing the extraction. (btw - win2k requires 3rd party utility to be able to open it without extraction the autoextraction seems to have been introuced in XP)