fast-extract

fast-extract

Extract contents from various archive types (tar, tar.bz2, tar.gz, tar.xz, tgz, zip).

var extract = require('fast-extract')

// provide the type
extract('/path/file', fullPath, { strip: 1, type: 'tar.gz' }, function(err) {})

// use the type
await extract('/path/file.tar.gz', fullPath, { strip: 1 })

// overwrite existing destination
await extract('/path/file.tar.gz', fullPath, { force: true })

Safe Extraction

fast-extract uses atomic writes to ensure safe extraction:

1. Extracts to a temporary location first - Content is written to a temp path alongside the destination
2. Removes existing destination - Only after successful extraction
3. Atomic rename - Temp directory is renamed to final destination

This approach ensures you always have either the old content or the new content, never a partial extraction. If the process is interrupted mid-extraction, your destination remains untouched.

Conservative Overwrite Behavior

Unlike tar (which silently overwrites existing files by default), fast-extract requires explicit permission to overwrite:

To overwrite an existing destination, use the force option:

await extract('/path/file.tar.gz', existingPath, { force: true })

This conservative default prevents accidental data loss while still allowing overwrites when explicitly requested.