> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/python/cpython/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# zipfile - ZIP Archive Handling

> Read and write ZIP archive files

The `zipfile` module provides tools to create, read, write, append, and list ZIP files.

## Module Import

```python theme={null}
import zipfile
```

## Reading ZIP Files

```python theme={null}
import zipfile

# Open ZIP file
with zipfile.ZipFile('archive.zip', 'r') as zf:
    # List contents
    print(zf.namelist())
    
    # Get file info
    for info in zf.infolist():
        print(f"{info.filename}: {info.file_size} bytes")
    
    # Read specific file
    with zf.open('file.txt') as f:
        content = f.read()
    
    # Extract all files
    zf.extractall('extracted')
    
    # Extract specific file
    zf.extract('file.txt', 'output')
```

## Creating ZIP Files

```python theme={null}
import zipfile

# Create new ZIP file
with zipfile.ZipFile('archive.zip', 'w', zipfile.ZIP_DEFLATED) as zf:
    # Add file
    zf.write('file.txt')
    
    # Add file with different archive name
    zf.write('data.txt', arcname='renamed.txt')
    
    # Add file from string
    zf.writestr('info.txt', 'File contents here')
```

## Appending to ZIP Files

```python theme={null}
import zipfile

# Append to existing ZIP
with zipfile.ZipFile('archive.zip', 'a') as zf:
    zf.write('new_file.txt')
```

## Compression Levels

```python theme={null}
import zipfile

# No compression
with zipfile.ZipFile('archive.zip', 'w', zipfile.ZIP_STORED) as zf:
    zf.write('file.txt')

# Deflate compression (most common)
with zipfile.ZipFile('archive.zip', 'w', zipfile.ZIP_DEFLATED) as zf:
    zf.write('file.txt')

# BZIP2 compression
with zipfile.ZipFile('archive.zip', 'w', zipfile.ZIP_BZIP2) as zf:
    zf.write('file.txt')

# LZMA compression
with zipfile.ZipFile('archive.zip', 'w', zipfile.ZIP_LZMA) as zf:
    zf.write('file.txt')
```

## Practical Examples

### Backup Directory

```python theme={null}
import zipfile
from pathlib import Path

def backup_directory(directory, output_zip):
    """Backup all files in directory to ZIP"""
    with zipfile.ZipFile(output_zip, 'w', zipfile.ZIP_DEFLATED) as zf:
        for file in Path(directory).rglob('*'):
            if file.is_file():
                zf.write(file, file.relative_to(directory))

backup_directory('my_project', 'backup.zip')
```

### Extract with Progress

```python theme={null}
import zipfile

def extract_with_progress(zip_path, extract_to):
    """Extract ZIP with progress indication"""
    with zipfile.ZipFile(zip_path, 'r') as zf:
        files = zf.namelist()
        total = len(files)
        
        for i, file in enumerate(files, 1):
            print(f"Extracting {i}/{total}: {file}")
            zf.extract(file, extract_to)

extract_with_progress('archive.zip', 'output')
```

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="shutil" icon="copy">
    High-level file operations
  </Card>

  <Card title="tarfile" icon="file-archive">
    TAR archive handling
  </Card>
</CardGroup>