Files

SKILL.mdagentsreferencesscripts

Install

Install the containing plugin

/plugin install shared-skills@llm-skills

Invoke this skill after installation

/shared-skills:7z

Download 7z-skill.zip

This skill is bundled inside shared-skills. Install the plugin once, then Claude Code can use any of its included skills. Browse the full plugin repository at github.com/alisonaquinas/llm-shared-skills.

SKILL.md

name: 7z description: Create and extract high-compression archives with 7z format supporting encryption and multiple compression methods. Use when the agent needs maximum compression ratio, encrypted archive handling, or cross-platform archive compatibility.

7z

High-compression archive creation with strong compression and encryption support.

Prerequisite Check

Run this before proposing archive work:

command -v 7z >/dev/null 2>&1 || 7z --help

If 7z is missing, surface that immediately and either:

run scripts/install.sh or scripts/install.ps1
fall back to unzip for ZIP extraction only
fall back to tar -xf archive.tar.* for tar-based archives

Quick Start

Verify 7z is available: 7z --help or man 7z
Establish the command surface: 7z --help or 7z l archive.7z
Start with a read-only probe: 7z l archive.7z

Intent Router

Load only the reference file needed for the active request.

references/install-and-setup.md — Installing 7z on macOS, Linux, Windows
references/cheatsheet.md — Common operations, compression levels, encryption
references/advanced-usage.md — Solid archive format, compression algorithms, password handling
references/troubleshooting.md — Extraction failures, corruption detection, path issues

Core Workflow

Verify 7z is available: 7z --help
List archive contents first (safe, read-only): 7z l archive.7z
Extract to explicit destination with path validation: 7z x archive.7z -ooutput/
Test archive integrity before relying on it: 7z t archive.7z

Quick Command Reference

7z --help                              # Show all commands and options
7z l archive.7z                        # List archive contents (read-only)
7z t archive.7z                        # Test archive integrity
7z x archive.7z -ooutput/              # Extract with full path preservation
7z a archive.7z files/                 # Create archive from directory
7z a -mx=9 archive.7z files/           # Maximum compression level
7z a -p archive.7z files/              # Encrypt with password prompt
man 7z                                 # Full manual (if available)

# Verify integrity before extracting an untrusted archive
7z t incoming.7z

# Use a fallback when the archive is ZIP and 7z is unavailable
unzip -l archive.zip
unzip archive.zip -d output/

Safety Notes

Area	Guardrail
Path traversal	Always specify output directory explicitly with `-o`. Validate paths don't traverse parent directories. Test on sample archive first.
Encryption	Use interactive password (`-p` without argument) to avoid passwords in history/scripts. Never pass passwords as command-line arguments.
Archive validation	Always run `7z t` before extracting untrusted archives. Check for embedded scripts or suspicious paths.
Compression algorithms	Solid archives and certain algorithms may have edge cases. Test extraction on target platform.
Permission preservation	7z preserves file permissions; verify extracted permissions match expectations on target system.
Symlinks	7z handles symlinks; be cautious with archives from untrusted sources that may create symlinks.

Recovery note: if the runtime lacks 7z, confirm the archive type first. Use unzip only for ZIP files and tar only for tar-based formats rather than guessing from the file extension alone.

Source Policy

Treat the installed 7z behavior and help output as runtime truth.
Use upstream 7z documentation for format specifications.

Resource Index

scripts/install.sh — Install 7z on macOS or Linux.
scripts/install.ps1 — Install 7z on Windows or any platform via PowerShell.