xz is a widely used open-source compression utility and library that implements the high-ratio LZMA and LZMA2 compression algorithms. It provides both command-line tools and a reusable C library, enabling developers and system administrators to compress and decompress files efficiently across many environments. The project is known for delivering strong compression performance while maintaining reasonable memory usage, making it suitable for software distribution, backups, and archival workflows. xz is commonly included in Unix-like operating systems and is often used as a standard packaging format in Linux ecosystems. The toolkit supports streaming, multi-threaded operation, and integrity checking to ensure reliable data handling. Overall, xz serves as a foundational compression technology for modern open-source software distribution and storage optimization.
Features
- LZMA and LZMA2 compression
- High compression ratio
- Command-line and library modes
- Multi-threaded processing support
- Data integrity verification
- Cross-platform availability