Universal Extractor is a program do to exactly what it says: extract files from any type of archive Universal Extractor is a program do to exactly what it says: extract files from any type of archive, whether it's a simple zip file, an installation program, or even a Windows Installer (.msi) package. This is still a work in progress, but so far it's proven quite useful and I feel others can also benefit from it.
I should stress that Universal Extractor is not intended to be a general purpose archiving software. It will never replace WinRAR, 7-Zip, etc. What it will do is allow you to extract files from virtually any type of archive, regardless of source, compression method, etc.
The original motivation behind this project was that I wanted an easy, convenient way to extract files from installation packages, such as Inno Setup or Windows Installer packages, without pulling up a command line every time. In the process I got a little carried away and ended up throwing in support for every kind of archive format I possibly could find.
What's New in This Release · Added support for individual user preferences for better Vista support; · by default, this is enabled for standalone, disabled for installed · when enabled, UniExtract uses single .ini file as with previous version · when disabled, individual prefs/history are saved to registry in HKCU · this can be changed by modifying globalprefs setting in .ini file · Added menu bar to main GUI; · includes options to quit, edit preferences, and visit UniExtract website · Added separate preferences GUI to provide easy access to all options; · can be invoked through Edit menu or through '/prefs' argument · Added support for DiscJuggler CDI CD-ROM images via cdirip.exe · Added support for FEAD Optimizer packages (eg, Adobe Reader installers) · Added support for LZMA compressed files via lzma · Added support for LZX compressed files via unlzx · Added support for Nero NRG CD-ROM images (data only) via nrg2iso · Added support for Reflexive Arcade installer wrapper via RAIU · Added support for RoboForm installers · Added support for WIM (Windows Imaging Format) images via 7-Zip · Added "Not an InstallShield installer" option to InstallShield method select · dialog to force UniExtract to handle TrID InstallShield false positives · Added components section to installer; makes installation of · docs, languages, and certain (large) binaries optional · Added SendTo icon option to installer · Added internationalization support for decompressed ASPack and UPX files · Added Croatian, Dutch, Hungarian, Portuguese, Romanian, Taiwanese, Turkish, · and Valencian (Catalan) translations Added return codes to indicated status of extraction (actually added in 1.5): · 0 = successful exit or user-initiated cancel · 1 = supposedly supported file, but extraction failed · 2 = debug file is not writable, aborted · 3 = unknown executable - cannot be extracted · 4 = unknown filetype - cannot be extracted · 5 = invalid output directory specified · Fixed bug that displayed debugging message box during Inno Setup extraction · Fixed bug in InstallShield CAB file support; now properly extracts files · with spaces in the filename · Fixed support for (non-tar) gzip files · Fixed support for Microsoft hotfixes (again) · Fixed support for relative paths · Fixed support for UNC paths · Fixed missing Spanish language option during installation · Removed support for Windows 9x due to new Unicode version of AutoIt; · 9x was never officially supported, but it will not even execute now · Removed Adobe-specific report (now handled by generic FEAD support) · Updated UniExtract to prompt user before executing files for extraction; · can be disabled via warnexecute option · Updated UniExtract to make ACE, KGB, Pea, and StuffIt support optional · Updated UniExtract to read English.ini from root install directory · Updated UniExtract to output debug files to %temp% by default · Updated UniExtract to verify that debug file location can be written to; · user's temp directory will be used if selected dir fails test · Updated UniExtract to disable appendext option by default · Updated UniExtract changelog to add notice of Vietnamese translation in 1.5 · Updated TrID detection of MS Self-Extracting CAB (Type 1) archives · Updated TrID detection of Windows Installer (MSI) packages · Updated TrID detection of Zip Self-Extracting archives · Updated CD-ROM image support to bypass TrID detection and rely on extensions · Updated Inno Setup support for increased detection reliability · Updated Inno Setup support to extract all files, including renamed duplicates · Updated UHARC support to detect and extract SFX files · Updated Windows Install patch (.msp) to include pure 7-zip option · Updated installer to use Start Menu icons page and include uninstall icon · Updated installer language initialization code for simplicity · Updated installer to require administrative privileges; · non-admin users should use binary archive (portable) version, · or use a copy installed by the system administrator · Updated installer to require Windows NT-based systems; 9x will not work · Updated installer to prevent association with CHM files under Vista · Updated installer to support new /nowarnexecute paramater · Updated installer to support reversed appendext default preference; · now use /appendext to enable instead of /noappendext to disable · Updated installer to add {app} in addition to {app}in to %PATH% if enabled; · restores ability easily to call UniExtract.exe from command line · Updated 7-Zip to 4.57 · Updated AutoIt to 3.2.10.0 · Updated innounp to 0.20 · Updated Inno Setup to 5.2.2 · Updated msi2xml to 2.2.1.957 · Updated Pea to 1.6 (cannot use newer version due to broken GUI controls) · Updated UnRAR to 3.80 · Updated UPX to 3.03 · Updated bin2iso to 1.95