How to Password-Protect a Zip File on Windows
Windows can’t password-protect a zip on its own. Use free 7-Zip with AES-256 to encrypt a zip or 7z file, and avoid the weak ZipCrypto option.
file compression
How to Open RAR Files on Windows (Free)
Open RAR files on Windows for free: Windows 11 does it built-in, and 7-Zip handles the rest. Plus fixes for corrupt and multi-part RAR archives.
7-Zip vs WinRAR: Which Should You Install?
7-Zip vs WinRAR compared: cost, compression, formats, and speed. Which file archiver to install on Windows – and when you need neither of them.