The compressed (zipped) folder is invalid

Question

The other day, I was downloading several .zip files.  I noticed later that all of the .zip files downloaded after a certain point in time return an error stating that the compressed folder is invalid.  After experimenting, I have determined the following.

-The error is only returned when attempting to open .zip files DOWNLOADED after a certain point.  My computer can still open .zip files downloaded prior.

-I have attempted downloading the same .zip files 3 times on both chrome and nightly.  The browser used to download does not seem to make a difference.

-Windows Explorer cannot open the files.  Winrar can, but says that the archive is corrupt when attempting to extract the files.

-Attempting to repair the archive using Winrar allows Windows Explorer to open the .zip, but deletes half the files, and prevents the remaining half from being extracted, returning "Error 0x80004005: Unspecified Error"

-I have run an antivirus scan with Avira, but found no viruses.

-I can open any .zip file of my own creation.

I am quite baffled by this and would appreciate any advice.

Answer 1

I am having the same problem.  I know the exact same problem.  I know that it is not the website because I have downloaded zip files from several websites today, and I get the same answer from all of them.  A also have 7Zip installed on my computer.  Please respond quickly!

Answer 2

I know this thread is really old already... but, I had same error for invalid file - downloaded 7-Zip and worked like a charm!!

Answer 3

I do not know what caused it, but I was able to fix it by reinstalling the software.  I also noticed that it was not just affecting .zip files, but all files downloaded off of browsers, as several MP3's had skips in them at numerous points.  I do not know what caused it, but it was relatively easy to fix.

Answer 4

Hi,

Have you tried downloading other ZIP files from other sites? All of those might actually

be corrupted. Do you have low drive space? Create a new folder then try downloading

to it.

WinRAR could be the issue.

You might try disabling and then re-enabling the ZIP Folder.

Disable Explorer Folder View of Cab and Zip Files in Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/13619-zip-folders-enable-disable-windows-explorer-view.html

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If you need more features/functions an excellent 3rd party utility is 7-Zip - Free

7-Zip - Free

http://www.7-zip.org/

Hope this helps.

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Rob Brown - Microsoft MVP <- profile - Windows Expert - Consumer : Bicycle - Mark Twain said it right.

Answer 5

The issue I've seen has nothing to do with the extraction program itself, rather it's the zip files downloaded in Internet Explorer and Edge. Try downloading the file(s) again in Chrome or Opera and they should open fine.