SOLVED: Creating Self-Extracting Windows ZIP files under FC2

Mike McMullen mlm at loanprocessing.net
Fri Jul 16 23:58:28 UTC 2004


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike McMullen" <mlm at loanprocessing.net>
To: "For users of Fedora Core releases" <fedora-list at redhat.com>
Sent: Friday, July 16, 2004 2:28 PM
Subject: OT: Creating Self-Extracting ZIP files under FC2


> Hi all,
> 
> I would like to create a zip archive that would be self-extracting
> under Windows from an FC2 system.
> 
> Is this possible? And if so how? I've looked at the man page
> for zip and see the -A option. I've played around with a test
> zip file and can't figure out how to get this to go.
> 
> Any help appreicated!
> 
> Mike
> 

Well I know it's poor form to answer your own questions. However...

If you want to create a Windows self-exracting zip archive under linux
this is what you do:

1) Download ftp://ftp.info-zip.org/pub/infozip/WIN32/wiz502xN.exe
    to a WIndows-based PC. This is a Windows based Zip archiver.

    NOTE: This site seems to be very slow. Be prepared to wait.

2) Save the executable into a folder of your choice.

3) Run the executable. It will extract it's contents into the current
    folder by default.

4) Find the file named "sfx32.dat". This is the self-extracting stub
    you use to create a Windows GUI self-extracting archive.

5) Copy this to your linux system.

6) In linux create your zip file as you normally do.

7) Concatenate the stub file, "sfx32.dat" and your zip file to an .exe file.
    Example: cat sfx32.dat myzip.zip > myzip.exe

8) Run "zip -A" on the .exe file you just generated. The "-A" tells zip to
    adjust offsets to the data past the extractor stub. Example:

    zip -A myzip.exe
    myzip.exe: adjusting offsets for a preamble of 86038 bytes

9) Access the self-extracting archive from Windows and extract your
    heart out.

10) Repeat steps 6-9 as needed.


What's nice is that this can easily be automated via a script.

Hope someone besides me finds this useful!

Mike






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