Everybody needs some way of compressing and extracting files, but sometimes the built-in zip capabilities in Windows just don’t cut it. And what happens if you receive a file compressed in some format you’ve never heard of?

The answer lies with PowerArchiver 2015. This is one of the most comprehensive archiving tools you’ll find, capable of extracting from over 50 different formats. It can also write to all key formats too, including – of course – Zip, as well as 7-zip, TAR, GZIP and even ISO.

PowerArchiver can be accessed from within Windows Explorer or via its own Windows Explorer-like interface, making it easy to get to grips with. New in 2015 was a Preview window, allowing you to peek inside archives without having to extract files first.

Not only can you easily extract files from archives, you can create them too, plus convert between different formats and create self-extracting archives for others to access with the minimum of fuss. There are also tools for encoding and decoding UU, XX, MIME and yENC formats, plus a handy repair tool for fixing broken Zip archives.

Don’t miss PowerArchiver 2015, our fantastic first giveaway on Monday December 21st!

Worried about security? PowerArchiver 2015 offers a multitude of encryption and password-protection options: it supports up to 256-bit AES Zip and 7-zip encryption, plus PAE support allows you to encrypt your files one of five different ways.

PowerArchiver also comes with an innovative queuing system that allows you to queue up compression, extraction and backup jobs to prevent them attempting to run simultaneously. Support for UAC elevation and VSS also make the program more flexible than its rivals, allowing you to compress files that may be in use by another application such as databases or Outlook .pst files.

As if that wasn’t enough, PowerArchiver 2015 also includes built-in tools for sharing files via FTP, backing up files to a schedule, burning files to disc or copying them to an ISO for burning elsewhere.

All of this can be yours with PowerArchiver 2015 – it works beautifully on every Windows version from Windows 2000 all the way up to Windows 10 and Server 2012.

Giveaway: we’ve got a limited number of free PowerArchiver 2015 Standard licences to give away, worth $22.95 each. They’re offered on a strictly first-come, first-served basis, and the giveaway offer starts midday December 21 and expires on December 22 at midday EST, so get to Downloadcrew Giveaway and get your code!