Building third party libraries to add zip functionality

Development Programming & Scripting
1

Hi folks!

For a plugin that I am currently working on I need to simple unzip and zip folders. I don’t need compression or other fancy things. I am aware of the ZipUtilities plugin, but cannot really use it due to license issues and the fact that it brings way more functionality than I need.
So far I found:

I think one of both should be able to achieve what I am looking for.

Now to my problem:
I have little to no knowledge of C++ when it comes to concepts beyond coding and pressing the build button.
I understand that I can link include files and libraries in modules in build.cs files but with both libraries that did not really work. I assume they have to be compiled with a different compiler to fit Unreal - but have no idea where to start.

I’d appreciate any help and pointers in the right direction!!
Thanks!

tldr: How can I build/compile/make either libzip or minizip into something that I can throw into my plugin folder and include into my unreal c++ code?

2

Hey hey!

It’s a pretty old one, but this is something I came across recently — it is barely possible to have only storing capabilities for zipping files. And the reason for that is most archives use deflate compress method.

In the scenario when you need to extract files from ZIP with compression, this creates a discrepancy — the library can read files, but can not extract those because of the compression differences.

A kind of workaround might be that you will use the library for packaging files you need. In that way, you will have the same output for files and will be able to operate without a problem. But please note, I didn’t make any extensive tests, so, can not guarantee anything.

Anyway, if you would still need help with this, just drop me a line. I think I will be able to share my finding, which could help you.