Zip and unzip files. Windows 10 Windows 8.1. Zipped (compressed) files take up less storage space and can be transferred to other computers more quickly than uncompressed files. In Windows, you work with zipped files and folders in the same way that you work with uncompressed files and folders.

Create a recovery drive with a downloaded factory image. If you're able to use your Surface or you have another Windows PC, visit our Download a recovery image for your Surface page. From there, select your Surface and download a recovery image .zip file for the device you selected.

Open File Explorer and find the compressed folder. To unzip the entire folder, right-click to select Extract All, and then follow the instructions. You can also select Extract All from the command ribbon. To decompress a single file or folder, double-click the compressed folder to open it.