Overview
Have StuffIt Expander and it doesn't seem to be working? Tired of getting cryptic error messages when opening a file? Well come on down! We got fixes for all your Expander problems right here! Simply browse below for your issue and read the fix beneath it. Simple as that!
CLICK HERE to make sure you have the correct version!
Have an error code? CLICK HERE for more info on how to fix them!
Expander isn't doing anything when I double-click on the archive.
Can't see an expanded file after double-clicking on it but you saw a screen like this one flash on the screen real quick? Create a new folder on your desktop, then drag the archive into the new folder. Double-click on the archive once more now that it is in it's own folder and WOW, the expanded file is placed in the same folder!
Expander is creating copies of the file!
Expander does not create copies of files. What is happening is one of two things.
1) The file that was compressed into an archive is ALSO an archive and will need to be expanded further.
2) The more likely problem is that the file you are seeing has the same name as the archive, but has a different extension (ie. filename.sitx expands into filename.jpg).
On a Mac, CTRL-CLICK on the file > select GET INFO > look for the section labled KIND. If this does NOT say something along the lines of "StuffIt X Archive", or "Compressed Archive", then it is not a compressed file and simply shares the same name as the Archive that contained the file.
On a Windows system, right-click on the file > select PROPERTIES > look for "Type of File". If this does NOT read something along the lines of "StuffIt X Archive", or "Zip StuffIt Archive" then it is not a compressed file and simply shares the same name as the Archive that contained the file. If it DOES say that the file is an archive, then you will simply need to expand this archive further by double-clicking on it.
I have an attachement in my email and expander won't open it!
The first thing you will need to do is download the file onto your computer. Usually, you can CTRL-CLICK on the file in your email > select SAVE ATTACHMENT > select DESKTOP (so you can find it easily). Once it's saved to your computer you can use the information above on how to open it. DO NOT try to open the file from within your email program.
Segmented SitX archives will not rejoin
First off you need to make sure that you have ALL of the parts. If Stuffit Expander is asking for a file that you do not have, you will need to get this from the folks who made this file to get it.
If an SITX archive is created and THEN it is segmented, you will have unusable segments. This is because you have placed an SITX file into ANOTHER SITX file that is then split into sections. If you have already created a segmented archive incorrectly, all you need to do is rename the file so that it only has ONE "sitx" at the end of the file name. So if you have a file that looks like "filename.txt.sitx.part01.sitx", simply take out the ".sitx" directly after ".txt" in the file name and it will work properly. This will need to be done to each segment that was created incorrectly. CLICK HERE to learn how to segment files properly.
Incomplete expansion when expanding old SIT file
There is a problem expanding SIT files in Mac OS X 10.4 that makes it look like some or all of the contents are missing. To get around this, turn off the 'Show Item Info" option in the Finder view options. To do this:
1) Click on the desktop so that it shows FINDER next to the Apple symbol.
2) Click on VIEW at the top of the screen (a few words to the right of FINDER).
3) In the VIEW menu, click SHOW VIEW OPTIONS. In the new window, uncheck SHOW ITEM INFO.
4) Restart your Mac.
When your system comes back up, the files will be right where you expanded them to.
Corrupted LARGE ZIP/SIT files
ZIP and SIT files have a 2 GB size limitation. If you are trying to compress an amount of files that totals at or near 2 gigabytes, you may end up corrupting the archive, which makes it unusable and unrecoverable. If you are attempting to make large files (2 GB or greater) you should be using our newer SITX format instead. The SITX format does not have these size limitations and on top of that, it offers better compression and protection.
My browser launches Archive Manager to open archives instead of Expander
This is a difficult issue which we have no control over. LaunchServices on OS X makes these decisions along with the browser. Often, even if the browser's file helper preferences are set correctly, LaunchServices will override those settings. We, of course, would like to change this behavior. In the future Apple may provide additional access to make modifications in LaunchServices, at which point we may be able to overcome this issue.
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