The CHM file format and its associated .chm filename extension, is a proprietary file format developed by Microsoft. Its full name is compiled HTML Help. CHM was released to the public in 1997 as a bundle with Microsoft Windows 98 and was primarily designed to facilitate documentation on the Windows platform, particularly help files for software applications that run on the Microsoft Windows platform. Essentially, a CHM file is a collection of HTML files packed as a single compressed file. Though the format is proprietary, it was successfully reverse engineered by the late 90's to early 2000s allowing the development of open source readers that are capable of opening files with the .chm extension. The format was succeeded by the LIT format.
The .gz filename extension refers to the GZIP file format and compression/decompression utility of the same name which was initially released in 1992. It is the extension given to files compressed using the gzip utility. Unlike other compression tools of the time, gzip was originally intended to be used as a tool to compress a single file as opposed to multiple files or entire directories compressed as a single archive. As a work around, multiple files can be archived using the TAR archive file format, then that single TAR archive would then be compressed using the GZIP format. This would give the file a filename extension of .tar.gz.
FreeFileConvert uses tuned encoding for CHM to TGZ conversions, preserving clarity while trimming file size. Finished audio streams instantly across phones, tablets, desktops, and modern browsers without extra tweaks.
Upload CHM files from desktop, tablet, or cloud storage, queue multiple jobs, and let the converter finish autonomously. Return whenever convenient to download synchronized TGZ results on any device you rely on.
Process up to 5 files sized 1000 MB per batch without splitting queues manually. Mixed-format uploads convert together, producing consistent TGZ audio with dependable progress tracking.
The CHM file format is a binary format that uses the LZX algorithm to compress the HTML data found in the file. The format supports full text searching, indexing, and table of contents, among other useful features.
The GZIP format uses the DEFLATE algorithm for compression. A file in this format consists of a 10 byte header containing the version number, timestamp, and magic number. Other blocks include optional extra header blocks, the DEFLATE payload, and a CRC-32 checksum contained in an 8 byte footer.
Upload your document file in the CHM format from your device, Dropbox, or Google Drive.
Select TGZ as the output format and click Convert. Adjust optional settings if needed.
Download the converted archive file. Each file stays available for up to 5 downloads.