# cannot extract .dta.gz file **URL:** \ **Category:** USA\ **Created:** [March 10, 2016, 7:46pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234 "2016-03-10T19:46:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![lhabig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/aeb1de/32.png) [@lhabig](https://forum.ipums.org/u/lhabig)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 7:46pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/1 "2016-03-10T19:46:00Z")
I cannot seem to extract a .dta.gz file and import it into R. The zipped file is about 100MB. Whether I unzip it using WinGZip and then import the actual .dta file into R, or try to unzip the whole file in R, I always end up getting an error that says ''`not a Stata version 5-12 .dta file''. ` `Does anyone have any ideas about how to extract this file so that R will be able to read it? ` `Thanks! ` ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_Moreland](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f1d935/32.png) [@Tim\_Moreland](https://forum.ipums.org/u/Tim_Moreland)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 6:58pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/2 "2016-03-24T18:58:00Z")
The .dta files created by our extract system are formatted for Stata version 13. It appears the method you are using to import into R requires a .dta file intended for an older version of Stata. You might try the [readstata13](https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/readstata13/readstata13.pdf) package for R. Hope this helps. ---
**Author:** ![Demetri\_Zacharakis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bb73d2/32.png) [@Demetri\_Zacharakis](https://forum.ipums.org/u/Demetri_Zacharakis)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2021, 12:36am UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/3 "2021-02-24T00:36:30Z")
I have Stata 16 and I get the same error, what’s wrong? ---
**Author:** ![KariWilliams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/82dd89/32.png) [@KariWilliams](https://forum.ipums.org/u/KariWilliams)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2021, 7:30pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/4 "2021-02-24T19:30:30Z")
IPUMS data are delivered as a compressed file (a Stata file would be \*.dta.gz). You will need to decompress or unzip them before using them. I recommend [7zip](http://7zip.org/) as a free decompression software for Windows; the Archive Utility on a Mac will take care of this as well. Please let me know if decompressing the data file does not address this issue. ---
**Author:** ![Shraddha\_Ramani](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7993a0/32.png) [@Shraddha\_Ramani](https://forum.ipums.org/u/Shraddha_Ramani)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2022, 5:35pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/5 "2022-03-04T17:35:05Z")
I’m having an issue unzipping a .dat.gz file on my Mac. The error I get is “Error 79 - Inappropriate file type or format”. This is a recent issue, I was able to unzip files from IPUMS a couple of months ago. I appreciate any suggestions. ---
**Author:** ![KariWilliams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/82dd89/32.png) [@KariWilliams](https://forum.ipums.org/u/KariWilliams)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2022, 2:18pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/6 "2022-03-07T14:18:43Z")
Sorry for the inconvenience. [Archive Utility sometimes struggles with certain gzipped files](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/388759/archive-utility-cant-open-some-gzipped-text-files-based-on-their-contents); I recommend using either [The Unarchiver](https://theunarchiver.com/) or using the gunzip command on your Mac Terminal (e.g., gunzip usa\_00005.dat.gz). Please contact [ipums@umn.edu](mailto:ipums@umn.edu) if neither of these works for you so we can provide more targeted troubleshooting support. ---
**Author:** ![Xiaoxuan\_Sha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/2acd7d/32.png) [@Xiaoxuan\_Sha](https://forum.ipums.org/u/Xiaoxuan_Sha)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2023, 12:08pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/7 "2023-01-12T12:08:44Z")
Hello, I used the gunzip command, but the file unzipped appears to be a document rather than dataset. And it can’t be opened using Stata. What shall I do? Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![KariWilliams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/82dd89/32.png) [@KariWilliams](https://forum.ipums.org/u/KariWilliams)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2023, 4:49pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/8 "2023-01-12T16:49:08Z")
By default, data are delivered as fixed-width text files (.dat extension). This file type can be read into Stata with the accompanying .do file delivered with your data extract (see screenshot below). Alternatively, you can request a data file that is formatted for Stata by clicking on the “Change” option in the Data Format row of your extract summary/definition page (see second screenshot). Screenshot 1: Command file for reading fixed width data-set into Stata highlighted below. ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/uploads/ipums/original/1X/059442fbae3ea2db45a87be8e007d2fed6b848ee.png) Screenshot 2: Extract summary page change option for requesting a Stata-formatted data file. ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/uploads/ipums/original/1X/5150d541f5a22869b83bec144ed4a625a6a23bf6.png) ---
**Author:** ![Xiaoxuan\_Sha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/2acd7d/32.png) [@Xiaoxuan\_Sha](https://forum.ipums.org/u/Xiaoxuan_Sha)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2023, 7:13pm UTC](https://forum.ipums.org/t/cannot-extract-dta-gz-file/1234/9 "2023-01-12T19:13:14Z")
Thank you very much for the detailed solution Karl, it’s sorted!