PeaZip 10.6 Arrives With a powerful overhaul of the file/archive explorer and many under-the-hood improvements aimed directly at performance, usability, and expanded compatibility on Linux and macOS, this release introduces a dynamic virtual mode that significantly speeds up the viewing of directories and files with thousands of entries, along with fine-tuned file pre-parsing, faster access to options, and critical backend updates.
In addition to the great novelty of virtual mode, PeaZip 10.6 polish the experience with features like search within Settings, default security changes, new actions for Nemo (Cinnamon), and expanded codec support for .7z on non-Windows systems. There's also an important last-minute note: Windows packages have been repackaged (09/08) due to false antivirus positives in one component, with their corresponding SHA256 hashes updated.
Key new features in PeaZip 10.6
- Dynamic virtual mode in file/file browser: ListView automatically enters virtual mode when displaying many items at once, which increases speed when opening directories or files with tens of thousands of entries. In tests reported by the project, opening a ZIP file with 25.000 items is now more than 6 times faster on Windows, more than 30x faster on macOS, and around 2x faster in Qt6, with varying impact on GTK2/GTK3.
- Smart activation and granular configurationVirtual mode is dynamically enabled and disabled based on a configurable threshold in Options > Settings, Performance group. By default, the threshold is 8.000 items on Windows, Always On on macOS (where the improvement is greatest), 16.000 in Qt6, and disabled on other widgets. On macOS, due to a current Cocoa limitation, it is recommended to keep it set to Always On or Off.
- Virtual mode time limitations: While active, the display of EXE icons and image thumbnails in Windows is disabled when browsing the file system; dynamic filter typing in the address bar no longer works; and click-to-rename is disabled, leaving F2 or the menu as the only ways to rename. In return, other minor performance optimizations are introduced throughout the browser.
- More robust file pre-analysisIf a file's content exceeds the browser's optimization limits, a quick pre-analysis procedure is activated to resolve most common table of contents anomalies. This improves the opening and navigation of conflicting or very large files.
- Usability and security improvements: The size of multipart archives is now correctly reported in the progress window; the “Keep password/keyfile for the duration of the session” option is now unchecked by default (as with most managers), so the key is requested again when opening each file; and the “Show hidden files (on the system)” toggle has been moved from the settings area to the main Organize menu, which can be accessed via the Ctrl+. (or Command+. on macOS) keyboard shortcut.
- Settings with integrated search engine: In Options > Settings, a search box is added to quickly locate groups of options and the most frequently used settings, and the Documents folder is added to the default Bookmarks for more practical shortcuts.
- Better support on Linux and macOSThe status bar's tooltip now reports free disk space and percentage of total space; the program automatically detects if the RAR binary is installed to enable RAR creation; and alternative icons (48px and SVG) have been added for system integration. Also included are Nemo actions to integrate the context menu in Cinnamon environments, within (peazip)/res/share/batch/freedesktop_integration.
- Extra codecs for .7z via alternative p7zip fork: On Linux and macOS, the T. Yamada cielavenir/p7zip fork 24.09.1 is added to support additional codecs (Brotli, Lizard, LZ4, LZ5, Zstd) in the .7z format. To use it, go to Options > Settings > Advanced tab and set the alias “7z / p7zip” to “7zalt”.
- Extraction and compression with more control: An option to limit the number of threads in Zpaq has been added from the Advanced tab of the archive creation screen, and compression presets have been updated to better cover common use cases.
- Updated backends and compilation: The engine set is upgraded to 7z 25.01, Pea 1.26, and Zpaqfranz is now the default binary instead of Zpaq, while maintaining full format and script syntax compatibility (on Windows, the “McMilk codecs” are updated to 24.09-v1.5.7-R1). The source code is compiled against Lazarus 4.2, maintaining compatibility with the 3.x and 2.x branches.
- Integrity hashes within reachThe SHA256 values for each package are now published in the SHA256.txt file within each GitHub release. You can verify the values for version 10.6.0 by viewing the corresponding SHA256.txt file.
PeaZip 10.6 Installation, Requirements, and Availability
Minimum requirements on Windows: Windows 7/8/10/11 operating system (32 and 64-bit), 1 GHz CPU or higher, 512 MB of RAM, and about 20 MB of free disk space. It does not require the .NET Framework, which helps keep it light and fast. It is also available for Linux and macOS, with specific packages and options such as Flatpak.
Useful additional details
desktop integration: On Linux, Nemo actions for Cinnamon, scripts for Nautilus and KDE Service Menus, and a Flatpak package compiled for Qt6 with Wayland by default (fallback to X11) are provided. On macOS, the “macOS service menus” are hosted within the app so that running xattr -dr on the app will make the scripts ready for macOS 15+.
Themes and icons: v6 themes allow you to customize all icons (with alpha transparency) and include dark variants designed for systems in dark mode. If you had old themes, they still work, but it is recommended to update them to cover new icons and styles.
Support for 242 extensions- The list of recognized types continues to grow, with explicit support for .ova and multiple Minecraft files, plus improvements for opening “non-canonical” containers and handling errors with visible warnings in the interface.
PeaZip 10.6 consolidates An evolution focused on agility, security, and compatibility that has been in the making since 10.0Dynamic Virtual Mode really speeds up bulk listings, RAR detection and additional codecs on Linux/macOS open up more scenarios, and the security, menu, and performance tweaks in versions 10.5–10.0 are noticeable in everyday use—all supported by updated backends, modern compilation, and transparent hash publishing.