# Archives, Checks and Links

Zip many files into one, check that something is there before you act on it, and make a shortcut to a folder.

Updated: November 10, 2026

## [Archives](https://www.ask-codey.com/courses/powershell-in-depth/topics/powershell-archives)

1. [Many Files as One: Compress-Archive and Expand-Archive](https://www.ask-codey.com/lessons/powershell-zip-files) (Apprentice): Compress-Archive packs a folder or a few files into one zip file you can send or keep, and Expand-Archive unpacks a zip into a folder, replacing nothing that's already there unless you ask it to.

## [Checks](https://www.ask-codey.com/courses/powershell-in-depth/topics/powershell-checks)

1. [Is It There? Test-Path](https://www.ask-codey.com/lessons/powershell-test-path) (Apprentice): Test-Path answers one question, is this file or folder there, with True or False, and it can also say whether a path is a file or a folder and whether any file matches a wildcard, so you can check before you act.

## [Links](https://www.ask-codey.com/courses/powershell-in-depth/topics/powershell-links)

1. [Shortcuts to Files: Symbolic Links and Junctions](https://www.ask-codey.com/lessons/powershell-links) (Journeyman): A link is a signpost to a real file or folder that every program follows; a junction links to a folder with no special rights, while a symbolic link can also point at a file but needs administrator rights or Developer Mode on Windows.

## [Exercise: Pack for the Trip](https://www.ask-codey.com/courses/powershell-in-depth/topics/exercise-powershell-pack-for-the-trip)

1. [Exercise: Pack for the Trip](https://www.ask-codey.com/lessons/exercise-powershell-pack-for-the-trip) (Apprentice): Get a lake trip ready with PowerShell, unpacking a friend's zip, packing the trip's photos into one, checking three things with Test-Path and making a junction, and let a Pester check tell you what's done.

Source: https://www.ask-codey.com/courses/powershell-in-depth/chapters/powershell-archives-checks-and-links