How to Split Large Files with WinRAR (Volume Archives)

Why Split Archives?

Split archives — called volume archives in WinRAR — divide a large archive into multiple smaller files. Common reasons to split include:

Email attachment size limits (typically 25 MB per message)
File hosting upload limits
Fitting files onto FAT32 media (4 GB per-file limit)
Uploading large backups in chunks for resumable transfers

Creating a Split Archive

Select your files, right-click, and choose Add to archive…
In the Archive parameters dialog, find the Split to volumes, size field near the bottom
Enter the size for each part. You can type a number followed by:
- K or KB for kilobytes
- M or MB for megabytes
- G or GB for gigabytes
Or use the dropdown to pick a preset: 650 MB CD, 700 MB CD, 1 GB, 2 GB, 4 GB DVD
Click OK — WinRAR creates multiple files named archive.part1.rar, archive.part2.rar, etc.

Common Split Sizes

25 MB: Gmail/Outlook attachment limit
100 MB: Many file-sharing services
700 MB: CD-ROM disc image
4096 MB (4 GB): FAT32 maximum file size
Custom: Match any service's upload limit exactly

Extracting Multi-Part Archives

Reassembling is automatic — you don't need to do anything special:

Make sure all parts are in the same folder
Right-click only the first part (archive.part1.rar)
Choose Extract here or Extract files…
WinRAR reads each subsequent part automatically and assembles the complete archive

Missing even one part will prevent extraction. If a part is missing or damaged, WinRAR will report which part number is needed.

Recovery Records with Volume Archives

Adding a recovery record to a multi-part archive provides extra protection — if one volume is slightly damaged, WinRAR can often reconstruct it. For archives that will be stored or transmitted across multiple sessions, always enable the recovery record option alongside splitting.

Conclusion

WinRAR's volume splitting is the cleanest solution to size-limited file sharing. Set your target size, split once, share the parts — and the recipient reassembles them with a single right-click on part 1. Pair it with a recovery record for bulletproof multi-part archives.