- published: 16 Apr 2015
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zlib is a software library used for data compression. zlib was written by Jean-Loup Gailly and Mark Adler and is an abstraction of the DEFLATE compression algorithm used in their gzip file compression program. zlib is also a crucial component of many software platforms including Linux, Mac OS X, and iOS. It has also been used in gaming consoles such as the Playstation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360.
The first public version of zlib, 0.9, was released on 1 May 1995 and was originally intended for use with the libpng image library. It is free software, distributed under the zlib license.
zlib compressed data is typically written with a gzip or a zlib wrapper. The wrapper encapsulates the raw DEFLATE data by adding a header and trailer. This provides stream identification and error detection that are not provided by the raw DEFLATE data.
The gzip header is larger than the zlib header, as it stores a file name and other file system information. This is the header format used in the ubiquitous gzip file format.