How to extract a file from a tar.bz2 archive?

MHenry676 · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 02 Aug 2004 Posts: 125

I need to extract my /etc/portage/package.keywords file from a recent stage4 backup tar.bz2 file. I tried a few ways, but can't seem to get it right. What command can I use to extract this file from this archive?
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smitty_one_each · Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 1:29 am Post subject:

for backup.tar.bz2,
>tar -xvjf backup.tar.bz2
unless your tar is older, in which case you might
>bzcat backup.tar.bz2 | tar -xv
go forth and rock!
Chris
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Syque · Tux's lil' helper Joined: 15 Aug 2004 Posts: 110

Try:

tar -xjvf backup.tar.bz2 '*package.keywords'

which will extract only those files in the tar archive ending with the pattern package.keywords.

(the command smitty_one_each gave will extract the whole archive).