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Meta Unveils OpenZL: A New Open Source Data Compression Framework
Quoting: Meta Unveils OpenZL: A New Open Source Data Compression Framework —
What makes OpenZL stand out is that it’s designed for structured data, such as databases, tables, and other well-organized information. Instead of treating every file as just a long string of bytes, OpenZL looks at the data’s internal structure — for example, columns, numbers, or repeating patterns — and uses that knowledge to squeeze the data much more efficiently.
The result is lossless compression, meaning the original data can be perfectly restored, with performance similar to format-specific compressors but using only one executable. In other words, you don’t need different tools for each file type. Everything can be handled by a single universal decompressor, simplifying maintenance and improving security.
Meta says OpenZL is its answer to the limitations of existing compressors, such as Zstandard (also developed by Facebook). Zstandard already delivers great speed and solid ratios, but it’s still a general-purpose tool that doesn’t fully exploit the structure of modern datasets. OpenZL, by contrast, combines that speed with a deeper awareness of data formats.