Archives
Open DICOM in ZIP, RAR, 7z or ISO archives on iPhone and iPad
You do not need to unzip a scan before opening it. Ossidex imports ZIP, RAR (including RAR5 and multi-volume sets), 7z, TAR/GZ and ISO/IMG disc images directly, unpacks archives nested inside archives, and asks for a password only when the archive is really encrypted.
Supported archives
| Archive | Notes |
|---|---|
| ZIP | Nested archives unpacked |
| RAR / RAR5 | Multi-volume sets: select all parts (part1.rar, part2.rar…) or their folder |
| 7z | Including encrypted 7z |
| TAR, GZ, TGZ | |
| ISO, IMG | Disc images of CDs and DVDs |
Passwords
Clinics sometimes protect exports with a password (Vatech Ez3D-i offers a password-protected ZIP, for example). Ossidex asks for it once, only for archives that are actually encrypted — not for the viewer files that come with the disc.
What cannot be opened
- Self-extracting .exe archives — extract them on Windows first.
- Archives that were only partly downloaded — download again.
- Archives containing only vendor project files and no DICOM.
Which archive to ask for
| Format | Why choose it |
|---|---|
| ZIP | Universal; created by any Mac, PC or phone; best default |
| 7z | Smaller files for large CBCT studies; supports passwords |
| RAR / multi-volume RAR | Common for splitting large studies into email-sized parts |
| ISO | An exact image of a CD or DVD, including the DICOMDIR |
Whatever the container, the images inside are plain DICOM, so the choice only affects size and convenience.
How to import an archive
- Save it to Files. From Mail, a messenger or Safari, save the archive to the Files app. For multi-part RAR, save all parts to the same folder.
- Import in Ossidex. Tap + → Files and select the archive (or the folder with all parts). Cloud links to archives work the same way.
- Enter a password if asked. Only genuinely encrypted archives ask for a password.
- Open the study. Ossidex unpacks, finds every series — including archives nested inside the archive — and opens the first one.
Discs with a viewer inside
Archives made from clinic discs often contain the disc’s Windows viewer, fonts, DLLs and autorun files next to the images. Ossidex skips them and imports only the images.
Recent versions also handle the most common “it won’t open” cases from real discs: if you pick the disc’s Windows viewer (.exe) instead of the images, Ossidex suggests importing the whole folder; DICOM files without unique identifiers (UIDs) and JPEG images without a file extension are still imported; and helper files that come with the disc viewer no longer trigger a password prompt.
Troubleshooting
| Message or symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Archive looks damaged or unexpectedly ends | It was probably not fully downloaded — download it again |
| Only some parts of a RAR set | Save every part (part1, part2…) to one folder and import the folder |
| Unsupported archive feature | Re-pack the files as a standard ZIP on a computer |
| Not enough space | Free space of roughly twice the archive size, then retry |
| Archive contains only an .exe | It is a self-extracting archive — unpack on Windows first |
Frequently asked questions
The ZIP came by email and is split in parts — what do I do?
Save all parts to one folder in Files and import the folder.
Does unpacking need extra space?
Yes, temporarily. Make sure the device has free space of roughly twice the archive size.
Can I import an archive straight from a link?
Yes. Paste a Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, WeTransfer or direct link to the archive; Ossidex downloads it to the device and unpacks it in one step.
The archive came from a clinic disc with a viewer inside — is that a problem?
No. The viewer program, its libraries and autorun files are skipped, and no password is asked for them; only the DICOM images are imported.
Are the unpacked files kept twice?
The archive is unpacked into the app’s library; the original archive stays wherever you saved it, so you can delete it from Files afterwards to free space.
Can I import a ZIP of several patients?
Yes. Each patient and study is imported separately.
Related pages
Cloud-link import: providers and limits
Which share links Ossidex imports — Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, iCloud Drive, WeTransfer, Yandex Disk, Mail.ru — how downloads resume, what won’t work.
Study won’t open: fixes
Fixes for DICOM studies that will not open: incomplete downloads, only the viewer copied, proprietary files, password archives, portal links, memory.
Open a DICOM CD on iPhone or iPad
Open a CT, MRI or CBCT disc from a hospital or dental clinic on iPhone or iPad: copy the disc folder, import it in Ossidex, and skip the Windows viewer.
Supported formats: every DICOM file, disc and archive Ossidex opens
Full list of what Ossidex opens on iPhone and iPad: DICOM, DICOMDIR, Enhanced multi-frame, NIfTI, JPEG 2000/HTJ2K/JPEG-LS, ZIP, RAR, 7z, ISO and more.