This class represents the gzip data format, which uses an industry standard algorithm for lossless file compression and decompression. The format includes a cyclic redundancy check value for detecting data corruption. The gzip data format uses the same algorithm as the DeflateStream class, but can be extended to use other compression formats. The format can be readily implemented in a manner not covered by patents. The format for gzip is available from the RFC 1952, "GZIP file format specification 4.3." This class cannot be used to compress files larger than 4 GB.
Compressed GZipStream objects written to a file with an extension of .gz can be decompressed using many common compression tools; however, this class does not inherently provide functionality for adding files to or extracting files from .zip archives. For an example of compressing and decompressing files in the gzip data format, see Compression Application Sample.
The compression functionality in DeflateStream and GZipStream is exposed as a stream. Data is read in on a byte-by-byte basis, so it is not possible to perform multiple passes to determine the best method for compressing entire files or large blocks of data. The DeflateStream and GZipStream classes are best used on uncompressed sources of data. If the source data is already compressed, using these classes may actually increase the size of the stream.
Notes to Inheritors:
When you inherit from GZipStream, you must override the following members: CanSeek, CanWrite, and CanRead.