Why do I receive the error "WinZip self-extractor header corrupt" when trying to run the MATLAB installer?

When attempting to run the MATLAB installer, I receive the following error:

WinZip Self-Extractor header corrupt. Possible cause: bad disk or file transfer error

Answer 1

[MathWorks Support Team]

First please confirm that you have write permissions in the directory where the installer is located. As a troubleshooting step, try moving the installer to a different folder, for example your Desktop, then run it again. On Windows, you can also try using right-click "Run as Administrator".

If the error persists, this could indicate that that the MATLAB installer was corrupted at some point before it was run. This can happen either during the download, or by other software on the computer once it has been downloaded. To obtain a working installer, please visit mathworks.com and download a new copy of the installer. If the issue persists after downloading the installer again, temporarily disable any security software on your machine which may be interfering with the download process.

If the steps above do not resolve the issue, try installing in safe mode or creating a directory on the C:\ drive and extracting it within that folder.  

If you still have issues, please contact us.

[Hosam Alshehabi]

I have the same problem but this solution didn't help me :(

[Walter Roberson]

Contact Mathworks for free installation support.

(Also, make sure that you have enough free disk space to download the installer.)

[Mahmut Kemal Ercan]

I had the same problem for r2019b. I just right clicked and opened in winrar, extracted the files and opened the setup and it worked! You should try to generate setup inside that file instead of the installer itself

[Justin Ghetti]

Hi Hosam,

If you are still experiencing this issue, please contact MathWorks support:

http://www.mathworks.com/support/contact_us/

-Justin

[Swarag Narayanasetty]

It happens also when you have matlab installer file in sub directories where the directory address cant be properly written in terminal like having emojis etc etc. so try installing the matlab by keeping the file in root directory .( i mean in main drive not having any folders.)

[Kaichun Yang]

Hi all, I have the same issue with both 2019 and 2021, I have two disk section, C and D. When I launch the exe file on my desktop which i belong to Disk C, they have this error, when I start them in my Disk D, it works, I don't know why but it works. FYI

[Walter Roberson]

Is it possible you run out of space on C?

Answer 2

[Yucan Luo]

I have the same problem, just put the installer (matlab_R2021a_win64.exe) in C:\ drive and it will be work!

[Saif Alareqi]

You're a legend man I've been searching for hours.

[Ilkay Irem Ozbek]

Thanks a lot, it really helped!

Answer 3

[Sowmya K S]

How to resolve WinZip self extractor header corrupt error when installing matlab 2017 trial

Answer 4

[Haechan Hong]

try executing the file while it is on a cloud drive. its installation process is pretty much the same whereever the file was.

[Walter Roberson]

In theory, yes, but in practice there have been cases where executing from a cloud drive fails, especially OneDrive. OneDrive has turned out to be less reliable than some of the other major cloud drives (or possibly we just get more reports if it is used more?)