How to unpack, update and repack Adobe air file?

Question

I need to unpack air file, update it and repack it. Can anybody please help me in this regard?

In java, for jar file we can use winrar utlity for this kind. Please suggest how can we do for air.Is there any utility for adobe air.

I tried with winzip/winrar. I changed its extension to .zip file and opened it in winzip and winrar. When I tried to update it, it got corrupted.

-Abhishek

Answer 1

AIR files themselves are simply zip files, so in theory you can rename them to *.zip and muck around inside. But you can't update the contents inside and then use the result as a new AIR file, because AIR files are signed, and part of the signing process includes taking a hash of the app contents. When you try to use the file you changed the contents of, the new files won't match the signature. (This is a security feature - you wouldn't want someone taking your AIR app, changing the insides, and then distributing it as an updated version.)

To produce a new AIR file you should re-publish (and therefore re-sign) from your original source.