What does the command 'tar -xf archive.tar' do?

The command 'tar -xf archive.tar' is specifically designed for extracting files from a tar archive. The 'x' flag stands for 'extract', indicating that the tar utility should retrieve the files that are contained within the specified archive. The 'f' flag signifies that the next argument, which in this case is 'archive.tar', is the name of the file to work with.

When this command is run, it unpacks the contents of 'archive.tar' and places them in the current working directory unless directed otherwise. This operation is fundamental when dealing with tar files, as the primary purpose of the tar utility is to create and manipulate archive files. Therefore, the correct answer accurately represents the function of the command.