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A Hard Disk Operating System by Chuck Downing esoteric efficacy corp. P.O. Box 2207 Littleton CO 80161 (303)781-9190 or King's Bench BBS (303)377-6725 Control Systems BBS (303)841-6065 Copyright(C), 1987 esoteric efficacy corp. All Rights Reserved A Hard Disk Operating System Table of Contents Introduction 1 The Computer System 1 BBS's and the Public Domain 2 Why Are We Here? 2 Disclaimers 3 Kudos 3 Recommendations 5 Generic Software Descriptions 5 Things I'd Do Over 6 Basic Hardware 7 Hindsight is 20-20 7 The Operating System 9 MS-DOS 2.11.22 9 AutoMenu 3.01 9 DS212 10 DS212 Add-Ons 11 Data Backup Software 11 Other Useful Software 13 Operating System Cost 13 Software Sources 14 Possible System Alternates 14 On the Horizon 15 Putting It Together 16 Hardware Location 16 Installation 16 Formatting and Partitioning 17 Your Data Framework 18 Daily Housekeeping 19 System Backup/Restore 19 Daily Backups 19 Weekly Backups 20 Monthly Backups 20 Semi-annual Re-formatting 21 Appendix A-List of Program Sources 23 Appendix B-CONFIG.SYS 25 Appendix C-AUTOEXEC.BAT 26 Appendix D-AUTOMENU.MDF 27 Appendix E-Backup Batch Files 32 Appendix F-Sample DS212 Screen 39 A Hard Disk Operating System Introduction My PC-clone and its operating system have been put together 'like Topsy'. Although I have been working with computers since 1964, my current Tandy 1000 was my first venture into the world of big memory computing in almost 15 years. Fortunately, I became interested in bulletin boards and user supported software in time to save my budget from total ruin. The words that follow will try to show how a user-friendly hard disk software support system can be set up for minimum cost. The Computer System On the Fourth of July 1985, I decided that the cost of a basic PC-clone computer had reached my 'striking point'. On that day, a 128k Tandy 1000 with one floppy disk drive was selling for $999 plus tax. Since I already owned a color monitor for my Apple II and an old Radio Shack dot matrix printer, I felt that I could learn about the world of PC/MS-DOS computers without too much investment. Of course, only a few weeks later, I began to feel the need for a second disk drive so that I could make backups in the unattended mode. Soon thereafter came the urge for much more memory, resulting in the purchase of a mfb-1000 expansion board from pbj, inc., which included a clock and an RS-232 port and brought my system to 640k of RAM. As luck would have it, during the period of my system expansion, I began to work part-time in a Radio Shack store, giving myself exposure to more technical information and a chance see computer peripherals in action all day long. Besides, seeing the sales flyers a week early gave me more opportunities to develop an ache for each goody I could get at such a great deal! So, over the winter of 1985-6, I added a high resolution color monitor and a 'smart modem' to my PC-clone system. In addition, through sheer luck, I found the King's Bench Fido BBS, which was set up to help owners of Tandy 1000's. Finally, after working with hard disks in the stores and learning the limits of my original production, two floppy disk Tandy 1000, I began to accumulate the parts of a hard disk system. In May 1986, Radio Shack offered its hard disk controller board at half price. Coupled with a small employee discount, the deal was too good to pass up. Then, in August 1986, the company put its 10meg Hard Disk Drive on sale at half price. Again, I jumped at the deal, although I was concerned that I might have to buy a ROM BIOS upgrade for my computer, since the computer press and company rumors were reporting problems with hard disks and the old Tandy 1000. Luckily, the rumors were wrong, because the all-Radio Shack system fit together like a glove and has operated without a hitch for six months. In the meantime, I have left the company for greener pastures, so this is not an endorsement of the product, nor an attempt to curry favor with a boss. A Hard Disk OS Page 2 BBS's and the Public Domain Being an inveterate reader, I was aware of the growing BBS movement long before I added a modem to my PC-clone system. Nonetheless, I feel more fortunate than most BBS devotees because I live near Denver, the home of the King's Bench BBS. That means that the best information in the US about Tandy 1000 computing is available to me for the cost of a local telephone call. Ralph Allison's board is the main reason for this document and for the computer system it describes. There are really two concepts for legally distributing computer software through the BBS network in the US--the concept of Public Domain software and the concept of User Supported Software, or Freeware. About half of the software which is really in the 'Public Domain' has a sentence or two in the accompanying documentation which says that the programmer is donating his work to the good of mankind. The other half is likely undocumented and has no marking of any kind to identify its original programmer or to state that it has been copyrighted by anyone. On the other hand, there exists a questionable network of pirated software, which comes complete with the programmer's introductory copyright screen, floating around the BBS system. Most concerned sysops, such as Ralph Allison, try to avoid distributing these programs. User Supported Software and Freeware are two copyrighted names for the same concept of software marketing. Both are based on the premise that most people are basically honest. The programmers allow distribution of their wares on the BBS system, but include the appropriate words in the documentation which appear to make it clear that the use of the programs is limited by the same general restrictions as are found on the much more expensive, shrink-wrapped stuff. The authors of shareware rely on the honesty of the user to not abuse the concept and to make the specified donation if he is really using the program in his system. My experience has been that this distribution system seems to work to effectively supply good programs at a cost more representative of their true value. Why Are We Here? In early 1987, users of PC's are beginning to develop an interest in having hard disk systems for their computers at home. There seems to come a time in each user's development when continually swapping floppy disks begins to be an unbearable burden. It is at that time that each of us start to read about hard disks and the millions of bytes of data that can be stored on them for instant access. Since I am six months ahead of today's neophyte, one purpose for this document is to try to smooth the way for him. A Hard Disk OS Page 3 In addition, there exist in the Public Domain and the shareware area lots of good programs to help all of us manage our hard disks, and our lives, better and inexpensively. So, another purpose for this document is to describe several of those programs and to applaud the programmers for a job well done. Finally, as I suspect is the case with most of us, I fail to keep a diary of my day-to-day work with my PC-clone. Thus, I need to write this document to help me remember in 1988 what I did to set up my system, so I can replace it when I have my first 'head crash'. This document will present some ideas about how to set up a user-friendly hard disk operating system once the disk is attached to the computer. It will distill many of the magazine articles I have absorbed in the last two years to develop my philosophy about such a system. The Appendix will include names and addresses for the sources of the software which is described. I will try to total up the cost of those programs. Disclaimers Most of the programs mentioned in this document are copyrighted by somebody. The majority of them are offered for sale by the copyright owner. In addition, the computing equipment discussed are the products of major manufacturers of computers. The descriptions of either the software or the hardware should not be construed as an endorsement of the quality of any specific product, nor as an offer to sell it. Further, no arrangements exist between myself and the producer or manufacturer of any of the products mentioned for sponsorship or promotional fees. Therefore, this document provides no warranties or guarantees that any of the products will perform as described on any computer system except mine. In addition, since I have no control over others use of this information, I hold myself harmless for any damages or lost data as a result of your use of the software described herein. Kudos Two sysops of Denver area BBS's deserve my thanks for making the software for my operating system available to me. They are Ralph Allison of the King's Bench Fido BBS (303-377-6725) and Don Stone of the Control Systems BBS of Parker (303-841-6065). Thanks, guys! I am especially devoted to reading the monthly efforts of Miriam Liskin, in "Personal Computing Magazine", and Dave Rowell, of "80 Micro Magazine". Specific citations of their work will not be made, but their philosophy has been distilled into mine. In addition, much of my information about PC-clones has been has been collected from "COMPUTER SHOPPER". A tip of the hat to these folks. A Hard Disk OS Page 4 Finally, thanks to my wife, D'Ann, and to two of my kids, Elliott and Mary, for helping me proof-read this thing. I wouldn't have made it without them! A Hard Disk OS Page 5 Recommendations Shopping for an operating system for your PC-clone and its hard disk needs to be done carefully, to avoid the many pitfalls and to be cost-effective. Hopefully, you will be able to test the major parts of the system before you buy them. This is possible with shareware and Public Domain software obtained through the BBS system, and may be possible at some retail or commercial dealers. Your operating system should help you to feel comfortable about using your PC-clone. You will be together for a long time, since major changes six months from now will be not only time consuming, but also hazardous to your data. The system described here may not be well-suited to your personality, so you should consult other sources of information before duplicating it, willy- nilly. With millions of bytes of data and hundreds of individual files of programs and information, it is easy to forget what is on our hard disks and when we last used it. Thus, it is necessary to find at least one program which will help us find our way quickly from sub-directory to sub-directory. It is also necessary to develop and practice a philosophy of good housekeeping and data backups from day one. Generic Software Descriptions I have found that I work well with a menu-driven system. Even though part of my system forces me to thoroughly understand the workings of MS-DOS to originally develop the menus, my day-to- day operations seem to go most smoothly with the help of menus. Several shareware programs exist to make menu-driven operations possible. Some attempt to isolate the user from DOS from the start, while others require a basic knowledge of the subject to make them work. I like the latter, but the choice is yours. Some Public Domain software comes with no documentation, or at least has become separated from its instructions over time. The challenge of trying to understand how to use this stuff is interesting, but may create time-consuming side tracks when you have to use the programs on a day-to-day basis. I generally avoid programs such as this, mainly because they could mess up the data on my hard disk before I can bat an eye. I have found some software which I might have considered for this system, except for the asking price. Even in the shareware marketplace, there are a few programmers with an extremely inflated view of the value of their work. If I have heard of competing programs, I evaluate all of them on the bases of system compatibility and out-of-pocket costs. A Hard Disk OS Page 6 Things I'd Do Over Even though I spent several months reading and thinking about my hard disk system, there are some things I wish I had done differently. First, I refused to believe that other people were right when they said, "You never have enough hard disk space." With my 20 years experience, I felt that I could manage my work within the limits of 10 million bytes with no problems. Oh yeah, you betcha! Ten million bytes is a good size to learn how to use a hard disk system, but not nearly enough to really do the things you can do with one. Although I am writing this document to describe my system, I feel that I should continue to study the subject. There probably exists a more compact system than I have put together. It is also likely to be more efficient and easier to use. I dream that somewhere out there is somebody who is a year ahead of me, who has written his own efficient operating system. Finally, I am still looking for a good, shareware hard disk backup system. Not only have I neglected to follow my own advice about continuous backups, but also have I failed to find an efficient, cost-effective way to make them. I'm sure that such a program exists. A Hard Disk OS Page 7 Basic Hardware When I purchased my basic Tandy 1000, it was available in the stores in only one configuration--a case with 128k of RAM, one floppy disk drive and a keyboard. Of course, it came with lots of things that other clones didn't have, such as built-in video, printer and light-pen adapters. On the other hand, it had room for only three 10-inch expansion boards. So, it was just a basic PC/MS-DOS computer, with a few bells and whistles. Adding a second floppy disk drive was easy, as was expanding the RAM. All I had to do was plunk down the money, read the instructions and 15 minutes later, I was in business. Not so with a hard disk, however. As I began to read about hard disks, I found that there may be system compatibility problems. First, since the Tandy 1000 was an almost PC-clone, not all hard disk manufacturers knew how to make controllers for it. In addition, the early production Tandy 1000's, like mine, with the original ROM BIOS, were particularly difficult for the manufacturers to work with. Fortunately, I was able to buy a Radio Shack hard drive controller and external 10 meg hard disk at a discounted sale price. I am lucky that it worked with no problems! Again, having read the installation instructions and the other documentation, putting the system together was only a matter of a few minutes work. Partitioning and formatting the hard disk was also pretty easy, since I expected to use it only with one operating system, MS-DOS. With only 10 million bytes of storage, more than one partition is likely only a dream, anyway. Other parts of the system include an external 'smart modem' and an older dot matrix printer. I have an external modem with the philosophy that the RS-232 board I own can work up to 9600 baud and when Ma Bell and friends can tolerate that speed, external modems will, too. All I have to replace is the modem, not an internal board and modem. Since printers cost more than computers these days, my DMP-500 will have to do until I can justify something different. Hindsight is 20-20 On looking back, my striking point was probably about six months early. Had I waited for the Tandy 1000A, with the updated ROM BIOS, I understand that some of my compatibility worries would have been eased. On the other hand, it is likely that the pbj, inc. memory expansion board may not have been a viable alternate. Careful shopping still would have been needed to get the perfect system. A Hard Disk OS Page 8 While a 10 meg hard disk system is adequate for fooling around, I probably should have spent the money for a ROM BIOS upgrade to a Tandy 1000A. This would have allowed me to purchase a 20 meg or larger hard disk system. I suspect that another 10 million or so bytes of storage would have made my life easier. However, it is possible that hard disk space is just like closet space--you can never have enough. A Hard Disk OS Page 9 The Operating System Most PC-clones come bundled with a version of PC/MS-DOS. They may have other software included, too. Some of the bundled software will let you format and partition a hard disk--others will not. My experience was that some of the basic hard disk utilities came with MS-DOS, while the rest of them were included with the hard drive controller. Be sure that your hard disk drive will boot up with your computer before you take delivery and pay the money! Assuming you have passed that hurdle, Appendix A includes a list of sources for the shareware discussed below. With that list it is not necessary to have access to a modem, although having a friend with one will make putting the system together easier. This section will discuss the basics of my hard disk operating system. MS-DOS 2.11.22 MS-DOS 2.11 was included in the price with my Tandy 1000. The upgrade to version 2.11.22 was free. This disk operating system seems to work well with the Tandy 1000 10meg hard drive. Its major drawback is that it uses a minimum of 4096 bytes of disk space for each file on the drive. This means, for instance, that a 128-byte batch file takes up 4096 bytes of space! AutoMenu 3.01 This program is the basis for the user-friendly nature of my hard disk operating system. Written by Marshall W. Magee, of Magee Enterprises, AutoMenu is available both on the BBS system and by mail-order. The suggested contribution shown on the cover page of the documentation for version 3.01 is $30.00. A different price may now be in force, since that documentation is dated July 15, 1985. AutoMenu allows the user to develop up to eight menu screens which may contain up to eight choices each. To take the action specified by the menu, an item may be selected by pressing a digit or the Function Key with the same number. Alternately, one may use the arrow keys to point to the item, and then press <ENTER> to take that action. Changing pages can be done either with the PGUP and PGDN keys or with HOME and END. Screen colors and time and date displays may be customized for AutoMenu. In addition, Mr. Magee has programmed password protection and menu 'chaining' into the system. All in all, AutoMenu is easy to use and to customize. A Hard Disk OS Page 10 A rudimentary knowledge of PC/MS-DOS is needed to use AutoMenu. Someone must create the menu file, AUTOMENU.MDF, for the program to read. He must plan for the needs of the end user and make the menus be user-friendly. AutoMenu is the tool, it is up to him to make good use of it. My current version of AUTOMENU.MDF can be found in Appendix D. DS212 Directory Scanner, version 2.12, may be the most cost effective program in my operating system. It was written by LCDR Nat Martino while he was assigned to the US Naval Academy. Although his documentation says nothing about copyrights and/or Public Domain, I have been assuming that, as an employee of the US Government, he could not be paid by a third party for something he did on the taxpayers' time. So, I count the cost for DS as $0.00. I use Directory Scanner at least once every half-hour, unless I am in the middle of writing a long document like this. It does the following things for me: - shows a tree of my hard disk directory - shows a list of up to 60 files in the current directory - lets me execute a program with two key strokes - lets me start editing or listing a file with one key stroke - gives complete access to all files on my hard disk - tells the attributes of each file--read only, hidden, system - provides an easy-to-use backup utility - lets me see what's on a floppy with three key strokes The documentation for the backup utility leaves a little to be desired, though. I have learned to use it only for those subdirectories which will fit on one floppy diskette (360k). Nevertheless, DS212 is an extremely important part of my operating system. DS212 comes without a file EDIT or LIST program, but will allow you to use your favorite programs if you rename them EDIT.COM and LIST.COM. I will discuss the programs I have adapted in the next few paragraphs. In addition, DS212 has no way to unERASE a hard disk file and no way to show you where the fragments of a file are located. I have rejected DS212's competitors, though, because it is so easy to eXecute a program from DS212. A Hard Disk OS Page 11 DS212 Add-Ons Vernon D. Buerg seems to have devoted his life to continuing to improve his LIST program. At last word, he had gotten to version 6.0h. For his modest $15.00 asking price, LIST is a very good file-listing program. I have yet to use all of its features. Several versions of LIST have been 'attached' directly to DS212 with no apparent problems from either program. In addition, LIST can be invoked from DOS to list any type of file you can save on your hard disk. It can also let you compare two files on the screen at the same time. I generally access LIST by pointing to it with the DS arrow and pressing <L>. A relative newcomer to my system is CSE.COM, which I have renamed EDIT.COM. This program is a full screen editor originally written for the computer center at The Colorado School of Mines by Dan Smith. It has been adapted to the PC keyboard by Joe Applegate, a King's Bench member and CSM employee. Since this program, too, was developed with taxpayer money, it is in the Public Domain and costs $0.00. The CSE keyboard interpretation can be modified to suit your fancy. Since I use PC-WRITE and GW-BASIC a lot, my keyboard layout is a combination of the major keystrokes from those programs. The only problem I have found with CSE is that there are four keys on my Tandy 1000 keyboard which give it 'heartburn'. Those keys send no apparent scan code through DOS or BIOS, but they do generate a 'key has been pressed' signal. CSE bombs whenever I press one of these keys. Data Backup Software During the time I have been working off-and-on on this document, I have continued to try to find good software to help develop a safe data backup philosophy. Although my system is getting better, I still have not achieved perfection. My dilemma exists because the BACKUP and RESTORE commands (utilities?) with MS-DOS 2.11.22 and the Tandy 10meg Hard Disk Drive do not seem to work when a sub-directory contains more than 360k bytes of data. In addition, they are not automated to force me to make a backup when I should. For the moment, my backup system is based on three major programs I have discovered in the last two months. Two of them are written by the same programmer, Norm Patriquin, while the third is by Walt Kirspel of Knowledge Based Solutions, Inc. Other parts of the system are there, but they play minor roles. A Hard Disk OS Page 12 SUPER-Search, now known as PSEARCH, is one of Norm Patriquin's utilities. He suggests a donation of $10.00 for registration. It allows the user to find files on his disk based on tens of combinations of name, extension, date of update and attributes. It is also a text search program to help you find earlier references to a phrase, topic, person or whatever. This latter mode is not used for purposes of my present system. I use PSEARCH to identify those data files on my hard disk which were updated within the last 1, 7 or 30 days, depending upon my backup step. The program writes a list of the files to another disk file which is used as redirected input for some other programs. With the DOS Command FIND, I can strip away things I don't want to save, such as AUTOTEMP.BAT from AutoMenu and PSCMDS.BAT from PSEARCH, to minimize the process time and amount of space used on a diskette. Samples of how I do this are shown in Appendix E in TODAYBAK.BAT, YESDYBAK.BAT, WEEKBACK.BAT and MONTHBAK.BAT. Walt Kirspel's contribution to my system is a little program called REP. It allows me to REPeat any DOS command or program over and over to my heart's content. Since it accepts re-directed input, the output from PSEARCH can be used as input to REP to copy a list of files from one place to another or to ARChive a long list of files. These are the uses made for REP in the Batch Files mentioned above. Walt has placed REP in the Public Domain, so its cost is $0.00. ARC, by System Enhancement Associates, is becoming one of the standards of the data compression world. Its major uses are to compact information to reduce modem transmission time and to encrypt programs and data for security reasons. I choose to use it in my backup system to save space on my diskettes. Although I use it for many other things, I will count its total cost of $35.00 as a part of the hard disk operating system. PKARC is a Public Domain 'Fast ARC' program. I use it to save the backup files, but still need ARC, since PKARC will not 'unARC' the files that is saves. PKARC comes from Phil Katz at a suggested price of $15.00. Several little utilities are incorporated into the backup system. QUERY lets me answer simple questions and either FORMAT a new diskette or not. SETARCH is my own answer to a need for changing the Archive attribute of the files I have just backed up, while SETUPDAT is its complement. These three programs are in the system at $0.00. Alternately, PALERT, by Norm Patriquin, is available for $10.00. It tells me when a diskette is getting full, so that I can decide what to do. Please see Appendix E for examples of how I use these little gems. A Hard Disk OS Page 13 The third major program in my backup system showed up on a diskette from Norm Patriquin when I registered for PSEARCH. Apparently, PDAILY was his latest effort, thrown in gratis. Although it is copyrighted, he requests no donation for it. I use PDAILY to force myself to make a backup of everything I did yesterday. The first time I turn on my computer each day, PDAILY starts the batch file called YESDYBAK.BAT. This action is a good start to developing my backup habits! Other Useful Software A number of other good programs are a part of my resident operating system. They do take up RAM, so they may not all be necessary for someone with less than 640k. Included are: - KBFIX2, used mainly for a 'sticky' CAPS key, $0.00 - MQ.COM and DQ.COM, simpler CHKDSK's, $0.00 - SCREEN, to blank the monitor after 5 minutes, $0.00 - DPATH, to make files easier to find, $0.00 - PTRSPOOL, for efficient print spooling, $0.00 - REBOOT, a software jump to 'computer reset', $0.00 Operating System Cost The following table lists the software described so far and gives my out-of-pocket cost for obtaining it. You should be aware that some of these asking prices have changed since I made my donations. Program Name Suggested Donation MS-DOS 2.11.22 Bundled with t1k AutoMenu, v. 3.01 $30.00 Directory Scanner, v. 2.12 0.00 LIST, v. 6.0h 15.00 CSE (renamed EDIT) 0.00 PSEARCH 10.00 REP 0.00 ARC 35.00 PKARC 15.00 QUERY, SETARCH, SETUPDAT 0.00 PDAILY 0.00 PALERT 10.00 KBFIX2, SCREEN, MQ, DQ 0.00 DPATH, REBOOT, PTRSPOOL 0.00 ------- TOTAL COST $115.00 A Hard Disk OS Page 14 Software Sources Except for MS-DOS, which came with my Tandy 1000, and SETARCH and SETUPDAT, which I wrote myself, all of the software in my operating system has been obtained through the BBS system. My favorites are King's Bench Fido of Denver and Control Systems of Parker, CO. I have seen both AutoMenu and LIST advertised in computer magazines. In addition, some of the freebies can be found on Public Domain disks being advertised in those same magazines. Appendix A lists the addresses of the programmers, when they were given in the documentation. I'm sure that each of them would be happy to make you a copy of his program(s), if you send a donation along with a postpaid mailer and a formatted floppy diskette. SETARCH and SETUPDAT will soon be available on the BBS circuit. First, I must write short documentation files for them. Possible System Alternates I have tried, and rejected, several major programs which could have been incorporated into my system. At present, I can recall no major problem with any of them. They were generally rejected because they didn't do exactly what I felt I needed at the time. For instance, Dosamatic is a possible candidate to perform most of the file maintenance and locating functions now being done by DS212. It seems to have a fairly user-friendly, menu-driven interface, and performs most of the file-related tasks you would need. For me, however, the complicated method of eXecuting a program was the deciding factor in its disfavor. Dosamatic was available at the 1985 suggested cost of $39.00 from Marin Pacific Software. Another goody, which might have been used as a user interface, is Extended Batch Language, EBL. Lots of people use this extension to DOS for all kinds of tasks, particularly for supporting 'computer illiterates' who are, nevertheless, forced to work with a PC. Had I had FANSI-CONSOLE in my system at the time I was testing EBL, I probably would have kept it. Its proposed price in July 1986 was $49.00, from Seaware Corporation. Incremental Backup Utility, IBU, is available on the BBS system. Its main purpose is given by its title, to make hard disk backups. I found it to be cumbersome to use. For me, it was going to be a non-productive addition to my system. It may work for some people, however. IBU costs $20.00 in 1984 dollars and comes from Mike Hodapp. A Hard Disk OS Page 15 Creative thinkers, who are also adept programmers, can probably develop ways to control their computer and hard disk using only PC/MS-DOS. That was the original intent of MicroSoft, of course. Reportedly, with each new version of MS-DOS, hard disk management gets better and better. So, well-planned batch files have been used alone for the job. On the Horizon FANSI-CONSOLE is currently being tested in my Tandy 1000. It really has no major place in this document, although it will replace the functions of KBFIX2 and SCREEN. Generally, FANSI- CONSOLE will dictate whether modifications to my operating system will be compatible. I do own a copy of CP/M. Since lots of 8088 software is supported by this operating system, it is a definite candidate for continued use in an expanded hard disk environment. This is especially true when one considers the number of CP/M-based programs in the Public Domain arena. As long as my telephone bill can be paid, I will be roaming the BBS system. Therefore, tomorrow I may find the answer to my every prayer and completely revamp my hard disk operating system. It is not likely that this will happen, but it is always possible! A Hard Disk OS Page 16 Putting It Together Before purchasing a hard disk system, several things need to be considered. For purposes of this document, the only one of major importance is whether to purchase an internal or an external hard disk. Following that decision are several minor, yet important, steps which can make a difference in how things go for the first six months or so of system use. Hardware Location When you look around your computer work area, several questions need consideration: - Is your desktop small or large? - Can you put something on the floor which won't be kicked by by you, one of the kids, the dog or the vacuum cleaner? - Does your computer have enough expansion slots left to accommodate a hard disk? - Can your computer supply enough power for an internal hard drive? If you have a small workspace or if someone who might get near it is 'klutzy', consider an internal drive. On the other hand, if you can find a good place for an external hard disk, it may the the system of choice. Most external hard disks come with long enough cables that they can go on the floor or a nearby bookshelf. In addition, they have a built-in power supply and cooling fan, which mean that they won't be consuming the limited power from your main computer system or creating additional heat inside the case. If you do choose an external system, I understand that it may be placed either horizontally or vertically. I have read that the mechanical system for reading and writing has been designed to operate in either position. Several authors have cautioned their readers to format the hard disk in its final position, so that any minor effects of gravity will be recognized from the start. Installation Most retailers will recommend having a 'trained installer' install your hard disk into your computer. For some people, especially if they have purchased several systems at once, this may be the most efficient method. However, thousands of personal computer owners have installed their own hard disk systems with no apparent ill effects. You probably can, too. A Hard Disk OS Page 17 Since each hard disk system and PC-clone is likely to be different from my Tandy 1000 and 10-meg Disk System, I will give only the generalities of the installation procedure which I followed. First, BEFORE you even start to look for your screwdriver, carefully read the manufacturer's owner's manual and installation instructions from cover to cover. After you have collected the tools you will need, open your computer's case and the packaging for the controller board and mentally review the installation instructions, without actually connecting the parts. Finally, follow the manufacturer's instructions, step-by-step, making a check mark beside each paragraph as you finish it. Even though you may have closed your computer's case, the installation work is not complete until you have partitioned and formatted your hard disk. Formatting and Partitioning The last steps for getting your hard disk ready for your system involve running three computer programs which will record the correct information on the hard disk so that all of your other software can use it. When the hard disk comes from the factory it has been tested and approved by the manufacturer, but all of the tiny magnets on its surface may not be lined up the way the controller board and your Disk Operating System expect them to be. The program HSECT.COM is used to ensure that the necessary magnetic codes are in place so that the controller can move the read-write head(s) to the correct place when your DOS asks for data. It is likely that most people will make the simplest choice when running the next program, FDISK.COM. Its purpose is to add some additional information to the hard disk so your computer can know where to find important data about the hard disk each time you turn the system on to 'boot up.' Advanced users, or people with large-capacity hard disks, may wish to partition the disk so that it acts as two or more 'logical drives' even though it is really only one 'physical drive.' Finally, HFORMAT.COM is used to transfer your version of PC/MS-DOS from your floppy disk to your hard disk. Using this program alone will not copy such things as ANSI.SYS, CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.SYS to the hard disk. These and others must be copied using your DOS's COPY command. Again, I recommend that you leave your computer turned off until you have read the manufacturer's instructions from beginning to end. You cannot damage anything if you don't follow them to the letter, but you may overlook an important step if you are not fully prepared. Checking off each step as you do it will help to make sure that you haven't missed anything. If you have problems, the manufacturer's technical telephone answerer will be most cooperative if you seem to have tried to follow their procedure carefully. A Hard Disk OS Page 18 Your Data Framework It is possible to use a hard disk without bothering with sub- directories or user-friendly interfaces. The top of my desk and the floor of my office are evidence that I should be able to find that 'important' stuff again, if I ever need it. Of course, searching through 700 to 800 files which are in no apparent order may be a bit more difficult than finding some program's documentation in my desktop filing system. Therefore, you, too, probably need a sub-directory tree on your hard disk. Appendix F is a copy of one screen displayed by DS212. The left side of the display shows a part of my sub-directory tree as it existed on February 10, 1987, while most of the display shows the files that were in my pcwrite sub-directory that day. I have replaced some of the IBM screen graphics with characters which my Radio Shack DMP-500 printer can print. The directories and sub directories are in alphabetical order, as are the files in the pcwrite sub-directory. This ordering has been done by the program. It is not at all the order in which the sub-directories were created by MAKEDIR, or the order in which the letters and other documents were written. Using DS212 to display the tree does help as a memory-jogger in finding files, too. I think it should be easy to see that I had developed two data bases with the CORNERstone system and seemed to be interested in working in six programming languages, including BASIC and Pascal. I must have liked data base systems, since I established sub-directories for CORNERstone, dBASE III Plus and NUTSHELL. Although only eight characters are allowed for sub-directory names, it is possible to make the directory tree meaningful to yourself. I have two other rules for sub-directories. DS212 can display a maximum of 60 files for any sub-directory. Therefore, I try to limit each sub-directory to that many files so I can scan them easily. Of course, I can use DS212's 'find' command or PSEARCH's capabilities if I really get desperate. In addition, I try to limit the contents of each sub-directory to about 360k because I have not yet found a reliable back-up program which can safely and easily save more than one floppy disk's capacity. The second time I formatted my hard disk, I was able to try to improve the speed of the system by selectively RESTOREing the sub-directories. I copied all of the files in the root directory first, followed by all of my programs such as FORMAT, BASIC, MASM, ED, PR, etc. Then I copied the files in the \develop\library sub- directory. In this way, I was able to keep these frequently- referenced files 'un-fragmented' on the disk for faster access. I think this approach helped. A Hard Disk OS Page 19 Daily Housekeeping One problem with AutoMenu, the way I use it, is that it makes a generic file called AUTOTEMP.BAT to process a menu request. With the way I use the program, it is logically impossible to erase this batch file while it is still in use. Thus, I have different, redundant copies of this file scattered all over my hard disk. Even though each copy uses 4096 bytes of hard disk space, I am generally not aware that so many copies of the file exist until I watch PSEARCH run through all of my sub-directories. When I am busily creating or updating Assembly Language or QuickBASIC programs, I make lots of *.OBJ and *.BIN files. If I'm not careful, these temporary files, too, can begin to clutter my hard disk. I have not yet found the fool-proof reminder to help me remove these files at the end of the day. If I am reviewing some new software, I sometimes catch myself making extra copies of the COM or EXE programs just to get them into a sub-directory which is in my access PATH statement. Likely as not, there those copies stay, long after they have outlived their usefulness. I usually find them listed right beside a DOS utility I haven't used for at least two months. Needless to say, with only 10 megs of hard disk, I periodically try to purge my system of these unused space-takers. System Backup/Restore For the moment, I can think of four reasons why one would wish to make and keep backups of computer data. First, commands like ERASE are unforgiving and extremely fast. Everyone can remember inadvertently ERASEing his most valuable file, whether it was a letter or a batch of data. Second, human nature and Mother Nature being what they are, at some time in your computing life you will lose the electric power to your computer through no fault of your own. When it happens, your most important file will have just been 'opened for writing' by DOS, so that it is now permanently inaccessible. Third, most of the members of King's Bench Fido BBS who own hard disks have experienced at least one 'head crash', in which the mechanical parts of their hard disk drive damaged the magnetic film on a disk. Fourth, an occasional re-formatting and house-cleaning may be good for your hard disk. All of these events can be made easier with the consistent practice of data backup. Daily Backups Since I discovered the program PDAILY, making backups of yesterday's work has become much easier. A part of my startup procedures now forces me to copy all of the files I created or updated yesterday to a floppy disk before I can go to work today. The mechanism for this step is included in Appendices C and E. A Hard Disk OS Page 20 I decided to make daily backups because my 10 meg system gets squeezed for space at times. When I begin to sense that file accesses are moving slowly, I start to look for things to ERASE. In addition, I don't always remember to SET BACKUP ON when I am using CSE to edit files. Sometimes, yesterday's version of a program is better than the version I'm working on now. So, I do need to retrieve yesterday's work once in a while. In addition, because some of my data base files are so large, I use the FIND command to strip them out of the lists of files to be saved in the daily, weekly and monthly Batch Files. Therefore, I must force myself to use the backup facility in DS212 to make copies of these files whenever I have been working on them. I find DS to be well suited for this type of archival backups. Weekly Backups Certainly, anyone who uses a PC-clone for more than games should consider making backups of his data on a weekly basis. Even though I think that I do most of my work in my pcwrite and quickbas sub-directories, I am continually surprised every Friday to see how many places I wandered in a week's time. The bases for my weekly backup system are PSEARCH, REP and PKARC. With PSEARCH, I can search all 10 megs in about one minute to make a list of all those files I have updated in the past week. After stripping .COM, .EXE and .DBF files, REP is used to help PKARC read a list of all the files to be ARCed. This step can take as much as 15 to 20 minutes at the end of a busy week. I must initiate the weekly backup by myself--at the moment, a 'weekly reminder' program is not really available in the Public Domain. Since I have a Backup Menu available through AUTOMENU.MDF, my only problem is remembering to select that item each Friday afternoon. Examples of AUTOMENU.MDF and WEEKBACK.BAT are found in Appendices D and E, respectively. Monthly Backups Since I plan to keep my monthly backup files until I re- format my hard disk, another problem needed to be addressed when thinking about how to do monthly backups. I would like to use PSEARCH to find those files which were stripped from the backup list because they were going to be too big to fit on the diskette. An easy way to do this is to have PSEARCH look for all files which have their archive/update bit set. However, I found that there was no readily available utility to change the archive/update bit using a list of files for input. Therefore, I had to write SETARCH and its companion SETUPDAT for myself. A Hard Disk OS Page 21 Again, I must remember at the end of every month to initiate a backup process. The routine MONTHBAK.BAT, shown in Appendix E, usually takes 30-45 minutes to complete. It is nearly the same as WEEKBACK.BAT, with the addition of the REPeated use of SETARCH. Once more, I must also use DS212 separately to backup up any .DBF or .COM files I plan to save. Semi-annual Re-formatting About every six months, I begin to sense that all of the downloading, uploading, copying and moving I have done with the files on my hard disk has resulted in an inefficient, time-wasting system. Therefore, it is time to start over with a clean slate. To do this requires lots of confidence in one's ability to restore the system to a reasonable semblance of what it was before he started the backup-format-restore process. I think that the extra space made available and the time-savings are worth the nervousness involved with the procedure. I have found that DS212 has a nice feature built into its backup system. With this subroutine, one may make a batch file which will re-create his sub-directory tree automatically. Knowing this, it is relatively easy to plan a strategy for ensuring that all of one's files are saved before starting the re- formatting step. I proceeded as follows: - Use DS to prepare ds_f1.bat and ds_f2.bat - Use DS to backup ALL files in a data sub-directory - Find the master copy of ALL .COM and .EXE files - if they are hard to find, use DS to back them up - Check for master copies of ALL other files, or back them up Even though I had master and backup copies of all my software and libraries, my 10 meg hard drive contained the equivalent of 10 floppy disks full of data files. I would expect many more floppies would be needed for larger systems, since data multiplies, but programs are infertile. I have not prepared a batch file for this backup procedure. Most of the work involved is ad hoc decision-making for which I have not developed enough confidence to program into a batch file. So, for the time being, I can't blame any mistakes on 'computer error.' A Hard Disk OS Page 22 Since I had the batch files made by DS, restoring the system after re-formatting was relatively straight-forward. By COPYing unfragmented files from the diskettes to the hard disk sub- directories, I was able to create a set of contiguous files in the first one or two million bytes of the hard disk. This makes program access and execution seem much faster. In addition, by COPYing the library sub-directory to a 'clean' disk, these files are now contiguous. My major sub-directories were added in the following order: - root - utility - filework - startup - develop\library . . . About half of the sub-directories shown in Appendix F have not been restored almost two months after the last re-format. They were obviously some of my favorites. A Hard Disk OS Page 23 Appendix A List of Program Sources (in the order mentioned) AutoMenu -------- MAGEE ENTERPRISES 6577 Peachtree Industrial Blvd. Norcross GA 30092-3796 Directory Scanner (DS212) ------------------------- LCDR Nat Martino, USN Pacific Missile Test Center (Code 4002) Point Mugu CA 93042-5000 LIST ---- Vernon D. Buerg 456 Lakeshire Drive Daly City CA 94015-4223 BBS phone number: (415)994-2944 CSE (file editor) ----------------- Dan Smith Colorado School of Mines Golden CO 80401 PSEARCH, PDAILY, PALERT ----------------------- Norm Patriquin P.O. Box 8308 San Bernardino CA 92412 BBS phone number: (714)369-9766 REP --- Knowledge Based Solutions, Inc. P.O. Box 338 Succasunna NJ 07876 A Hard Disk OS Page 24 ARC --- System Enhancement Associates 21 New Street Wayne NJ 07470 PKARC ----- Phil Katz 7032 Ardara Avenue Glendale WI 53209 KBFIX2 ------ Skip Gilbrech 90 Lexington Avenue #10-G New York NY 10016 DOSamatic --------- Marin Pacific Software 1001 Bridgeway, Suite 514 Sausalito CA 94965 Extended Batch Language (EBL) ----------------------------- Seaware Corporation P.O. Box 1656 Delray Beach FL IBU --- Mike Hodapp 5609 Apache Road Louisville KY 40207 A Hard Disk OS Page 25 Appendix B ****CONFIG.SYS**** buffers=20 files=20 break=on device = clock.sys 'from pbj board device = ansi.sys device = ds_drive.sys d:c 'DS212 directory area, 1 hard drive=c: device = spool.dev /16 /l1 'print spooler to LPT1:, 16k of RAM Copyright(C), 1987 esoteric efficacy corp. All Rights Reserved A Hard Disk OS Page 26 Appendix C This Appendix shows my AUTOEXEC.BAT. It includes comments which have been added for understanding. This Batch File may not work when the comments are included--it has not been tested that way. ****AUTOEXEC.BAT**** echo off set comspec=c:\command.com 'some programs need to know this set ds=0706 'colors for DS212 path c:\;c:\utility;c:\utility\filework 'so the programs get accessed set lib=c:\develop\library 'for MASM and QuickBASIC set dp=c:\pcwrite\definers 'used by DPATH to find files set cse.key=c:\pcwrite\definers 'points CSE.COM to its key file mode co 80 lf mode lfon screen /5 'turn off screen after 5 minutes scroller 'fix snow bootgrey 'CTRL-ALT-F12=warmboot + greynums dpath /nm 'install DPATH with no messages kbfix2 /d0 /b0 /kb1 /f1 /v0 /kt1 /ktr2 'makes 'sticky CAPS' and more echo (bell) 'a ^G is really here, but echo (bell) 'it's a PC-WRITE command prompt Enter the password$g 'sneaky, see COMPUTER SHOPPER 2/87 ****.........BAT**** (password.BAT) This Batch File is named password.BAT, where 'password' can be anything you want. PDAILY returns an errorlevel of 0 if this is the first time you have run it today. Otherwise, it returns an errorlevel of 1. echo off prompt $d $t$_$_$p$g 'reset prompt pdaily 'see if this is first time today if errorlevel 1 goto early extract 'run next Batch File :early yesdybak 'this file also calls extract.bat ****EXTRACT.BAT**** echo off automenu 'calls AutoMenu program autotemp 'required by AutoMenu Copyright(C), 1987 esoteric efficacy corp. All Rights Reserved A Hard Disk OS Page 27 Appendix D ****AUTOMENU.MDF**** This is a copy of my AUTOMENU.MDF file, which makes a user- friendly interface. The comments (. lines) have been added for clarity. They have not been tested with the program itself. I have elected to use the option of Batch DOS Commands Resident (the ! lines). An advantage is that I don't have short Batch Files each using 4096 bytes of space on the hard disk. The disadvantage is that AutoMenu creates AUTOTEMP.BAT, which does take up 4096 bytes in each directory I access. %esoteric efficacy corp MAIN MENU *Write a Letter !echo off . . DPATH will now let me edit PCWRITE's .DEF files . !dpath /o /c /nm !cd \pcwrite !ed . . DPATH will no longer allow writing to files outside current sub-dir . !dpath /nc /nm *Use MultiPlan for accounting, etc. !echo off !cd \multplan !spread *Draw a Picture !echo off !cd\microill !paint *Make a Sign, etc. !cd\pmaster !pm *Go BBS-hopping !echo off !cd \qmodem23 !callem *Work on Files with DSCAN !ds *EXIT Back to MS-DOS . . here, I want AutoMenu out of memory, so I use '+' . +cd\ A Hard Disk OS Page 28 . . /f option 'fixes' messed-up files--see COMPUTER SHOPPER Feb. 1987 . +chkdsk /f +echo ..... +echo You can come back with the password +echo ..... ****REBOOT*** !reboot %esoteric efficacy corp REVIEW MENU *Write a Review !echo off . . DPATH will now let me edit PCWRITE's .DEF files . !dpath /o /c /nm !cd \reviews !ed standard.rvw . . DPATH will no longer allow writing to files outside current sub-dir . !dpath /nc /nm *Communicate with Control Systems BBS !echo off !cd\qmodem23 !qmodem /S=contrsys.scr *Work on Files with DSCAN !cd\reviews !ds *EXIT Back to MS-DOS . . here, I want AutoMenu out of memory, so I use '+' . +cd\ . . /f option 'fixes' messed-up files--see COMPUTER SHOPPER Feb. 1987 . +chkdsk /f +echo ..... +echo You can come back with the password +echo ..... ****REBOOT*** !reboot %esoteric efficacy corp DEVELOPMENT MENU *Work in BASIC !cd\develop\basic !basic *Work in BASICA !cd\develop\basic !basica *Work in QuickBASIC !cd\develop\quickbas A Hard Disk OS Page 29 . . a fix is required since MS-DOS 2.11.22 causes a problem . !debug<t1kfix.fil !ds . . undo the fix just in case . !debug<t1kunfix.fil *Work in Assembly Language !cd\develop\assembly !ds *Work on Files with DSCAN !ds *EXIT Back to MS-DOS . . here, I want AutoMenu out of memory, so I use '+' . +cd\ . . /f option 'fixes' messed-up files--see COMPUTER SHOPPER Feb. 1987 . +chkdsk /f +echo ..... +echo You can come back with the password +echo ..... ****REBOOT*** !reboot %esoteric efficacy corp DATA BASE MENU *Work on Leadville documents (corner) !echo off !cd \corner !corner leadvill *Work on Magazine Clippings !echo off !cd \corner !corner magazine *In a Nutshell !echo off !cd \nutshell !nutshell *INDEX some disk files !echo off !cd \archives !index *Work on Files with DSCAN !ds *EXIT Back to MS-DOS . . here, I want AutoMenu out of memory, so I use '+' . +cd\ A Hard Disk OS Page 30 . . /f option 'fixes' messed-up files--see COMPUTER SHOPPER Feb. 1987 . +chkdsk /f +echo ..... +echo You can come back with the password +echo ..... ****REBOOT*** !reboot %esoteric efficacy corp BACKUP MENU *Backup TODAY'S work !todaybak *Do a WEEKLY backup !weekback *Do a MONTHLY backup !monthbak *Work on Files with DSCAN !ds *EXIT Back to MS-DOS . . here, I want AutoMenu out of memory, so I use '+' . +cd\ . . /f option 'fixes' messed-up files--see COMPUTER SHOPPER Feb. 1987 . +chkdsk /f +echo ..... +echo You can come back with the password +echo ..... ****REBOOT*** !reboot %esoteric efficacy corp WAY OUT MENU *Work in Pascal !cd \develop\pascal !ds *Work with Artificial Intelligence !cd\develop\artintel !ds *Work with ICON !cd\develop\icon !ds *Work on Files with DSCAN !ds *EXIT Back to MS-DOS . . here, I want AutoMenu out of memory, so I use '+' . +cd\ A Hard Disk OS Page 31 . . /f option 'fixes' messed-up files--see COMPUTER SHOPPER Feb. 1987 . +chkdsk /f +echo ..... +echo You can come back with the password +echo ..... ****REBOOT*** !reboot #EOF Copyright(C), 1987 esoteric efficacy corp. All Rights Reserved A Hard Disk OS Page 32 Appendix E This Appendix contains commented copies of my Batch Files for routine hard disk backup, YESDYBAK.BAT, WEEKBACK.BAT and MONTHBAK.BAT. The comments probably make these files unworkable. In addition, the find command lines have been wrapped-around to fit on an 80-column display. These lines will not work as they are shown. A Hard Disk OS Page 33 ****YESDYBAK.BAT**** This Batch File is called by PDAILY.COM once each day. Its purpose is to copy everything I did yesterday to a floppy in drive a:. I have volume-labelled and sticky-labelled the diskettes for the days of the week. At the moment, when I use a diskette without reformatting, this procedure copies backup0.dat for today over the top of backup0.dat for last time. Thus, some of the information about where files came from is lost. echo off ' ' use PSEARCH to search all directories for files which were made within ' the last day and make a list of them in PSCMDS.BAT ' ps /a /f /n:1 /xf:& echo stripping excess files ' ' don't keep AUTOTEMP.BAT, PSCMDS.BAT or .COMs, .EXEs or .OBJs ' ***NOTE*** how to strip find's output of "--------" ' find /v "AUTOTEMP.BAT" pscmds.bat | find /v "PS" | find /v ".COM"|find /v ".EXE"|find /v ".OBJ"|find /v "--------" | find "." >backup1.dat echo off ' ' query will only accept what comes after the '@' ' it reports location x of what you typed as errorlevel x ' query Do you need to format a diskette (Y/N)? @yYnN if errorlevel 3 goto noform ' ' flpyform is my new name for the FORMAT command ' renaming it keeps me from reformatting my hard disk in error ' flpyform a: /v goto formed :noform echo ... echo Put a formatted diskette in Drive A echo ... pause palert a: ' ' query will only accept what comes after the '@' ' it reports location x of what you typed as errorlevel x ' query Now, do you need to format a diskette (Y/N)? @yYnN if errorlevel 3 goto formed flpyform a: /v :formed echo on copy backup1.dat a: A Hard Disk OS Page 34 ' ' this says "copy every file listed in backup1.dat to drive a:" ' rep copy %%a a: <backup1.dat erase pscmds.bat erase backup1.dat echo off echo ... ' ' (bell) means ^G, which is a PCWRITE command ' echo (bell)All done. Save the diskette in Drive A echo ... extract A Hard Disk OS Page 35 ****WEEKBAK.BAT**** This Batch File must be run manually. Its purpose is to use PKARC and REP to make an ARCed backup of everything done in the last seven days. I have four floppies, volume-labelled and sticky-labelled WEEKLYBACK1 thru WEEKLYBACK4. Since I also do a monthly backup, I format these diskettes once a month and save them for a month. The procedure would let me not do the format step, but would overlay all of the files and destroy last month's backups, anyway. I make a copy of ARC.EXE so that the files may be unARCed at any time. I know my current versions of ARC and PKARC work together. echo off cd \ echo ... echo This batch file does not back up ARCs and DBFs echo ... ' ' query will only accept what comes after the '@' ' it reports location x of what you typed as errorlevel x ' query Do you want to continue? (Y/N) @yYnN if errorlevel 3 goto done ' ' use PSEARCH to search the entire hard drive for files which have been ' updated (written to) in the last week and make a \path\filename\ext list ' of them into PSCMDS.BAT ' ps /a /f /at:u /n:7 /xf:& echo stripping excess files ' ' don't keep AUTOTEMP.BAT, PSCMDS.BAT or .ARCs, .DBFs or .OBJs ' ***NOTE*** how to strip find's output of "--------" ' find /v "AUTOTEMP.BAT" pscmds.bat | find /v "ARC"| find /v "DBF"| find /v "PS" | find /v ".EXE" |find /v "--------" | find "." >backup7.dat echo off ' ' this says "add all files listed in backup7.dat to thisweek.arc" ' rep pkarc a thisweek %%a <backup7.dat echo off echo ... echo Put this week's backup diskette in Drive A echo ... pause ' ' working on calculating the space requirements of a diskette ' dir backup7.dat dir thisweek.arc echo off A Hard Disk OS Page 36 echo ... echo Besides that, arc.exe takes 32429 bytes. echo ... palert a: ' ' query will only accept what comes after the '@' ' it reports location x of what you typed as errorlevel x ' query Do you need to format a diskette (Y/N)? @yYnN if errorlevel 3 goto noform flpyform a: /v goto formed :noform echo ... echo Put a formatted diskette in Drive A echo ... pause :formed copy \arc.exe a: copy backup7.dat a: copy thisweek.arc a: erase pscmds.bat erase backup7.dat erase thisweek.arc echo ... ' ' (bell) means ^G, which is a PCWRITE command ' echo (bell)All done. Save the diskette in Drive A echo ... :done A Hard Disk OS Page 37 ****MONTHBAK.BAT**** This Batch File is run monthly by manual means. Its purpose is to make an ARCed copy of eveything done in the last 31 days. I volume-label and sticky-label a diskette ARCBACKmmyy. I plan to keep six or seven diskettes in a box until the next time I re- format. I copy the current version of ARC.EXE onto the floppy, too. This procedure might be improved by using DS212 to make a Batch File to restore the sub-directory tree. echo off echo ... echo This backup will not copy the following files echo... echo AUTOTEMP.BAT echo *.MP? echo *.DB? echo *[no extension] echo *.COM echo *.EXE echo *.ARC echo *.LBR echo PS??????.* echo... ' ' query will only accept what comes after the '@' ' it reports location x of what you typed as errorlevel x ' query Shall we continue (Y/N)? @yYnN if errorlevel 3 goto done ps /a /f /at:u /n:30 /xf:& echo stripping excess files find /v "AUTOTEMP.BAT" pscmds.bat | find /v "PS" >backup30.tad echo off find /v ".COM" backup30.tad | find /v ".EXE" |find /v ".ARC"|find /v ".LBR">backup30.dxt echo off find /v ".MP" backup30.dxt | find /v ".DB" |find /v "--------"|find ".">backup30.dat echo off erase pscmds.bat erase backup30.tad erase backup30.dxt pkarc a backup30 backup30.dat rep pkarc a backup30 %%a <backup30.dat cls echo Making a list of the files pkarc v backup30 >arcfiles.lst pkarc a backup30 arcfiles.lst ' ' query will only accept what comes after the '@' ' it reports location x of what you typed as errorlevel x ' A Hard Disk OS Page 38 query Do you need to format the diskette (Y/N)? @yYnN if errorlevel 3 goto noform flpyform a: /v goto formed :noform echo off echo ... echo Put a formatted diskette in Drive A echo ... pause :formed echo off cls , echo Determining space available ' pkarc v backup30 |find /v "-" dir a: /w echo off echo ... echo Besides that, arc.exe takes 32429 bytes. echo ... ' ' query will only accept what comes after the '@' ' it reports location x of what you typed as errorlevel x ' query Will it fit (Y/N)? @yYnN ' ' we can "bail out" here with all of the ARCing completed, if things are ' too big to fit ' if errorlevel 3 goto done cls echo on copy \arc.exe a: copy backup30.arc a: rep setarch %%a <backup30.dat erase backup30.arc erase arcfiles.lst erase backup30.dat :done Copyright(C), 1987 esoteric efficacy corp. All Rights Reserved A Hard Disk OS Page 39 Appendix F Sample DS212 Screen c:\ autotemp.bat \ drawing .pgm \ palert .ord \- archives backup7 .dat \ gpcab216.ltr \ pallett .asc \- corner bootgrey.pcw \ gpcab216.min \ psearch .ltr \ \- leadvill buerg .ltr \ greyboot.doc \ qfonedit.ltr \ \- magazine comp0886.res \ hardappf.rpt \ resum886.res \- db3plus comptech.ltr \ harddisk.&rp \ sharware.dat \- develop cond0886.res \ harddisk.otl \ sysengr .ltr \ \- artintel copywrit.crd \ harddisk.rpt \ warmt1ko.doc \ \- assembly copywrit.ful \ iconregs.ltr \ watrc486.ltr \ \- basic copywrit.hlf \ invoice .doc \ work .doc \ \- icon \ \ \ \- library \ \ \ \- pascal \ \ \ \- quickbas \ \ \- games \ \ \ \- monopoly \ \ \- microill \ \ \- multplan \ \ \- nutshell \ \ \- pcwrite \ \ Total: 10,592,256/ Disk 63% Full / Files: 30 Used: 221,184 Tagged: 0 Used: 6,610,944/ Free Core 277k / ----name---- --size-- --date--- time- atr Free: 3,981,312/ Help=? Lev: 1 / autotemp.bat 128 10 Feb 87 11:02 Copyright(C), 1987 esoteric efficacy corp. All Rights Reserved