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-
- Boot Controller V1.2 - By D.Piper 1994
- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
-
- ****************************************************************************
- * DISCLAIMER *
- * *
- * Neither I Derek Piper or whoever supplies this program can take any *
- * responsibility for any damage caused whether caused by this program or *
- * errors in this documentation. If anything untoward should happen then the*
- * user can seek no recourse against myself, Derek Piper or the supplier of *
- * this software. *
- * *
- ****************************************************************************
-
- Phew, :-)
-
-
- Features of Boot Controller V1.2
-
- * User file for registrations
- * Case-Sensitive Password up to 20 Characters.
- * Password verification when changing password
- * Ability to Write-Protect hard drive partitions.
- * Hard Drive Boot locking on/off.
- * Optional Timeout setting for uninterrupted booting.
- * Invisible password entry for extra security.
- * 12 / 24 Hour clock and written or number date styles.
- * 1.3, (2.0 ?) & 3.0 Compatible
- Plus
- * Password and data encryption so good that your password and
- options cannot be decoded by hacking the configuration file !!
-
- For registered users
-
- * System Vector Checking (CoolCapture,ColdCapture etc.)
- * Optional display of last alert (Guru) for debugging purposes.
- * Generation of 'Failed Attempts' log file with time and date
-
-
- First of all if you don't have a hard drive then stop reading, after all
- who the hell only wants to protect only one floppy of information ? Sorry
- but it just ain't worth it guys !!
- This program should be compatible with 2.0 it's just that I don't know
- so as nobody I know has a 2.0 machine. I myself have an 1.3 A500 and a 3.0
- A1200 120Mb HD.
-
-
- Installation
- ~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
- To install BootController put it in your C: directory under a name like
- BPatch, Extra_Dir or something that helps disguise it in your startup. The
- filesize gives it away in the C: dir anyway !
- For proper usage the first few lines should look like this :
-
- If Not Exists Ram:T - The Ram: disk is needed as
- MakeDir Ram:T workspace so set it up like this.
- Assign T: Ram:T
- EndIf
-
- C:SetClock Load - Get the current time.
-
- C:BootController - Or whatever you want to call the
- Boot Controller program.
-
- ........... - The next lines will only be
- reached if the user makes it
- through the program.
-
- This assumes that you are booting from DH0: only and C: and S: are
- available. You should have no problems getting it to work. If you do not
- know what partitions and directories are then you probably don't need this
- program anyway. It is very important to copy the BC.User file into S:
-
-
- User File
- ~~~~~~~~~
-
- The user file is used for the registration of programs. It is
- easier to do it this way than have a separate version of the program.
-
- N.B. If the file is deleted or damaged then the program will inform you
- and a new BC.User file will be written, but only the UnRegistered
- version will be written.
-
- If you register you will recieve a customised user file that has
- your name encrypted within the file and various flags which enable the
- extra features. If you lose this file just send me an SAE (no more money
- needed as I will have your name on file) and ask me for a new version.
-
-
- Introduction
- ~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
- I wrote this program as an attempt to produce a useful and usable
- startup protection program for myself. I experimented with passwords and
- encryption and as I added features I realised "Hey, this isn't too bad" and
- so I decided to smarten up the program and add more features.
- As you can see this program has quite a lot of features which I will go
- through in a minute. First of all I have to say that although this program
- is very difficult to break, it is possible to remove the protection it
- provides without too much hassle (if you know what you are doing) but it
- keeps prying eyes from accessing your data too easily. If you use it you
- are advised to lock away all bootable disks as they can provide a means of
- getting into your system.
- Well , with all that over with I will tell you what this program CAN do.
- The password allows you to change preference settings (explained shortly)
- and to change the password itself. The password is a code with NO spaces or
- punctuation in it that can be up to 20 characters in length (although I
- recommend about 8 characters for ease of typing !!).
- This password controls access to the preferences, the system locking
- toggle and the change password items. When the system is 'Locked' the
- password will have to be input before the program will let you carry on
- booting. If you do not know the password the only way to exit is to reset.
- The change password option is self explanatory (I hope !). The preferences
- are explained below.
-
-
- Preferences
- ~~~~~~~~~~~
-
- The different options that were highlighted above can be altered with
- the preferences mode. The program will allow you to go through the
- preferences with the left and right arrow keys and change the flags from
- true to false as required. Some options when 'True' is chosen will ask for
- more information. This is very self explanatory and is better found by user
- experimentation. As to the effects of the options they are explained below.
-
- Option 1 : Invisible password entry
-
- True : When entering a password or changing to a new one the text
- cannot be read even though it can be edited.
-
- False : Password is visible while editing.
-
-
- Option 2 : Write protect hard drive partitions
-
- The write protection of partitions relies on you calling them DH0:, DH1:
- etc. in the standard manner. Obviously this is only the Device name so the
- Volume name can be whatever you like. You can change the device names with
- HDToolBox.
-
- True : Partitions (up to the maximum available) will be write protected
- with the current system password.
-
- False : Partitions will be left write-enabled. The number of partitions
- is remembered though.
-
-
- Option 3 : Use 12 Hour clock display
-
- True : The clock display will be in 12 Hour mode.
-
- False : The clock display will be in 24 Hour mode.
-
-
- Option 4 : Use written date format (DD MMM YYYY)
-
- True : The date will be in written form eg. 23rd Jul 1994 etc.
-
- False : The date will be in number form eg. 23 / 07 / 94 etc.
-
-
- Option 5 : Use Timeout when unlocked
-
- True : The timeout setting (which can be changed from here) will be
- used when the system is unlocked and the program will choose
- 'Boot from HD' after the set number of seconds.
-
- False : The timeout will not be used but the number of seconds will be
- retained.
-
-
- Option 6 : Enable System Vector checking (Registered versions only)
-
- True : The vectors CoolCapture, ColdCapture, WarmCapture, KickMemPtr,
- KickTagPtr and KickCheckSum will be monitored for change from
- the standard $00000000. The program can be made to accept the
- change after alerting you.
-
- False : The vector checking is turned off.
-
-
- Option 7 : Display Last Alert (Registered versions only)
-
- True : The last alert (Guru Meditation) will be shown in the normal
- format. ie. (32 Bit Index).(Address)
-
- False : The alert display is not shown.
-
-
- Option 8 : Use 'Failed Attempts' log file (Registered versions only)
-
- True : Whenever an incorrect password is entered when the system is
- locked then the time and date as well as the password itself
- will be added to the log file.
-
- False : Turns off the password log for failed attempts but does not
- erase the file.
-
-
-
- Well done if you're still reading !, but the amount of features I put
- in is quite large (but may increase if I have good input from users). The
- rest of the program should be straightforward enough but remember the only
- way to quit is to choose BootHD (after all that's where it will be used,
- right ?)
- The other 'option' is to choose 'Boot from disk' even though all it
- tells you to do is put a disk in and reset. You will be assured though that
- the hard disk will not be accessed at this point so it is safe to reset
- here. This was only included to make booting from floppies easier when the
- hard drive boots automatically as you do not have to 'beat the drive' at
- the start to get a disk in.
- See the Destroy_Me.txt for information on the default password and
- options. If the configuration file is damaged then the password maybe
- altered unexpectedly so if you think tampering might occur then set the
- write protection on your DH0: partition at least to prevent anyone changing
- the file. The program can sometimes detect whether the file is damaged or
- not and will use the defaults and re-write the old file.
-
- As for compatibility with other machines I can only say that it works on
- my A1200 but I can't check it fully on my A500 (KS 1.3) as it does not have
- a hard drive but it seems to load OK. Under 3.0 (I don't know about 2.0)
- the AmigaDOS window does not pop up straight away and this means that the
- Startup-Sequence cannot be halted straight away by holding Ctrl-D like it
- can under 1.2/1.3 so the program is more secure under the later revisions
- of the operating system I think. Also the default Topaz 8 font is a nicer
- sanserif font under 3.0 rather than the old 1.3 serif version.
-
- Right, that's it I think so if you have any other problems don't
- hesitate to contact me. (SAE will ensure reply).
-
- If you like and use this program on your system then send £5 and an SAE
- to me and you will receive a registered user file. The registered version
- (If you had not noticed has three other (very useful) options and of course
- has no 'Unregistered' statement at the front.
- If you have any ideas as to features or (constructive) criticism then
- don't hesitate to get in touch !
-
-
- For any bug reports X-( or registrations :-) send to :
-
- Derek Piper, 63 Hadley Rd., New Barnet, Herts EN5 5QU
-
- ****************************************************************************
- * SHAREWARE *
- * *
- * This unregistered version cannot be used after Jan 1996 and has had 3 *
- * features de-activated because I have had such a poor response from *
- * previous programs that I am forced to cripple this version to try and *
- * encourage users to support the ShareWare scheme. It's a shame that it is *
- * necessary to do so. *
- * *
- ****************************************************************************
-
- PS : If anyone can retrieve the password from the BC.Conf file please let
- me know what miracle you performed !!
-