DP Tool Club 8/CDASC08.ISO/VRAC/ULP100.ZIP/ULP.DOC

Text File | 1993-08-28 | 92KB | 1,657 lines

    ┌───────────────────┐
    │                   │ ║                UpLoadProcessor
    │    ╥   ╥ ╥        │ ║
    │    ║   ║ ║ ╓──╖   │ ║                 Version 1.00
    │    ║   ║ ║ ║  ║   │ ║
    │    ╙───╜ ╨ ║──╜   │ ║     (c) Copyright 1992-1993 - Stacy Smith
    │            ╨      │ ║
    └───────────────────┘ ║
      ════════════════════╝

                                Courtesy of:

                        The Bloom Beacon-Picayune BBS
          Node 1: [phone] (USRobotics Courier Dual Standard)
             Node 2: [phone] (USRobotics Courier V.32bis)
                             FidoNet 1:151/106
                                  Intelec
                             RoseNet (ID: BB-P)

                                Stacy Smith
                            305 Cottonwood Lane
                          Holly Springs, NC 27540


┌───────────────────┐
│  1. Introduction  │
└───────────────────┘

This system was born out of a need for a universal upload processor. There are
many alternative systems available, but they are limited to the ZIP format and
perhaps one or two others. Few are able to handle self-extracting archives.
Most are limited in the number of levels of archive nesting allowed in a file
to be tested. All require the use of a third-party duplicate file checking
system if you want to screen your uploads for duplicates.

Tired of waiting for PKZIP 2.something-or-another, I converted my BBS files
over to the ARJ compression format, due to its superior compression ratio over
PKZip and its features over LHA. I do not intend to debate the merits of one
archive format over another, but due to my decision, the need for a universal
upload processor became apparent, so off I went.

While I was at it, I decided to incorporate other technologies, such as
duplicate checking, archive format conversion, information lines, support for
internal description files, etc., into a single package. This software is the
result of my efforts to allow my BBS to handle any archive that my users can
throw at it.


┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  2. Features of the UpLoadProcessor System  │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────┘

  ∙ Identifies and processes ARC, ARJ, HYP, LZH, PAK, SQZ, ZIP, ZOO and GIF
    files, regardless of their file extensions (ideal for software distribution
    network files, e.g. SDN).
  ∙ Identifies and processes ARJ, LZH, PAK, SQZ and ZIP self-extracting (SFX)
    archives.
  ∙ Scans ARC, PAK, ZIP and ZIP SFX archives for DOS reserved keywords to
    prevent hacking by hex-editing. (ARJ and LHA are resistant to these type of
    hacking attempts).
  ∙ Detects ARJ security envelopes and ZIP version 1.x and 2.x authenticity
    verification (-AV) stamps and may be retained intact.
  ∙ Detects and processes ARJ and ZIP archives with imbedded paths.
  ∙ Detects and rejects encrypted ARJ and ZIP archives.
  ∙ Selected uncompressed files uploaded can be processed and compressed using
    your default format.
  ∙ Removes known BBS ads from archives; includes a BBS ads maintenance utility
    so sysops can update their BBS ads databases in real time. ULP can also
    insert a BBS ad, if desired.
  ∙ Updates the PCBoard DOWNLOAD.TXT file, if desired, with the correct archive
    extension to reflect the conversion process.
  ∙ Allows the use of up to 9 different archiving programs, all user-
    configurable. Any archiving program used that is not listed above will be
    identified using it's unique file extension only, until it's signature is
    determined and incorporated into the program.
  ∙ Uses a recursive processing routine that will allow (theoretically)
    unlimited nested archives (the only limit is imposed by the DOS path). This
    routine has been tested to 5 levels deep as of this writing.
  ∙ Allows the use of up to 3 different file-checking programs, all user-
    configurable, for virus and trojan checking, third-party utilities, etc.
  ∙ Allows the use of a GIF file checking program, completely configurable.
  ∙ Rejects GIF files based upon image width, height, colors and compression.
  ∙ User-definable disposition (rename or delete) of corrupted, duplicate or
    other archives (not virus-related).
  ∙ User-definable disposition (rename or delete) of virus-infected archives.
  ∙ Incorporates it's own CRC-32 duplicate checking system, as well as the
    associated database processing software. No more executing (and
    registering!) third-party duplication checking software, sacrificing speed
    and memory. This system is extremely fast and it's database is much smaller
    than other systems. Despite it's size, the probability of a false
    duplication is almost 300 trillion to 1! The system is self-validating, to
    quickly determine if a database has been corrupted or altered.
  ∙ Optional seamless interface with the ZDCS duplication system by Mike Cocke.
  ∙ ULP determines duplication using two filters, total duplication and
    executable duplication, preventing false rejection by simply counting up
    the number of blatantly duplicate files.
  ∙ Converts all uploads into a default archive format of your choosing, or
    they may be re-archived in their original format (user-defined). Nested
    archives can also be converted to your default format, or re-archived using
    their original format. SFX archives can be archived using your default
    format, or optionally left alone after verification.
  ∙ Can utilize a user-defined time window (in months) for acceptance of new
    upload files, based on the average age of the files within the archive.
  ∙ Changes all archive file attributes to 'read/write' from 'read-only'.
  ∙ Supports the use of private and public upload directories. Moves files and
    upload descriptions from the private directory to the public directory.
    Single directory operation may also be configured.
  ∙ Honors the '/' identifier in the description marking the file as a private
    upload for the sysop by processing the file, but not making it public.
  ∙ Supports the use of DESC.SDI and FILE-ID.DIZ description files in an
    archive, user-configurable, for those not running PCBoard 14.5a+ and
    PCBDESC.
  ∙ Smart word-wrapping word-wraps descriptions or leaves them as entered,
    depending upon the presence of boxes, etc.
  ∙ Can optionally insert an archive or GIF information line in the file
    description that contains various information about the archive or GIF
    files.
  ∙ Three modes of online testing are available: slow mode, which completely
    processes files at the time of upload; normal mode, which fully unpacks the
    archive and tests each file individually; and fast mode, which scans a ZIP
    or ARJ archive directly for file CRCs and dates, and uses the archiving
    program's internal integrity testing.
  ∙ The online tester will accept a redirected ARJ or PKUNZIP archive listing
    file to pre-verify the duplication and age limits before a user uploads the
    actual archive, saving him or her wailing and gnashing of teeth.
  ∙ ULPTEST can generate COM port status output to inform the online user of
    the progress of testing. ULPTEST supports IRQs 2 through 7, non-standard
    port addresses and baud rates to 115K in direct mode, and also supports
    FOSSIL drivers. The port information can be defined on the command-line or
    can be read directly from PCBOARD.DAT and PCBOARD.SYS. ULP can also be
    implemented in a "seamless" mode (when registered) to look like a part of
    PCBoard.
  ∙ Import of FWKCS CRC databases is supported to ease transition to the ULP
    duplication system. No need to rebuild databases for FWKCS users!
  ∙ Archives failed for exceeding duplication limits can be viewed using ULPDB
    (the database program), to allow easy determination of manual archive
    acceptance.
  ∙ User-selectable process logging to a disk file. Two logging modes are
    available: terse and verbose.
  ∙ Menu-driven windowed system manager for maximum ease of configuration.
  ∙ Written mostly in C (and a little assembler) for optimal speed, using
    Microsoft C 7.0, Borland C++ 3.1 and Turbo Assembler 3.0.
  ∙ Lifetime registration; pay ONCE and your registration number will work on
    all future versions!


┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  3. Files Included in the ULP Distribution Archive  │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

    ULP.EXE         Event upload processing program.
    ULPTEST.EXE     On-line testing program for use in PCBTEST.BAT.
    ULPDB.EXE       Duplication database creation and maintenance program.
    ULPSM.EXE       System and configuration manager for the ULP system.
    ULPADS.EXE      BBS ads database maintenance program.
    ULPADS.DB       BBS ads database file.
    ULP.CFG         Sample configuration file for the ULP system.
    ULPDIR.CFG      Sample directory configuration file.
    EXCLUDE.LST     Sample exclusion list for archivers.
    PCBTEST.BAT     Sample PCBTEST.BAT file for using ULPTEST.
    ULP.DOC         This file.
    Q&A.DOC         Answers to common questions regarding the ULP system.
    HISTORY.TXT     ULP revision history in reverse order.
    ULPBLT          Archive verification bulletin for sysops to post.
    REGISTER.FRM    Registration form for ULP.
    COMMENT.TXT     Sample comment file for inclusion in archive headers.
    FILE_ID.DIZ     Internal description file.

When you unzip the distribution archive, you should see my PKZIP authenticity
verification stamp, and a '-AV' after every file in the archive:

    # SSU301    The Bloom Beacon-Picayune BBS

If there are any files missing or added, or the -AV stamp is missing, the
archive has been tampered with. It would be advisable to call my BBS (listed at
the top of this document) for the latest version of ULP.


┌───────────────────────────┐
│  4. Program Requirements  │
└───────────────────────────┘

To the best of my knowledge, this program will run on most any machine capable
of running PCBoard 14.5+. My BBS setup is DESQview on a LANtastic network with
hard disks and CD-ROMs, but other sysops that I have been in contact with have
successfully implemented ULP on setups other varying hardware and software.

ULP has been developed and tested using the following third party utilities:

    ARJ 2.10 through 2.41 (by Robert Jung)
    HYPER 2.5 (by P. Sawatzki and K. P. Nischke)
    LHA 2.12 and 2.13 (by Haruyasu Yoshizaki)
    LHarc 1.13c (by Haruyasu Yoshizaki)
    PAK 2.51 (by NoGate Consulting)
    PKPAK 3.61 (by PKWare)
    PKZIP 1.10 through 2.04g (by PKWare)
    SQZ 1.08.2 (by Jonas Hammarberg)
    ZOO 2.01 through 2.10 (by Rahul Deshi)
    SCAN V82 through V106 (by McAfee Associates)
    GIFTEST 4.0 Beta 10 through Beta 14 (by Dave Navarro)
    ZDCS 2.02 (by Mike Cocke)

The ULP system requires DOS 3.x or later, as it uses DOS SHARE-compatible file
reads and writes, and can use the DOS PATH to find the archiving and other
utilities.

ULP and ULPTEST's memory requirements are relatively small (about 100K or so
with data buffers allocated), but all programs are spawned or shelled, which
reduces the free memory for the program being executed. It would be a good idea
to have as much free conventional memory as possible (ULP itself cannot use EMS
or XMS memory), especially if you use the ARJ compression system, which
requires in the neighborhood of 300K itself to run.

ULPDB also should have as much conventional memory as can be afforded, as it
performs its sort in memory for optimal speed; it may use from 128K to 576K of
memory depending upon the operation being performed. If your duplication
database is larger than 500K (over 50,000 file entries), ULPDB may utilize a
segmented sort algorithm, which is slower but capable of completely compiling a
database up to 8MB in size (over 800,000 file entries)! The memory sort will
probably be fine for many systems, as 50,000 files would probably average out
to be about 4,000 to 5,000 typical archives.

Obviously, the 286+ and 386+ versions of these programs that is available to
registered users will not run on a 8088, 8086 or 80186 (huh?) based computer.
So don't try it (I haven't, so I don't have a clue what will happen...probably
spontaneous combustion...).


┌───────────────────┐
│  5. Registration  │
└───────────────────┘

The ULP system is not free; nor is ULP is crippled to force registration. ULP
is fully functional, and will always remain so. The only variation with the
registered copies is no time delay and beg message.

Why register? Besides a clean conscience, you will get a registration code that
will work for all future versions of ULP, and will remove the delay and message
at the end of execution of each program. In addition, registration will allow
you to run ULPTEST in a "seamless" mode so that it looks like a part of
PCBoard to the user.

In addition, the registation code will allow use of the 286 or 386 specific
versions of ULP that are made available only to registered users of ULP. These
versions are slightly smaller and faster than the shareware 086+ version.

The registration fee for your unique code is $20 for non-commercial BBSes. The
registration fee for commercial BBSes, defined as running your BBS in the
course of a commercial business or for profit, is $40. Other variations are
available; refer to the file REGISTER.FRM for all registration options. Please
print the file REGISTER.FRM and fill it out. You can print out the form by
issuing the following command from the DOS prompt:

    TYPE REGISTER.FRM > PRN


┌───────────────────────────────────────┐
│  6. License, Warranty and Disclaimer  │
└───────────────────────────────────────┘

I'll keep this part short and sweet, and dispense with the legal-ese:

    License: You are allowed to use ULP for 30 days, after which you must
        either register ULP or stop using it completely. ULP registration is a
        license for your use of ULP; I retain ownership of the software. A
        single registration applies to a single BBS system, regardless of the
        number of computers used in the system. If you run two or more distinct
        BBS systems on the same computer or network (with different names), you
        require two or more ULP registrations. Refer to the registration form
        for the currect pricing structure.

    Warranty: There isn't one. The only thing I'll guarantee is that ULP will
        take up disk space, and will disappear when deleted.

    Disclaimer: I'm not responsible for anything bad that happens. ULP works
        here, but I cannot be held responsible for it not working on your
        computer or doing any damage to hardware or software.

If these aren't agreeable with you, then the best thing to do is delete ULP
right now. I'll do my best to help any user (registered or not) that wants to
use ULP, and I'll act on bug reports quickly, but I simply cannot and will not
be responsible for anything bad, like lost data, disk crashes, or whatever
else you can think of.


┌────────────────────────────┐
│  7. Conceptual Background  │
└────────────────────────────┘

Since the ULP system is made up of several inter-operating programs, this
overview and concept explanation should help you understand how ULP is
designed to be used.

*******************************************************************************
     READ THIS SECTION VERY CAREFULLY, AS IT WILL MAKE LIFE MUCH EASIER!!!
*******************************************************************************

I believe that all responsible BBS sysops verify all of their uploads prior to
posting them, in order to protect both themselves and their users. ULP is
designed with idea in mind. Most, if not all, sysops process uploads in one of
two ways (listed with benefits and liabilities as I see them):

    1) Make all uploads private, processing them during a system event.

       BENEFITS:
           ∙ Takes up very little on-line time on the user's part to process
             archives.
           ∙ Allows the conversion of all archives to a default format, so that
             the BBS archives are consistent.
           ∙ Allows the BBS to accept any archive format...face it, it's hard
             enough to get some of these weenies to upload, much less compress
             them the same way.

       LIABILITIES:
           ∙ Files are not available immediately for download.
           ∙ The 'U' subcommand of PCBoard's (F)ile Directories command is no
             longer available to the user (PCBoard 14.5a and below).
           ∙ Does not catch duplicates or aged archives until after the user
             has uploaded them, and perhaps leads to abuse by clever (?) users.
             (It is assumed that these sysops still use the venerable 'PKUNZIP
             -T' in their PCBTEST.BAT...)

    2) Process (test) each upload online after the user uploads them, and
       making them available for immediate download.

       BENEFITS:
           ∙ Catches duplicate, defective and aged archives while the user is
             online, denying him upload credits.
           ∙ Files are available immediately for download if they are not made
             private in the PCBoard setup.

       LIABILITIES:
           ∙ Takes up on-line time for a user, potentially adding to his
             long-distance phone bill, discouraging further uploading; this
             process is typically quite slow for large archives.
           ∙ The archive format cannot be converted (a limitation of PCBoard),
             leaving many different archive formats in your BBS directories.
             Because of this, many sysops force users to use a specific format,
             which may or may not be consistent with other BBS's the user
             calls.

The ULP system takes the best of both of these methods of testing. ULP.EXE is
an event-mode processor which will fully process every new archive found in the
source upload directory, including archive format conversion, and optionally
move the file and description to a destination directory. In the simplest
ULP system setup, you MUST run ULP.EXE in your event to completely process all
uploads to your system.

ULPTEST.EXE is an online processor, with a varying modes of operation, from
complete processing to a very fast scan of the archive directly for data. These
modes will allow you to run your BBS in the most efficient manner. Note that
the conversion process MUST be handled by ULP during the system event, due to
the design of PCBoard.

Pay attention to this part:

PCBoard normally has two upload directories for each conference: a private and
a public directory. When PCBoard invokes PCBTEST.BAT, the upload is in the
private directory. If the archive fails the testing, it will remain there.
However, if it passes, one of two things will occur depending upon your system
setup; if you have made all uploads private, the file will remain in the
private directory; if you have not made uploads private, it will be moved BY
PCBOARD (not ULPTEST) to the public directory.

If you have made all uploads private, then setup and configuration of ULP is a
snap: the source directory is the private upload directory, and the destination
is the public directory. However, if you want to allow users access to untested
uploads, then your source directory is the public upload directory, and the
destination information is left blank. To illustrate the operation:

  MAKE ALL UPLOADS PRIVATE           │  ALL UPLOADS AVAILABLE AFTER TESTING
  ───────────────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────────
  2 directories:  C:\PRIVATE         │  2 directories:  C:\PRIVATE
                  C:\PUBLIC          │                  C:\PUBLIC
                                     │
  User uploads a file, gets placed   │  User uploads a file, gets placed
  in C:\PRIVATE by PCBoard           │  in C:\PRIVATE by PCBoard
                                     │
  ULPTEST.EXE tests it               │  ULPTEST.EXE tests it
                                     │
  PCBoard leaves file in C:\PRIVATE  │  If it passes, PCBoard moves it to
                                     │  C:\PUBLIC; if it fails, PCBoard
                                     │  leaves it in C:\PRIVATE
                                     │
  ULP.EXE processes all new uploads  │  ULP.EXE processes all *new* uploads
  found in C:\PRIVATE since last     │  found in C:\PUBLIC since last event
  event and moves all good uploads   │
  to C:\PUBLIC                       │

ULPTEST.EXE also has three modes of operation: slow, normal and fast. Slow mode
completely tests the upload as in the event, except for archive conversion.
Note that you MUST use the "all uploads public" mode of operation to run slow
mode.

The normal mode decompresses the files, performs file, duplication and age
checking, and then deletes the extracted files and returns to PCBoard,
informing PCBoard of the test results. It does not recompress the archive,
remove BBS ads, add information lines, etc.; this is saved for the event
processing. This mode can be used with both setup paradigms, making all uploads
private or public.

Fast mode DOES NOT decompress the file; it firsts performs an archive integrity
check, then scans ARJ and ZIP archives directly for duplicate and age
information, and then returns to PCBoard (if the archive is not ARJ or ZIP,
then normal mode is forced). In fast mode, file checking (viruses, etc.) is
left for ULP to do (which is why the above discussion regarding private/public
directories is important). This mode can also be used either in making uploads
public or private, although it would be a good idea to make them private with
this mode, since the uploads are not file-checked (e.g. viruses) during
test.

ULPTEST.EXE will also accept a redirected ARJ or PKUNZIP listing text file with
the special name VERIFY.ULP as input to pre-verify an upload for a user, before
the user actually spends his time uploading the file only to find out it won't
pass the limits you set.


┌───────────────────┐
│  8. Installation  │
└───────────────────┘

GENERAL (REQUIRED!):
───────────────────
Make a subdirectory on your hard drive. For the purposes of this document,
we'll call it "C:\ULP". Unarchive the ULP distribution archive into this
subdirectory. You've more than likely already made it this far, if you're
reading this file. <g>

The ULP system opens several files at once for various reasons. I would
recommend that you have a minimum of FILES=30 per node in your system
CONFIG.SYS file, since ULPTEST is run in conjunction with PCBoard.

If you are running PCBoard under a network or a multitasking operating system,
you should already have DOS's SHARE.EXE loaded. You must have SHARE loaded in
order to take advantage of the file sharing and locking methods used by the ULP
programs to prevent data loss. (If you are running a single-node system without
a multitasker, SHARE is not needed).

* NOTE: DOS 5 has a documented bug when SHARE is loaded high, where it loses
    the table in memory. Please load SHARE low to prevent potential sharing
    problems.

Using ULPSM, configure the ULP system to suit your needs. Proper configuration
will require you to refer to this section, the previous section and the section
titled "Configuration", which has an in-depth explanation of each configuration
option and its function. It would probably be wise to fire up your printer for
this document.

For this document, we'll assume the name of your configuration file is
"ULP.CFG".

Note that for any of the ULP programs, you can obtain a limited program syntax
screen simply by executing the program with no arguments.

FOR EVENT-MODE UPLOAD PROCESSING (REQUIRED!):
────────────────────────────────────────────
As a minimum setup, you MUST run ULP as an event-mode processor, as ULP.EXE
handles most of the database updating, archive conversion, file and description
moving, archive information line computation, and other features. THIS IS NOT
AN OPTION!!!

Further, ULP requires that you define the upload disk directories and upload
DIRxx files. They can be either a private/public setup or public setup, as
described below (and in the 'principles of operation' section):

  - PRIVATE/PUBLIC SETUP:  This setup will not allow users to get to any
    archive that has not been fully processed. In PCBSETUP, under Main Board
    Configuration (and any other conferences you want ULP to process), make all
    uploads private. Define a private upload directory and a private DIRxx file
    (which should have already been done, since all sysop-only uploads are
    placed here by PCBoard). In PCBSETUP, be sure to set the "make all uploads
    private" flag to "Y". This is how I have my system setup.

  - PUBLIC SETUP:  This setup will allow users to download archives from the
    public upload directory, including partially testing archives. In PCBSETUP,
    under Main Board Configuration (and any other conferences you want ULP to
    process), define a private upload directory and a private DIRxx file, and a
    public upload directory and a public DIRxx file (this is where PCBoard will
    place all new non-private uploads since you did not make them private). Be
    sure to set the "make all uploads private" flag to "N".

To process your uploads during your system event, add the following lines to
your EVENT.SYS file (be sure to change the drive and path as necessary):

    C:
    CD \ULP
    ULP -CULP.CFG

ULP will lock the duplication database, preventing any other program from
accessing them (ULPTEST and ULPDB, specifically). Therefore, I strongly suggest
you have all nodes down when running ULP.EXE, or at least disable uploading
during this time.

Once you have ULP configured, before you run ULP for the first time, the
process data file must be initialized (either via ULPSM or using ULP.EXE's -I
parameter). The syntax for ULP.EXE is as follows, but please refer to the
manual operation section below for more information:

    ULP -CULP.CFG -I

This is only done ONCE, and never needs to be done again; ULP maintains this
file as a course of action during normal operation.

FOR THE INTEGRATED CRC-32 DUPLICATION CHECKER (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED):
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Initially, you must create the CRC database from scratch. If you have mostly
ZIP and ARJ files, then this should be very quick (on the order of 10 minutes
per 1000 archives for my 10MHz AT clone on a hard disk; a CD-ROM will be
somewhat slower). After you configure ULP, go to the ULP directory and this
command will create and compile your database of your current downloadable file
base:

    ULPDB -CULP.CFG -A@C:\PCB\GEN\DLPATH.LST -S

The '@' symbol (a '!' may also be used) indicates to ULPDB that the argument is
a list file, not a directory. The list file must have one path per line, and
each path must end with a trailing backslash. In general, you may simply use
your PCBoard DLPATH.LST file, unless you index your downloads.

If you would like to include any off-line files in your CRC database (or have
to add files originally not included in the database) you can temporarily copy
your offline files to a temp directory (for the sake of argumentation, let's
call it "C:\TEMP\"; note the trailing backslash). You can then add and compile
them into the CRC database with the following command (no list symbol!):

    ULPDB -CULP.CFG -AC:\TEMP\ -S

After you've added the offline files, just delete them from the disk, and if
someone uploads a file that you already have, it will be rejected.

* NOTE: The default method of database generation will be the fastest mode
    since ULPDB will scan ARJ and ZIP archives for CRCs without unpacking. This
    is not as accurate as recursively unpacking the archives since ULPDB can
    only 'see' one level deep into an archive; nested information will not be
    obtained. If this poses a problem, add the -U parameter to the end of the
    command lines above; this will force ULPDB to unpack all archives and
    compute the CRCs. This will be significantly slower than the default
    method, but 100% accurate.

If you already have a FWKCS duplication database, you can import and translate
it into the ULP database by using the -I command line parameter. ULPDB will
prompt you for which database format it is, and will then proceed to import it
into the ULP database defined in ULP.CFG:

    ULPDB -CULP.CFG -IC:\FWKCS\CSLIST -S

Once you have your database built, you should also perform maintenance on the
duplication database files regularly. This will compile any new data from the
day's uploads into the main database, and remove any added temporary data from
ULPTEST. This is not required to be done every day, but it will speed the
duplicate checking of ULP and ULPTEST. To perform database maintenance, add the
following line to your PCBoard EVENT.SYS after the event-mode processor has
run:

    C:                    ──────┐        These lines are repeated
    CD \ULP                     ├─────   for clarity.
    ULP -CULP.CFG         ──────┘
    ULPDB -CULP.CFG -S

ULPDB also locks the duplication database, preventing any other program from
accessing them. I strongly suggest you have all nodes down when running ULPDB.

IF YOU USE PCBOARD'S 'TESTFILE.EXE' UTILITY:
────────────────────────────────────────────
* NOTE: If you are unfamiliar with the operation of PCBTEST.BAT, you will need
    to refer to the PCBoard manual for an explanation of PCBTEST.BAT and
    TESTFILE.EXE.

In general, the use of TESTFILE.EXE is not necessary with ULPTEST. ULPTEST is
fully capable of handling most any situation that arises. However, if you must
use TESTFILE.EXE for some reason, in order to take advantage of the upload
pre-verification abilities of ULPTEST, you must add the extension 'ULP' to the
TESTFILE.EXE extension list. This will allow the file 'VERIFY.ULP' to pass
through the filter created by TESTFILE so that ULPTEST may scan it. You will
also have to add 'EXE' to your extension list if you use TESTFILE.EXE, to allow
SFX archives to be processed by ULPTEST.

FOR THE ONLINE UPLOAD TESTING (OPTIONAL):
─────────────────────────────────────────
Online testing of archives can greatly reduce the amount of garbage your BBS
can pick up from user's uploading defective archives, ancient files, and
duplicates. The theory that ULPTEST uses is to simply check the archive AS
FAST AS IT CAN for archive integrity, duplication, and age, and then return
the user to greater and better things. ULP.EXE will handle everything else
during the system event.

* NOTE: In order to use ULPTEST, you must set PCBoard to swap by adding the
    /SWAP switch to the SET PCB= environment variable in BOARD.BAT (in PCBoard
    15.0, this is in PCBSETUP, not the environment variable). Otherwise, there
    will not be enough memory for ULPTEST to execute programs like ARJ, SCAN,
    etc.

To use ULPTEST.EXE for on-line testing of archives, use the following command
line in PCBTEST.BAT (refer to the sample PCBTEST.BAT included in the ULP
distribution archive, and the PCBoard manual, to get the general logic of
PCBTEST.BAT's operation). Note the explicit paths to the ULPTEST executable and
the ULP configuration file:

    C:\ULP\ULPTEST -CC:\ULP\ULP.CFG -F%1 -M%2 -D%3

ULPTEST will garner any other information that is required for operation from
the PCBOARD.DAT and PCBOARD.SYS files. In most installations, ULPTEST will
locate these two system files via the environment variables PCBDAT, PCBDRIVE
and PCBDIR. If the environment variables are used, PCBDIR and PCBDAT are
required; PCBDRIVE is required only if the BBS drop files exist on a different
drive than PCBTEST.BAT is being executed from.

* NOTE: Don't rely on PCBoard to create these variables; it only does so prior
    to executing a door. As a last resort, ULPTEST will look in the current
    directory for the files it requires.

If you have the environment variables disabled in PCBoard (using the /NOENV
switch), you can define the location of these files by adding the -P parameter:

    C:\ULP\ULPTEST -CC:\ULP\ULP.CFG -F%1 -M%2 -D%3 -PC:\PCB\NODE1\

Or, or you can provide the port and node number information directly to ULPTEST
by using the -N, -I, -A and -B command switches:

    C:\ULP\ULPTEST -CC:\ULP\ULP.CFG -F%1 -M%2 -D%3 -N5 -I4 -A3F8 -B38400

where -N is the node number, -I is the port IRQ line, -A is the port base
address (in hex) and -B is the baud rate of the port. If you are using the
DSZPORT environment variable to define the port IRQ and address to DSZ, ULPTEST
will use this information as well.

In addition, regardless of the method used to inform ULPTEST of the port
information, ULPTEST defaults to using hardware handshaking. If you want to use
software (XON/XOFF) handshaking or both, use the -H command switch with either
HARDWARE, SOFTWARE or BOTH as the argument:

    C:\ULP\ULPTEST -CC:\ULP\ULP.CFG -F%1 -M%2 -D%3 -Hboth

ULPTEST is also capable of using a FOSSIL driver, and automatically detects if
you are running PCBoard /M and uses the appropriate FOSSIL port. However, if
you wish to force ULPTEST to use a FOSSIL driver (for example, to access high
IRQs), use the -X command switch with the FOSSIL port number as the argument:

    C:\ULP\ULPTEST -CC:\ULP\ULP.CFG -F%1 -M%2 -D%3 -X1

During the course of testing, ULPTEST will output the current testing status to
the user online. Note that this information is not displayed locally; it is
being transmitted to the online user only. The program header can be disabled
in registered versions of ULP, making ULPTEST seamless to look like a part of
PCBoard itself. A sample follows:

    Verifying FILENAME.ZIP...
    ┌────────────────────────────────┐
    │      UpLoadProcessor 1.00      │  Registered to: Bloom Beacon-Picayune
    │ Copyright 1992-93  Stacy Smith │  Serial number: 1000
    └────────────────────────────────┘
       Identifying file archive format...ZIP
       Screening archive for corruption...OK
       Unpacking archive...OK
       Testing files for viruses, etc...OK
       Checking for duplicate files...OK
       Checking average age of files...OK
       Archive passed.

ULPTEST will return a DOS errorlevel of 0 if the archive is OK, and an
errorlevel of 1-13 if there was an error (depending on the error). This allows
the PCBTEST.BAT batch file to branch based upon the results of the ULPTEST. The
appendix to this document lists all of the DOS errorlevels set by various ULP
programs.

ULPTEST also creates the requires PCBPASS.TXT and PCBFAIL.TXT for PCBoard to
determine if the archive passed or not.


┌────────────────────┐
│  9. Configuration  │
└────────────────────┘

ULPSM makes the configuration process very easy for the ULP system. The sample
configuration files provided in the distribution archive contain much of the
information required, but needs to be customized to some degree to fit your
application.

To begin ULPSM, you must include a configuration filename on the command-line,
denoted by the -C switch. For example, to edit the default configuration file,
ULP.CFG, type:

    ULPSM -CULP.CFG

and the main menu screen will appear:

┌───────────────────────────────┐┌─────────────── Registered To ──────────────┐
│   ULP System Manager 1.00     ││                UNREGISTERED                │
│ Copyright 1992-93 Stacy Smith ││              SYSOP - S/N 0000              │
└───────────────────────────────┘└────────────────────────────────────────────┘
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░┌────────────────────────────────┐░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  A - Registration information  │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  B - General options           │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  C - Upload directories        │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  D - Archiving options         │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  E - Archivers                 │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  F - Virus/file testers        │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  G - Duplicate checking        │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  H - Age checking              │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  I - BBS ad processing         │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  J - GIF file testing          │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  K - Description processing    │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  L - Online testing            │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  M - Special-case files        │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░│  N - Init process data file    │░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░└────────────────────────────────┘░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
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░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░

Using the up and down arrow keys, you can select any of the options. A shortcut
is to type the letter preceding the option you wish to edit. If you press your
escape key (ESC), the following pop-up question box will appear:

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Do you wish to save the ULP configuration file (Y/N or Esc)?   │
    └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

To save any edits you made to the data to the disk configuration file, type
"Y", otherwise type "N" or press the ESC again. Note that, with the exception
of the upload directory configuration information, no data is saved until you
do so when exiting ULPSM.

A - REGISTRATION INFORMATION
────────────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Sysop name         SYSOP                                     │
    │  BBS name           UNREGISTERED                              │
    │  Registration code  0000000000                                │
    └───────────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Sysop name - Enter EXACTLY as provided to you on your registration letter. If
    this is an unregistered version, leave the default of SYSOP. Note that this
    field is case-sensitive!
BBS name - Enter EXACTLY as provided to you on your registration letter. If
    this is an unregistered version, leave the default of "UNREGISTERED". This
    field is also case-sensitive!
Registration code - Enter EXACTLY as provided to you on your registration
    letter. If this is an unregistered version, leave the default of
    "0000000000". This is also case-sensitive...you get the picture by now...

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes. In either instance, you will be returned to the main menu after
the data has been automatically checked for errors. Any errors detected in the
data will generate a pop-up error window that describes the error.

B - GENERAL OPTIONS
───────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Error disposition  (Rename/Delete)    R                │
    │  Virus disposition  (Rename/Delete)    R                │
    │  Work subdirectory      D:\WORK\                        │
    │  Disk log file          C:\ULP\ULP.LOG                  │
    │  Disk logging mode  (Terse/Verbose)    V                │
    │  Disk read buffer size  (K)            4                │
    │  Swap for external programs  (Yes/No)  N                │
    │  Internal file deletion  (Yes/No)      Y                │
    │  Update DOWNLOAD.TXT file  (Yes/No)    Y                │
    │  DOWNLOAD.TXT file      C:\PCB\MAIN\DOWNLOAD.TXT        │
    │  Privileged users list  C:\ULP\PRIVUSER.LST             │
    │  File viewing utility   LIST @FILES@                    │
    └─────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Error Disposition - This defines how ULP dispositions archives found to have an
    error other than a file check failure. These kind of errors take the form
    of ZIP CRCs, duplication, age, etc., and are not potentially system
    damaging. Under some conditions, these archives can be restored. If you
    want ULP to delete the failed archive and description, enter "D"; if you
    want ULP to rename the archive to a error extension, enter "R".
Virus Disposition - This defines how ULP dispositions archives that fail a file
    check, such as a virus scan. These errors are potentially system-damaging.
    If you want ULP to delete the failed archive and description, enter "D"; if
    you want ULP to rename the archive to a .CHK extension, enter "R".
Work subdirectory - If you want ULP, ULPTEST or ULPDB to use a specific
    subdirectory for storage while processing, enter the full pathname
    (including the trailing backslash; ULPSM will add it if necessary.). The
    drive letter MUST be included. If this directory does not exist at runtime,
    the ULP programs will attempt to create it. This can be set to a RAM disk
    for greater speed. ULP will check the drive specified for at least 5 times
    the archive size before attempting to decompress the archive. If you do not
    desire to use a specific directory, leave it blank (the ULP programs will
    extract on the drive from which it was executed).
Disk log file - All of the ULP programs will write process and error
    information to a log file, if desired. This is the path/filename of the log
    file for ULP to record its activities. Leave it blank if you don't want any
    disk logging.
Disk logging mode - If you want ULP and ULPTEST to record statistics for each
    archive processed to the log file (verbose mode), enter "V". If you only
    want errors and disposition information (terse mode), logged to disk, enter
    "T". Verbose mode will quickly produce a large log file, but gives much
    more insight into what ULP is doing and why a particular upload failed.
Disk read buffer size - The size of the disk I/O buffer you wish to allocate in
    kilobytes (valid values are between 2K bytes and 16K bytes). Optimal
    performance is obtained with a value that is a multiple of 2K bytes, since
    this is the size of a typical hard disk cluster. 4K seems to be a good
    number for me, although a larger size may improve performance a little. If
    you find yourself running out of memory when executing archivers or file
    checking programs, reduce this number to increase your available memory.
Swap for external programs - If you wish the ULP programs to swap themselves
    out of memory prior to executing external programs, set this parameter to
    "Y". The ULP programs will attempt to swap to EMS, XMS and lastly, the hard
    disk. If you do not want this feature, enter "N". This feature will be of
    most benefit to users using ARJ to compress archives, networked systems and
    small DESQview windows. Use this feature ONLY if you have a memory crunch,
    as it frees only about 80K of memory.
Internal file deletion - If the ULP programs are to delete the extracted files
    themselves, versus using DOS, set this parameter to "Y". If not, enter "N".
    In some cases, letting DOS do the work is faster, but foreign language
    implementations of DOS may prevent this ability, since they do not all use
    "Y" as the acceptance character.
Update DOWNLOAD.TXT file - If ULP is to scan your DOWNLOAD.TXT file and update
    the file extension of the upload to reflect the correct archiving method
    used, enter "Y", otherwise enter "N". This feature will allow utilities
    that scan DOWNLOAD.TXT for file information to reflect correct information.
    If you are using a utility that creates an independent database from the
    DOWNLOAD.TXT file, such as PCBFX version 2.x, be sure ULP.EXE is run in the
    event BEFORE that utility so the independent database reflects the changes
    that ULP makes to DOWNLOAD.TXT.
DOWNLOAD.TXT file - The full path and filename for the DOWNLOAD.TXT file. This
    field is necessary only if the "Update DOWNLOAD.TXT file" is set to "Y".
Privileged user list - ULP can use an ASCII text file to disable duplication
    and age failures if the user's name is listed in this file. If you wish to
    use this function, enter the full path and filename for the list file,
    otherwise, leave it blank. The format of the file is a single name
    per line; case is not important.
File viewing utility - The command line for an ASCII file viewing (or editing)
    utility, such as Vernon Buerg's venerable LIST utility. This will be called
    by ULPDB to facilitate viewing of an archive information file generated for
    the purposes of archive review. Place the @FILES@ variable (all caps) where
    the filename is to be entered on the utility's command line.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes. In either instance, you will be returned to the main menu after
the data has been automatically checked for errors.

C - UPLOAD DIRECTORIES
──────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Upload directory config file  C:\ULP\ULP.DIR                  │
    │  Upload directory definitions page number  (1-5)  1            │
    └───────────────────────────────────────────── [Enter] Continue ─┘

Upload directory config file - The filename of the upload directory
    configuration file for ULP. This file is automatically created by ULPSM.EXE
    from data entered in the following screen(s), and must be defined for ULP
    to operate.
Upload directory definitions page number - The editing of the upload
    directories is broken into 5 pages, with 3 directories per screen. You can
    configure a total of 15 directories to be processed by ULP (this was an
    arbitrarily-chosen limit, and can be changed if desired). Enter the number
    of the page you wish to edit.

After editing the fields, press ENTER to continue. The following pop-up box
will appear, displaying the page requested:

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Source directory path                  C:\PRIVATE1\                    │
    │  Source directory list file             C:\PCB\GEN\PRIVDIR1             │
    │  Number of header lines in source list  1                               │
    │  Destination directory path             C:\PUBLIC1\                     │
    │  Destination directory list file        C:\PCB\GEN\PUBLDIR1             │
    │                                                                         │
    │  Source directory path                  C:\PUBLIC2\                     │
    │  Source directory list file             C:\PCB\GEN\PUBLDIR2             │
    │  Number of header lines in source list  1                               │
    │  Destination directory path                                             │
    │  Destination directory list file                                        │
    │                                                                         │
    │  Source directory path                                                  │
    │  Source directory list file                                             │
    │  Number of header lines in source list  0                               │
    │  Destination directory path                                             │
    │  Destination directory list file                                        │
    └─ Page 1 of 5 ───────────────────────────────── [F10] Save  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Source directory path - The directory where the uploads are placed by PCBoard.
    This must include the trailing backslash, ULPSM will add it if necessary.
    If you have "make all uploads private" in PCBSETUP set to "Y", this will be
    your private upload subdirectory; if set to "N", this will be your public
    upload subdirectory. This path must match EXACTLY the appropriate path in
    PCBSETUP (e.g. don't have one named 'C:\DIR\' and the other just '\DIR\').
Source directory list file - The upload directory list file that corresponds to
    the subdirectory defined in "Source directory path" containing the archive
    descriptions.
Number of header lines in source list - The number of lines to ignore at the
    beginning of the source directory list file (for headers, detachable header
    filespecs, etc.)
Destination directory path - The directory where the uploads are to be placed
    by ULP after processing. This must include the trailing backslash, ULPSM
    will add it if necessary. If you have "make all uploads private" in
    PCBSETUP set to "Y", this will be your public upload subdirectory. If you
    have "make all uploads private" set to "N", leave this field blank.
Destination directory list file - The upload directory list file that
    corresponds to the subdirectory defined in "Destination directory path"
    containing the archive descriptions, or blank if "Destination directory
    path" was left blank.

After editing the fields on this page, press F10 to save the edits to the
upload directory configuration file on disk, or press ESC to abort the changes.

D - ARCHIVING OPTIONS
─────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Convert archives  (Yes/No)                  Y  │
    │  Convert nested archives  (Yes/No)           N  │
    │  Convert self-extracting archives  (Yes/No)  N  │
    │  Convert -AV stamped ZIP archives  (Yes/No)  N  │
    │  Convert secured ARJ archives  (Yes/No)      N  │
    └─────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Convert archives - If you want ULP to convert the archive to a default
    archiving format of your choice, enter "Y"; if not, enter "N". This only
    affects the 'root' level of the archive. This flag has no affect on the
    conversion of internal, nested archives.
Convert nested archives - If you want ULP to convert any internal archives
    found inside the archive to your default archiving format, type "Y";
    otherwise, type "N", and they will be rearchived using the original
    archiving method (using the original extension, even if it isn't that
    archiver's default extension). The benefit of converting nested archives is
    that it may save some disk space; on the down side, it will potentially
    break automatic installation programs/batch files that may be contained
    within the archive that expect a certain format nested file.
Convert self-extracting archives - If you want ULP to convert a self-extracting
    (SFX) archive to your default archiving format, type "Y"; if not, type "N".
    If NO is selected, the SFX archive will be processed, and then left alone
    if it passes (NOT re-archived!). The reasoning for this is the LHA
    autostart batch files and other similar features; they are usually used for
    novice users and for automatic installation. By converting SFX archives,
    this may save some disk space, but can cause inconveniences. For example,
    if you don't have PKZnnn.EXE on your BBS, a novice user has no way of
    obtaining the PKZIP utilities from your BBS. If there is a BBS ad in a SFX
    archive, and this flag is set to "N", the ad will remain in the archive.
    Can't be helped at the moment...
Convert -AV stamped ZIP archives - If you want ULP to convert ZIP archives with
    authenticity verification stamps (-AV), enter "N". If you set this flag to
    "Y", then the original archive will be retained after processing. If there
    is a BBS ad in a -AV stamped archive, and this flag is set to "N", the ad
    will remain in the archive.
Convert secured ARJ archives - If you want ULP to convert ARJ archives with
    security envelopes (similar to a ZIP -AV), then set this to "Y". If you set
    this flag to "N", then the original archive will be retained. If there is a
    BBS ad in a secured archive, and this flag is set to "N", the ad will
    remain in the archive.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

E - ARCHIVERS
─────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear:

    ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Archiver definitions page number  (1-3)  1  │
    └─────────────────────────── [Enter] Continue ─┘

Archiver definitions page number - The editing of the archiver information is
    broken into 3 pages, with 3 archivers per screen. You can configure a total
    of 9 archivers to be utilized by ULP (this was an arbitrarily-chosen limit,
    and can be changed if desired). Enter the number of the page you wish to
    edit.

After editing the field, press ENTER to continue. The following pop-up box will
appear, displaying the page requested:

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │ Extension  ARC    Primary format (Yes/No)  N   Successful errorlevel  0 │
    │ Pack     c:\util\pkpak -a @ARCHIVE@ @FILES@                             │
    │ Unpack   c:\util\pkunpak -r @ARCHIVE@                                   │
    │ Test     c:\util\pkunpak -t @ARCHIVE@                                   │
    │ Comment                                                                 │
    │                                                                         │
    │ Extension  ARJ    Primary format (Yes/No)  N   Successful errorlevel  0 │
    │ Pack     c:\util\arj a -e -jm -m1 @ARCHIVE@ @FILES@                     │
    │ Unpack   c:\util\arj e -y @ARCHIVE@                                     │
    │ Test     c:\util\arj t @ARCHIVE@                                        │
    │ Comment  c:\util\arj c -zc:\ulp\comment.txt @ARCHIVE@                   │
    │                                                                         │
    │ Extension  HYP    Primary format (Yes/No)  N   Successful errorlevel  0 │
    │ Pack     c:\util\hyper -a @ARCHIVE@ @FILES@                             │
    │ Unpack   c:\util\hyper -x @ARCHIVE@                                     │
    │ Test     c:\util\hyper -v @ARCHIVE@                                     │
    │ Comment                                                                 │
    └─ Page 1 of 3 ───────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Extension - The default extension for this particular archiving format. ULP is
    capable of automatically detecting ARC, ARJ, HYP, LZH, PAK, SQZ, ZIP and
    ZOO archives, and will process them regardless of extension. If you add
    another archiver that is not automatically detected by ULP, it will be
    detected by the configured extension only.
Primary format - If this is the default archiving format you use on your BBS,
    type "Y"; if not, type "N". There can be only one default archiver, and
    in the event more than one flag is set, ULPSM will take the first one in
    the list with the flag set as the default.
Successful errorlevel - The errorlevel that the archiver returns upon a
    successful execution. This information should be available in the program's
    documentation. This is how ULP determines if an archiver is functioning
    properly, so any archiver configured must return errorlevels that are
    different for success than errors.
Pack - The command line to pack archives, including all command-line switches
    desired. Place the variable @ARCHIVE@ (all caps) where the filename is to
    be inserted in the command line and @FILES@ (also all caps) where the
    filespec is to be inserted. This cannot be a batch file, nor is DOS
    re-direction allowed. If you do not explicitly define the path to your
    archiver(s), it must in a directory included in the DOS 'PATH' environment
    variable.
Unpack - The command line to unpack archives, including all command-line
    switches desired. Place the variable @ARCHIVE@ where the filename is to be
    inserted in the command line. This cannot be a batch file, nor is DOS
    re-direction allowed.
Test - The command line for the archiver to test archive integrity, including
    all command-line switches desired. Place the variable @ARCHIVE@ where the
    filename is to be inserted in the command line. This cannot be a batch
    file, nor is DOS re-direction allowed.
Comment - The command line to comment archives. Place the variable @ARCHIVE@
    where the filename is to be inserted in the command line. If the archiver
    does not support comments, or if you do not wish to add comments, leave the
    field blank. This cannot be a batch file, but DOS redirection is permitted
    to pipe a file into the archiver (PKZIP, for example).

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

F - VIRUS/FILE TESTERS
──────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Command 1  h:\util\scan /a /nomem /nopause @FILES@                     │
    │  Successful errorlevel  0                                               │
    │                                                                         │
    │  Command 2                                                              │
    │  Successful errorlevel  0                                               │
    │                                                                         │
    │  Command 3                                                              │
    │  Successful errorlevel  0                                               │
    └─────────────────────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Command n - The command line to execute for the file checker, including all
    command-line switches. Place the variable @FILES@ where the filespec is to
    be placed on the command line. This cannot be a batch file, nor is DOS
    re-direction allowed. Any kind of file checker may be used, such as a virus
    checker or a BBS ads checker, if desired; they will be executed in the
    order defined in this screen. If you do not explicitly define the path to
    your file checking program(s), it must in a directory included in the DOS
    PATH environment variable. Note that if you are running a network, the use
    of network-specific scanners may be necessary (e.g. McAfee's SCAN and
    NETSCAN).
Successful errorlevel - The errorlevel that the file checker returns upon a
    successful execution. This information should be available in the program's
    documentation. This is how ULP determines if the file checker detected a
    defect, so any file checker configured must return errorlevels that are
    different for success than errors.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

G - DUPLICATE CHECKING
──────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Duplication checking  (None/Internal/Zdcs)  I                         │
    │  Total duplication limit  (%)                55                        │
    │  Executable dupe limit  (%)                  80                        │
    │  Duplication database        C:\ULP\DATABASE.DB                        │
    │  Duplication database index  C:\ULP\DATABASE.IDX                       │
    │  ZDCS subdirectory                                                     │
    └────────────────────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Duplication checking - If you want ULP to use its internal CRC-32 duplication
    checking, type "I". If you want to use the ZDCS external duplication system
    by Mike Cocke (with the required ZCDSULP interface program), enter "Z". If
    you desire no duplication checking at all, type "N".
Total duplication limit - The minimum percentage of duplication allowed for a
    file to pass. Anything SMALLER will pass regardless of the executable
    duplication limit. I would suggest this number be set to around 55, as some
    program authors don't modify every file, especially with maintenance
    releases. This limit is implemented for both ULP's internal and ZDCS
    duplication systems.
Executable dupe limit - The maximum percentage of duplication allowed for
    executable files and overlays to pass. This number should be higher than
    the total duplication limit; I would recommend about 80. This will catch
    archives that are duplicates, but someone has changed enough files to
    normally pass it when uploaded (such as configs, high score files, etc.).
    This will also pass files where the author has changed nothing but the
    executables; they would have failed before. Executables are determined
    solely by extension; any file with one of the following extensions will be
    counted as an executable: EXE, COM, SYS, OVL, OVR, DLL. This limit is also
    implemented for both ULP's internal and ZDCS duplication systems.
Duplication database - The path and name for the duplication database file.
    It's a good idea to keep the database and index file together, just to make
    things easier. This file is used for ULP's internal duplication system
    only.
Duplication database index - The path and name for the duplication database
    file index. This file is also used for ULP's internal duplication system
    only.
ZDCS subdirectory - The complete path for your ZDCS files (used only for the
    ZDCS duplication system). You must include the trailing backslash and drive
    letter; ULPSM will add it if necessary.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

H - AGE CHECKING
────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Age checking  (Yes/No)         Y   │
    │  Minimum average age  (months)  48  │
    └─────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Age checking - If you want ULP to fail an archive based on the average age of
    the files contained within, enter "Y"; otherwise, enter "N".
Minimum average age - The maximum average age in months, that you will accept
    for an upload.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

I - BBS AD PROCESSING
─────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Remove BBS ads  (Yes/No)   Y                               │
    │  BBS ad detection database  C:\ULP\ULPADS.DB                │
    │  BBS ad file to insert                                      │
    └─────────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Remove BBS ads - If you want ULP to remove known BBS ads from new uploads
    during processing, type "Y"; if not, type "N". Only ULP.EXE and ULPTEST
    SLOW mode removes BBS ads; ULPTEST FAST and NORMAL modes do not, but the
    upload will have any BBS ads removed later in the event.
BBS ad detection database - The path and name for the BBS ads database. This
    database can be updated by the sysop by using the ULPADS utility (see
    section 11 of this document), freeing the sysop from being reliant on me to
    maintain the ads database. If you find a large number of new BBS ad files,
    please upload them to my board for inclusion into my master ads database.
BBS ad file to insert - The path and filename for your BBS ad to be added to
    each and every archive processed by ULP. If you do not wish to insert a BBS
    ad, leave the field blank. Note that you must provide a drive and path, or
    it will not be copied. I STRONGLY recommend against them; BBS ads are
    aggravating to other sysops, so please be considerate and use the ARJ or
    ZIP comment instead. BBS ad files are the scourge of the BBS world.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

J - GIF FILE CHECKING
─────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Minimum image width  (columns)  320                                    │
    │  Minimum image height  (rows)    200                                    │
    │  Minimum number of colors        16                                     │
    │  Keep GIFLITE'd files  (Yes/No)  N                                      │
    │  Command  giftest /b:0 /l:c:\ulp\giftest.log @FILES@                    │
    │  Successful errorlevel  0                                               │
    └─────────────────────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Minimum image width - If ULP is to reject GIF files based upon image width,
    enter the minimum acceptable width in pixels. If no width limit is desired,
    set it to zero.
Minimum image height - If ULP is to reject GIF files based upon image height,
    enter the minimum acceptable height in pixels. If no height limit is
    desired, set it to zero.
Minimum number of colors - If ULP is to reject GIF files based upon the number
    of colors in the image, enter the minimum acceptable number of colors. If
    no color limit is desired, set it to zero.
Keep GIFLITE'd files - If ULP is to keep uploaded GIF files if they have been
    compressed with GIFLITE, set this to "Y". If not, set it to "N". At this
    time, if you use GIFTEST, this parameter will have no effect; GIFLITE'd
    files will always be rejected. Accepting GIFLITE'd GIF files can compromise
    the duplication system due to its variable compression ratio! I strongly
    suggest you do not accept GIFLITE'd GIF files!
Command - The command line to execute for the GIF file checker, including all
    command-line switches. Place the variable @FILES@ where the filespec is to
    be placed on the command line. This cannot be a batch file, nor is DOS
    re-direction allowed.
Successful errorlevel - The errorlevel that the GIF file checker returns upon a
    successful execution. This information should be available in the program's
    documentation. This is how ULP determines if the GIF file checker detected
    a defect in the GIF file, so the GIF file checker configured must return
    errorlevels that are different for success than errors.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

K - DESCRIPTION PROCESSING
──────────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Strip lost descriptions  (Yes/No)             N                        │
    │  Smart word wrap descriptions  (Yes/No)        Y                        │
    │  Strip high ASCII from descriptions  (Yes/No)  N                        │
    │  Insert internal description files  (Yes/No)   Y                        │
    │  Maximum number of description lines           10                       │
    │  Number of columns to indent secondary lines   32                       │
    │  Insert error description line  (Yes/No)       Y                        │
    │  Insert information line  (Yes/No)             Y                        │
    │  Archive information line format                                        │
    │  (Files: @#@ Newest: @NEWEST@ Oldest: @OLDEST@)                         │
    │  GIF information line format                                            │
    │  (Resolution: @WIDTH@x@HEIGHT@x@COLORS@  Comp: @COMPRESS@)              │
    └─────────────────────────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Strip lost descriptions - If you want ULP to remove "lost" descriptions from
    the source listing that do not have a corresponding file in the source
    subdirectory, enter "Y", otherwise, type "N". This is an excellent tool for
    cleaning up stray descriptions after files have been deleted for some
    reason.
Smart word wrap descriptions - If you want ULP to word-wrap descriptions, enter
    "Y", otherwise, type "N". Due to it's smart word-wrapping, ULP checks for
    box-draw characters before word-wrapping.
Strip high ASCII from descriptions - If you want ULP to strip high ASCII and
    control characters from archive descriptions prior to insertion, enter "Y",
    otherwise, enter "N". When turned on, ULP will strip all illegal characters
    (per the FILE_ID.DIZ specification) from descriptions prior to insertion,
    leaving the text description intact.
Insert internal description files - ULP can extract and insert FILE_ID.DIZ and
    DESC.SDI internal description files into the directory list files. If you
    want ULP to insert internal description files, type "Y"; if not, type "N".
    Note that ULP gives priority to FILE_ID.DIZ in the event the same archive
    contains both a FILE_ID.DIZ and a DESC.SDI file.
Maximum number of description lines - When ULP is to insert internal
    description files, this is the maximum number of lines that ULP will insert
    from the description file. Although up to 15 lines can be inserted, Clark
    Development Company (the developer of PCBoard and FILE_ID.DIZ) has defined
    that a FILE_ID.DIZ file should have no more than 10 lines.
Number of columns to indent secondary lines - The column where the '|' marker
    goes in your directory listing setup for secondary description lines and
    information lines added by ULP. The standard PCBoard setup indents to
    column 32.
Insert error description line - If you want ULPTEST to add a canned line to the
    description of failed archives describing the failure, enter "Y",
    otherwise, type "N". Note that ULP.EXE will not add this line, nor will it
    strip this error line if the file is processed in override mode.
Insert information line - ULP can add a line of information to file
    descriptions for the benefit of your users. The format is completely
    defined by you. If you want ULP to add the information line, type "Y"; if
    not, type "N". Note that the statistics generated by ULP do not include any
    FILE_ID.DIZ, DESC.SDI or BBS ad files found in the archive.
Archive information line format - The format that you would like for the
    archive information line (do not include the '|' character or the following
    space; ULP will add those). This format is completely configurable by the
    user; any ASCII character can be used. To include specific information
    compiled by ULP, just add the variables. The legal variables must be in all
    caps, and are as follows:
        @#@       Number of files in the archive (and nested archives)
        @NEWEST@  Date of the newest file in the archive
        @OLDEST@  Date of the oldest file in the archive
        @BYTES@   The total number of bytes (uncompressed) in the archive
        @DATE@    Today's date
        @CR@      Inserts a line break for multiline capability
GIF information line format - The format that you would like for the GIF
    information line (again, do not include the '|' character or the space).
    The legal variables are:
        @WIDTH@     Horizontal resolution (number of columns)
        @HEIGHT@    Vertical resolution (number of rows)
        @COLORS@    Number of colors in GIF
        @COMPRESS@  Inserts "GIFLITE" or "None", depending upon compression
        @DATE@      Today's date
        @CR@        Inserts a line break for multiline capability

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

L - ONLINE TESTING
──────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Default online test mode  (Fast/Normal/Slow)  S     │
    │  Maximum file size for slow mode  (K)          250   │
    │  Maximum file size for normal mode  (K)        500   │
    │  Generate online user status  (Yes/No)         N     │
    │  Suppress ULP header in serial I/O  (Yes/No)   N     │
    └──────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Default online test mode - This defines the default mode that ULPTEST processes
    an archive. The default mode is the mode that ULPTEST *starts* in, and then
    is forced into the faster mode(s) by the limits defined.
    SLOW mode fully processes the archive, identical to the ULP event
        processing except that the archive formats are not converted. Note that
        archive conversion is not possible in SLOW mode due to limitations of
        PCBoard and the file will not be reprocessed by ULP.EXE in the event.
        Also note that you MUST make all uploads public for SLOW mode to work
        properly. This mode is intended to emulate the operation of other
        testers like EXZTest and Ziplab. Enter "S" to use this mode.
    NORMAL mode is a full *test*, except the archive is not repacked, saving a
        significant amount of the testing time for the online user. Enter "N"
        to use this mode of operation.
    FAST indicates a fast test in which the archive is scanned for archive
        integrity, duplicates, and age without unpacking the archive (ARJ and
        ZIP files only). If this mode is used, it should be held for later
        reprocessing by ULP.EXE so that it can be file-checked. Note that FAST
        mode can only 'see' one level deep in the archive. If you have a slow
        computer and/or hard disk, FAST mode would be preferable for your users
        when large archives are uploaded. Enter "F" to utilize this mode.
Maximum file size for slow mode - If SLOW mode is used, the archive's file size
    will first be compared against this limit (in kilobytes). If it is larger
    than this number of bytes (in kilobytes), it will be forced into NORMAL
    mode to speed the process and prevent wasting the user's online time.
    Entering 0 will disable this feature, resulting in SLOW mode being used at
    all times. If the default online test mode is set to NORMAL or FAST, this
    parameter has no effect.
Maximum file size for normal mode - If NORMAL mode is used (or has been forced
    due to an upload exceeding the slow mode size limit), the archive's file
    size will be compared against this limit (in kilobytes). If it is larger
    than this number of kilobytes, it will be forced into FAST mode to speed
    the process and prevent wasting the user's online time. Entering 0 will
    disable this feature, resulting in NORMAL mode being used at all times. If
    the default test mode is set to FAST, this parameter has no effect.
Generate online user status - If you want ULPTEST to output status information
    to the user on-line, set this flag to "Y"; if you do not want ULPTEST to
    output status information, enter "N". ULPTEST supports both direct
    interrupt-driven I/O (IRQs 2-7) and FOSSIL driver I/O.
Suppress ULP header in serial I/O - If you want ULPTEST to suppress the program
    header output to the user via the COM port (the program name, copyright
    notice, and registration information). This gives a seamless look for ULP
    into PCBoard. If this is desired, set this flag to "Y"; otherwise, set it
    to "N". This feature will work for registered users only!

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

M - SPECIAL-CASE FILES
──────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Uncompressed extensions to process and compress   │
    │  DOC  TXT  COM                                     │
    │                                                    │
    │  Extensions to pass without processing             │
    │  CPT  SIT                                          │
    └────────────────────────── [F10] Keep  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Uncompressed extensions to process and compress - ULP can process selected
    uncompressed uploads, using this option. Up to 10 uncompressed file types
    can be specified by extension. Do not use any compression format extensions
    (ARJ, ZIP, etc.)! Any files that are uploaded with one of these extensions
    and could not be identified by signature will be file-checked,
    duplicate-checked, and compressed using your default archiving method (in
    the event). If you do not want to use this feature, simply blank all of the
    fields. It probably is not a good idea to have EXE as an extension to
    compress, since ULP is not able to detect ARC, HYP or ZOO self-extractors,
    and they would be packed again as an uncompressed archive.
Extensions to pass without processing - ULP can be forced to NOT process
    selected uploads, using this option. Up to 10 file types can be specified
    by extension. THESE FILES WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY PASSED WITHOUT ANY TESTING;
    be sure this is desired. This is intended for use with non-DOS uploads,
    such as the Unix Tar Z format, or Macintosh files. Since these files will
    NOT be tested for viruses, etc., note this fact to your users.

After editing the fields, press F10 to keep the edits, or press ESC to abort
the changes.

N - INIT PROCESS DATA FILE
──────────────────────────
When selected, the following pop-up box will appear. By using the up and down
arrow keys, you can move the cursor to the desired field to be edited.

    ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  Process data file  C:\ULP\PROCESS.DAT              │
    │  Initialize process data file  N                    │
    └───────────────────────────── [F10] Go  [ESC] Abort ─┘

Process data file - The path and filename of the ULP process data file. This
    file contains information on previous ULP archive processing and is
    maintained automatically by ULP. This file must exist, or ULP will not
    operate.
Initialize process data file - If you want ULPSM to initialize the process data
    file when the F10 key (Go) is pressed, enter "Y", otherwise leave it as
    "N". Note that the process data file can also be initialized using ULP.EXE
    with the -I command line switch.

After editing the fields, press F10 to initialize the process data file and
keep the edits, or press ESC to abort the changes.


┌────────────────────────┐
│  10. Manual Operation  │
└────────────────────────┘

While the ULP system is mostly automatic, there are occasions where some
operations may have to be done manually:

ULP:
────
During the course of operation, ULP will rename archives that have been found
to be defective in some manner according to the following convention:

    .UNK    Unknown archive format
    .DOS    DOS reserved keyword found in archive
    .ERR    Error occurred while unpacking archive (archive integrity failure)
    .CHK    Error found while file checking archive file (virus, etc.)
    .DUP    Excessive duplicate files contained in archive
    .PCK    Error occurred while repacking archive file
    .AGE    Age limit exceeded by archive file
    .ENC    Encrypted file found in archive
    .BOM    Bomb file detected in archive
    .BAD    Error found while testing GIF file
    .RES    Unacceptable GIF resolution
    .GLT    GIF compressed with GIFLITE
    .WRK    Unable to create work space for processing file

I would enter these extensions in your UPSEC file, as ULP will automatically
pass over any file with these extensions, presuming that they are defective
archives. Doing so will prevent a user from uploading a file with one of these
"reserved" extensions.

If you feel that these files are acceptable after reviewing them, you can force
them to be accepted by adding the command-line switch -O (for override) to the
ULP command line, e.g.:

    ULP -CULP.CFG -O

This will accept the archives regardless of duplication or age limits. It will
not override unpacking, packing, integrity and virus errors, however, for the
safety of your board and your users.

To initialize the ULP process database without using ULPSM, use the -I command
line switch:

    ULP -CULP.CFG -I

ULP will scan your source upload directories as configured and generate a
process data file. From then on, ULP will maintain this data file
automatically.

Three other command-line parameters are available in ULP. '-R' will retest all
archives found in the subdirectory passed to it. It will not use duplication
checking or age checking, nor will it repack the archive; it was installed to
allow the periodic retesting of archives for viruses, etc.:

    ULP -CULP.CFG -Rc:\temp\

Another, '-M' will retest and convert all archives found in the subdirectory
indicated; this can be used for mass archive conversion:

    ULP -CULP.CFG -Mc:\temp\

Note that the '-R' and '-M' switches cannot be used on a CD-ROM or other
write-protected media at this time.

ULPTEST:
────────
If you wish to run ULPTEST without any drop files for comm port configuration
(e.g. PCBOARD.DAT, PCBOARD.SYS, etc.), add the '-L' command-line switch to
force comm I/O off and prevent the search for drop files. For example:

    ULPTEST -CULP.CFG -F%1 -M%2 -D%3 -N%PCBNODE% -L

Note that you must then pass the node number with the -N parameter, as ULPTEST
does not have access to the drop files where this information is available.

ULPDB:
──────
If a file has been failed for some reason, you can view the contents of the
archive using the -V command switch with ULPDB. This will scan the archive, and
generate a report of the results, which are indicative of why it failed. For
example:

    ULPDB -CULP.CFG -Vc:\privul\archive.dup

This will produce a report of the archive ARCHIVE.DUP located in the specified
path. This can be useful in determining if an archive that failed duplication
should be removed or should be accepted anyway, and similar reasons.

In addition, duplication databases can be merged using the -M command-line
option. In order to merge a second database into your main database:

    ULPDB -CULP.CFG -Msecond.db

where 'second.db' is the full path and filename for the second duplication
database to be merged with the main CRC-32 database.  This will allow pre-built
databases to be constructed for CD-ROM disks for easy implementation.

Finally, database entries can be purged from the database using the file date
contained in the database record using the -P command switch:

    ULPDB -CULP.CFG -P60

where '60' is the maximum age (in months) for a file to remain in the database.
Removal is based upon the file date represented by the entry, NOT the date the
file entry was made into the database; these are not one and the same. In the
example above, all records for files older than 60 months (5 years) will be
removed from the database. As a protective measure, ULPDB will not perform a
purge if the value specified is less than 6 months.


┌──────────────────────────┐
│  11. BBS Ads and ULPADS  │
└──────────────────────────┘

The ULP system includes a BBS ad removal feature based on CRC-32 calculation of
the file contents and other data. In this fashion, ULP can detect a known ad
file despite the file name and date.

In order for sysops to be able to 'keep up' with new ads produced by the weenie
sysops who insert the @!&*#%$ things, I have included a utility called ULPADS
that can scan a BBS ad file, and update the BBS ads with it's information.
Don't worry about duplication, as part of the process is to purge duplicate BBS
ad info. The command-line syntax for the ULPADS.EXE program is simply:

    ULPADS -Ddatabase.ad -Fbbs.ad

where 'database.ad' is the full path and filename for the BBS ads database, and
'bbs.ad' is the path and filename for the BBS ad file to be added to the ads
database.

If you have a subdirectory full of BBS ads, the following batch file provided
by Ian Singer may be of help:

    rem DELADS.BAT
    rem this batch file written by Ian Singer 1 Jul 92 to take all
    rem the bbs ads in c:\ulp\ad and run them against the database
    rem in c:\ulp
    rem
    for %%f in (c:\ulp\ad\*.*) do ULPADS -Dc:\ulp\ulpads.db -F%%f

I would greatly appreciate your uploading of any new BBS ad files that you may
collect over time to my BBS so I can update the master listing that I include
with the ULP distribution archive. Please refer to the top of this document for
my BBS number.

The latest version of my BBS ads database is included in the distribution
archive. In order to add whatever new BBS ads information that may be
contained, you can merge the two BBS databases:

    ULPADS -Dmaster.db -Mother.db

where 'master.db' is the full path and filename for the master (your) BBS ads
database, and 'other.db' is the path and filename for the other BBS ads
datatbase to be merged with the master ads database.


┌───────────────┐
│  12. Support  │
└───────────────┘

If you require support for ULP, I can be contacted by any of the following
means:

    ∙ Fidonet netmail (node:  1:151/106)
    ∙ Intelec PCBoard conference
    ∙ RoseNet routed private mail (system ID:  BB-P)
    ∙ The ULP support conference (#42) on Salt Air (PCBoard support BBS)
    ∙ The Support conference (#2) on my BBS (listed at the top of this
        document).


┌─────────────────────────┐
│  13. The Future of ULP  │
└─────────────────────────┘

ULP will be supported as long as I'm in the BBSing business (which will be
quite a while...once it's in your blood, you can never shake it <grin>). The
ULP system will be rapidly expanding it's features so it will be your first
choice in BBS upload processors. Some current plans:

      ∙ Add the ability to preprocess files prior to file checking them;
        for example, decompress executables that have been PKLite'd.
      ∙ Support other BBS software directory listing formats.

If you have any other suggestions, or want other archivers supported, please
contact me via Email, U.S. snail-mail or on my BBS at the number at the top of
this document.

Thanks for giving ULP a try!


┌────────────────────────────────┐
│  Appendix A:  DOS Errorlevels  │
└────────────────────────────────┘

The errorlevels returned to DOS by the ULP system programs are consistent
among all of the programs (primarily with the error conditions); the following
is a list of the errorlevels than can be returned by the ULP programs, along
with which programs return the codes:

    0       Successful execution (ULPTEST, ULPDB, ULPADS)
    0       Successful execution, archives were processed (ULP)
    1       Successful execution, nothing to do (ULP)
    1       Unknown archive format (ULPTEST)
    2       DOS reserved keyword found in archive (ULPTEST)
    3       Error unpacking archive (archive integrity) (ULPTEST)
    4       Error file checking archive files (virus, etc.) (ULPTEST)
    5       Error duplicate checking archive files (ULPTEST)
    7       Age limit exceeded by archive files (ULPTEST)
    8       Encrypted file found in archive files (ULPTEST)
    9       Bomb archive detected (ULPTEST)
    10      Bad GIF file (ULPTEST)
    11      Unacceptable GIF resolution (ULPTEST)
    12      GIF compressed with GIFLITE (ULPTEST)
    13      Unable to create work space (ULPTEST)
    99      Help screen (executing a program with no or an insufficient number
            of arguments) (All)
    100     Could not close all open files (ULP, ULPTEST, ULPDB)
    101     Unknown command line parameter (All)
    102     Config file not found (All)
    103     Invalid config file format (All)
    104     Excessive number of command line parameters defined for
            file checker (maximum number of parameters is 13) (ULP, ULPTEST)
    105     Excessive number of command line parameters defined for archiver
            (max is 13) (ULP, ULPTEST, ULPDB)
    106     Excessive number of words defined in archive information line (max
            is 13) (ULP, ULPTEST)
    107     No primary archiver defined (ULP)
    108     Invalid disk buffer size (All)
    109     Upload directory list file(s) not found (ULP, ULPTEST)
    110     Unable to allocate heap memory (All)
    111     Unable to open or lock disk logging file (ULP, ULPTEST, ULPDB)
    112     Invalid registration code or attempting to run 286 or 386 versions
            without registering (ULP, ULPTEST, ULPDB)
    113     Unable to open/lock CRC database file(s) (ULP, ULPTEST, ULPDB)
    114     Unable to open BBS ads database file (ULP, ULPADS)
    115     Invalid filename provided by user on command-line (ULP, ULPTEST)
    116     Invalid path provided by user on command-line (ULP, ULPDB)
    117     Invalid or no node number (valid values are 1 to 256) (ULPTEST)
    118     CRC database usage not enabled (configuration file parameter
            DUPE_CHK is set to 'no') (ULPDB)
    120     Invalid or old database format (All)
    121     Unable to process com port/invalid port parameter (ULPTEST)
    122     Unable to access PCBOARD.DAT/PCBOARD.SYS (ULPTEST)
    123     CRC database failed validation test (ULPDB)
    124     ZDCS/ULP interface program failure (ULPTEST)
    125     Unable to open privileged user list file (ULPTEST)
    200     Undefined error (internal to ULP system program(s))