The CDPD Public Domain Collection for CDTV 3/CDPDIII.bin/bbs/ff871.lha/ABackup/ABackupEnglish.doc

Text File | 1993-05-03 | 47KB | 961 lines

                ABackup - User's Manual





AboutThisDoc

      This manual describes release 2.43  of  the  utility    ABackup.  This
  program is (c)1992-1993 by Denis GOUNELLE, any commercial usage  or  selling
  without author's written authorization is strictly forbidden. You  can  copy
  and spread this program at the following conditions:

    - all the files must be provided
    - none of the file must have been modified
    - you don't charge more than $6 for copy fee

      In spite of several tests, no warranty is made that there's no error
  in ABackup. YOU USE THIS PROGRAM AT YOUR OWN RISKS. In no event  will  I  be
  liable for any damage, direct or indirect, resulting of the use of  ABackup.

Introduction

      ABackup is a backup program written for the Amiga. It  can  be  used
  both to make a backup of your hard disk or to  archive  files,  has  a  full
  Intuition interface, and can use XPK    library.  Under  2.0  system  release,
  ABackup is able to recognize links and to manage high density disks.

      This program is SHAREWARE. If you find it useful, I  invite  you  to
  send me $10 at the address listed below in  order  to  become  a  registered
  user. Please use only :

      - checks from a French bank
      - cash (French Francs prefered, otherwise any currency of the E.E.C.  is
    accepted, as well as US dollars and Swiss  Francs  ;  in  either  case
    please add a little more for change fee)
      - checks from an European bank (if you use an EuroCheck, please  add  $5
    because my bank taxes it)

  If you send me a check, it must be in French Francs and the beneficiary must
  be "M. GOUNELLE Denis".
      As a registered user, you will receive the next version  of  ABackup
  as soon as it  will  be  available.  You  should  be    aware  that  this  $10
  contribution fee only gives right to one update : if you want to receive the
  next updates regularly, a $20 contribution is required.

      Suggestions  and/or  criticisms  will  be  always  welcomed.     Don't
  hesitate to write at the following address :

                   M. GOUNELLE Denis
                    Boite 71
                  6, rue des cailloux
                 92110 CLICHY - FRANCE

      You can also send a message to  the  following  Internet  address  :
  "[e-mail]". Note that this mailbox is not mine, so  please  send
  only short messages. As I don't have direct access to  the  messages,  don't
  expect an answer before a dozen of days.

      Thanks to Michel SCHINZ (without him, this program  would  be  still
  only at the planning stage) and Jean-Yves PROUX for  their  suggestions,  to
  Reza ELGHAZI and Stefan SALEWSKI for their help concerning the  crash  under
  system  3.0.    Special  thanks  to  Jean-Philippe  RAPP  for    his   numerous
  suggestions and constant supporting. Last, thanks to XPK library authors for
  their fantastic work.

Getting_started

      ABackup can be run as well from CLI as from Workbench. From the CLI,
  you can invoke ABackup by a syntax as follows :

      ABackup  [FROM  directory]  [BUFSIZE  size]   [NOCOMP   ext,ext,...]
      [NOTASK] [TMPDIR dir] [SIZE {BYTE|KBYTE|MBYTE|AUTO}]

      The BUFSIZE option allows to change the size of the read buffer (for
  example "BUFSIZE 64" asks for a 64 Kb buffer). By default, the  buffer  size
  is 4 Kb large. You can specify a directory name for backup (with the  "FROM"
  option); by default, this one will be  the  current  directory.  The    NOCOMP
  option allows to specify extensions of file names to don't compress. You can
  specify  up  to  10  extensions,  separated  by  a  comma   (e.g.:   "NOCOMP
  .info,.run").
      Usually, ABackup tries to create a child task that will perform  all
  write operations (this speedup backup between 10-20%). If the task  creation
  fails, ABackup will do write    operations  itself,  just  like  the  previous
  versions of the program. If the creation of the child task is a problem  (no
  memory etc...) you can prevent  ABackup  to  create  it  with  the  "NOTASK"
  argument.

      The "TMPDIR" argument allows you to change the  temporary  directory
  used by ABackup. By default, it uses the "T:" directory, but this may  cause
  lead to memory  problems,  especially  if  this  directory  is  assigned  to
  "RAM:T". The "SIZE" argument allows you to change the default  unit  of  the
  "Size" menu (see below). The "USEASL" argument allows you to  use  the  file
  requester of "asl.library" instead of the built-in  requester.  This  option
  will be ignored if the library can't be opened, or if the requester can't be
  allocated.

      From the Workbench, you can change the size of the  read  buffer  by
  adding a line of the form "BUFSIZE=<size in Kb>" in the "TOOL  TYPES"  field
  of ABackup icon. You can also specify extensions  of    file  names  to  don't
  compress by adding a line  of  the  form  "NOCOMP=ext,ext,...",  or  prevent
  ABackup to create a child task by adding a line "NOTASK".  Finaly,  you  can
  set ABackup as "DEFAULT TOOL" of an archive file.

      When the program starts, a screen is displayed with several  gadgets
  in it : "Backup an AmigaDOS partition", "Restore", "Rebuild catalogue",  and
  "Quit". Click on the gadget that matches the wanted action.
      The startup screen has also a menu with the "Config...",  "About..."
  and "Quit" options. The first one allows  to  modify  ABackup  configuration
  (see "Configuration" section), the second one  displays  informations  about
  the program, and the last one allows to quit ABackup.

Configuration

      A window appears in the middle of the screen,  with  eight  gadgets.
  The first three gadgets show the names of the viewer programs  corresponding
  to the type of a file (ASCII file, IFF picture or other, see  the  "Viewing"
  section), the two next the names of the  external  compression/decompression
  program (see the "Compression" section),  and  the  last  the  name  of  the
  temporary directory (see the "Getting_started" section).
      At the bottom of the window, three gadgets enable  to  validate  the
  changes, to validate and save the changes, or to  cancel  the  changes.  The
  configuration is saved to the "S:ABackup.config" file, which is loaded  each
  time the program start.

Requesters

      When using ABackup, often you'll see requesters with one message and
  one or two gadgets ("Ok", "Continue/Abort", "Yes/No").

      In any case, you can reply to a request by clicking on one of  these
  gadgets, or by pressing the key corresponding to the first letter of a reply
  (for example, the "c" or  "C"  key  for  "Continue").  You  can  also  press
  <RETURN> for a positive reply ("Ok",  "Continue",  "Yes")  or  <ESC>  for  a
  negative reply ("Abort", "No").

      Finally, when a requester message asks for inserting a disk  in  one
  drive, inserting a disk in this drive will be  detected  and    this  will  be
  equivalent to clicking on the "Continue" gadget.

Backup_an_AmigaDOS_partition

      A requester is displayed that allows    to  choose  the  directory  to
  backup. By clicking on the "Cancel" gadget, ABackup will return to the  main
  screen. By clicking on the "OK" gadget,  ABackup  will  load  the  directory
  contents. For breaking this loading, click on the "Abort"  gadget  or  press
  one of the following keys : "a", "A", <ESC>.
      If you don't want ABackup to explore a sub-directory (for example  a
  directory where's a program that you already have on floppy disk, and so you
  don't need to backup), just put the word "SKIPME" as the  comment  for  this
  sub-directory.

      ABackup can now save several partitions in the same archive, so  you
  don't have to save them one by one. To select the partitions  to  save,  you
  can use the multi-selection of the file requester : click on    the  partition
  names (like DH0: and DH1:) holding the SHIFT key down.
      You can also call ABackup with the  FROM  option,  and  specify  the
  partition names separated by a comma (like "FROM DH0:,DH1:"). In this  case,
  if you use the Intuition interface, you won't see the  file  requester  when
  you will click on "Save an AmigaDOS partition".

      Once the directory content loaded, the selection screen  will  apear
  (see the "The_selection_screen" section below). Backup options are :

  Compress
      Tells what kind of compression will be done : none  (NO),  with  the
      functions integrated to ABackup (Internal), with an external program
      (External)  or  with  XPK  library.  For  more   informations,   see
      "Compression" section. If you press the SHIFT  key  when  you  click
      upon this gadget, the values will cycle in reverse order.

  Verify
      Reread and compares every track after writing  it.  Meaningful  only
      for backup to disks.

  Backup links
      Backup selected links. Meaningful only under 2.0 system release.    An
      archive which contains links can of course be  restored  even  under
      1.3 system release (links will simply be not restored).

  Set archive bit
      Once backup is over, sets the archive bit (see the AmigaDOS  command
      "Protect") of all files and subdirectories successfully backed up.

  Backup report
      Indicates if ABackup has to create a backup report. This one can    be
      printed or written to a file.

  Backup to
      Selects an archive. If a given name is  of  the  form  "df?:"  (e.g.
      df0:, df1:, etc....), ABackup will use the specified  disk  unit    by
      writing on disks in a special format. In this case, you need not    to
      format your backup disks. Otherwise, ABackup will create an  archive
      file with the name you specified. Note ABackup has the capability of
      creating this file on any device that accepts  the  AmigaDOS  "Seek"
      function.
      You can use several disk drives for backup : specify  the  names    of
      the drives  separated  by  a  coma.  For    exemple,  if  you  specify
      "df0:,df1:" ABackup will start with disk in df0:, then continue with
      the disk    in  df1:,  go  back  to  df0:,    etc...    The  program  will
      automatically (without requester) toggle from one drive to the next,
      if the disk in the new drive has been changed.

      For starting a backup, you  have  to    select    the  "Start"  item  in
  "Backup" menu or the "START" gadget. If you asked for backup  report  to  be
  written to a file, a requester will be brought up so that you can specify  a
  name for this file. If you click over the "Abort" button in this  requester,
  no report will be generated.

      At this time, a new screen is brought up with different infos on the
  backup progression. In the bottom area, the file names pass by, followed  by
  an info on the current operation (compression, writing, etc....). The "Disk"
  gauge displays the filling percentage either of the current disk, or of  the
  volume where is the archive file. If you asked for a disk  backup,  you  can
  remove the last disk from your drive as soon as the "Archive closed" message
  will be displayed.
      If an error occurs (and if this is possible), ABackup will display a
  message to ask if you want to continue in spite of that. Obviously,  ABackup
  will not make a backup for the file that maked problem.
      At the top and on the right of this screen there  are  two  gadgets.
  The "* ABORT *" gadget allows to abort a backup. After it asked to  confirm,
  ABackup returns to the selection screen. The "* PAUSE *"  gadget  allows  to
  pause a backup for a while. Note that it can happens ABackup    doesn't  react
  immediatly when you click over one of these gadgets but, in all cases,  your
  request will be registered before the next write operation in the archive.

      Once a backup ended (a message will inform  you  of  that),  ABackup
  returns to its main screen.

Restore

      A menu is brought up allowing to specify the archive    that  must  be
  used. If you click on the "Abort" gadget, ABackup will return  to  the  main
  screen. The gadgets corresponding to your drives are    automatically  enabled
  or disabled according to your hardware configuration. If you click on one of
  these enabled gadgets, ABackup will ask you to insert the last disk  in  the
  backup set, for loading the catalogue. If you click on the "File" gadget,  a
  requester will be brought up so that you specify your archive file.  If  you
  click on the "Abort" gadget, ABackup will return to the main screen.

      Once you have selected an archive, ABackup will load    the  catalogue
  of files backed up in this archive and will display  the  selection  screen.
  Restore options are as follows :

  Restore dir. tree
      Indicates if selected  files  will  be  all  restored  in  the  same
      directory (NO) or if the tree structure will be restored too  (YES).

  Restore date
      Indicates if ABackup will set the date of restored file to the  date
      they had at backup time.

  Restore links
      Restore selected links. Meaningful only under 2.0 system release.

  Restoration report
      Indicates if ABackup has to generate a restoration report. This  one
      can be printed or written to a file.

  Restore empty dirs
      Indicates if ABackup has to create empty backed up directories.

  Replace files
      Indicates what ABackup has to do if a file it has to restore already
      exists. Choices are : "No" (file is not replaced),  "Yes"  (file  is
      replaced), "Ask for" (ABackup will ask to confirm for every existing
      file), "Older" (ABackup replaces this file only if this one is older
      than the backed up file).

  Restore from
      This option is available only when restoring from floppy    disks.    It
      allows to use several disk drives : specify the names of the  drives
      separated by a coma. For exemple, if you specify "df0:,df1:" ABackup
      will start with disk in df0:, then continue with the disk  in  df1:,
      go back to df0:, etc...  The  program  will  automatically  (without
      requester) toggle from one drive to the next, if the disk in the new
      drive has been changed and if this disk is the one which is expected
      by ABackup.

  Restore to
      Usually, files are restored in the directory where they were at  the
      time of the backup, but you can specify another  directory  by  this
      gadget.

      For starting a restoration, you have to select the "Start"  item  in
  "Restore" menu or the "START" gadget. If you asked for restoration report to
  be written to a file, a requester will be brought up so that you can specify
  a name for this  file.  If  you  click  over    the  "Abort"  button  in  this
  requester, no report will be generated.
      At this time, a new screen is brought up with different infos on the
  restore progression. In the bottom area, the names of  restored  files  pass
  by, followed by an info on the current opération (reading, etc....).  If  an
  error occurs (and if this is possible), ABackup will display  a  message  to
  ask if you want to continue in spite of that. Obviously,  ABackup  will  not
  restore the file that maked problem. If  some  links    are  to  be  restored,
  ABackup will    restore  them  after  all  other  files  and  directories  are
  restored.
      At the top and on the right of this screen there  are  two  gadgets.
  The "* ABORT *" gadget allows to abort a  restoration.  After  it  asked  to
  confirm, ABackup returns to the selection  screen.  The  "* PAUSE *"  gadget
  allows to pause restoration for a while. Note that it  can  happens  ABackup
  doesn't react immediatly when you click over one of these  gadgets  but,  in
  all cases, your request will be registered before the next read operation in
  the archive.
      Once a restoration ended  (a  message  will  inform  you  of  that),
  ABackup returns to its main screen.

Rebuild_catalogue

      This function is not very useful unless an  archive  file  has  been
  damaged, or you have loose the last disk of a backup set.  It  will  rebuild
  the archive catalogue, which is required to restore.    You  should  be  aware
  that this function can't handle all  errors,  and  may  not  be  usuable  by
  unexperienced users.

      If the archive is a file, you should make a copy of it in  order  to
  avoid to destroy it if operation fails. You will also have to check that the
  first header is at a sector boundary, that is, at an address multiple of 512
  (you can use the "TYPE archive HEX" command, the first and  the  third  long
  word of a header are always set to the "ABCK" value). If the archive  is  on
  disks, you must give the disks in the same order they were written to.  This
  function works even if disks are missing.

      The archive selection screen appears (see "Restore"  section).  When
  you have selected the archive, ABackup loads its content, file after file  :
  a new screen appears with some informations about the processing.  Once  the
  content is loaded, the new catalogue will be created. If the archive    is  on
  disks, ABackup will ask you for a new disk to write the catalogue. Use  this
  disk a the last disk of the backup set, when restoring.

The_selection_screen

      This screen consists of a gadgets set and a bottom  area  where  are
  displayed files and subdirectories of the current directory. At  the    start,
  no file and no directory are selected. Files are displayed in black on  grey
  background, and directories in white on grey. Directories with at least  one
  descendant selected are displayed on a black background. You can scroll  the
  list display by means of the vertical scroll bar on the right. The  name  of
  the current directory is displayed in the area named "Directory". The number
  and size of the selected files are displayed in the area named  "Selection".

      For selecting a file in a list, click on the name of this file :  it
  is displayed in black on a blue  background  and  the  "Selection"  area  is
  updated. If you click on a selected file, this one will be  unselected.  For
  selecting or unselecting a set of files, click on the first  file  and  keep
  down the left button while moving your mouse. Last, to  view    a  file,  just
  double-click on its name (see "Viewing" section).
      When you click on a directory name, two actions can happen. If  this
  directory is empty, it will be selected or unselected as a file.  Otherwise,
  the list display will be modified in order to make visible the  contents  of
  this directory. The "Directory" area will be updated.  To  go  back  to  the
  previous directory, you can either click on the "Parent" gadget (at the  top
  of the scroll bar), either click on the gadget between the  left  border  of
  the screen and the left border of the display area. If you went very down in
  the tree structure, you can go back straight at  the    initial  directory  by
  clicking on the "Root" gadget (at the top of the scroll bar).
      Last, if you hold the SHIFT key while you  click  upon  a  directory
  name, the whole directory content will be selected or deselected.

      At the top of the screen, there are two rows of  identical  gadgets.
  These ones allow to select (first row) or to  unselect  (second  row)  files
  and/or subdirectories in a global way according to various criterions :

  All
      Selects or unselects all files and subdirectories from  the  current
      directory.

  By name
      Selects or unselects files and subdirectories according to a name or
      a pattern. A pattern is a name with  one    of  the  special  AmigaDOS
      characters: '#' or '?' under 1.3 system release, '#', '?', '|', '~',
      '%', parenthesis, or brackets under 2.0  system  release.  For  more
      informations, refer to your AmigaDOS User's manual.
      A window is displayed with a string gadget. Type in it a name  or  a
      pattern and validate your choice by pressing  <RETURN>.  Now,  click
      either on the "==" gadget, if you want files or subdirectories whose
      name matches the name or the pattern you typed, either on  the  "!="
      gadget, if you want files or subdirectories whose name doesn't match
      the name or pattern you typed. You  can  cancel  this  operation    by
      clicking on the window close gadget.

  By date
      Selects or unselects files and subdirectories according to the  date
      of the last change. A window is brought up  with    a  string  gadget.
      Type in a  date  and/or  time  respecting  the  following  syntax  :
      DD-MM-YY or DD-MMM-YY for  the  date  (for  example,  "01-03-92"  or
      "01-Mar-92"),  and  HH:MM:SS  for  time.  Validate  your  choice  by
      pressing the <RETURN> key, then click over the "<="  gadget  or  the
      ">=" gagdet,  according  as  you  want  to  get  earlier  files  and
      subdirectories or later ones in relation to the typed date.
      If you typed only time, the date will be the day date. If you  typed
      only a date, time will be "23:59:59", when you click over  "<=",  or
      "00:00:00", when you click over ">=". You can cancel this  operation
      by clicking on the window close gadget.

  By bits
      Selects or unselects files and  subdirectories  according  to  their
      protection bit. A window is brought up with  a  string  gadget.  For
      testing one or several bits (see the  AmigaDOS  command  "Protect"),
      type them in this gadget and validate your choice  by  pressing  the
      <RETURN> key. Click now over the "= 1" or "= 0" gadget according  as
      you want files and subdirectories with their bits set or unset.  You
      can cancel this operation by clicking on the window close gadget.

      The "Reverse" gadget allows to invert a  selection  :  all  selected
  files become unselected  and    all  unselected  files    become    selected.  The
  "Recursive" gadget controls the action of the "Reverse" gadget, just  as  it
  controls the "All", "By name", "By date" and "By bits" gadgets : it shows if
  selecting or unselecting will or will not concern  files  that  are  in  the
  subdirectories of the current directory.

      The selection screen has three menus too. The "Size" menu allows  to
  change unit ABackup is using to display the size of selected files. You  can
  choose beetween Bytes (the default unit), Kilobytes and  Megabytes.  If  you
  select the "Automatic" item, ABackup  will  automatically  change  of  unit,
  depending  of  the  size  of    selected  files.  Later,  we'll  describe  the
  "Selection" menu. Last, the first  menu  is  either  "Backup"  or  "Restore"
  (depending of which operation you've choosen) and has the following  options
  :

  Start
      Allows to start backup or restore. If you selected no  file  and    no
      subdirectory, an error message will be displayed.

  Options
      Allows to change the backup or restore options.

  Estimations
      Gives an estimation of backup  time  and    of  the  number  of  disks
      needed. The result depends of the size of  the  selected    files,    of
      backup options, and of the processor inside your Amiga. It  may  not
      be accurate if other tasks are running during  the  backup.  ABackup
      always suppose that you backup a hard disk to floppies.

  About...
      Displays some informations  on  this  program.  To  continue,  click
      within the window, over the window close gadget or press any key.

  Abort
      Allows to abort whole operation. After it asked to confirm,  ABackup
      returns to the main screen.

Error_recovering

      When an error occurs while writing on a disk, you will  see  the
  following message "Write error on DFx:, should I try to recover  ?".  If
  you answer "NO", the backup will be aborted.
      If you answer "YES", ABackup will copy all data already  written
  on the bad disk to a new disk, so backup will be able to  continue.  So,
  you will have to provide a new disk, of the same type than the bad one :
  you can't use (for example) a High Density disk (1.76 Mb) to  replace  a
  normal density disk (880 Kb).
      The copy will be processed using a single disk drive.  In  order
  to limit disks swap, ABackup will allocate a buffer in memory. The  size
  of this buffer will not be greater than half of the largest CHIP  memory
  block still available, *OR* than the    size  of  three  tracks.  If  this
  buffer can't be allocated, the backup will be aborted.



                 CAUTION :

      If you made an  error  recovering  during  a    backup,  I
      strongly advise you to verify the archive so    you'll  be
      sure that all went well.

Viewing

      From the selection  screen,  you  can  view  any  file  just    by
  double-clicking on its name. A window appears, with several gadgets.
      The "Execute" gadget shows the name of the viewer to use for the
  selected file. The file's name and type (from  which  the  name  of  the
  viewer is set) are displayed above  (in  white).  You  can,  of  course,
  modify the name of the program to use. The two lower gadgets    allow  you
  to start viewing ("OK" gadget), or to abort operation ("CANCEL" gadget).
      If you try to view a link, ABackup will just display the name of
  the file or directory the link points to.

Compression

      ABackup is able to compress files to backup, in order to  reduce
  archive size.  By  default,  the  algorithm  is  the    same  as  for  the
  "compress" UNIX command : you can hope for a space-saving  from  30%  to
  50%, but the backup is seriously slowed down with a "normal" 68000 based
  Amiga.
      Note that ABackup will not try to compress files with a  ".lha",
  ".lzh", ".zoo", ".arc", ".pp" or ".z" file name extension,  as  well  as
  any file less than 512 bytes long. You can specify other  extensions    to
  don't  compress,  with  the  NOCOMP  argument   (see   "Getting_started"
  section). ABackup also look at the first bytes of the files,    to  detect
  files already compressed by XPK or PowerPacker.

      You can use external    compression  and  decompression  programs,
  which may be faster and/or better. All you have  to  do  is  the  modify
  ABackup configuration (see "Configuration" section) : enter the  command
  to execute both for compression and decompression, specifying "%s" as  a
  source file and "%d" as a destination file. For exemple, in order to use
  the commands provided with PowerPacker  (copyright  by  Nico  François),
  enter :

      Crunch %s %d NOLED NOPER NOSUFFIX EFFICIENCY 1

  as compression program, and :

      Decrunch %s %d QUIET

  as  decompression  program.  You  won't  be  able  to  select   external
  compression as long as no command name has been given. When  backing    up
  and restoring, ABackup automatically runs the  specified  commands,  and
  redirect their output to the "T:ABackup.log" file. You can look at  this
  file if an error occurs.

      This version of ABackup can also use the XPK    library  (on  Fish
  disk 754). This library will    be  automatically  recognized  if  already
  installed in your "LIBS:" directory. You will then be able to select one
  of the available compression method, in the options window. The name    of
  the methods are prefixed with a "x" character, like "x BLZW".

      Take care that it  won't  be  possible  to  restore  an  archive
  compressed with an external program, or with XPK library, if    you  don't
  have the corresponding decompression program. Though, you  should  avoid
  to use external compression if you plan to give the archive to  somebody
  else.

The_catalogue

      ABackup creates a catalogue of the files archived, and use it to
  restore. This catalogue is put at the end of the archive. If    you  loose
  the catalogue (archive file damaged or disk lost), you can create a  new
  catalogue with the "Rebuild_catalogue" function, described below.

      This version of ABackup uses a new catalogue    format,  far  more
  compact than the previous one : the catalogue is then two or three times
  smaller than before. The size of the catalogue is displayed when ABackup
  add it the the archive. Of course, this program  can    load  a  catalogue
  created by the older versions of ABackup, but the contrary is not  true.
      With the old format, you could have  memory  problems  with  big
  archives (several thousands of files) because the catalogue will take  a
  lot of memory. If you ever have a "not enough memory" error when loading
  a catalogue (whatever version of ABackup you use) here is two tricks  to
  restore files anyway.

      The first solution is to reboot you Amiga, so you'll start  with
  an unfragmented memory. If you mounted a "RAD:" disk, remove it with the
  "RemRAD"  command  before  you  reboot.  If  you  have  some  background
  utilities you don't need while restoring, kill them to free more memory.
  Then, use the TMPDIR argument to assign the  temporary  directory  to  a
  hard disk partition with at least 1 Mb of free space, and try  again    to
  restore. If ABackup fails again, you will have to use the second method.
      The second solution is to create new catalogues,  that  will    be
  smaller. If the archive has been created with an old version of ABackup,
  try first to make only one  catalogue  :  as    the  new  format  is  more
  compact, maybe this will be enough. Else, you will have to make  several
  catalogues : divide your archive in several  parts,  and  create  a  new
  catalogue for each part.

The_Selection_menu

      ABackup has the capability of recording a file selection so that
  you can recall it later : this can be useful if you use  frequently  the
  same selections. These ones are kept as text files containing a  set    of
  commands : these files are in the "ABCK:" directory.
      In order to record a selection, choose the "Record" item in  the
  "Selection" menu; then, do your selection as you do usually. Note  that,
  during this recording, the "Backup" menu disappear (for the time being).
  Once you have ended, select the item "Save" in the "Selection"  menu  to
  save your selection. If you want to abort a recording, choose  the  item
  "Abort" in the "Selection" menu.
      To recall a selection, choose the "Load" item in the "Selection"
  menu. A file requester will be displayed allowing  you  to  specify  the
  selection file you want use. If you click on the  "OK"  gadget  in  this
  file requester, that file will be loaded and selection it contains  will
  be executed.

      This is description of the selection language used  by  ABackup.
  This allows to create or modify a selection file as you like,  by  means
  of your usual text editor.

      CD :                  go back to root directory
      CD /                  go back to parent directory
      CD "dir"                        go down in given directory
      INVERT                  reverse selection
      RECURS {YES|NO}              set recursivity flag
      INCLUDE ALL              include all files
      INCLUDE "name"                  include given file
      INCLUDE NAME "name" {==|!=}     select by name
      INCLUDE DATE "date" {<=|>=}     select by date
      INCLUDE BITS "bits" {=0|=1}     select by protection bits
      EXCLUDE ALL              exclude all files
      EXCLUDE "name"                  exclude given file
      EXCLUDE NAME "name" {==|!=}     exclude by name
      EXCLUDE DATE "date" {<=|>=}     exclude by date
      EXCLUDE BITS "bits" {=0|=1}     exclude by protection bits

  Here is an exemple of selection file:

      RECURS YES
      ; go back to root
      CD :
      ; clear any selection
      EXCLUDE ALL
      ; include all files with archive bit cleared
      INCLUDE BITS "a" =0
      ; exclude all ".o" files
      EXCLUDE NAME "#?.o" ==

      Note that empty lines and lines starting by a ";" character  are
  ignored. Also note that ABackup  stores  automatically  the  recursivity
  indicator state at the beginning of your selection record : if you  take
  a look at the created files you'll see they all  beging  by  a  "RECURS"
  command. If you want to be sure to  clear  a    previous  selection,  it's
  recommended to start all your  selections  by  clicking  on  the  "ROOT"
  gadget and then on "EXCLUDE ALL".

Usage_without_interface

      ABackup can be used from CLI, without  it's  graphic  interface.
  This may be useful for doing    automatical  backup,  with  programs  like
  "cron". Four operations are allowed from this  level:  backup,  restore,
  rebuild catalogue, archive listing.

      Backup is started with a command like:

      ABackup BACKUP FROM dir TO arc  SELECT  {ALL|ARC|file}  [OPTIONS
      {C|V|A|L}] [NOCOMP ext,ext,...] [VERBOSE] [REPORT file] [BUFSIZE
      size] [NOTASK] [TMPDIR dir]

  where "dir" is the directory to backup and "arc" the name of the archive
  to create. The "SELECT" argument allows to select files  to  backup:  it
  must    be  followed  by  the  name  of  a  selection  file  (for  exemple
  "ABCK:FullBackup"), by the keyword  "ALL"  which  allow  to  select  all
  files, or by the keyword "ARC" which allow  to  select  all  files  with
  archive bit cleared.
      The "OPTIONS" optional argument allow to change  backup  options
  (CAUTION: by default, ALL options are reset) : "C" for compression,  "V"
  for verifying, "A" to set archive bit, "L"  to  backup  links.  You  can
  specify several options (for exemple "OPTIONS CV").
      The "REPORT" optional argument allow to have  a  backup  report.
  Specify "PRT:" as a file name in order to have this report printed.  The
  "VERBOSE" optional argument allow to have more messages  during  backup.
  The other arguments are described at the "Getting_started" section.

      Restore is started with a command like:

      ABackup RESTORE FROM arc [TO    dir]  SELECT  {ALL|file}  [OPTIONS
      {F|D|E|L}] [REPLACE  {YES|ASK|OLDER}]  [VERBOSE]  [REPORT  file]
      [BUFSIZE size] [NOTASK] [TMPDIR dir]

  where "arc" is the name of the archive. The "SELECT" argument allows  to
  select files to restore: it must be followed by the name of a  selection
  file (for exemple "ABCK:SourcesFiles") or by the  keyword  "ALL",  which
  allow to select all files without having to create a selection file.
      The "TO dir" optional argument allow to  restore  files  in  the
  specified directory, rather than the directory they were at backup time.
      The "OPTIONS" optional argument allow to change restore  options
  (CAUTION: by default, ALL options are reset) : "F" to restore all  files
  in the same directory,  "D"  to  restore  date,  "E"  to  restore  empty
  directories, "L" to restore links. You can specify several options  (for
  exemple "OPTIONS FE").
      The "REPLACE" optional argument allow to  specify  what  ABackup
  has to do if a file to restore already exists. It must  be  followed    by
  "YES" (or "Y", the file is replaced), by "ASK"  (or  "A",  you  will  be
  asked for confirmation), or by "OLDER" (or "O",  the  file  is  replaced
  only if it's older than the one in the archive). By default,  files  are
  not replaced.
      The "REPORT" optional  argument  allow  to  have  a  restoration
  report. Specify "PRT:" as a file name  in  order  to  have  this  report
  printed. The "VERBOSE" optional argument allow  to  have  more  messages
  during   restore.   The   other   arguments    are   described   at   the
  "Getting_started" section.

      Rebuilding catalogue is started with a command like:

      ABackup REBUILD  FROM  arc  [VERBOSE]  [BUFSIZE  size]  [NOTASK]
      [TMPDIR dir]

  where "arc" is the name of the archive. The "VERBOSE" optional  argument
  allow to have more messages during processing. The other  arguments  are
  described at the "Getting_started" section.

      Archive listing is started with a command like:

      ABackup LIST FROM arc [TO file] [NOTASK] [TMPDIR dir]

  where "arc" is the name of the archive. The "TO file" optional  argument
  allow to write the listing into the  specified  file,  rather  than  the
  console window. Specify "PRT:" as a file name in order to have the  list
  printed. The other arguments    are  described    at  the  "Getting_started"
  section.

Program_history

      ABackup was written almost in  C  language,  on  an  Amiga  3000
  UNIX-1 (10 Mb RAM, internal HD disk drive, internal hard disk of 100 Mb,
  external SyQuest drive of  88  Mb,  external    floppy    disk  drive,  1960
  monitor and Star LC24-10 printer) connected by a null-modem cable to    an
  A500 with 1 Mb RAM.

  v1.00   08-Jun-92, 58036 bytes

  v1.10   20-Jun-92, 59404 bytes
      o Handles High Density floppy disks (1.76 Mb).
      o When run from the Workbench, you can change the  size  of  the
        read buffer with "BUFSIZE=<size in Kb>" in  the  "TOOL  TYPES"
        field of ABackup icon.
      o Several changes in backup :
        - when there is any problem at initialization time, goes  back
          to the selection screen
        - when an archive file exists, or there is already a  disk    in
          drive, asks to confirm before starting writing
        - tests if files to back  up  are  protected  against  a  read
          (opening a file works in any  case,  but  under  2.0  system
          release you will be kicked out at the first read    operation)
        - displays the compression rate for every file (after "OK")
      o Several changes in the interface :
        - added the "Size" menu in the selection screen  (Bytes/Kb/Mb)
        - displays backed-up/restored percentage and remaining one
        - the "monitor" window (in blue) is larger when screen  is  in
          PAL mode
      o Time valuation more accurate (uses the "timer.device").

  v1.20   28-Jun-92, 62616 bytes
      o Added the "Selection" menu in the selection screen :  you  can
        record a selection and recall it later.
      o Fixed several bugs :
        - as a result of an error in the computing of remaining  place
          in the last disk, sometimes it wrote a catalogue overlapping
          two different floppies
        - when you swapped a disk during a    file  header  writing,    it
          forgot to set up the disk position at 0 (in the catalogue)
        - during a read, at the end of a disk, it  detected  one  byte
          earlier it had to ask for the next disk.
      o For a by date selection, you can give  the    month  name  (e.g.
        "01-Jan-92")
      o When run from the  Workbench,  it  does  not  open    the  small
        "console" window.

  v1.30   01-Jul-92, 67640 bytes
      o Double-click upon a name starts a "view" operation
      o Under 2.0 system release, uses "dos.library" pattern  matching
        functions (more powerful than SAS/C ones)
      o Added "Estimation" option in "Backup" menu
      o Displays error messages rather than error codes
      o Bug fixed in "draggin select":  didn't  displayed  directories
        when scrolling list
      o Restore screen's title when "Abort"  is  selected  on  archive
        selection menu (Restore)

  v1.31   04-Jul-92, 68316 bytes (Fish #706)
      o Added "Restore date" option
      o Added auditive beep in alert/wait functions
      o No more need for "arp.library" to make drives "BUSY" under 1.3
        system release
      o Estimations more accurate (don't suppose  that  last  disk  is
        full)

  v1.40   22-Aug-92, 78328 bytes
      o Can use several disk drives for backup
      o Full access from CLI ("batch" mode)
      o Bug fixed: always tried to decompress archive catalogue  (even
        if it was not)
      o Bug fixed: when loading archive file  catalogue,  scanned  all
        archive beginning (instead  of  going  straight  to  the  good
        location)
      o Preparation of non-dos partitions backup (most of the required
        code written)
      o Added visual beep to each auditive beep

  v1.50   09-Sep-92, 81068 bytes
      o Added support for links under 2.0 system  release  (both  hard
        and soft links are handled)
      o Added "Backup links" and "Restore links" options
      o Added "Automatic" item to "Size" menu
      o Added "NOCOMP ext,ext,..." argument
      o When requesting a disk for writing, verifies that the disk has
        really been changed before continuing
      o If an error occurs while writing on a disk, make one retry
      o Error in percentage computation corrected
      o On selection  screen,  directories    with  at  list    one  child
        selected are displayed on a black background
      o No more overflow from "monitor" window if  file  name  is  too
        long
      o Bug fixed in SendPacket() function
      o Bug fixed in time computation (00:29:59 + 1 gave 01:00:00  ...
        whoops !)
      o Forgotten trace message removed

  v1.51   07-Oct-92, 81048 bytes
      o Any file or directory whose comment begins    with  "SKIPME"  is
        ignored when loading directory tree
      o Bug fixed : no more problems if the  size  of  a  file  change
        between the time we load directory tree and time we  save  the
        file
      o Bug fixed : didn't clear destination name between two  restore
        (so the second was made is the same directory than the  first)
      o Update status display when disk is changed

  v1.60   15-Oct-92, 84312 bytes (Fish #759)
      o Added function to rebuild catalogue
      o  Selection    screen    modified  (added  "OPTIONS"  and   "START"
        gadgets, etc...)
      o Estimations for 68000 Amigas corrected (thanks to JYP !)
      o If a file is read protected (under 2.0 system release) ask for
        retry
      o When restoring, display the name of the file  created  instead
        of the name in the archive
      o Restore option "At the same level" renamed "Restore dir. tree"

  v1.61   21-Oct-92, 84472 bytes
      o From WB may be set as "DEFAULT TOOL" of an archive file
      o File type (for visualisation) : no longer binary when an <ESC>
        character is found
      o Window are now centered on the screen
      o Menus are no longer present during backup or restore

  v1.70   29-Oct-92, 87016 bytes
      o Can use external programs for compression/decompression
      o Added a menu for the startup screen (Config, About, Quit)
      o Screen's title show what is the current operation
      o On selection screen, when  restoring,  the    "Directory"  field
        shows the destination directory
      o By default, compression is disabled
      o Documentation modified so it can be read with ADoc

  v1.80   11-Nov-92, 88528 bytes
      o Creates a child task for disk write operations (speedup backup
        between 10-20%)
      o Sets archive bit only on files/dirs which have not it  already
        set
      o Filenames are truncated to    the  left  instead  of    the  right
        ("Directory" field, "monitor" window, e.g. ".../foo/bar")

  v2.00   22-Nov-92, 90492 bytes (Fish #780)
      o Can use XPK library
      o Added the error recovering function

  v2.01   06-Dec-92, 90520 bytes
      o When using XPK  compression,  sometimes  forgot  to  delete  a
        temporary file
      o Disable compression  if  preferences  tells  to  use  XPK  and
        library couldn't be opened
      o Cosmetics changes on file requester

  v2.10   12-Dec-92, 88652 bytes
      o Compiled with SAS/C 6.00
      o New catalogue format, far more compact
      o Show catalogue size when adding it to archive
      o A few optimizations in display functions (gadget  borders  now
        draw with GfxGList instead of GfxOp)
      o The "Parent" gadget at the left of the file  list  has  now  a
        border

  v2.11   19-Dec-92, 88708 bytes
      o When writing  catalogue,  display  the  informations  as  when
        writing a file (Crunching, Writing, Ok x%)
      o Updating informations when disk changed : now only disk number
        and time modified

  v2.12   25-Dec-92, 89492 bytes
      o Compiled with SAS/C 6.1
      o Verifies XPK.library version (at least version 2)
      o Added argument TMPDIR to change temporary directory

  v2.13   08-Jan-93, 90208 bytes
      o Child task disabled under system release 3.0, because it makes
        the system crash.
      o When modifying backup options, compression    methods  cycle    in
        reverse order if SHIFT key is hold down.
      o When backing up to a file,    the  gauge  displays  the  filling
        percentage of the volume.
      o Bug fixed: in "batch" mode,  forgotted  the  target  directory
        specified for restoration.

  v2.20   16-Jan-93, 90644 bytes
      o Can now restore from several disk drives
      o Bug fixed in backup: saved the target name instead of the link
        name (though didn't found the link at restore time)
      o Bug fixed in backup: the AddCatalog() function didn't returned
        the correct return code if the catalogue wasn't compressed
      o Bug fixed in restore: didn't  restore  the  correct  date  for
        directories
      o Bug fixed in  reports:  didn't  write  the  correct  date  for
        directories
      o The call of viewer programs is safer

  v2.30   24-Jan-93, 91700 bytes
      o Can now save several partitions in the same archive
      o Bug fixed when writing configuration file: the viewer  program
        names were not written at the good position
      o The temporary directory can be modified in    the  configuration
        window, and saved in the configuration file.
      o Added the "SIZE" argument (changes  default  value  of  "Size"
        menu)
      o Communication with    child  task  now  performed  via  messages
        (instead of signals)
      o Child task stack size is now 4Kb (instead of 2Kb)
      o Shortening    names  too  long:  now    tries  to  remove  a  full
        directory name until it works, also done when writing reports.
      o Bug fixed in date computation.
      o Since v2.20, viewing  a  file  didn't  worked  if  the  viewer
        program detached itself.
      o Final requester of non-registered version more irritating
      o A few optimizations in display functions

  v2.31   30-Jan-93, 91888 bytes
      o If a SHIFT key is hold down while you click upon  a  directory
        name, the whole directory content is selected/deselected
      o Drag selecting now also include/exclude directories
      o Bug  fixed:  sometimes  losed  archive  name  before  starting
        restore

  v2.40   06-Feb-92, 92364 bytes (Fish #838)
      o No more crashes with child task under OS 3.0  (KS  39.106,  WB
        39.29)
      o Recompiled with SAS/C 6.2
      o Link restoration more  efficient  (no  need  to  insert  disks
        twice)
      o Directory sort faster (QuickSort instead of Shell sort)
      o Enhanced multi-selection in file requester

  v2.41   20-Feb-93, 93124 bytes
      o Can now  use  the  file  requester    from  asl.library  (USEASL
        argument)
      o Recognize now XPK and PowerPacker compressed  data    files  and
        don't compress them
      o Add a comment to archive files saying they are ABackup archive
        files

  v2.42   23-Feb-93, 93264 bytes
      o Bug fixed: when using external compression, ABackup  tried    to
        restore protection bits and date on the temporary file  (which
        was already deleted) instead of the restored file.
      o Bug fixed: for Lock() to work on a soft-link, you must  be  in
        the directory were is the link, so now  temporary  changes    of
        directory.
      o Bug fixed in french version: if an error occured when  setting
        archive bit, the error message was not good
      o Bug fixed in english version: didn't display catalogue size at
        the end of the backup

  v2.43   13-Mar-93, 93328 bytes
      o Bug fixed: the "rebuild catalogue" function didn't worked with
        multi-partitions archives
      o Better requesters look (add a bow  with  GfxGList  instead  of
        writing on a black background, etc...)
      o Bug fixed: directory sorting with QuickSort() wasn't ok
      o Bug  fixed:  the  viewing  function  crashed  on  a  68000    (a
        "short *" wasn't aligned)
      o Bug fixed in english version: the "bad  XPK  version"  message
        was missing
      o The LIST function asks disks like REBUILD (so  you  can  start
        from any disk, and some disks may be missing)

  Planned improvements :
      o Support for non-AmigaDOS partitions (AMAX, etc...)