RevRdist is a ╥demand-pull╙ Macintosh equivalent of the Berkeley Unix program rdist╩(1). Both programs exist to keep copies of files synchronized among systems in a network. Where rdist╩╩normally runs on a source system and distributes updated files to destination systems, RevRdist reverses this: RevRdist runs on a client and copies information from the server system.
The intended environment for RevRdist is a group of Mac workstations, each with a local hard disk, connected to an AppleShare server. The server maintains the ╥master╙ copies of folders and files. Client workstations have local copies of (a subset of) these files, as well as additional files which may be unique to the workstation. When RevRdist runs, it compares the client copies of folders and files against the master copies. Then, based on options and criteria specified in a distribution control file, RevRdist does the following:
* Discards some unwanted files/folders from the client.
* Moves other files/folders to a ╥junk╙ folder on the client, from which they are discarded later.
* Copies files/folders from the server to the client.
* Makes client files/folders invisible from the Finder.
* Sets the Finder window positions of client files/folders to match those of the master copies on the server.
Actions can be specified explicitly for individual files or folders and default actions can be set on a per folder basis for contents of folders which have no explicit action.
