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P C B G a t e v 2 . 0
A Fido Type 2 to PCBoard Message Base Converter
by Tom Wilson
(C)Copyright CDC Software Development
1
What is PCBGate?
PCBGate is a Fidonet type 2, to PCBoard v12.x+ message
base converter. It will read a Fidonet message base, and
convert it to a PCBoard message base. Conversely, it will
scan a PCBoard message base and produce Fido Standard
compatible messages. First of all, let's get the legal crap
out of the way.
Legal Crap
PCBGate is free to anyone who wishes to use it, provided
they abide by the following restrictions:
- The code, documentation, or any other part of PCBGate may
not be modified.
- Credits pertaining to the original author remain.
- No fees be charged for the use or sale of PCBGate.
That's it....
Terminology
To avoid confusion, the following are the terminologies
that will be used throughout this document:
FIDO (Fidonet)
I use this as a generic term. PCBGate will operate under
any echomail network compatible with Fido Type 2 messaging
standards as outlined in the Fido technical specifications.
This includes Alternet, IMEX, EGGNet, etc. etc.
QNET
By Qnet I refer to any PCBoard compatible echomail
network. This includes CanConfmail, Smartnet, Interlink,
etc. etc.
ARC (Archive)
I guess I'll have to say this. I use the term ARC for
representational purposes only, and not for financial or
statutory gain. <sigh> Some E-Mail networks may use
different compression methods such as Zip, LHARC, ZOO, etc.
ARC is used as a generic term for a compressed file.
2
QMail (Qwikmail)
By QMail I refer to Mark (Sparky) Herring's FINE line of
PCBoard compatible echomail programs and utilities. This is
not to be confused with the Fido compatible Qmail echomail
processor.
Confmail
Confmail is another excellent echomail utility designed
for Fido compatible networks. There are others available,
such as Qmail, which should not be confused with the above
Qmail.
QNET (QNET.EXE)
QNET.EXE is Mark Herrings utility for tossing and scanning
Qmail echomail packets.
PCBoard
I am of course referring to Clark Development Company's
PCBoard BBS Software, an excellent product.
Cross Conferencing
This is where you send a conference from one network, into
another. For example, sending the Fidonet TECH base into a
Qnet network as a completely independent base in Qnet.
Merge Conferencing
This is where you MERGE say, the Fidonet TECH base and the
Qnet TECH base. It can produce a mess, but can be quite
productive if used properly.
3
Overview
How does PCBGate work? Good question. PCBGate is
composed of 2 main programs, which have command line
parameters for operation:
PCBGATE.EXE
TOFIDO - Convert a PCBoard message base to Fido format.
TOPCB - Convert a Fido message base to PCBoard format.
MANUAL - Manually process selected areas either way.
GATECFG.EXE
CONFIG - Configure which conferences to process.
SET - Set last message read markers.
Once PCBGate is configured properly, the above commands
will process your mail in whichever direction you like.
Last message read markers are kept track of to ensure old
messages in the PCBoard base(s) don't get out.
4
Setup and Configuration
The easiest way to do this is in steps. PCBGate isn't
that difficult, as long as you know generally what's going
on with your echomail bases and utilities. If you're going
to get tricky and cross or merge conferences, I'll cover
that a bit later to make things easier. Below, we'll
configure a simple mail system; bringing Fido mail into a
PCBoard system.
1 - Copy the files from the distribution archive to any old
directory. For this example I'll use D:\GATE.
2 - You should have a list of paths to your PCBoard message
bases handy for this. Type:
PCBGATE CONFIG
PCBGate will create 3 files, PCBGATE.CFG, which holds your
paths and other information pertaining to message bases,
PCBGATE.LMR, which holds the last message read values for
each conference, and SYSOP.DAT, which holds the sysop name.
Next you'll get a screen full of 100 blank areas. Each of
these can hold 1 conference for conversion. The prompt at
the bottom of the screen will ask you for an area to edit.
Choose #1, and I'll explain each of these prompts in detail
below.
- AREA NAME
This is the proper name of the echomail area as used by
your Fido network. Every echomail base in a Fido network has an area name to make itself unique, such as TECH, BASIC,
PKWARE, etc., such as those in Confmail's AREAS.BBS file.
- MSGS Filename
This is the filename of your PCBoard message base.
Usually, it's called MSGS, however I myself rename the
message base names to reflect the base, such as TECH, U-IBM,
etc etc. Note that this is the base name ONLY, and NOT the
path!
- MSGS Pathname
This is the path to your PCBoard message base. Do NOT
include the filename of the message base! You did that
above. If you don't include a trailing backslash, one will
be added.
5
- Fido Pathname
This is the path to your Fido message directory, or where
you want Fido messages read from, and left when created by
PCBGate. Typically, it's the same as above, and you'll
notice it defaults to what you entered above. You can
specify any legal pathname here.
- Send Private?
If set to "N", this tells PCBGate not to send private mail
from either the PCBoard or Fido message base. Private mail
is typically not used in an echomail system, but some may
want to allow private mail.
- PCB Echo On?
This option can be extremely complicated. It basicly
determines if you want to Cross or Merge conference. If
you're not gating between networks, leave this option set to
"N"!!! If set to "Y", it will write all messages to the
PCBoard base with the echo bit on, and you risk losing mail.
Be careful with this one! If you are Cross Conferencing,
read further on and refer to the section on Cross
Conferencing.
- Echohost Net/Echohost Node
These 2 fields should contain the net and node number of
the Fido system you get your mail from, or who you send your
replies to. If in doubt, use your main echomail feed's
number.
- Your Net/Your Node
This is....need I explain?
- Kill Imported?
If set to "Y", this option will delete any Fido messages
in the directory specified for this conference, AFTER
they've been imported to PCBoard.
6
- PCB Pack Command
This is the command used to pack your PCBoard message
bases. For this, I HIGHLY recommend Sam Smith's ProPack
utility. If this option is configured incorrectly, it can
cause unexpected results, so read carefully:
I use the following in this field:
PROPACK $B$ 500 /RDUKL1N15
The first part is of course, the Propack command. The
next, "$B$", represents the PCBoard message base name. The
last 2 parts are command options for Propack. Basicly,
after PCBGate imports Fido messages, it will execute the
above command, with what you have as defined as "MSGS
Filename" in the place of "$B$". So lets say you specified
"MSGS" in the "MSGS Pathname" field. When executed,
PROPACK $B$ 500 /RDUKL1N15
becomes,
PROPACK MSGS 500 /RDUKL1N15
The "MSGS Pathname" field will be included as well, and
your base will be packed automaticly. YOU MUST PACK YOUR
MESSAGE BASES AFTER IMPORTING FIDO MAIL!!!! If you choose
not to have PCBGate do this for you, enter "NO" in this
field, and the bases will not be packed by PCBGate. You can
then perhaps run a batch file of your own afterwards.
- Erase .BAK?
Although Propack has an option for doing so, this will
delete the .BAK backup file produced by the message base
packer. If you use Propacks /K option, specify "N" here.
Otherwise, PCBGate will crash. If you use a packer that
leaves a .BAK file, specify "Y" and it'll be killed after
the base has been packed.
That's it, for one area. Go through and configure any
other areas you want to process in the same manner. One
thing I noticed, is typing in the same stuff for perhaps 50+
areas can be rather tedious. You'll notice at the bottom of
the screen it says:
0 - Edit Defaults
7
If you enter 0 for an area, you'll get the same screen as
above. Typically, your pack command for example, will be
the same for all areas. This may be the case for your node
numbers and any other information above. Fill in what you
would like to use as defaults. When done, press ESCape, and
you'll then be asked for the first and last areas to set
these defaults in.
So if you specify areas 1-50 for example, the information
you entered will be set in each of those areas as defaults
when you edit them. This makes life a bit easier for those
carrying many areas.
3 - Now that you have your areas defined, drop to DOS with
the ESCape key, and execute:
GATECFG SET
Again, you'll get the same screen of 100 areas. Choose
your first area. Here is where you set the high message
read markers for your PCBoard base. When you choose an area
to set, you'll be shown the highest message number in the
base, and the number of messages in the base. You can then
set this number to any you please. Why?
Lets say there's 1000 messages in the base. If you set
the high message read to 0, the first time you process your
PCBoard base to Fido format, it'll process ALL 1000
messages. You might want to do this, but if you only want
to top 100 messages sent out first run, set it to 900. From
here on in these markers will be maintained by PCBGate, but
you can change them anytime. Make sure all your defined
areas are set to your liking, and press ESCape to exit.
4 - That's it!
You're ready to start using PCBGate. However, I HIGHLY
recommend you read the following sections on the operation
of the program, as you can create quite the mess if you do
things improperly.
8
PCBGate - Operation
PCBGate operation is farily simple. You can process mail
in one of 2 directions. To convert your PCBoard bases to
Fido messages, execute the command:
PCBGATE TOFIDO
PCBGate will then read its configuration, and attack each
area defined one by one. It'll show you how many messages
it has left to go, the current message header, base name,
etc. etc. Once complete, you'll have directories full of
Fido mail.
NOTE!!! READ THIS! At this point you'd run something
like Confmail to process those messages into outbound mail
for transmission to your echo host or wherever. Once this
is done, YOU STILL HAVE FIDO MESSAGES LYING AROUND! Next
TOFIDO process, these will be overwritten, and you could end
up with a mess. It's highly recommended that you run a
batch file to kill off these old messages after you're
finished with them. Especially, 1.MSG, as it contains the
high message read marker for your Fido echomail processor,
and new mail in the next process may be ignored.
A sample TOFIDO process may involve the following:
1 - Run PCBGATE TOFIDO
2 - Run Confmail (or whatever)
3 - Kill off old Fido messages just processed
You do as you like for your own purposes, but for a
PCBoard system exporting mail the above is typical.
At any time during the process, ESCape may be pressed to
abort. In this case, the last message read marker is
updated to the current message at the ESCape press, and all
generated Fido messages are left as they are.
9
PCBGate - Operation
The other direction is about as easy. To import Fido mail
to your PCBoard bases, execute the command:
PCBGATE TOPCB
As before, PCBGate will read your configuration files and
head for the first base. It looks for any *.MSG files in
the specified directory, and if they exist, they are read in
one by one, and written to your PCBoard base. The same
status information is shown as with a TOFIDO process.
When an area is complete, the Fido messages just read are
killed off, (if specified in CONFIG) and the next area is
processed. When all areas are processed, PCBGate then packs
all your PCBoard bases. How extensive the pack is, depends
on the options specified in CONFIG. If you specified NO for
base packing, this step is skipped.
Again, ESCape can be pressed at any time to abort this
process. Fido messages for the current area are left alone.
No special procedures need be followed for this operation,
as it basicly looks after itself in all respects if you
allow it to. The only thing you'll need to do is pack your
bases if you specified PCBGate not to.
PCBGate - Manual Processing
What if you want to process only selected areas? I
accounted for that as well. Execute the command:
PCBGATE MANUAL
This will present a screen with the numbers 1-100, and
it'll ask you for an area to select. If you select area 1,
an "X" will appear below 1 to show it selected. If you wish
to DE-select a selected area, enter that area number again
and the "X" will toggle off.
The only problem is the area names aren't displayed.
Press F2 any time at this point, and a screen like the one
in GATECFG will list your defined areas.
Once you've selected the areas to process, press F1 to
continue, and you'll be asked which process you want to
execute, TOFIDO or TOPCB. Either process will be executed
exactly as they would be with either previous process.
10
PCBGate - PCBGATE.LOG
So that you know what PCBGate's been doing behind your
back, it generates a log file and reports everything it
does. A sample entry looks like so:
-----------Processing TOFIDO: 11-20-1989 ----------------
11-20-1989 01:05:20 HD_CDROM: 104 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:05:42 HST : 5 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:06:54 DTP : 15 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:09:16 VENDOR : 35 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:21:48 IBM : 161 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:23:42 BUYSELL : 27 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:24:41 NETWORKS: 14 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:25:23 SPREADSH: 10 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:33:59 AMIGA : 148 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:35:16 MIDI : 24 messages processed.
11-20-1989 01:36:39 TECH : 17 messages processed.
---------- End Processing: 11-20-1989-------------------
You can tell exactly how long it took to process each
area, as well as the number of messages processed.
Other Files
PCBGate maintains 2 other files:
PCBGATE.CFG
This file contains the information you entered in CONFIG,
namely your pathnames, node numbers, etc. etc.
PCBGATE.LMR
This file contains all the last message read pointers for
all 100 areas.
DO NOT at ANY time, edit these files by hand. They are
maintaned by PCBGate, and can be edited using GATECFG.EXE.
You risk blowing the whole works, as neither of these files
are in an "editable" form.
11
PCBGate - Cross Networking
As mentioned before, PCBGate can Cross Network. Meaning,
it gives one network the ability to share a conference with
another. This can get EXTREMELY complicated, so please bear
with me, and I'll try and explain from step 1.
First, a bit about how PCBGate operates under normal
conditions like that which has been explained in the above
document so far. We'll assume the "PCB Echo On?" option in
CONFIG is set to "N". When a TOPCB process is done, Fido
messages are written to a PCBoard base with the echo bit
OFF. Now, lets say the highest message in the TECH base is
100, and you import 10 Fido messages. The high message
marker says 100. Next TOFIDO process, PCBGate will look at
message 101, find the echo bit OFF (as specified) and ignore
it. That's how it's supposed to work, as you don't want the
10 messages you just imported to PCBoard, sent back into
your Fido network again. THAT we don't want. You should
have your PCBoard message base configured as ECHO, that way
any messages entered on your system will be written with the
echo bit ON, and PCBGate will sent them through to your Fido
network. That we DO want.
Take the above situation, except with the echo option in
PCBGate CONFIG set to "Y". EEEK!! Your Fido messages will
be sent BACK INTO YOUR FIDO NETWORK!!! Duplicate city!
PCBGate isn't that dumb. Note this: If you set the "PCB
Echo On?" option to "Y", when PCBGate does a TOPCB process,
it'll set the high message read marker for that base EVEN
with the highest message in that base. So let's say TECH
has 100 messages, and you import 10 Fido messages with Echo
ON. PCBGate automaticly sets the high message read marker
to 110 at the end of that process, so that the next time you
run a TOFIDO process, it'll start at message 111 (if it
exists). This way they don't get sent out again.
So why do this at all? Let's think PCBoard networks for a
minute. Utilities like Mark Herring's QNET.EXE will not
export a message unless the echo bit is set ON. So we want
imported Fido mail set to ON, so that they'll Gate through
into your Qnet network. Also, we don't want them sent BACK
into your Fido network, so the last message read marker is
set even with the highest message number.
So you MUST be careful, not only how this bit is set, but
how you process your mail when it is set. This I'll explain
next.
12
PCBGate - Cross Networking Operations
If you don't do things in a specific order, you're going
to lose mail from either your Fido network, Qnet network, or
those entered on your system. If you Cross Network, follow
this typical procedure.
1 - Run PCBGATE TOFIDO. This will process any mail entered
on your system, or brought in by your Qnet utility into your
Fido network.
2 - Run Confmail or whatever, and get that new mail the hell
out. After, kill off the old Fido messages so they don't
cause problems later.
3 - Toss any incoming Fido packets with Confmail or
whatever.
4 - Run PCBGATE TOPCB, and get this mail into your PCBoard
system.
5 - Run QNET.EXE or whatever, and get that new mail out to
your PCBoard network.
6 - Go to step 1.
This may not seem important, but think for a minute. Lets
say you have 2 new messages in TECH, entered on your system,
and you run a TOPCB process. Fido messages get imported
with echo ON, and PCBGate sets the high message read to the
highest message number (110 lets say). Now you run a TOFIDO
process. PCBGate is going to start at message 111. That's
what we want, but due to the order in which these processes
were executed, the mail your users entered never got passed
into your Fido network (oops!).
See what I mean? Use common logic in following which
process you should do when, and take any conditions into
consideration. The above is the way I run a Qnet/Alternet
Gate, and it works just fine.
** Just remember this: PCBGate will export a message to a
Fido network ONLY if the echo attribute is set to ON. If
PCBGate is configured to set the PCBoard echo bit on, it
will make the last message read equal to the highest number
in the base, after a TOPCB process.
13
PCBGate - Supplemental Utilities
There are a couple of utilities supplied with PCBGate to
make certain things a bit easier. They are described as
follows:
MSGSSTAT.EXE
This program is handy for checking your paths and message
base integrities. Simply run it in your PCBGate directory.
It'll read PCBGATE.CFG, and verify the integrity of each
PCBoard message base. It will also produce a log file,
MSGSSTAT.LOG, which reports which base has how many
messages, etc. etc. Any areas you specify with echo ON,
will appear in square brackets.
ECHOSET.EXE
This utility will set the echo attribute in ALL messages
in a PCBoard base, ON or OFF, as specified. To use, ECHOSET
must be run from the directory where the PCBoard base
resides that you want to process. It's command syntax is:
ECHOSET <basename> <ON/OFF>
So if you want to set all messages to ECHO in the UNIX
base for example, change to that directory and type:
ECHOSET UNIX ON or
ECHOSET MSGS ON
Echoset runs like lightning, so it won't keep you waiting
long. Even with thousands of messages in a base it only
takes a few seconds.
15TO20.EXE/LMRCNV.EXE
These are conversion programs for those who are running
versions of PCBGate EARLIER than v2.0. Refer to the file
UPDATE20.DOC for instructions, included in the distribution
file.
14
PCBGate - Support
If you have problems, or have any questions in relation to
PCBGate, feel free to contact me at the numbers below. If
you're looking for updates, you can get download access to
any newer versions on your first call.
Most of my time now will be devoted to producing CrossNet,
as it will make PCBGate more or less obsoloete. I'll of
course support the product, and fix any bugs, etc. But as
far as any major revisions go, I'll be putting anything in
that manner into CrossNet. CrossNet will also be available
as a free product as soon as it's suitable for release.
Please note that I am not a member of Fidonet at this
time, and therefore replying to netmail is more or less
impossible.
Thanks for trying PCBGate, I hope it works as well for you
as it does for me.
Tom Wilson
Canadian Data Communications
(416)-432-1631/(416)-432-3212 (IMEX 89:485/4 - 89:80/10)
2400 baud, 24 hours
15
