home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Magnum One
/
Magnum One (Mid-American Digital) (Disc Manufacturing).iso
/
d20
/
tway_131.arc
/
THRUWAY.DOC
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1991-11-04
|
24KB
|
330 lines
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ ThruWay v1.31: An Echomail PassThru Maintenance Utility │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Copyright (c) 1991, by SomaSystems[tm] and │
│ Bill Thomas, FidoNet Node 1:326/100 │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ Warranty & Limitation of Liability │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ThruWay is not warranted. By installing and using ThruWay, │
│ you accept the fact that the author makes no representations │
│ of any kind regarding the suitability or reliability of this │
│ utility for your intended use and that in no event shall the │
│ author bear any responsibility for any effects or actions of │
│ ThruWay on your computer. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ Overview: What Is ThruWay? │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ThruWay examines your echomail control file to determine if │
│ there are listed pass-through areas for which there are no │
│ longer any listed destination nodes. This situation can occur │
│ quite frequently for hub operators whose downstream nodes use │
│ AreaFix to turn echos on and off remotely. If all nodes turn │
│ off a given echo, the result is a dead-ended echo that still │
│ continues to be imported by the hub for no reason. │
│ │
│ ThruWay will create messages addressed to AreaFix at the echo │
│ hosts to turn off dead-ended echos. If more than one echo is │
│ located for a given host node, ThruWay will group them all │
│ into a single message to the echo host. The echo area entry │
│ is removed from the echo control file, and if requested, the │
│ related subdirectory (if applicable) is deleted. You can also │
│ control whether ThruWay removes dead-ended echos that are │
│ associated with certain nodes as explained in the config file │
│ documentation. │
│ │
│ Finally, ThruWay will optionally scan your bad message sub- │
│ directory and remove echo messages associated with areas that │
│ were recently dropped. You can set a bad message deletion │
│ interval of from 1 to 30 days. During this time any messages │
│ received in an echo that has been turned off by ThruWay and │
│ which is not listed in your active echo control file will be │
│ automatically deleted from the bad message subdirectory. │
│ │
│ ThruWay is coded to be fully zone- and point-aware, but has │
│ only been fully tested in a single zone environment. If you │
│ find any inter-zone problems, let us know and we'll fix 'em. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ Supported Echo Control File Formats │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ThruWay supports ZMail, QEcho, QMail, and old Opus/OMMM echo │
│ control file formats (often called AREAS.BBS files). Formats │
│ of each control file type are as follows: │
│ │
│ 1. The QMail style format: │
│ │
│ [#]Path EchoName EchoHost EchoDests │
│ │
│ Example: │
│ . │
│ C:\Binkley\Msgs\For-Sale FOR-SALE 326/100 200 301 302 │
│ #C:\Binkley\Msgs\Radio RADIO 326/100 200 302 │
│ . │
│ │
│ 2. The ZMail/QEcho style format: │
│ │
│ [P|AreaNumber] EchoName EchoHost EchoDests │
│ │
│ Example: │
│ . │
│ 1 FOR-SALE 326/100 200 301 302 │
│ P RADIO 326/100 200 302 │
│ . │
│ │
│ 3. The old Opus/OMMM style format: │
│ │
│ AreaNumber EchoPath EchoName [#] EchoHost EchoDests │
│ │
│ Example: │
│ . │
│ 0001 C:\Binkley\Msgs\For-Sale FOR-SALE 326/100 200 301 │
│ 0254 C:\Binkley\Msgs\Radio RADIO # 326/100 200 302 │
│ . │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ Installing & Running ThruWay │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ To install ThruWay, place ThruWay.Exe in a directory on your │
│ DOS path, preferably wherever you keep your other echomail │
│ utilities. Then edit the ThruWay.Cfg configuration file to │
│ reflect appropriate entries for your system, as discussed in │
│ the configuration file section of this document. Place the │
│ ThruWay.Cfg file in the directory from which ThruWay will be │
│ normally invoked (the default directory) or you may place it │
│ in any other directory you choose if you specify a full path │
│ to the configuration file on the command line. │
│ │
│ In most cases, ThruWay will be invoked by the batch file that │
│ performs your echomail processing or daily maintenance jobs. │
│ ThruWay must be run *after* your mail tosser and after Area- │
│ Fix, especially if you are using AreaFix's queue management │
│ feature (see "Special Considerations" below for more info). │
│ │
│ The command line to run ThruWay is as follows: │
│ │
│ ThruWay [Path:CfgFile] [/NoPause] [/Quiet] [/Status] [/?] │
│ │
│ The optional command line parameters specify a path and file │
│ name for an alternate ThruWay configuration file if you wish │
│ to override the default; whether ThruWay should omit slight │
│ pauses which it inserts in status reports which are displayed │
│ to the screen; if you wish to suppress error alert beeps │
│ (good for batch mode operations); and if you wish to have │
│ ThruWay put a status report in your netmail inbox to let you │
│ know the state of your echomail areas. │
│ │
│ Since ThruWay runs rather quickly, it is recommended that you │
│ not use /NoPause until you have tested ThruWay and you are │
│ satisfied that it is performing to your satisfaction. │
│ │
│ Entering /? or /Help on the command line displays a brief │
│ summary of the ThruWay command line and config file options. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ The ThruWay.Cfg Configuration File │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ There are several parameters in the ThruWay config file, of │
│ which one may occur multiple times. │
│ │
│ Parameter Description │
│ ───────── ──────────────────────────────────────────────── │
│ Address Your system's network address in the form │
│ Zone:Net/Node (e.g., 1:326/100). Required. │
│ │
│ AlertNoPwd If a dead end echo is found in your echo control │
│ file and there is no matching node for that echo │
│ in your EchoHost list in the ThruWay.Cfg file, │
│ ThruWay will not send an AreaFix message to that │
│ host. However, ThruWay will optionally send you │
│ an informative netmail "alert message" if you │
│ set AlertNoPwd to "Yes". Optional. │
│ │
│ AreaFile The path and name of your echomail control file, │
│ in the form Drive:Path\FileName (e.g., │
│ C:\BBS\Areas.BBS). Required. │
│ │
│ AreaFormat The type of echo control file which ThruWay is │
│ to process. The current supported values for the │
│ parameter are "P", "#", or "O", for ZMail/QEcho, │
│ QMail, & OMMM formats respectively. Required. │
│ │
│ BadPath The path to your mail tosser's bad message sub- │
│ directory in the form Drive:\Path (trailing "\" │
│ optional). Required if RemoveBad="Yes". │
│ │
│ BadHisDays Specifies the number of days, from 1 to 30, for │
│ which ThruWay will keep a note of each passthru │
│ echo it has dropped. This value determines how │
│ messages arriving for a dropped echo will be │
│ handled by the RemoveBad option of ThruWay. If │
│ RemoveBad is enabled, and a record of dropping │
│ the echo is still listed in ThruWay's history, │
│ the bad message will be deleted for you. If the │
│ bad message arrives after BadHisDays has passed, │
│ ThruWay will simply tell you about the message, │
│ but will not delete it from the bad message sub- │
│ directory. │
│ │
└──────────────────{Continued on next page}─────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ The ThruWay.Cfg Configuration File (Continued) │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ EchoHost Format: EchoHost HostAddress Password Flags │
│ │
│ Each occurrence specifies the network address of │
│ an echomail host, your AreaFix password for the │
│ specified host, and the message handling flags │
│ to be set for the messages created by ThruWay │
│ for the specified host. Required. │
│ │
│ Valid message handling flags are: [Crash|Hold| │
│ Norm] and [KillSent|Keep]. If flags are omitted │
│ the default flags Crash/Keep are used. │
│ │
│ NetMail The path to your system mail message directory │
│ in the form Drive:\Path (trailing "\" optional). │
│ ThruWay will place the .MSG files it creates in │
│ this directory. (e.g., D:\Mail\Out). Required. │
│ │
│ Notify The sysop name and node number of your point or │
│ another node to which copies of ThruWay status │
│ reports and error messages will be sent if you │
│ specify this optional parameter. See sample. │
│ │
│ RemoveBad Set to "Yes" if you wish to have ThruWay delete │
│ messages for echos that were recently dropped │
│ and which were placed in your bad message sub- │
│ directory by your mail tosser. ThruWay will not │
│ touch bad messages in echos that were not turned │
│ off by by ThruWay, but it will tell you about │
│ them in a status report. │
│ │
│ RemoveDirs If you are running a QMail style system where │
│ subdirectories are created for all echos, you │
│ can set this switch to "Yes" to have ThruWay │
│ remove the subdirectories for you. The default │
│ value is "No". Optional. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ DOS Exit ErrorLevels │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ThruWay returns the following DOS Exit ErrorLevels which may │
│ be used in batch files to determine subsequent actions based │
│ on ThruWay results: │
│ │
│ DOS ErrorLevel Description │
│ ────────────── ───────────────────────────────────────── │
│ 0 ThruWay ran to normal completion without │
│ errors; no passthru echos were dropped. │
│ │
│ 1 No passthru echos were dropped; ThruWay │
│ generated non-fatal warning error messages. │
│ │
│ 2 Some passthru echos were dropped; ThruWay │
│ generated non-fatal warning error messages. │
│ │
│ 3 Some passthru echos were dropped; no error │
│ message conditions occurred. │
│ │
│ 99 A fatal error caused ThruWay to abort prior │
│ to normal completion. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ Special Considerations │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Some users report that the queue management facility of the │
│ widely-used AreaFix utility has a small bug. We have not been │
│ able to duplicate this on our system, but apparently in some │
│ cases AreaFix does not insert node distribution information │
│ in a QEcho-style control file when AreaFix encounters a newly │
│ arrived echo area in the bad message directory for which a │
│ pending .QUE entry is present. In such cases AreaFix inserts │
│ only the echoname and host node info into the echo control │
│ file on its first run; the next time AreaFix runs, it removes │
│ the destination node entry(s) from its queue (AreaFix.Que) │
│ and updates the recipient node data in the echo control file. │
│ │
│ If this occurs with your system setup you should invoke Area- │
│ Fix twice in your mail handling batch file before you run │
│ ThruWay in order to avoid having ThruWay turn off an echo │
│ which the AreaFix queue manager has partially restored. │
│ │
│ This apparently occurs only with QEcho-style control files. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ ShareWare Notice │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ThruWay is copyrighted by SomaSystems[tm] and is a shareware │
│ utility. The following shareware fees apply to the use of │
│ this utility: │
│ │
│ Type Of Usage ShareWare Fee │
│ ─────────────────────────────────────── ───────────── │
│ BBS's and echomail hubs that are not │
│ operating for the purpose of making a │
│ profit - 0 - │
│ │
│ BBS's and echomail hubs which charge │
│ fees and are operated for the purpose │
│ of making a profit $ 15. *─┐ │
│ │ │
│ BBS's operated by corporations or by │ │
│ any government department $ 25. *─┤ │
│┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│└> * Please remit appropriate shareware fees to Bill Thomas, │
│ * SomaSystems, PO Box 171, Kittery Point, ME 03905. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ Support and Enhancements │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ If you have questions about ThruWay, please feel free to send │
│ netmail to Bill Thomas at FidoNet address 1:326/100. We will │
│ do our best to respond promptly. Please send along any bug │
│ reports also! │
│ │
│ Note: ThruWay was created with an E.T. personality. At some │
│ time during it's lifetime of use on your BBS, ThruWay may │
│ send one brief message back to its home planet, just to let │
│ us know its running okay. Don't be alarmed...it really won't │
│ steal your umbrella, your phonograph, or your kids! If it │
│ does generate such a message, it will be flagged as a normal │
│ priority message for host-routing by your mail handler; it │
│ will not cause your system to make a crashmail toll call. │
│ │
│ If you would like enhancements and new features incorporated │
│ into ThruWay, let us know. We'll do our best to accommodate │
│ your requests. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
▒▒▒▒▒──────┤ Acknowledgements │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Our thanks to beta testers Wayne Price and Paul Shoop, and │
│ a very special acknowledgement to Gordon Green for his many │
│ excellent suggestions. Thanks also of course to Tom Jennings │
│ for inventing this FidoNet madness, and to Jeff Rush for │
│ thinking up (what hath he wrought!) EchoMail. │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
