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1991-06-15
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30KB
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627 lines
Welcome to Archecker
Version 2.0
by
Bill Ziegler/Double Z Software
AC copyrighted 1991.
Preface and Forward and All Like That-
My thanks to Wayne Greer for COMPLETELY rewriting this DOC file-
it has made it possible for me to devote more time to adding
code and features to Archecker! Also, thanks to Wayne for very
valuable help when the infinite loop of the brain set in during
addition of imbedded archive features and the GIF file processor
routines -without his help and ideas, AC would STILL be
in the rewrite stage. Also, my thanks to my wife Cindy for her
patience and understanding during the "all-nighter" sessions
I needed for this program. Thanks to all the programmers who
wrote all these wonderful archivers, and Jim Derr, the author
of SHEZ, and Sam Smith of ToolShop BBS/PRODOOR fame who both
inspired this whole program, and my efforts in Turbo Pascal.
Finally, I'd like to mention the Turbo TechnoJocks Toolkit, which
has made Archecker smaller and faster, even with more features
added with each release.
-Bill Ziegler
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Disclamer......................................................Page 1
Authenticity...................................................Page 2
Introduction...................................................Page 3
System Requirements............................................Page 4
Required additional files......................................Page 4
AC and the Archivers...........................................Page 5
Installation...................................................Page 7
Command line switches..........................................Page 8
Tips and Troubleshooting.......................................Page 9
Registration...................................................Page 11
Registration form..............................................Page 12
Page 1
DISCLAIMER
Warning: I, Bill Ziegler/Double Z Software do not accept any
responsiblity for loss, personal or commercial, incurred while operating
this program. The first time you execute this program you are agreeing
to assume full responsibility for any and all damages that may result
and you execute this program at your own risk. See the SINGLE COPY
SOFTWARE LICENSE document/file for full disclaimer information.
There is no warranty of any kind, expressed or implied including but
not limited to warranties of merchantability and/or fitness for any
purpose, other than those mentioned in the document SINGLE COPY SOFTWARE
LICENSE. There is no liability for any damage to data, property,
or persons that may be caused directly or indirectly by the use of this
program, other than stated in the SINGLE COPY SOFTWARE LICENSE document
file included.
This program is being release under the Shareware concept. Shareware
is NOT freeware or public domain software. Shareware is a wonderful
concept, it allows you to try a program first before you purchase it.
Your use of this program for more than 30 days combined total use constitutes
your agreement to abide by its licensing requirements. You agree to either
register the program or stop using it.
Archecker is NOT crippled in any way-the "reverse crippleware" setup
in the older program "ARCTSTR.EXE" is not part of Archecker. In the
spirit of QModem, PKWare programs, and many other fine shareware
programs, Archecker is fully functional, and has no "counters" or
"calendar checkers", or any of that rot.
Registering the program will entitle you to ALL updates and new releases.
It will remove the unregistered shareware screens, provide your name,
BBS name if any, a Registered Version notice, clear your conscience
of stealing software, and help keep the shareware concept alive and well.
Software that is released as Shareware is usually made available to you
at a fraction of the cost of a commercial product. You are already getting
a bargin, so please register. Registration is only $10 which is already
1/3 the cost of most shareware. You will find a registration form at the end
of this document. Please fill it out and register your copy.
Page 2
AUTHENTICITY
This archive is officially distributed in the PKZIP format.
To discourage tampering with the executable files contained here, I have
included a file called validate.com. It is the same program obtained
from McAfee Associates to test file CRC's. You may for additional
safety run your own validate.com program on the executable programs here.
These files should have the following CRC results.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
File Name: ac.exe File Name: accfg.exe
Size: 24,435 Size: 8,442
Date: 6-15-1991 Date: 6-12-1991
File Authentication: File Authentication:
Check Method 1 - FF3A Check Method 1 - F551
Check Method 2 - 0719 Check Method 2 - 0460
File Name: putreg.exe
Size: 3,498
Date: 5-7-1991
File Authentication:
Check Method 1 - B327
Check Method 2 - 1336
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since this program deals with virus detection we request that BBS's or
indiviuals do not remove or add any files or make any changes to this
archive such as adding, altering, and/or removing files, etc.
Someone intent on adding a virus to this program could simply
change the results in this document, hence the -AV protection
You should also not use this program unless the original -AV
labels appear besides each file and the following is displayed
after unzipping them:
Authentic files verified! #GRJ249 BILL ZIEGLER/RENT-A-TECH BBS
To ensure you get a good copy of this program, run your current version
of Scan.exe on it or better yet, download the official releases from the BBS
stated in the registration section below.
If you would like file authenticity data to be sent to you when you
register just ask for it, a printed copy of the results will be sent
with your registration code.
Page 3
INTRODUCTION
ARCTESTER (AC) is a program to root through all those downloads you
score from those BBS's you molest on a regular schedule. For SYSOP's
all the uploads your 'nice' users send you can be processed with
AC as well. It will handle all major archivers I knew of when I
wrote AC, and has the following features:
(1) Un-archive executables from their host archives into a
'shadow' directory where they can be checked for viri.
(2) Invoke SCANvXX and check all the files AC found.
(3) Check any archives "imbedded' in the parent archive-
to infinite levels, or space on your hard drive,
whichever comes first. (zip file inside a zip file etc).
Those files are also unarchived and tested.
(4) Erase all files AC removed for testing, then
test the entire archive for corrupt files and truncation.
(5) Recomment the archives with a comment you can supply.
(6) Log all tests to a text file which you read and or print.
(7) Check out and log any GIF files found during testing.
with resoltion data and valid headers.
(8) "JAIL" any archives that have a virus inside, or those that
shows a corrupt archived. PAK, Ay-Ar-Cee, and SDN files cannot
be tested for corrupt archives since PAK does not return an
error code indicating this. Therefore, only files that are found
with a virus will be 'jailed' with PAK, Ay-Ar-Cee and SDN
extensions
(9) "JAILED" files are moved to the root DIR of the current drive
and renamed with an extention of .BAD
(10) If used on a BBS, an interactive mode is included for comm
support. AC does monitor carrier.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS Page 4
AC Requires 400K of ram and DOS version 3.0 or later to operate and a
full 100% IBM or compatible system.
AC can operate in a LARGE Desqview window-a small DV window will
promptly send AC and the rest of your system into limbo and
require a push of the Red Button.
AC.EXE may be placed anywhere in your system path but AC.EXE AND
AC.CFG MUST be in the same directory.
AC's interactive mode (comm support) has been sucessfully tested on
a HST Dual Standard locked at 38400 with no problems.
AC may be configured for BBS use, either nightly event processing
or test uploads immediately after they are sent with the user
still on line and watching their files being processed. AC
does monitor carrier droppers, should a loss carrier occur
AC will discontinue Interactive comm support mode but will
continue testing archives, when finished, AC will return control
to the BBS where it should finish up and deal with no carrier status.
The logfile will show where carrier was dropped by the timestamp.
AC does not multitask in itself, if desired to be run on multiple nodes,
a separate copy is required for each node. See license for limits on
number of copies.
AC incorporates color operation, for those with color monitors.
Color selection is random, with continuous cycling of foreground
colors on a white background. If you are a monochrome monitor user,
AC's color can be overridden with the /x command line switch.
Interactive mode is still in monochrome as much as possible, so
users without the ANSI.SYS driver resident can still have some
idea of what is being done with their archives.
ADDITIONAL REQUIRED FILES:
You must supply AC with the following files.
PKUNZIP.EXE - To process '.ZIP files
LHA.EXE (version 2.01 or later) - To process '.LZH files
PAK (version 2.51 or later) - To process '.PAK, '.ARC & '.SDN files
ARJ (version 2.00 or later) - To process '.ARJ files
At least one file to use as a comment file-ANSI is OK.
Please note, DO NOT use earlier versions of the above programs!
ARJ modules earlier than 2.0 may be destructive to older ARJ archives!
LHA modules earlier than 2.01 were not bug free and may give marginal results.
PAK modules earlier than 2.51 are NOT compatible with AC. DO NOT even
attempt to use it..You have been warned!
Page 5
AC and ARCHIVERS
AC and GIF:
As far as AC is concerned, a GIF is an archive-it DOES use
compression in its structure, and as of ver 2.0 of AC, any
GIF files in the target directory or imbedded in an archive
will be examined, and a report generated to a seperate
logfile. The logfile will contain the resolution of the
GIF, the number of colors it contains, and whether or not
the GIF had a valid header and internal color map.
GIF files are NOT checked for corruption. GIFLITE'd GIFs will
still pass muster. The GIF logfile is named ACGIFS.LOG,
and will end up in the AC home directory. GIFs imbedded
inside an archive will have the parent archive name
as the first line of the log entry. The file ACGIFS.LOG
is an ASCII-type file, so most sysops will be able to
figure out a way to import this to their description
databases.
AC and ZIP:
ZIP is the premier archiver. I had originally intended AC for just
zip files, but in the course of development, AC grew to fit the
other archivers as well. ZIP files process the fastest and will
make the prettiest log files. AC will not choke on AV's nor will
it remove the -AV labels from your files. ZIP self-extractors
will be recommented, if desired.
AC and Ay-Ar-Cee:
I personally refuse to allow any SEA garbage on my system, but
through the folks at NoGate, PAKv2.51, Ay-Ar-Cee files can be
manipulated. Archives made with SEA's ARCv6.0 have worked well
in processing. A bonus for those using PAK with AC, you can
comment your ARC format archives. The resulting archives cannot
have the comments displayed with SEA-type Ay-Ar-Cee, but PAK will
display the comment as if the ARC file was instead, a PAK file. PAK
as mentioned elsewhere, will NOT catch corrupted archives, be they
Ay-Ar-Cee, PAK or SDN-viri that can be extracted WILL be caught,
however. The logfile will reflect strange Ay-Ar-Cee files, too.
AC and LHA:
Previously called LHARC, LHA is now up to version 2.1+ AC will
operate on older LHARC archives, but will not comment them.
LHA's have proven to give the smallest file sizes but is one of the
slowest in file processing. Old LHARC self extractors are supported,
including the "small memory model" *.COM and the corrosponding "large
memory model" *.EXE's. LZH files made with LHAv2.1+ are handled,
and also are not commented.
AC and PAK:
PAK is number 2 and trying hard. Now at version 2.51, it is just a
tad slower that ZIP processing but still satisfactory, with
the exception that PAK DOES NOT return a DOS error code for
corrupted archives! Since AC uses DOS error codes to sort out
good archives from corrupt ones, AC has no way of knowing
if a PAK file is corrupt and will only assume they are valid files.
A virus in a PAK file WILL be caught if it is extractable,
and this WILL trigger the "JAIL" feature.
AC uses PAK to process PAK, ARC and SDN files and REQUIRES version
2.51 to operate. If you try and use an earlier version you will NOT
be amused at what happens. PAK self-extracting archives are
recommented, if desired.
AC and SDN:
AC will test SDN (PAK security envelop archives) thru PAK v2.51.
Processing is just a little slower than normal PAK files, and
starting with ACv2.0,AC SDN files WILL be recommented the same
way PAK files are, and with the same PAK-specific comment.
See the PAK section for corrupt archive test limitations.
The SDN security check "banners" will be included in the logfile,
and SDN's converted to self extractors will be handled and recommented
the same as other PAK archives.
AC and ARJ:
ARJ would definetely be a contender form the archive wars except
for its processing speed (unless using the -m2 or greater option).
AC will process ARJ files made with ARJv2.0 or later. Do not use
earlier versions of ARJ on files made with ARJv2.0 or later, as
older versions may (WILL) be destructive to those files. Registered
/unregistered version of AC no longer attempt to compensate for
or assume that it may encounter older ARJ's and will no longer
make special corrections for this, ARJ self-extracting files
will be processed, however, recommenting is suppressed for ARJ
self-extracting archives, as the act of recommenting them crashes
(at least my system) the system requiring a cold-reboot for recovery.
Until I trace this bug in my system (or in ARJ!), ARJ self-extractors
will remain locked out of the recommenting routines.
Page 7
INSTALLATION:
Included in this archive is a program called ACCFG.EXE. Run this program
and it will create a configuration file for you. This file will be
called AC.CFG and is a regular text file you may edit with your
favorite text editor. Previous releases of AC called this file ARCTSTR.CFG.
Note, anything after a ';' (semi-colon) in each line is considered a comment.
and is ignored by AC. Feel free to put some notes in there just in case
6 months from now you want to change something and the DOC's are no where
to be found but please don't add any additional lines.
Here is a sample config file:
c:\BBS\UPLOADS; *1) DIR where we will find the new files.
work; **2) Name for the main work DIR.
scratch; **3) Name of "hide" directory.
C:\Util\SCAN.EXE; 4) Pathname to SCAN executable.
C:\UTIL\PKUNZIP.EXE; 5) Pathname to PKUNZIP.
*.*; ***6) Files to extract for SCANning.
/NOMEM; 7) Options for SCAN command line.
C:\UTIL\LHA.EXE; 8) Pathname to LHA (LHARC) executable.
C:\UTIL\PAK.EXE; 9) Pathname to PAK executable.
e; 10) Option for LHA/PAK/ARJ command line.
C:\UTIL\ARJ.EXE; 11) Pathname to ARJ executable.
c:\BBS\ac.log; 12) Pathname to default logfile.
C:\UTIL\PKZIP.EXE; 13) Pathname to PKZIP.
c:\BBS\NEW; **14) Default DIR to move finished files to.
c:\logo\archive.cmt; 15) Pathname to comment file for all archives.
RAT BBS; 16) BBS name (or company name).
77C; 17) Version of SCAN in use by AC.
1; 18) COM port to use in interactive mode (1 or 2 ONLY).
19) Your name here when registered.
20) Your registration serial number.
NOTES:
* This is the directory we want AC to work on.
** Fields 2 & 3 above may be any name (dos permitting) but keep in
mind this name is a subdirectory that AC will create when it executes
and deleted when AC is finished. DO NOT use a current 'live' directory
for these command lines as the subdirectory and everything in it may be
destroyed-both directories are purged continually during AC operations.
DO NOT specify the same directories for the target and source directories.
The process AC uses to move files is QUITE destructive. If two files by the
same name exist you will have ONE file when AC finishes. No cheating with
Dr. Petes' Unerase if it is not the file you wanted. The other is GONE,
no deposit, no return.
See the COMMAND LINE SWITCHES section for the method to prevent file movement.
*** The *.* is a new feature for AC 2.0. Previously you had to specify
specific file extensions which you may still do, such as
*.exe *.com *.ovr *.ovl etc. If you place a *.* on this line ALL
files including *.doc *.txt *.ALL files will be tested for viri.
Page 8
COMMAND LINE SWITCHES
Please note that case is not important, /p is the same as /P.
/p-suppress PAK processing
/z-suppress ZIPprocessing
/l-suppress LHA processing
/j-suppress ARJ processing
/a-suppress ARC processing
/s-suppress SDN processing
/r-suppress recommenting (all)
/f-suppress archive testing.(all)
/t-New Target DIR (override)
/c-New Comment pathname (override)
/g-New loGfile pathname (override)
/d-New Destination DIR (override)
/m-suppress file moving
/y-assume "yes" to directory inquiries after a crash.
/i-interactive mode. Comm support, Comm1 or Comm2 Only.
/x-force monochrome operation.
/o-Only log bad files.
/k-Komment instead of logging.
Examples:
AC Defaults to AC.CFG file and scans for all archives AC.CFG is
configured for, including embedded archives. Imbedded
archives are deleted after checking.
AC /M Processes all archives configured but does not move files.
All imbeddeds are still deleted after checking.
AC /M /I /Y /X Suppresses file movement, activates the
interactive mode (comm support) and will not stop execution
if AC's 'shadow' directories are present after a crash.
Forces AC to work in monochrome shades.
AC /DC:\BBS\OTHER New destination directory, will override AC.CFG's
destination directory and place all files after
processing into the directory of c:\bbs\other.
AC /DC:\BBS\OTHER /GC:\BBS\NEWAC.LOG /CC:\UTIL\NEW.CMT /I /Y
New destination directory of C:\bbs\other, use a different
log file for this run and place all comments in a file
called NEWAC.LOG, recomment files with a different comment
file called NEW.CMT, use comm support and assumed crash.
AC /cC:\MYCMT.ANS /o
Recomment all files found with the file
C:\MYCMT.ANS, only log bad files in the logfile.
AC /cC:\CMT2.ASC /k
Activate the "/o" switch, and add lines to
file CMT2.ASC with AC test info, then comment all files
found with new resulting file CMT2.ASC. /K will save
test info into the comments of ZIP, PAK, SDN, and ARC
archives. LZH files are not commentable with AC.
Page 9
NOTES ON USE and TROUBLE SHOOTING
Imbedded archives:
AC checks all imbedded archives it can find/extract. It deletes
all imbedded files it extracts after checking, and does NOT Recomment
or Move imbedded archives, with the exception of corrupt
archives or virus infected archives, which it Jails.
All imbedded archives tested are logged to the logfile with a special
entry, including the name of the parent archive it was extracted from.
AC checks for imbedded archives FIRST, and takes special measures to
prevent archive destruction by cross-extraction. Cross-extraction is
characterized by the following example:
A BBS user uploads several files to a BBS, including the file
FOO.ZIP (A Shareware utility) to the target(upload) directory.
Then another user uploads a file called BAR.ARJ, which
unfortunately, contains an imbedded archive by the name of FOO.ZIP
(a data or DOC file) to the same directory. No problem, so far.
Unbeknownst to the SYSOP, he will LOSE the shareware utility if
he checks his uploads with some checkers-the act of extracting
the file BAR.ARJ will overwrite FOO.ZIP (the original)with its own
imbedded file FOO.ZIP (the data/DOC file). If the checker
cross-extracts, the result is the SYSOP has lost a file that
cannot be recovered. This is caused by the fact that
most checkers have to be run with the "overwrite" options
set to "yes" for overwriting present files, to assure reliable
unattended operation, as the "SMURF.COM exists-overwrite?" prompt
will halt their operation, and hang the computer/BBS.
To prevent the above scenario, AC handles imbedded files first,
after "hiding" the original files in a hidden, temporary directory.
Only after processing the imbedded archives is the original
file/directory structure restored, and normal operations resumed.
This is a transparent process, and is only mentioned here in
case of a crash that disables the entire system during AC
processing, so that you will know where to look for your files
during cleanup operations.
Imbedded GIF files will also be inspected/examined with the results
entered into the special GIF logfile, along with the name of the
"parent" archive the GIF was imbedded in.
Crash Recovery:
As mentioned under the "Imbedded Archives" section above, AC takes
particular pains to avoid cross-extraction of archives and their
contents to prevent file loss. The hoops needed jumping through
to accomplish this are transparent under normal conditions, but
if the elco decides that THIS is the day it is your turn to brown
out, or somebody "helps" you by massaging that pretty Red Button
during a run of AC, you may experience all kinds of wierd error
codes the next time AC comes up to run. Crash recovery routines
are built into certain areas of the code, but it is possible that
some contingency might come up that I haven't considered, that
will preclude a normal recovery/operation of AC. AC does not self-
modify itself in any way, nor does it screw around with the FAT,
nor anything Dr. Pete might be needed for. If you have had a crash
and AC just refuses to operate, try these steps first:
1) Inspect your Directory Tree on the drive AC works on/in. Look for
subdirectories off of the assigned target directory. It
may be neccesary to Scan or Logon to the drive, deleting
any old tree maps, and updating to a new tree picture.
2) Rescue any files left in any of these directories found, and
then Remove the directory. Delete any *.DAT files found, as
the crash that got you here kept AC from killing the files
itself. Put the files back in the target directory if desired,
and they will be processed on the next AC run.
3) Check the root directory of the drive, and make sure there are
no files in there that don't belong-a crash caused by the elco
may have left files there that were renamed to *.BAD-corrupt or
virus infected files Jailed there.
4) Check your copy of SCAN.EXE to make sure it has not been corrupted
and causing the crash. Early versions SHEZ (the archiver shell)
crash due to lack of memory (versions below 60), and later found
SCAN.EXE overwritten with the contents of SHEZ.CFG, or even random
clusters from location x on the drive. This bug was corrected with
version 60+ of SHEZ (at least it hasn't happened since then!) and
yes, I am a dedicated SHEZ/SCAN user.
5) Make sure your AC.CFG file has not been corrupted or changed
inadvertently-this will crash AC if it has-run ACCFG.EXE and
PUTREG.EXE again if needed.
The Stupid !@#%$ Thing Won't Run!:
If you are having problems with just getting started, check and
make sure the config file is correct, and all the archivers
are in your PATH. ACCFG.EXE is designed to prevent most possible
screwups in this regard, but editing the config file with a TXT
editor can defeat this. Also, if you have changed your PATH,
you need to change your AC config file if the path to your archivers
has changed, if the directory you want AC to examine has changed etc..
Page 10
ALL My Archives End Up Jailed!
If you should encounter this, it is a very good sign you are either
downloading from the wrong BBS, you have some weird users who like
to spread viri (or download from the wrong BBS), OR you are running
AC with too little RAM available. The reason you are getting all
your archives jailed is very probably the fact that SCAN requires
no less than 200K free RAM to work, PAK requires 100-150K free, and
ARJ close to that amount. Anytime SCAN returns an alarm (which it
will if out of RAM) or one of the archivers cannot complete and
returns an alarm (out of RAM), the file in question will be Jailed.
The soulution is to free up more RAM, possibly dropping TSR's,
device drivers not in use, etc.
Some of My Good ARC's End Up Jailed!
This may occur if the Ay-Ar-Cee files in question were made by (or
manipulated by previously) PKUNPAK. This in NOT the fault of AC-this is
a co-incidence in the fact that some Ay-Ar-Cees made with PKUNPAK/PKPAK
also have the same signiture in the archive header as ARJ archives.
Obviously, ARJ will not recognize these files as ARJ archives, and this
will result in ARJ attempting to manipulate these archives unsuccessfully,
with resulting error codes, and activation of the Jail feature. This is
a very rare condition, nevertheless, it occured in testing, so it is
mentioned here. There is no easy solution to this, as the archives in
question are perfectly legitimate. Since AC uses a 20+ byte checksum
to determine archive type in conjunction with the file extension, this
condition should not occur often.
Page 11
Registration:
Registration couldn't be simplier, There are 3 ways you may register.
Fill out the registration form below and mail it either of the addresses
shown or you may register on-line by simply calling Wayne's World BBS
at (918)665-2711. This is the telephone number for node1 and is a
U.S. Robotics HST Dual Standard line. Please just select the Credit Card
Door. For your convience VISA, MasterCard, and Discover cards are accepted.
Wayne's World BBS is a nice BBS currently with 700MEG online and hopes to
have 1.4 GIG online by July 1991. Consider registering there when you call.
The Latest version of AC will be available there as well as well as Validation
data listed in the Bulletins area.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
REGISTRATION FORM:
Name to be registered:_____________________________________
BBS Name (if any) :_____________________________________
Voice Telephone number:____________________________________
BBS Telephone number:______________________________________
Your Complete mailing address:
NAME:_____________________________
ADDRESS:_____________________________
CITY STATE & ZIPCODE:_____________________________
Comments about AC:________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
Mail this form along with your check or money order to either:
Bill Ziegler Bill Ziegler
P.O. Box 136 <** OR **> P.O. Box 85
Inola OK 74136-0136 Glenpool OK 74036-0085
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
