7. How to configure Future Drive Accelerator

Future Drive Accelerator can be configured using the Future Drive Accelerator Preference Editor:

The Preference Editor uses the following Workbench Tool Types and Shell parameters:

FROM (Only from Shell)

Specifies the name of a configuration file to load.

EDIT (default option)

The configuration can be changed.

USE

The new configuration will be saved temporary.

SAVE

The new configuration will be saved permanently.

MAINPROGPATH

Directory of Future Drive Accelerator, e.g. `Sys:System/'. The configuration (`FDA.prefs') will be saved to the directory. If Future Drive Accelerator loaded before `ENV:' is initialized, which is the case when booting from floppy disk, the config will be found anyway.

7.1 The Mainwindow

The MainWindow contains a listing of drives. When you select a window, a new window (see section 7.2 The Device Window) will be opened.

Not used FastMemory

For calibration.
How much of your fast memory shall not be used as cache?
60 kiloBytes is a good value here, because a minimal amount of memory is necessary to send messages. This way, memory can be made available faster.

Not used ChipMemory

For calibration.
How much of your chip memory shall not be used as cache?
100%=No chip memory will be used => which is the fastest setting.

FastMemory first

• Off: The cache uses ChipMemory first, then FastMemory.
• On: The cache uses FastMemory first, then maybe ChipMemory.

View color flash if track moved or deleted

• Off: No color flash is created.
• On: There will be a green flash, when a part of the cache is moved in the RAM.
  There will be a red flash when a part of the cache is removed from RAM.

Rem.:This option is useful to calibrate Not used Fast- ChipMemory.

Protect tracks in memory with checksummes

• Off: The cache is not protected.
• On: The cache will be protected from external programs.

Rem.:This is recommended for Intros, games and badly programmed software which change foreign memory blocks. See section D.1.1 SegTracker, Enforcer und Co..
Or if you have bad memory. See section B. How to use bad memory.

• Remember: The FileSystem itself calculates checksums. If you get an "Warning!"-Requester with a "checksum-error" , you may not, in no case, press "Cancel", but instead reboot your Amiga at once!
  This may also happen without Future Drive Accelerator, but it is not so likely that a program wrote into the dos-buffers accidently. Dos-buffers just are a "smaller target".

The buttons at the bottom of the window are used to set the path where the config-file will be saved. The name of the file is `FDA.prefs'.

Save

The configuration is saved to the `ENVARC:' directory. The new config will be used automatically by Future Drive Accelerator and will survive a reboot. The preferences editor will quit after saving.

Use

The configuration is saved to the `ENV:' directory. The new config will be used automatically by Future Drive Accelerator but will not survive a reboot. The preferences editor will quit after saving.

Cancel

To quit the preferences editor. All changes will be lost.

7.2 The Device Window

The following can be set in the Device Window:

When data is written back to the drive, if the data should be verified, how much data should be pre-read and how much of the cache can be used by this drive.

Removeable Disk?

Does this drive contain a removable disk?
e.g.: floppy-, CompactDisc-, ZIP, MagnetOptical or SyQuest-drive. If Removeable Disk is set to Off, then Future Drive Accelerator does not need to know which FileSystem is used, to recognize a disk after re-inserting.
=> The initializing of the cache is faster.

Verify write

The data will be checked if it has been properly written.
=> Useful for floppy-disk and old hard-disks.

Write

• Through
  Data will be saved at once and moved into the cache at the same time (write-retention).
  => When the data is read again, it can be accessed by the cache very fast.
• Sync
  Like Through with the difference that the data is written to the drive (3) after the writing of the file was completed (4) .
  => The parallel reading and writing is done more gentle in multitasking.
  => The program waits for the end of the write-access (Syncron).
• Async
  Like Sync, but the program doesn't wait for the end of the write-access (ASyncron). What means data is written in an instant.
  => Additionally, minimizes the overall seek time required to read or write data from or to disk. Outstanding I/O requests are ordered such that they can all be performed "with one sweep" of the disk head assembly, from the highest to the lowest disk address (Elevator seeking). The cache is written in the background.
  => You can write data to the cache, while the cache is writing to the drive.
  See section 11.2 DataSafety.
• Late as possible
  Like Async but the data is written as late as possible. This is recommended for Cache-directories of World-Wide-Web browsers or Internetcomputer, where there is (more or less) always data written. Data is written when memory is needed or Future Drive Accelerator exits, and, if DiskSafe is installed, before a Reset/System-crash. See section 2. What is required to use Future Drive Accelerator?.
• For temporary
  Like Late as possible but data is NOT written before a Reset/System-crash.
  => This is useful for directories whose contents don't need to be the same after the reset, for example: `env:' `t:'.

Async delay

For how many seconds shall the write-back be delayed with Async?

Size of Track

Number of bytes a track (5) requires in the cache.
=> How many bytes shall be read ahead?
Reommended values are for harddisks and CDs about 40KB and for floppy disks (2 tracks = 1 cylinder).
If the harddisk is not fragmented, you could achieve a dramatic speed improvement when you set a high value.
If you use two or more harddisks you should use the same value for all unit to avoid the fragmenting of memory. This will be improved in future versions.

Cache usage priority

What priority has this drive compared to other drives for caching?

The buttons in the bottom row of the window can be used to activate or deactivate the cache, and to get informations about the drive

Enable

Cache active.

Info

Shows section 7.3 Informations about the drive about the drive.

Disable

Cache inactive.

7.3 Informations about the drive

This window shows informations about the selected drive.

Size of Block

can be modified using the HDToolBox(C)AmigaInc. or in the mountfile in the directory `Devs:DosDrivers' (SectorSize * SectorsPerBlock). But this is not recommend, because most programs depend on a value of 512 here.

No of Tracks

Number of tracks. Is also the capacity of the partition, floppy ... multiplied with Size of Track.

First Track Number

Start postions of the partition on the harddisk.

Root Track

Depends on the FileSystem. Is used by Future Drive Accelerator to recognize a floppy/removable disk only.

Name and Dates Position

The position where the partition-name, the date of creation and the date of the last modification can be found. Is used by Future Drive Accelerator to recognize a floppy/removable disk only.

Unit Number

Hardware Unit Number.

Device Name.

Name of the Software-Device.

Buffer Memory Type

Either Chip- or Fastmemory. If "Need! ChipMemory (slow)" appears here, you should get more recent Device-Software, or try to set BufMemType=1 in `Devs:DosDrivers', because the drive is slower than it needs to be.

4-GByte "boundary"

If anything else than "No problems" appears here, then this partition is beyond the "4 GB boundary"; you should make sure that you use a FileSystem and Software Device that can handle harddisks bigger than 4 GigaByte. See section 11.1 How to use harddisks bigger than 4 GigaBytes..

New Style Device

Supports the Device-Software the new device standard(C)AmigaInc.?

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