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1992-02-14
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BFX
Copyright (c) 1992 Richard D. Fothergill
Richard D. Fothergill
the Oak Hill BBS
141 Oak Hill Road
Pittsfield, MA 01201
Data/FAX - (413) 499-7245
WHAT IS BFX?
When I purchased my ZyXEL U-1496 Modem/Fax I wanted an easy way
to be able to accept fax and modem calls on the same line. This
would allow me to continue to operate my BBS software and be in a
position to receive faxes. I tried BinkleyTerm and FrontDoor.
Both excellent programs, but way more than I needed or wanted,
not having a need for network mailers or a built in terminal
program. I wanted something simple, small, easy to setup and
maintain. Thus the beginning of BFX.
WHAT CAN I DO WITH BFX?
You run BFX instead of your BBS software. BFX will answer the
phone, decide what the incoming call is and exit with an
errorlevel which you can use in a batch file for subsequent
operations. A BBS call will also create a batch file to call
your BBS software. In addition you can program up to 10 events
with a preset time of execution and exit errorlevel. When BFX
encounters one of these it will exit with your predetermined
errorlevel. Again, you control further processing in your batch
file.
DISCLAIMER
IN NO EVENT WILL I BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING
ANY LOST PROFITS, LOST SAVINGS OR OTHER INCIDENTAL OR
CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR USE OR INABILITY TO USE
THE PROGRAM, OR FOR ANY CLAIM BY ANY OTHER PARTY.
BFX -1-
Copr (c) 1992 Richard D. Fothergill
INSTALLATION
There are three files that you must create to run BFX. They are
BBS.BAT, BFX.CFG, BFX.EVT. I will discuss these individually.
BBS.BAT
This batch file is the heart of your BBS/FAX system. It controls
all activity and execution. You do not have to use the name
BBS.BAT, it can be any name of your choosing. The following is
the BBS.BAT file I use.
@ECHO OFF
:loop
cls
BFX
if errorlevel 40 goto event
if errorlevel 30 goto fax
if errorlevel 20 goto spit
if errorlevel 10 goto spitl
if errorlevel 0 goto end
:event
sfmaint
goto loop
:fax
rcvfax 1 f:\sf\fax
goto loop
:spit
call bbsexe
goto loop
:spitl
spitfire 0
goto loop
:end
There are four hardcoded errorlevels. They are:
0 - Terminate
10 - Local Logon
20 - BBS/Modem Connection
30 - FAX Connection
The loop: label is where execution of the batch file will return
to after any activity other than a normal exit. BFX is started
and awaits a caller. If a call is received or a scheduled event
occurs BFX will exit with the corresponding errorlevel. Control
then returns to this batch file.
BFX -2-
Copr (c) 1992 Richard D. Fothergill
BFX.CFG
This is the configuration file you setup to inform BFX of certain
parameters it needs to function. The following is a sample
configuration file.
CM=2
BA=38400
PA=N
DA=8
SB=1
MI=AT&FM0V1E0H0S2=1X7#B1+FCLASS=6
AS=ATA
HY=ATH0
HN=ATH1
MR=ATZ
BB=SPITFIRE
BP=
CP=/C
EC=/E
ST=120
RC=2
LM=>> BFX >> logging on to...
There are no spaces allowed in this file between the parameter
and the = sign. The items should appear in the sequence listed.
The parameters and the meanings are a follows:
CM The communications port you have your modem on.
BA The baud rate to initialize your modem to.
PA Parity
DA Data length
SB Stop Bits
MI Your initialization string for modem/fax reception.
AS Modem answer string.
HY Modem onhook string.
HN Modem offhook string.
MR Modem reset string.
BB The name you would like placed in the BBSEXE.BAT file.
BP The text you would like to preceed the baud rate parameter in
the BBSEXE.BAT file.
BFX -3-
Copr (c) 1992 Richard D. Fothergill
CP The text you would like to proceed the com port parameter in
the BBSEXE.BAT file. Spitfire specifies that the parameter
read /C<comport>. Check your BBS software.
EC The text you would like in then BBSEXE.BAT file to notify
your BBS software of an error correcting connection.
ST Sleep time out seconds. This is the amount of time BFX
will wait before blanking the screen. A display of the
program name and current time will appear at random locations
to remind you of the program running. If ST=0 then screen
blanking is disabled.
RC The number of rings on which you would like BFX to answer
the call.
LM Log on message. This is sent to the caller just before BFX
exits on a modem connection.
BFX.EVT
This file is used to define your events. It is a comma delimited
file consisting of three parameters. The first is a 40 character
description. This will be written to the log file when the event
is executed. The second is the time you want the event to occur.
The format is HH:MM and is in 24 hour time. The last item is the
errorlevel. This can be any integer value except one of the
hardcoded errorlevels mentioned earlier. Each event must appear
on a separate line in the file and you are limited to 10 events.
A typical line in the event file is as follows:
DAILY MAINTENANCE,01:00,40
This line would cause BFX to exit with an errorlevel of 40 at
1:00 am.
FILES CREATED BY BFX
There are three files created by BFX. A discussion of each
follows.
BFX.LOG
If this file is not found at start-up BFX creates a new one.
Each time an activity occurs, an entry is written to this file.
The entry will consist of the date, time, description of activity
and either the errorlevel for an event or the CONNECT string for
a modem connection. Local logons are not recorded in the file.
This file has no interaction with your BBS log file. A modem
connection may be made and control passed to your BBS software
and the user might hang up with out logging on. In this case,
there would still be a record of the connection in the BFX.LOG
but in all probability, not in your BBS log.
BFX -4-
Copr (c) 1992 Richard D. Fothergill
BFX.STS
This is a file used strictly by BFX. Each time BFX releases
control back to DOS, BFX writes control data to this file. When
it restarts it reads this information back in. Although not
required, it is suggested that each time you erase the BFX.LOG
file to clear that, you erase BFX.STS to reset the call
statistics. You do not have to recreate these files. BFX will
create new ones if existing files are not found.
BBSEXE.BAT
When a BBS call is received, BFX will create a batch file which
contains the name (BB), followed by the baud rate prefix (BP),
baud rate, com port prefix (CP), com port (CM) and the error
correcting string (EC) . The parameters you specify in the
configuration file should allow you to construct an entry that
will allow you to start your BBS software. The format of the
line in BBSEXE using the configuration parameters is:
[BB] [BP]<baud rate> [CP][CM] [EC]
SPITFIRE 14400 /C2 /E
GENERAL DISCUSSION
As you can see from my sample BBS.BAT file I am set up as
follows.
Errorlevel Action
0 Normal program exit. Modem reset.
10 Local logon to BBS. Spitfire requires that you
call it with a baud rate of 0 to let it know that
it is a local log on and not try to detect a
carrier.
20 Remote call BBS logon. Spitfire requires that you
call it with a baud rate and com port to notify it
that a connection has already been made and to
proceed to the user log on.
30 Remote call FAX transmission. The batch file
passes control to ZyXEL's RCVFAX program which also
assumes a connection has been established.
40 User specified event. I have this set to occur at
1:00 am. This is routine BBS maintenance. Please
remember, running in a system such a this, in all
probability events scheduled in your BBS software
will never occur. Your BBS software is not the
program controlling the flow, BFX is, so events
should be schedule through BFX.
BFX -5-
Copr (c) 1992 Richard D. Fothergill
MENU AND HOT KEYS
From the Waiting for Caller screen you have two possible key
strokes. Alt-X will close BFX and execute a normal exit. Alt-M
will bring up a pop menu with the following selections available:
View Activity Log
Local Logon
Drop to DOS
Terminate BFX
Within this menu your mouse will be active to locate the
highlight bar or you can use the arrow keys. Either press the
left mouse button or the enter key to make a selection. Pressing
the right mouse button or the Esc key will return you to the
Waiting for Caller screen.
View Activity Log - This selection will pop up a window and
display the BFX.LOG file. All the direction keys are active as
well as the mouse. Press the Esc key or the right mouse button
to return to the menu.
Local Logon - This will exit the system with an errorlevel of 10.
This does not have to be a local log on. You can have your
BBS.BAT file execute any program you wish or none at all.
Drop to DOS - Self explanatory. The DOS prompt is amended to
remind you to EXIT back to the BFX menu.
Terminate BFX - Same as the Alt-X key press. Executes a normal
exit back to dos.
BFX -6-
Copr (c) 1992 Richard D. Fothergill