Cream of the Crop 22/Cream of the Crop 22.iso/program/pmc_12.zip/CHECKSUM.RAR/check_e.hlp

OS/2 Help File | 1996-11-17 | 19KB | 457 lines

ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 1. Extended Help for PM Checksum ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Welcome to PM Checksum

PM Checksum helps you to keep track of all your files. When you execute PM
Checksum regularly, you always know about even slight changes of any file.
Furtheron, PM Checksum allows for authentication of files that have been
transmit electronically by comparing only a few checksum digits, e.g. by
telephone.

PM Checksum uses two standard methods for authentication: The CRC32 algorithm
is used by popular archivers such as ARJ, PKZP and RAR. The Message Digest 5
(MD5) has been developed by Ronald L. Rivest at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, a true expert in cryptography and authentication.

The CRC32 checksum consists of 32 bist, the Message Digest 5 is 128 bits long.
So, PM Checksum uses 160 bits to "describe" a file. The probability of two
different files having both the same CRC32 and the same MD5 checksum is less
than 1:10 hoch 48.

PM Checksum processes your files extremely fast. It scales itself automatically
to use the available memory for maximum throughput. The calculation routine for
the Message Digest 5 has been optimized for use on the Intel Pentium processor.
Througput may range from 500 KB/sec on slow machines to much more than 1
MB/sec.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 2. Edit Profile ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This allows you to change the current program profile. E.g. you can set up
which drives and which file extensions will be processed on a scan of PM
Checksum.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3. Export Database ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The database that PM Checksum uses can be exported in different formats. With
this ability, you can take the whole of the contents of the database -
including all the checksum values - and use it in another program or give it
away for other purposes.

The following formats are available for export:  List  dBase III  Comma
Delimited Without Quotes  Comma Delimited


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4. Profile Menu ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The profile gives you the possibility to configure PM Checksum so that it fits
your needs. You can change all the settings and save them to a file and reuse
the settings in the file at any later point.

Using profiles is even mor useful with the drag & drop capabilities of the
workplace shell: Just drop a profile object onto the PM Chekcsum object and PM
Checksum will be started using the settings from that profile. It is also
possible to provide the name of a profile as a parameter in PM Checksum's
settings/properties notebook.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5. Profile - Open ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Use this function to load a profile that has previously been saved. The
settings in the profile will then be valid for the execution of Pm Checksum.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6. Profile - Save ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Use this function to save the current profile settings to a file. You can then
load and reuse the settings at a later time.

If the profile has not yet been given a name, the Save As function will be
executed.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7. Profile - Save As ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Use this function to enter a file name which will be used to save the current
profile settings to your hard disk. You can then load and reuse the settings at
a later time.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8. Profile - Edit ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This menu entry opens the dialog Edit Profile. You can then change the settings
of the current profile as you wish.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 9. Menu Checksum ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This menu provides all the functions to calculate and compare checksums. You
can start the automatic calculation (scan) and terminate it. You can also
calculate the current values for a single file. This menu also includes a
function to export the contents of the checksum database in different formats.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 10. Start Scan ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This menu entry starts the automatic calculation of checksums which will then
be compared to the ones stored in the database (scan). Results and
informational messages will be displayed in the main window.

When you start a scan, the current profile settings will be used. Changes of
the current profile during a scan will not become valid until the running
thread ends and a new scan is initiated.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 11. Menu Program ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This menu provides an entry to close PM Checksum.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 12. Stop Scan ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This function terminates a running scan. Any data collected or changed for the
currently accessed drive will not be saved.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 13. Program - Exit ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This fucntion exits PM Checksum and closes all of its windows.

Because PM Checksum uses a special kind of dynamic memory management, there
might be a delay of a few seconds until all resources are freed and the program
actually terminates.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 14. Product Information ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Choose this function to see details about the software and the version numbers
of the program and the MD5 module. Please include these version numbers when
you contact the author on any problems with the software.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 15. License Information ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Select this entry to see details on the license status of your version of PM
Checksum.

Upon registration, you will receive a registration key which can be entered
here. If the key is valid, the evaluation version will become a full featured
licensed version. The license window will show your name from then on.

When you install a new version of PM Checksum, you can use the old registration
key with the new version.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 16. Checksum - File ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

If you need the values stored and computed for one single file, select this
function. Take a file from the file selector and PM Checksum will show all the
values available for size, date, CRC32 and MD5.

By this function, you can find out whether you and a friend have identical
versions of a file. You just need to compare the checksum values.

If the values for the file have changed or the file is not listed in the
database, you will be given the possibility to update the database accordingly.
The information window is non-modal, so you can open almost as many of them as
you like.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 17. Profile - Make Default ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

There is a special profile file which is handled by PM Checksum in a special
way. The name of the file is DEFAULT.PRF and it contains default profile
settings. If this file is available during the startup of PM Checksum, those
default settings are automatically loaded from the file. With this automatic
function, a certain set of profile properties can be made available at each
program start.

The function Make Default saves the current profile settings as the default
profile on the hard disk. This is equivalent to selecting Save as and entering
DEFAULT.PRF as a file name.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 18. Export ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

There are situations that require the collection of data contained in the PM
Checksum database to be processed by another software. Or maybe you just want
to pass the data to someone else. Use the Export function to save the database
in a popular format. You can also export parts of the database if you wish.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 19. Profile - Drives ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Mark all the drives that shall be processed during a scan in this list box. If
you want to use all available drives, select All drives.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 20. Profile - Remove missing files from database ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

From time to time, files that are in the PM Checksum database are deleted from
the hard disk. The database entries of such files would normally remain in the
database and occupy a certain amount of space on your hard disk.

Select Remove missing files from database to make PM Checksum save only the
database entries of files which are found on the hard disk.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 21. Profile - Replace changed values ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Entries in the database are not automatically updated. New files will be added
to the database, but changed checksum values will produce a warning message at
each scan.

Select Replace changed values if you want PM Checksum to automatically update
the entries of files whose values have changed. Warning messages will be
displayed only once in that case.

You should not check this option normal. Instead, you may want to activate it
for a single clean-up scan from time to time, or when you have found out why
your files have changed.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 22. Profile - Report-File Name ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Enter the name of a report file. PM Checksum will write a protocol of warning
and informational messages to this file. You can use the report file to save
important information for later reference.

The report will only be generated when Create Report is selected.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 23. Profile - Create Report ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Select this option if you wish a protocol of each scan to be written to the
report file. You can use the report file to look up when scans have been run
and which files have been changed.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 24. Profile - Append Report to File ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When a scan is started, an existing report file will be overwritten by the new
one. Check this option and new reports will be appended to an existing report
file, and reports of previous scans will remain available.


═══ 25. Profil - Profil beim Start ausfБhren ═══

If this option is checked, a scan is started automatically when this profile is
loaded during the startup of PM Checksum.

A profile will be loaded during startup, if it is the default profile
DEFAULT.PRF, or if its file name is given as a parameter in the program
object's settings notebook. Another possibility is to drag & drop the profile
file object onto the program object.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 26. Profile - Run Minimized ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

If this option is checked, the program will be started minimized when the
profile settings are loaded during program startup. In this case, the main
window will not be visible. You may use OS/2's window list to display the main
window at any time you wish.

With this option, you can run PM Checksum automatically, e.g. at the system
startup, without even realizing that the program is running.

A profile will be loaded during startup, if it is the default profile
DEFAULT.PRF, or if its file name is given as a parameter in the program
object's settings notebook. Another possibility is to drag & drop the profile
file object onto the program object.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 27. Profile - Add Extension ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To add a file extension to the list of extensions, enter it in the entry field
above the list and press the button Add Extension.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 28. Profile - Remove Extension ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To remove a file extension from the list of extensions, select it from the list
and press the button Remove Extension.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 29. Profile - Remove All ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To remove all file extensions from the list of extensions, press the button
Remove All. If the list of file extensions is empty, all files will be
processed during a scan, regardless of their extension.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 30. Profile - Run at Idletime Priority ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

A checksum scan will normally run at the same priority level as any other
program. The problem is, that a process running at the same time might not
receive enough execution time. Check Run at Idletime Priority and the checksum
scan will only use execution time when no other process needs it.

Please note, that a checksum scan running at idletime priority usually takes
more time to complete compared to a scan running at the regular priority level.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 31. Profile - All Drives ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Check this option if you want all available drives to be processed during a
checksum scan, regardless of the settings in the drives list.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 32. Profile - Close Program at End ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When this option is checked, the program will terminate as soon as a checksum
scan ends.

This might be useful when you let the program start automatically, e.g. during
the system startup. The program may then start, run a checksum scan, and
terminate without user interaction.

Please note that warning messages in the main window are only visible as long
as PM Checksum is running. So you should activate the report facility to make
sure that the scan results are still available after the program has
terminated.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 33. Profile - Extensions ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This list contains the file extensions that will be used to determine whether a
file will be included in a checksum scan or not. If the list is empty, all
files will be processed, regardless of their extension.

The default entries in the list are the extensions EXE, COM, SYS, DLL, ADD and
IFS. Those are critical system files that may cause troubles when changed.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 34. Profile - Use Message Digest 5 (MD5) ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Check this option to include the Message Digest 5 algorithm in the checksum
calculation.

This option is checked by default. You can deactivate it if you want to save
time during the checksum scan. In this case, only CRC32 values will be
computed.

The CRC32 checksum has 32 significant bits, whereas the Message Digest 5
consists of 128 bits. Recognizing changes is much more reliable when both
algorithms are used. However, the CRC32 values should be sufficient in most
cases.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 35. Export - Saved CRC32 Value ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When this option is checked, the saved CRC32 value will be included during
export of PM Checksum's database.

Please note that only the values contained in the database will be exported and
not newly calculated values.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 36. Export - Saved MD5 Value ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When this option is checked, the saved Message Digest 5 (MD5) value will be
included during export of PM Checksum's database.

Please note that only the values contained in the database will be exported and
not newly calculated values.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 37. Export - Accessable Files Only ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When this option is checked, the data on each file will on be exported when the
file can be found on the hard disk. Otherwise the complete database will be
exported, which might include files that don't exist any more.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 38. Export - Drives ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Mark all the drives that shall be processed by the export function. If you want
to process all available drives, select All Drives.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 39. Export - Extensions ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This list contains the file extensions that will be used to determine whether a
file will be included in the export file or not. If the list is empty, all
files will be processed, regardless of their extension.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 40. Export - Add Extension ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To add a file extension to the list of extensions, enter it in the entry field
above the list and press the button Add Extension.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 41. Export - Remove Extension ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To remove a file extension from the list of extensions, select it from the list
and press the button Remove Extension.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 42. Export - Remove All ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

To remove all file extensions from the list of extensions, press the button
Remove All. If the list of file extensions is empty, all files will be
processed during export, regardless of their extension.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 43. Export-Format - List ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This format is a simple text list. The selected data is displayed in columns
with headings. The format is readable by any text browser, e.g. the OS/2 system
editor.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 44. Export-Format - Comma Delimited ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This format is rather widespread and can be used by a large number of
applications. The data is enclosed in quotation marks and separated by commas,
one record each line.

If any application has problems reading this kind of comma delimited format,
try using comma delimited without quotes.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 45. Export-Format - dBase ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This is a standard format for database applications. The format is not very
flexible, but supported by most applications. PM Checksum uses the dBase III
format.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 46. Export - All Drives ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Check this option if you want all available drives to be processed during
export,  regardless of the settings in the drives list.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 47. Export - Saved File Size ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When this option is checked, the saved file size value will be included during
export of PM Checksum's database.

Please note that only the values contained in the database will be exported and
not newly calculated values.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 48. Export - Saved File Date ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

When this option is checked, the saved file date value will be included during
export of PM Checksum's database.

Please note that only the values contained in the database will be exported and
not newly calculated values.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 49. Export-Format - Comma Delimited Without Quotes ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This format is rather widespread and can be used by a large number of
applications. The data is separated by commas, one record each line.

If any application has problems reading this kind of comma delimited format,
try using comma delimited.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 50. Export ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ