Shareware Overload Trio 2/Shareware Overload Trio Volume 2 (Chestnut CD-ROM).ISO/dir34/flpcpy11.zip/FLPYCOPY.TXT

Text File | 1993-10-10 | 14KB | 305 lines

FLPYCOPY.EXE - Version 1.1 - (c)1992

A Floppy Disk Copy Utility by Barry Pearlman

1229 Traverton Drive
Chesterfield, MO  63017

314-532-8022
CompuServe 70304,3450


DESCRIPTION:

FLPYCOPY.EXE is a stand-alone utility written to duplicate floppy disks and
eliminate the "DOS shuffle".  The program creates a holding file in the root
directory of C: drive, reads the floppy disk to be copied, and writes the
contents of the source floppy disk to the holding file, creating a contiguous
file containing the source disk's contents.  This duplication is done on a
track by track, head by head basis.

FLPYCOPY.EXE will process 5 1/4" & 3 1/2" disks of 360K, 1.2M, 720K, & 1.4M
capacity only.  All other disks will yield an error message.

After the target floppy disk (the disk to receive the copy) has been inserted,
the program then transfers the contents of the holding file to the target
disk, again on a track by track, head by head basis, producing an exact copy.

As an option, the program will format disks as it writes to them, and can make
multiple copies without having to re-insert the source disk between copies.
Options also exist for verification after each read/write operation.  Upon
exit, the program will remove the holding file from the hard drive.

FLPYCOPY.EXE runs in color on EGA/VGA monitors and initially checks for video
display types.  If it does not find the proper adapter, it will switch to
monochrome display.  Disk size determination is automatic.

All of the hardware operations utilize DOS interrupts and consequently, the
program is independent of DOS version and machine hardware variations.

The program has been tested on a cross section, but by no means all hardware
and operating system variations available.  To date, no known hardware or
software incompatibilities exist, however, the author of this program must in
good conscience suggest that since this program works with hardware
interrupts, that your system be fully backed up prior to using this program
for the first time.

Should a "bug" be discovered, please communicate as many details as possible
to the author.  The author will try to determine the problem and fix it.  The
author, however, will accept no liability for the use of this program, nor
will he be responsible in the event of lost or corrupted data.


DISTRIBUTION:

FLPYCOPY.EXE is copyright protected software.  This version of the executable
program is being distributed as "FREEWARE" and may be freely copied by
permission of the author providing that the following conditions are strictly
adhered to:

1.  The program and its supporting documentation (this document) may be
distributed for a small fee, that fee being enough to cover the cost of
duplication and distribution only!

2.  This document must accompany the executable file.

3.  FLPYCOPY.EXE may not be incorporated into any other program, executable or
otherwise, that is being distributed under any other method other that as
outlined in number 1 above.

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4.  Any violation of 1. 2, or 3 above shall automatically revoke the
permission of the author to distribute this program, and shall place the
offender in jeopardy of violation of the copyright laws.

Registration is not required, however, it is encouraged.  By communicating
your name and address to the author, you will be advised of any future
updates, improvements, or fixes.  Your suggestions and comments will also be
greatly appreciated, along with any and all ideas for additional features or
additions.


PROGRAM CODE:

FLPYCOPY.EXE was written, compiled, and linked entirely in Microsoft C,
Version 6.0., to produce a stand-alone executable file.

A copy of the source code on disk may be purchased from the author for a fee
of $25.00.  Purchase of the source code shall allow the purchaser to
incorporate all or part of the source code into other programs.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

The author would like to thank Stephen D. Cooper and Ken Hipple for their work
on the programs 2FILE.EXE and 2FLOPPY.EXE. published by Ziff Communications
Co., PC Magazine, which was the inspiration for writing this program.

OPERATION:

FLPYCOPY.EXE is a simple utility to operate.  Upon execution, the main (and
only) screen will appear and ask the user to "ENTER FLOPPY DISK COPY
SPECIFICATIONS".  Pressing CR will accept the displayed defaults;  the Up and
Down arrow keys move the selection pointer.  F1 will display Help information
about the specification adjacent to the selection pointer.  The specification
choices are as follows:

Disk Drive Letter:  This is the floppy drive in which the copy or verify is to
take place.  The SPACEBAR toggles between A: and B:.  If a B: drive does not
exist but is selected, an error message will be displayed.  See the section on
error messages.

Verify After Read:  Selecting [Y]es will cause the program to re-read the disk
and compare it, on a track by track, head by head basis against the hold file
created in the root directory of C:.  Selecting [N]o will bypass this step.

Verify After Copy:  Selecting [Y]es will cause the program to re-read the hold
file and compare it, on a track by track, head by head basis against the
target disk copy.  Selecting [N]o will bypass this step.

Format Target Disk:  The default [Auto] selection will check the target disk
prior to writing.  If the disk is formatted and is of the proper size, the
program will write to the target disk without formatting it.  If the program
senses that the disk is not formatted, it will format a track, then write a
track, then format a track, etc.

[O]n causes the program to format the target disk all of the time.

[O]ff turns off the format feature.


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NOTE:  Attempting to format a high density disk at low density will produce a
low density disk.  Attempting to format a low density disk at high density may
produce an error, or at best, a diskette with reduced reliability.  Should an
attempt be made to format a low density disk at high density, it may fail and
produce an error message.

If this happens, the disk may be recovered with any of the commercial disk
recovery utilities such as The Norton Utilities Disk Tools program.

Toggle your selection with the SPACEBAR.

Audible Alarm Signals:  [Y]es turns on the alarm and prompt signals.  [N]o
turns them off.

Verify Only - NO COPY:  [Y]es does a track by track, head by head verify
between a source and a target(s) disk.  The program does not write to the disk
during this operation.  This will override the copy function.

[N]o turns this feature off.

Quantity (999 max.):  Determines the number of disks to be copied or verified
from a single source disk.  Pressing the + key will cause the number to
increment upwards.  Holding the + key down for approximately two seconds will
cause the numbers to then start incrementing by a factor of 10.

The - key works the same way, only it decrements the quantity.


OPERATION:

Once the specifications have been selected, [CR] will accept the
specifications and start the copy/verify process.  [ESC] will clear the
selected specifications and display the default settings.  [Q] will exit the
program.

Once the program has been started, it makes several system and hardware checks
and if no errors are found, will display the information on the right side of
the screen.

= Total Disk Tracks:  Indicates the total number of disk tracks to be
processed.

= Total Disk Sectors:  Indicates the total number of sectors per track to be
processed.

= Total Disk Capacity:  Indicates the generic size of the disk being
processed.  To eliminate format errors, use this to determine the correct
target disk size while reading the source disk.

= Current Disk Track:  Indicates the current track being processed.  Please
note that tracks are numbered starting from 0.

= Current Disk Head:  Indicates the current head being processed.  Please note
that like tracks, heads are numbered starting from 0.

= Current Operation:  Will indicate Wait, Read, Write, or Format, depending on
the current operation in progress.


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= Disk # In Process:  Indicates "Source" if the program is processing the
source disk, or the number of the target disk being processed if a target disk
operation is being performed.

Completed Display:  The moving bar graphic and % completed indicate how much
ofthe disk has been processed during the current operation.

Note:  If during the processing of either the source or target disks you elect
to stop the process, the [ESC] key will abort the program and return you to a
standby condition.  Processing will abort ONLY between the processing of
tracks, as opposed to in the middle of a track, allowing the program to
complete its operation on that particular track.  Since the program processes
track X, head 0 then head 1, a momentary delay may be observed after pressing
the [ESC] key.  This is normal.

When the program has read and stored the information on the source disk, it
will prompt you to insert the target disk.  At this point in time, you may
continue, restart, or exit the program.

FLPYCOPY.EXE creates a holding file, called FLPYCOPY.HLD in the root directory
of C: drive for use as the temporary holding file.  If sufficient room does
not exist on the drive, an error message will be displayed.  Since any file
kept on any disk does have the remote chance of being corrupted, FLPYCOPY.EXE
does not keep this file when it is finished and will automatically delete it.

Rules for good system management dictate that duplicate copies of all
important files should be kept off site in a safe place, and that practice is
highly recommended.


ERROR MESSAGES:

SPECIFIED FLOPPY DRIVE IS NOT READY - The door to the drive is not closed
properly, or some other hardware problem is preventing the program from
reading the disk.

ERROR READING SOURCE FLOPPY DISK - POSSIBLE UNFORMATTED DISK - The program
cannot determine the size of the floppy disk.  Either the disk is not of a
standard size, or it is unformatted.

FLOPPY DRIVE WRITE PROTECTED - An attempt was made to write to a disk that is
write protected.  Correct the situation and proceed.

UNABLE TO READ SECTOR OR BAD SECTOR FLAG - The disk drive is having trouble
finding the sector header information.  This may be caused by a defective or
corrupted floppy disk.  Try formatting the disk with the Format [O]n, use a
commercial program to revive the diskette, or discard it and try another.

FLOPPY DISK ERROR - POSSIBLE BAD BLOCK - The floppy disk may have a sector or
several sectors marked bad.  This is unusual for normal disks, however, it is
not uncommon as a copy protection scheme.  This disk cannot be copied or
verified by this version of the program.

FLOPPY DISK ERROR - POSSIBLE ATTEMPT TO FORMAT WRONG SIZE DISK - An attempt
was made to format a low density disk as high density.  The diskette may be
salvaged by the use of one of the commercial disk recovery programs.

A MISCELLANEOUS FLOPPY DISK ERROR HAS OCCURRED - An error was detected by the
program that does not fall into any of the categories listed above.

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INSUFFICIENT AVAILABLE SPACE ON DRIVE C: TO CREATE TEMPORARY HOLDING FILE -
The program has calculated the amount of space needed to create the temporary
holding file and has checked the available free space on C: drive.  There is
not enough free space left.  Exit the program, free up some space, and try
again.

CANNOT FIND B: DRIVE INSTALLED - The program has checked the ROM setup files
and cannot find B: drive.

UNABLE TO CREATE TEMPORARY BUFFER IN MEMORY! - The program must open a buffer
(two if verification is enabled) in memory equal to the size of the number of
sectors on a track X 512 for temporary storage and was unable to do so.

UNABLE TO OPEN OR CLOSE TEMPORARY HOLD FILE ON DRIVE C: - The program was
unable to open or create the temporary hold file in the root directory of C:.

AN ERROR OCCURRED WHILE TRYING TO READ OR WRITE TO DRIVE C: - Self
explanatory.

TARGET DISK NOT EQUAL IN SIZE TO SOURCE DISK - The program has calculated the
formatted size of the target disk and it is not the same as the source disk.
Remove the target disk and insert one of the proper size.

VERIFICATION ERROR ENCOUNTERED - The program attempted to verify data and
failed.  Either the disks are not the same or an error occurred during the
copy process.

DISK FORMAT ERROR ENCOUNTERED - The program was unable to format the target
disk.  The most common cause of this error is an attempt to format a low
density disk as a high density disk.

UNKNOWN DISK FORMAT ENCOUNTERED - The program will only copy 360K or 1.2M 5
1/4" diskettes and 720K or 1.4M 3 1/2" diskettes.  Some other format has been
encountered.

ROM Bios May Not Support Formatting.  See Instructions - The program has
checked the ROM Bios and determined that it has a date prior to 10/1/86.
Machines produced prior to this may or may not support formatting with machine
interrupts such as this program uses.  You may proceed and attempt to format
the disk, however, it is strongly suggested that you check the disk after
using the program.

If the program cannot format and write, format the disks first using your
normal method and then switch the formatting specification to [N]o.