On 05 Jan 97  08:15:08 Frank Malcolm typed to Niels Petersen ....

Hi Frank

 > NP> If the program is as fast as you say, then what's the use :-)
 > NP> It would only slow the program down.

 > Yes, but I didn't know what you wanted - which you explain below.

 I'm glad you understood my babble


 > NP> I have a program that does a CRC and stores it in the time field of the
 > NP> files directory entry, but this causes problems as well.

 > Yes, I don't like fiddling with the time field, too much relies on
 > knowing when files were created, like restores from backup.

 Precisely!


FM> FYI I'm trying to build something which I've wanted for a long time,
    > to > report *any* changes to files (fuck the archive flag,
    useless), to > maintain a complete catalogue of all my files (spread
    across several > computers physically separated (by miles)), mirror
    certain > directories > between those physically separate machines,

Have you thought about leaving your home machine in a comms program that
is running in Host mode and phoning home to transfer the work files to
the home computer _before_ you leave work for the day?

If this is an option then you can just call again when you reach work
the next moening and retrieve the updated files.

It also _guarantees_ an up to date "offsite" backup of what I would
imagine would be very important files.


 > This is very similar to what I need, except the machines are not
 > networked. One is at work, the other at home and I need to keep a lot of
 > stuff like my client etc databases in synch between the two. At the
 > moment I just use a BAT file and PKZIP to put all the files in the
 > relevant directories onto floppies (3) each morning and each night. I
 > don't want to do just the changed files (by recognising and resetting
 > the archive bit) in case for some reason I don't do the restore at the
 > other end that day - I'd lose knowledge of the changes.

 The above if an option would be a lot better.
 Build a batch file to zip the required files up and then run a comms
 program. Have a script to do the transfer to home and another script to
 retrieve them in the morning. The batch file at home should unzip and
 place the new files in the correct directories and then zip them up
 again the next morning.  You could even have the batch file running as
 a timed event.
 Either way your brain should be able to come up with something that
 would save the hassle of the manual floppy work. You may wish to still
 use the floppies as an iadded nsurance though.



 > NP>  Looking inside the ZIPs is not a consideration for me. Just so long as
 > i
 > NP> know that the contents of the zip have altered.

 > It's not for me either for the straight mirroring exercise, but I want
 > to build this thing into a total file catalogue of all my files anywhere
 > - the work machine, my space on the work network drive, home machine(s),
 > backup/archive tapes, etc.

 You are looking at a more complete package than I was.  I have already
 got ALL thr floppies cataloged using another program.


 > Twenty-four! How much space have you got?! I'm up to drive N: at the
 > moment at home - A: & B: floppies, C: primary partition on the 2.1G
 > drive, D: 212M drive, E: - M: secondary on the 2.1G, N: CD-ROM. But that
 > will increase when I put the network in here.

Remapping the drives to be accessible from all machines on a network is
a fun exercise. :-)


 > NP> As far as the fast routines go, I will upload to TML with this message a
 > NP> winprogram called DIGSIG.ZIP
 > NP> It contains the complete description and formulas for 3 different
 > methods o
 > NP> generating a digital fingerprint of a file that you should find
 > extremely
 > NP> useful.

 I will send it again, again in the hope that it actually makes it this
 time.


 > Yep, my routines allow specifiable extensions or "all files".

 Good


 > NP> 2.
 > NP> Have the program take command line parameters of...
 > NP> Drive to scan      (1 to 10 bytes)
 > NP> Drive and directory where the applicable LST, DAT & LOG files exist.
 > NP> Name of DAT file to use.
 > NP> Name of LOG file to use.

 > Will be a simple main program wrapper calling my routines.

 I want to be able to call your EXE from varying batch files and feed
 the correct paramaters in depending on cirumstances.

[ BIG CHOMP]

 > Wrapper.


 > NP> 7.
 > NP> When there is a CRC or filesize difference the program should halt,
 > display
 > NP> on screen the full path and filename, the old and new sizes / the old
 > and
 > NP> new CRC's and request a reply as to whether the NEW size or CRC should
 > be
 > NP> written to the DAT file or to allow the old data to remain.
 > NP> A simple "Update the DAT file with the new data ? Y/N
" should suffice.
 > NP> (It should NOT halt simply because of a new file existing on the drive)

 > Halt, or write/append to a log/error file? You might want to run this
 > unattended.

 Unattended yes, but halt when the above circumstances occur so that a
 decision can be made, and followed through on at the time. Log it
 anyway but maybe make the EXE with a parameter switch for stop or
 nostop?


 > NP> 8.
 > NP> Indication on screen as to which drive is being scanned and some sort of
 > NP> indication of what position the process is in towards completion.

 > Hmmm.

 You sound iffy about that one.  I need to be able to see where in the
 process it is, so that I can estimate when to return to it.
 My method knew at the satart how many files there were and would
 display  ??? of 2400 files  ??%


 > NP> The above is what I am already doing with my EXE.
 > NP> I have the DAT & LOG files stored as hidden/system in the
root directory
 > of
 > NP> the drive scanned, and I am using different named DAT &
LOG files on any
 > NP> given drive depending on whether the scan is being performed on a local
 > NP> drive or a networked drive. This is essential as the Pathname to any
 > file i
 > NP> different when it is accessed across the LAN  (Even the LAN path name
 > could
 > NP> be different depending on which machine the scan is initiated from)

 > I'll have to think about/experiment with LAN implications.

 With LANTASTIC you have the ability to assign the LAN DIR of a machine
 to one drive letter which when logged will give you access to ALL
 drives on that machine.  A very handy feature not available in some
 networking software (so I am told)


 > NP> For speed gain, and less HD head movement,(very significant) I place the
 > DA
 > NP> & LOG files in a working directory on a RAMDRIVE and copy
them back to
 > the
 > NP> correct location on completion.

 > NP> It is the _same_ BAT file on all machines and it is aware of which
 > machine
 > NP> it is being called from. It will alter the Ram drive letter and also the
 > NP> parameters it feeds the EXE accordingly

 > All my disks/partitions have a volume label and a zero-length file in
 > the root directory to identify them - this one is SYSTEM.04C, for
 > example.

 That's what I used ;-)



 > NP> What else do you need apart from time to write it ????? :-)

 > Er, nothing except that. :-)

 :-)


 > At the time you wrote this my routines would have provided very close to
 > what you want, with a suitable simple calling program. Since then I've
 > temporarily destroyed some of the logic while I work on some of the more
 > esoteric things which you aren't interested in. The ability to specify a
 > starting "directory" which may not be a real directory but say an
 > archive file within a directory within another archive file etc etc for
 > example has been quite a complex exercise. Which I've nearly completed.
 > Then I'll put the other logic back and have a look at your requirements
 > again.

 Thanks heaps

Cheers
Niels

* OLR 5.1 *  "Efficiency is a highly developed form of laziness."

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