Flashback! / utility / commercial
From: Michael Current (aa700@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Date: 12/28/91-10:39:35 PM Z
From: aa700@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Michael Current)
Subject: Flashback! / utility / commercial
Date: Sat Dec 28 22:39:35 1991
Reprinted from Atari Explorer, Summer 1991
Copyright 1991 by Atari Corp. Reprinted by permission.
Flashback!
----------
ICD's sophisticated backup package makes using 8-bit RAMdisks and hard-
drives easier and more secure!
By John Quinn
Over the past several years, substantial numbers of Atari 8-bit users
have discovered the speed and convenience of advanced mass-storage
alternatives. RAMdisk use has increased manyfold since the introduction
of the 130XE, whose 128K of RAM makes possible the installation of a
fairly large RAMdisk; while hard-drive use has grown, largely through
the efforts of companies such as ICD, Inc., who market a full line of
easy-to-use hard-disk interfaces and support software for 8-bit
machines, including the popular "DOS alternative," SpartaDOS.
While RAMdisks and hard-drives can vastly increase productivity,
there is one "downside" to their use: increased vulnerability to
equipment failure. The contents of a RAMdisk, accumulated at the cost
of considerable effort during a work-session, can disappear forever if
the system crashes, unexpectedly. Failure of a hard-drive unit or
accidental corruption of control software can cause the loss of
megabytes of precious data.
RAMdisks and hard-drives are also vulnerable to simple human error.
Switching off the CPU will kill the contents of a RAMdisk as surely
(indeed, more surely) than any system crash. And though saving a
picture file under the same name as your July books won't render your
hard-drive inoperable, it sure will scramble your accounting system!
For these reasons, RAMdisk and hard-drive users must be careful to
back up their storage systems regularly to floppy disk--the former at
least once, preferably several times during the course of each work
session; the latter, on a weekly or more frequent basis, depending on
the sensitivity and value of the data involved. Backing up the system,
of course, takes time and effort; considerable effort in the case of a
hard drive, where the sheer size of the storage medium means backing up
to a succession of floppy disks, via a laborious series of manual copy
operations. Because backing up is such a bother, hard-drive users are
especially prone to neglecting this important chore, leaving them
vulnerable to disaster, when it strikes.
Enter Flashback!
As a major supplier of RAMdisks software and hard-drive systems for
the Atari8-bit line, ICD, Inc., of Rockford, IL, knew there was a need
for software that would facilitate the backup process, encouraging users
of high-volume mass storage to back up their systems more frequently.
In typical ICD fashion, the company has created one system of low-priced
utilities that answer to any and all backup needs, speeding the backup
of both RAMdisks and hard-drives through one, consistent user-interface.
The system, called Flashback!, runs only under SpartaDOS. However,
since many 8-bit hard-drive users are already employing SpartaDOS, this
is less of a limitation than it might seem, at first glance.
Flashback! comes on one 5-1/4" floppy disk. The disk contains two
files: FLASHBK.COM and RESTORE.COM. FLASHBK.COM is the program that
backs up your RAM or hard-drive to floppy disks (or to another hard
drive), while RESTORE.COM, as its name implies, restores the backed-up
files to their original state on the medium in question.
Both programs are quite user-friendly, and completely menu-driven.
To load FLASHBK.COM, all you need to do is type FLASHBK at the SpartaDOS
command prompt (X FLASHBK if using SpartaDOS X). Once the program
loads, it displays the menu shown in Figure 1, and tells you to "Press
START to begin."
+---------------- Figure 1 --------------------------------------------+
| |
| [S]OURCE: D1: |
| [D]EST.: D2: |
| [C]ATALOG DIRS AND FILES:NO |
| [E]XTEND FILE ACROSS DISKS:YES |
| [F]ORMAT DESTINATION DISKS:NO |
| [B]ACKUP FILES SINCE DATE:00/00/00 |
| [A]RCHIVAL BACKUP ONLY:NO |
| [Q]UIT FLASHBACK! AND RETURN TO DOS |
| |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
Figure 1. FLASHBK.COM's main menu, showing the numerous backup options
available.
When performing a standard backup, the first thing you must do is
decide on source and destination drive and pathnames. The source drive
and path define where the data you wish to back up is presently located;
the destination defines the location where the backup files will reside.
Source and destination are completely open-ended--you can back up a
RAMdisk to a hard-drive subdirectory, a collection of subdirectories to
floppy disk, or practically any other combination. The only limitation,
naturally, is that you're not allowed to back up a drive to itself,
though Flashback! will backup one hard-disk subdirectory to another on
the same disk.
Next, you can press "C" to select or de-select the "Catalog"
option. When active, this option causes Flashback! to create a
subdirectory on the destination path, containing a printable text file
of backup information. The catalog file includes filenames and
extenders for all backed-up files, byte counts, time and date-stamps,
volume numbers of both source and destination disks, and the source
pathname. While many users may elect not to employ the catalog option,
it provides vital information for those seeking to keep track of
multiple backups of important data.
The [E]xtend option is also a yes/no toggle. Choosing "yes" will
cause Flashback! to split files across floppy disks as necessary, during
multi-file backups, insuring that every byte of available floppy disk
space is used. Selecting "no" will force Flashback! to save only as
many files on each destination floppy as will fit in their entirety.
Most users will elect to employ the "Extend" option, speeding the backup
process and employing floppy disk space most efficiently. When using
RESTORE.COM, the process of restoring split files is handled
transparently. However, it should also be noted that files backed-up
under Flashback! can be restored individually, using SpartaDOS' COPY
command; and even split files can be restored manually, via the Append
option. Thus, the only reason one might select not to employ Extend is
if one anticipates having to restore on a system that does not employ
SpartaDOS, a situation that would render impossible the restoration of
files split across disk boundaries.
One of the most time-consuming aspects of a manual backup is the
need to format destination floppy disks. Flashback! can automate this
process, automatically formatting target floppies as they are inserted,
then backing up files on them in one, smooth, uninterrupted motion.
Flashback! will initialize disks in single, double, and dual (1050)
density, in both single- and double-sided formats, so you're free to
exploit all the features of your available target drives. If you have a
high-speed drive, such as the Atari XF551 or Indus GT, Flashback! will
even format in high-speed mode (under SpartaDOS X). However, when
performing backups to a series of floppy disks, Flashback! will not
allow you to change format parameters during the process. Moreover,
there are certain obscure drives that Flashback! doesn't know how to
format. Users of 3-1/2" drives, for example (yes, they exist for the
Atari 8-bit line!), will have to format a sufficient number of floppies,
manually, before starting a backup procedure.
SpartaDOS actively updates a file's date-time stamp when the file
is created or altered. Flashback! can thus offer the option of only
backing up those files that have been "touched" since a particular date.
Use of this option can vastly increase the speed required to perform
regular backups, since only brand-new, or newly-altered, files are
actually saved. To help manage this type of backup procedure,
Flashback! even remembers when you last backed-up the selected source
disk, rendering a separate tally of backup dates redundant (though still
necessary, where complete security is desired). It should also be noted
that effective use of this option is only possible when file dates are
reliably maintained, systemwide. This, in turn, means paying close
attention to clock-setting, clock-card battery changes, and other
details of clock management. It may also mean limiting, or at least
closely managing, the use of application software that doesn't handle
file date-stamps in the same way as SpartaDOS. Such files may sometimes
be rendered compatible with SpartaDOS by using SpartaDOS' "set file date
and time" option.
The [A]rchival Backup option is only available to users of
SpartaDOS X, which supports a single-bit "arc" flag in the header of
each file, denoting if the file has been backup up or not. When this
option is selected, Flashback! will only back up those files whose "arc"
bits are not set, and will then set the bits, preventing later redundant
backups of the same material. Like the "backup since date" option, the
Archival Backup option reduces the number of files that actually get
copied, speeding the backup process. However, only files created or
maintained under SpartaDOS X may be reliably backed-up with this option.
Backing Up and Restoring
Once all option have been set, the backup process is initiated by
pressing the START key. Now all you have to do is watch it work,
inserting floppy disks when the system requests them. The actual time
required for backup may vary widely, depending on the volume of files
being copied, as well as the speed and capacity of source and
destination drives. Flashback! attempts to use RAM to best advantage in
managing copy operations, so backups are always performed as efficiently
as possible, given the constraints of the system.
Restoring files is equally easy. Just type RESTORE (or X RESTORE,
when using SpartaDOS X). The menu shown in Figure 2 will appear. Here,
the options are simpler--you just have to specify the source and
destination paths (here, the "source" is the drive from which you are
restoring, the "destination," the drive to which you are restoring), and
determine whether or not you wish to be prompted before each file is
restored. This latter option is helpful is you wish to restore only
selected files from a comprehensive backup.
+------------- Figure 2 -----------------------------------------------+
| |
| [S]OURCE: D2: |
| [D]EST.: D1: |
| [P]ROMPT TO RESTORE EACH FILE:NO |
| [Q]UIT RESTORE AND RETURN TO DOS |
| |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------|
Figure 2. RESTORE.COM's simple and easy-to-understand menu makes
restoring files a breeze!
Pressing START commences the restore procedure. All you have to do
is hand floppy disks to the system, as requested. As noted above, it is
also possible to restore backups on a file-by-file basis using
SpartaDOS' own COPY command (with or without the Append option, as
necessary, to conjoin files split across disk boundaries).
Conclusions
Overall, I would rate this package as excellent. Before backing up
your drive, Flashback! tells you all about the work it is performing
(i.e., number of files and directories involved in the backup, etc.),
and offers similar information prior to file restoration. I have used
this package many times, and I am quite satisfied with it. I would
suggest, however, that one option be added to both FLASHBK.COM and
RESTORE.COM: that of printing out a backup or restore catalog,
automatically. The automatic generation of hard-copy would eliminate
one stage in managing the backup of complex systems.
This single complaint, however, is hardly worth mentioning. I
would call Flashback! a must-but, especially for hard-drive users, and
users of hardware-based RAMdisks.
SYSTEM: Atari 8-bit
REQUIREMENTS: RAMdisk, MIO, and/or hard drive; SpartaDOS; 5-1/4" floppy
drive.
SUMMARY: Excellent hard-drive/RAMdisk backup system for the Atari 8-bit
computer.
PRICE: $20.96
MANUFACTURER:
ICD, Inc.
Rockford, IL 61101
(815) 968-2228
--
Michael Current, Cleveland Free-Net 8-bit Atari SIGOp -->> go atari8 <<--
The Cleveland Free-Net Atari SIG is the Central Atari Information Network
Internet: currentm@carleton.edu / UUCP: ...!umn-cs!ccnfld!currentm
BITNET: currentm%carleton.edu@interbit / Cleveland Free-Net: aa700
-----------------------------------------
Return to message index
