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MANUAL
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PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 1 10/12/86
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Not Copy Protected
(C) Copyright SoftPatch 1985 Non Resident
All Rights Reserved
************************************
* Suggested Donation US $35.00 *
************************************
If you like this package and find it useful in your work
please send a check to:
SoftPatch, P.O. Box 11455, San Francisco CA 94101
Tel. (415) 777-2993
Your donation along with the registration form provided
here for printout will entitle you to receive technical
support and notices of updates and new products.
The source codes of all PACKDISK Utilities are available
on terms as specified in the form also provided at the
end of the text.
This text has been page broken for printout. Just center
the paper, position the printer head at about half an
inch below the perforation and use the DOS Command TYPE.
***
LICENSE
THIS SOFTWARE IS PROTECTED BY THE UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT LAW.
SOFTPATCH IS PLEASED TO LICENSE THIS SOFTWARE TO YOU FOR USE ON A
SINGLE MACHINE. PLEASE COPY IT ONLY IN SUPPORT OF YOUR USE ON
THE SINGLE MACHINE.
***
LIMITED WARRANTY
THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND
EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A
PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND
PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE IS WITH YOU. IN NO EVENT SHALL
SOFTPATCH BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, INCIDENTAL
OR CONSEQUENTIAL, ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE,
THIS SOFTWARE.
***
Licensed Material-Software Programs, Property of
SoftPatch P.O. Box 11455, San Francisco CA 94101
Telephone (415) 777-2993
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 2 10/12/86
INTRODUCTION
This software package contains six utility programs
For IBM PC/XT/AT, 128KB, DOS 2.0 Up
Non-Network Drives up to 32MB.
They can also be used on truly compatible clones.
Their functions are summarized below and then described with more
detail later in this manual. The package adopted its name from
the flagship utility PACKDISK, which will make the operation of
your hard disk smooth and efficient. All programs in this
package are written in assembly language and assembled as .COM
files for maximum speed and efficiency.
Please do take time to read this manual, but if you are in a
great hurry, at least
READ ALL IMPORTANT NOTES BEFORE
YOU START USING THESE UTILITIES
PACKDISK Utilities
DELDIR ∙ Deletes a subdirectory together with its files and
subdirectories.
LISTFRAG ∙ Lists all fragmented files in the drive.
NAMEDIR ∙ Renames a subdirectory.
PACKDISK ∙ Eliminates file fragmentation in the drive.
∙ Eliminates unallocated spaces between files.
∙ Re-integrates lost clusters (file allocation
units) into the available space on the disk.
∙ Packs the root directory and subdirectories and
frees subdirectory trailing clusters.
TRANSDIR ∙ Transfers a subdirectory together with its files
and subdirectories into another directory in the
same drive.
PARK ∙ Parks disk(s) before power off.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 3 10/12/86
IMPORTANT NOTES COMMON TO ALL UTILITIES
∙ POSITIVELY DO NOT ATTEMPT TO USE ANY OF THESE UTILITIES ON A
NETWORK DRIVE.
∙ Do not use these utilities with ASSIGN or SUBST Command in
effect.
∙ The terms "drive" and "disk" as used in this text refer to
either the DOS partition of a fixed disk or a DOS diskette.
∙ Except PARK all other utilities test the pointers to the data
area and in the File Allocation Table. They will exit if
they detect an invalid pointer or cross-linked files.
∙ If a bad sector is encountered within an allocation chain
during a disk read/write, the utility will exit after the
necessary clean up. If this occurs, a file may contain
incomplete data.
∙ Except for LISTFRAG and the initial part of TRANSDIR the
Ctrl-Break is inactive during the program execution.
∙ You may enter your commands using either upper or lower case
or a combination of both. The global characters are not
supported.
∙ Path names in the command lines must start in the root
directory. The leading backslash (\) is optional.
∙ Except LISTFRAG and PARK all other utilities change the
current directory to root.
∙ DOS Version is not tested.
A Word to The Wise
The PACKDISK Utilities have been thoroughly tested and are safe
if used on a reliable equipment. However, they do not afford
protection against a power failure or a hardware malfunction.
Therefore, when using them, and particularly when using PACKDISK,
this rule is in order:
Have your backup files brought up to date!
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 4 10/12/86
DELDIR
It deletes the designated subdirectory together with its files,
subdirectories and their files.
To delete a subdirectory enter from your keyboard
d:path\DELDIR d:path
The first drive letter and the path designate the drive and the
directory where the file DELDIR.COM resides. The drive letter
may be omitted if this file is in the default drive.
The second drive letter and the last component of the path that
follows it designate the subdirectory to be deleted. You may
omit the drive letter if the subdirectory is in the default
drive.
For example, if you enter
a:\deldir c:\level1\level2\level3
the subdirectory level3 will be deleted together with its files
and subdirectories.
A backslash at the end of the path will generate an error
message.
After you enter your command DELDIR will ask you if you have
reviewed the contents of the subdirectory to be deleted. At this
point you may either cancel your command (Esc) or confirm it
(Enter).
Important Notes to DELDIR
∙ DELDIR will delete a subdirectory even if it is the current
directory.
∙ You should change the paths affected by the deletion.
∙ DELDIR is a powerful command. Use it with caution.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 5 10/12/86
LISTFRAG
It displays all fragmented files and subdirectories in the
designated or default drive and reports the number of
non-contiguous chains.
To start LISTFRAG enter from your keyboard
d:path\LISTFRAG d:
The first drive letter and the path designate the drive and the
directory where the file LISTFRAG.COM resides. The drive letter
may be omitted if this file is in the default drive.
The second drive letter designates the drive you wish to review.
If you omit it, then LISTFRAG will list fragmented files in the
default drive.
For example, if the file LISTFRAG.COM resides in the current
directory of the default drive and this is the drive you wish to
review, simply enter
listfrag
LISTFRAG displays fragmented files in a similar manner as the DOS
Command CHKDSK, but is more convenient to use if you wish to see
all fragmented files in a drive with a complex tree structure.
In this case the Command CHKDSK d:\*.* would have to be entered
for each directory separately.
Another advantage of LISTFRAG over CHKDSK is that in addition to
fragmented files, it also displays fragmented subdirectories.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 6 10/12/86
NAMEDIR
It renames the designated subdirectory.
To rename a subdirectory enter from your keyboard
d:path\NAMEDIR d:path\\newname
The first drive letter and the path designate the drive and the
directory where the file NAMEDIR.COM resides. The drive letter
may be omitted if this file is in the default drive.
The second drive letter and the last component of the path that
follows it and ends with the double backslash (\\) designate the
directory to be renamed. The new name follows the double
backslash. You may omit the drive letter if the subdirectory is
in the default drive.
For example, if you enter
a:\namedir c:\level1\level2\level3\\lev3
the subdirectory level3 will have its name changed to lev3.
Important Notes to NAMEDIR
∙ If you choose a new name longer than the old one, make sure
that no single path going through the renamed directory
exceeds 63 characters in length. Failure to do so may put
some files out of reach.
∙ You should update the paths affected by the name change.
You will find NAMEDIR most useful when the name of a subdirectory
becomes obsolete and does not reflect its contents any more,
particularly if that subdirectory is full of files.
NAMEDIR will also be helpful when you wish to add one more level
to a path that has already attained 63 characters in length. All
you have to do is shorten the names of the intermediate levels
one by one to save enough characters for one more level at the
end of the path.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 7 10/12/86
PACKDISK
It performs the following tasks in the designated drive:
∙ Eliminates file fragmentation in the designated or default
drive.
∙ Eliminates unallocated spaces between files.
∙ Re-integrates lost clusters (not pointed to by a directory
entry) into the pool of available clusters.
∙ Packs the root directory, eliminating deleted entries. It
does not alter the order of entries.
∙ Packs all subdirectories and re-integrates unused clusters
trailing at the end of a packed subdirectory into the pool of
available clusters.
To start PACKDISK enter from your keyboard
d:path\PACKDISK d:
The first drive letter and the path designate the drive and the
directory where the file PACKDISK.COM resides. The drive letter
may be omitted if this file is in the default drive.
The second drive letter designates the drive to be processed. If
you omit it, then PACKDISK will process the default drive.
For example, if the file PACKDISK.COM resides in the current
directory of the default drive and this is the drive you wish to
process, simply enter
packdisk
The time of execution will vary, depending on the extent of
fragmentation in the drive. For example, it may take several
minutes to process a half-full 10MB disk, which endured a great
deal of file creating activity and is being processed for the
first time.
It is recommended that you run LISTFRAG before you run PACKDISK
for the first time to see the extent of file fragmentation on
your disk. Then run LISTFRAG again to see the difference. The
list of fragmented files generated by LISTFRAG can be redirected
to your printer.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 8 10/12/86
Important Notes to PACKDISK
∙ CERTAIN COPY PROTECTED MODES ARE INCOMPATIBLE WITH PACKDISK.
THEREFORE, IF A COPY PROTECTED FILE RESIDES ON YOUR DISK, IT
IS ADVISABLE TO ABORT THE PROCESS WHEN THE WARNING MESSAGE
APPEARS ON THE SCREEN. YOU MAY RESUME THE PROCESS AFTER YOU
HAVE DE-INSTALLED THE COPY PROTECTED FILE(S).
∙ A bad sector, which is not part of an allocation chain, will
most likely prevent a file from attaining full contiguity.
The end message will reflect such event.
∙ Do not use PACKDISK if you intend to use the DOS command
RECOVER or a utility that resurrects deleted files.
Why Use PACKDISK
Only the very first files copied to a freshly formatted disk are
written sequentially. As the file creating activities go on the
files become fragmented, that is, broken into non-contiguous
chains scattered more or less all over the disk. The longer the
disk is in use and the more intensive is this activity, the
higher is the degree of fragmentation.
File fragmentation affects adversely the disk performance and
delays noticeably the retrieval of files due to excessive head
movements. The deterioration of performance is even greater if
fragmented files reside in fragmented subdirectories.
So far DOS affords only one remedy to this problem, the command
COPY d:*.*, but the use of this command to eliminate file
fragmentation in all directories in a drive with a complex tree
structure is, to say the least, impractical.
PACKDISK will not only rearrange the files sequentially, but will
also free those clusters which are part of subdirectories but
after packing no longer contain valid entries. For example, if
you had 20 files in a subdirectory occupying three clusters, and
now, after some deletions, you have only eight files, PACKDISK
will pack those entries into the first cluster and will
re-integrate two empty trailing clusters into the available disk
space. PACKDISK does not change the order of directory entries.
PACKDISK will also free lost clusters. Note that CHKDSK may
declare itself unable to free lost clusters beyond an unspecified
point of the tree.
A frequent use of PACKDISK may make the recovery of an
inadvertently erased file much easier. There is a good chance
that such file will not be fragmented.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 9 10/12/86
TRANSDIR
It transfers the designated subdirectory, together with its files
and subdirectories, to another subdirectory or to the root
directory in the same drive.
Please note that in this process the specified subdirectory is
removed from the parent directory.
To transfer a subdirectory you enter from your keyboard
d:path\TRANSDIR d:path
The first drive letter and the path designate the drive and the
directory where the file TRANSDIR.COM resides. The drive letter
may be omitted if this file is in the default drive.
The second drive letter and the last component of the path that
follows it designate the subdirectory to be transferred. You may
omit the drive letter if the subdirectory is in the default
drive.
For example, if you enter
a:\transdir c:\level1\level2\level3\level4
the subdirectory level4 is the one to be transferred.
After the first part of the command is entered, TRANSDIR will
prompt you to enter the target directory, that is, the directory
into which you wish to transfer the subdirectory specified in the
first part.
In the above example the target directory may be branch3 in the
path
\branch1\branch2\branch3
If you wish to make the transfer into the root directory, enter
only the backslash (\) or simply press Enter.
After your second entry is received, TRANSDIR will display a
message reminding you that no single path created through this
transfer should exceed 63 characters in length. At this point
you may still abort the command.
Attempt to enter a drive specification in the second part of the
command will generate an error message.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 10 10/12/86
Important Notes to TRANSDIR
∙ TRANSDIR will exit with an error message if you make an
attempt to transfer a subdirectory to a deeper level along
the same path. Thus, in the following example
transdir c:\lev1\lev2\lev3\lev4
TRANSDIR will not allow you to transfer the subdirectory lev1
into lev2 (or lev3, or lev4).
∙ TRANSDIR does not test the lengths of the paths affected by
the transfer. Make sure that no single path going through
the transferred subdirectory exceeds 63 characters in length.
Failure to do so may put some files out of reach.
∙ You should update the paths affected by a transfer.
∙ Attempt to transfer a subdirectory to another drive will
generate an error message.
Why Use TRANSDIR
You will find TRANSDIR, together with NAMEDIR, very helpful in
reorganizing your files. TRANSDIR will even allow you to reverse
the order of subdirectories in a path. Have fun.
Practical Hint
If it does happen that an inadvertently executed transfer results
in a path longer than the legal limit of 63 characters, use
NAMEDIR to shorten the illegal path. Start from the first level
in the root directory and proceeding towards the end of the path
trim one by one the names of the subdirectories.
PACKDISK Utilities Version 1.2 Page 11 10/12/86
PARK
When you have finished your computing session and are ready to
turn off your machine, enter from your keyboard
d:path\PARK
The drive letter and the path designate the drive and the
directory where the file PARK.COM resides.
Then you may either turn off your machine or, should you change
your mind and wish to continue your work, press Esc to return to
the system.
If you have two hard disk drives, PARK will park them both
without further prompting.
PARK positions the hard disk heads over the innermost cylinder,
the one that in normal operation is used by BIOS for testing.
This minimizes the risk of a head crash, which, besides the
jostling of the computer, is the highest when the machine is
being turned off or on.
ORDER FORM
Please ship the following source codes on diskette(s):
DELDIR ($65.00) ................................ $ .........
LISTFRAG ($65,00) ................................ $ .........
NAMEDIR ($65.00) ................................ $ .........
PACKDISK ($115.00) ................................ $ .........
TRANSDIR ($85.00) ................................ $ .........
PARK ($20.00) ................................ $ .........
Subtotal ........................................... $ .........
Tax, 6.5% (California Residents Only) .............. $ .........
Shipping & Handling ................................ $ .... 4.00
Total .............................................. $ .........
I UNDERSTAND THAT THE SOURCE CODE(S) I HAVE HEREBY ORDERED WILL
BE PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND EITHER EXPRESSED
OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES
OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE
ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE FORM, QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF SAID
CODE(S) WILL BE WITH ME. IN NO EVENT SHALL SOFTPATCH BE LIABLE
TO ME FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL,
ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, SAID CODE(S). ANY
AND ALL LIABILITY OF SOFTPATCH SHALL BE LIMITED EXCLUSIVELY TO
REPLACEMENT OF A DEFECTIVE DISKETTE(S) CONTAINING SAID CODE(S).
I FURTHER UNDERSTAND THAT SAID CODE(S) ARE PROTECTED BY THE
UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT LAW AND MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED OR
TRANSFERRED TO A THIRD PARTY IN PART OR IN WHOLE WITHOUT WRITTEN
PERMISSION OF SOFTPATCH.
Signature ..................... Date ........
Printed Name ................................
Company .....................................
Street ......................................
City ................. State .... Zip .......
Telephone (...) ...-....
Please mail to:
SoftPatch, P.O. Box 11455
San Francisco CA 94101
PACKDISK Registration Card
Name ........................................
Company .....................................
Street ......................................
City ................. State .... Zip .......
Telephone (...) ...-....
Computer .......... Hard Disk ...............
Comments ....................................
.............................................
Signature ..................... Date ........
Please mail to:
SoftPatch, P.O. Box 11455
San Francisco CA 94101