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DISKDUPE
______________________________________________________________________________
OWNER'S MANUAL
Version 2.0
Micro System Designs, Inc.
1309 El Curtola
Lafayette, CA 94549
(415) 944-9994
DiskDupe (July 1989)
(c) Copyright 1989 Micro Systems Designs, Inc.
All rights reserved.
DISKDUPE, AUTOLOAD, RELAY and MICRO SYSTEM DESIGNS are
trademarks of Micro System Designs, Inc. Other brands and
product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of
their respective holders.
No part of this document may be reproduced, transmitted,
transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated
into any language (natural or computer) in any form by any
means, except as described in the following license without
the written permission of Micro System Designs, Inc.
LICENSE AGREEMENT
This software is protected by both United States copyright
law and international treaty provisions. You may use it on a
trial basis for up to one month provided you do not violate
the copyright. After one month, you are required to pay the
license fee as described below. This license fee entitles
you to use the software on one computer at one time. If you
wish to run several copies of the software concurrently, you
need to pay a license fee for each concurrent copy.
You are granted a limited license to copy DiskDupe for the
trial use of others providing you include the files
DISKDUPE.EXE, DISKDUPE.OVR, DISKDUPE.DAT, and DISKDUPE.DOC
in complete and unmodified form.
LIMITED WARRANTY
Micro System Designs, Inc. does not warrant that the
functions contained in this program will meet your
requirements or that the program operation will be
uninterrupted or error free.
Micro System Designs, Inc. specifically disclaims all other
warranties, expressed or implied, including but not limited
to implied warranties of fitness for any particular purpose
and of merchantability.
IN NO EVENT WILL MICRO SYSTEM DESIGNS, INC.BE LIABLE TO YOU
FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY LOST
PROFITS, LOST SAVINGS, COMMERCIAL DAMAGE OR OTHER INCIDENTAL
OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY
TO USE THIS PROGRAM, OR FOR ANY CLAIM BY ANY OTHER PARTY.
GOVERNING LAW
These statements shall be construed, interpreted, and
governed by the laws of the state of California. You agree
that this is the complete and exclusive statement of this
agreement which supersedes any prior agreement or other
communication between us on this subject. Use, duplication,
or disclosure by the U.S. Government of the computer
software and documentation in this package shall be subject
to the restricted rights under DFARS 52.227-7013 applicable
to commercial computer software.
III
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
You may use DiskDupe for up to one month on a trial basis
subject to the restrictions described in the License
Agreement. After one month, if you want to continue to use
DiskDupe, you are required to pay a license fee of $39. This
license fee entitles you to the following:
- Perpetual license to use DiskDupe on one computer at one
time.
- 30 minutes free technical support good for 60 days
following your first call (Technical support thereafter is
75 cents per minute. See the Owner's Manual for more
information.)
- Advance notification of updates and new products.
IV
DiskDupe Registration Form Send to: Micro System Designs, Inc.
1309 El Curtola
Lafayette, CA 94594
(415) 944-9994
Please print:
Version__________ Serial Number________________
Name_____________________________ Title_______________________
Company Name__________________________________________________
Address_______________________________________________________
City________________________________ State______ Zip__________
Phone#________________________________________________________
I have read the License Agreement and agree to its terms.
Signature____________________________________ Date____________
Payment by: MC____ Visa____ Check____
Cardnumber____________________________________________________
Expiration date_____/____
Name as it appears on the card________________________________
Yes! I want to register my copy of DiskDupe. I want to use:
___ copies of DiskDupe concurrently. ($39 each) $______
Total $______
V
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LICENSE AGREEMENT III
Limited Warranty........................III
Governing Law...........................III
REGISTRATION INFORMATION IV
Registration Form.........................V
INTRODUCTION 9
Summary of Features.......................9
Trial Edition............................10
System Requirements......................10
INSTALLATION 11
Hard Disk Installation...................11
Floppy Disk Installation.................11
Configuring..............................11
STARTING DISKDUPE 12
From AutoLoad............................12
Manual DiskDupe..........................12
DISKDUPE SCREEN 13
Source...................................13
Source Drive.............................14
Source Image File........................14
Source Image File List...................14
Format...................................14
Relay....................................14
Destination..............................15
Copy Type................................15
Copies...................................16
Setup Menu Choice........................16
SETUP MENU 16
Drive Type...............................17
Format and Verify Options................18
Temp Buffer File.........................18
auto-loader Drive........................19
MANUAL MODE 21
Changing Disks...........................21
Relay....................................21
COMMAND LINE AND BATCH FILES 21
Command Line.............................21
Batch Files..............................22
MAXIMUM SPEED 22
Clean Master.............................22
Format and Verify Optimization...........23
VI
EXAMPLES 23
Standard Copying.........................24
Pre-Formatting...........................24
Image Files..............................24
Backing up Floppies......................25
Making Blank DOS Disks...................25
GETTING HELP 26
What to Do Before Calling................26
30/60/75 Support Plan....................27
OTHER PRODUCTS 27
AutoLoad.................................27
For More Information.....................27
INDEX 29
VII
DiskDupe Owner's Manual
INTRODUCTION
SUMMARY OF FEATURES
Diskdupe is a fast and versatile disk duplication program
for the IBM compatible PC, XT, AT or 386. It will copy the
following disk formats:
- 5.25" 320k........(8 sectors, for CPM/86)
- 5.25" 360k..................(Standard 5")
- 5.25" 1.2M..............(AT High Density)
- 3.5" 720k..................(Standard 3")
- 3.5" 1.4M..............(3" High Density)
DiskDupe also provides a quick way of making blank,
formatted disks.
Diskdupe can either run manually or in conjunction with
AutoLoad and your auto-loader to automate disk duplication.
You can instruct DiskDupe to copy to an image file on your
hard disk. This image file can later be used to make copies
of the original disk. You can also specify a list of image
files to create or to copy from.
DiskDupe is fast. It employs advanced DMA techniques so that
it can make an image of a floppy disk on your hard disk and
then copy from the image without slowing down. For a normal
360k disk, the copy time takes less than 58 seconds. If you
pre-format the disks, it can take less than 26 seconds.
Diskdupe needs 640k of RAM memory to run. With 640k of RAM,
DiskDupe will store the entire disk image of a 360k disk in
memory. If you have less memory installed or if you are
copying higher density disks, DiskDupe will buffer the rest
of the disk image to your hard disk. This hard disk
buffering does not affect copying speed.
The RELAY option allows you to make backup copies of new
program disks or floppy disks. You simply put write protect
tabs on all of the master disks and put blank disks behind
each master. DiskDupe will copy each write-protected master
to all of the disks behind it that are not write-protected.
DiskDupe will also pre-format your disks ahead of time. This
will drastically cut the time needed to later make a copy.
Page 8
DiskDupe Owner's Manual
TRIAL EDITION
You may use DiskDupe for up to one month on a trial basis
subject to the restrictions described in the License
Agreement. After one month, if you want to continue to use
DiskDupe, you are required to pay a license fee of $39. This
license fee entitles you to the following:
- Perpetual license to use DiskDupe on one computer at one
time.
- 30 minutes free technical support good for 60 days
following your first call (Technical support thereafter is
75 cents per minute. See the Owner's Manual for more
information.)
- Advance notification of updates and new products.
- Reduced prices on other products. Your license fee will be
applied to the purchase price of: AutoLoad software (to use
your auto-loader with DiskDupe) or the DiskMachine system
(which includes an auto-loader and software).
See the Registration Form for more information on
registering DiskDupe.
You can also copy DiskDupe for the trial use of others
providing you include the files DISKDUPE.EXE, DISKDUPE.OVR,
DISKDUPE.DAT, and DISKDUPE.DOC in complete and unmodified
form. See the License Agreement for more information.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
To run DiskDupe you must have the following:
- IBM compatible PC, XT, AT or 386
- 640K RAM memory.
- Floppy disk drive
To automate disk copying you also need:
- Mountain compatible auto-loader, like the DiskMachine
- AutoLoad software.
Page 9
DiskDupe Owner's Manual
INSTALLATION
If you are using DiskDupe in conjunction with AutoLoad,
DiskDupe will be automatically installed in the \AL
subdirectory. However, if you using DiskDupe alone, follow
the instructions below to install DiskDupe onto your hard
disk.
HARD DISK INSTALLATION
To install DiskDupe if you are using it without AutoLoad,
follow the instructions below:
- Boot up your computer as usual until a C> prompt appears.
- Type: MD \DISKDUPE and press <ENTER>.
- Type: CD \DISKDUPE and press <ENTER>.
- Insert the DiskDupe disk in the A: drive and type: COPY
A:*.* <ENTER>.
FLOPPY DISK INSTALLATION
DiskDupe works better in conjunction with a hard disk. This
is because DiskDupe cannot buffer a disk image to a floppy
disk.
If you need to use DiskDupe on a floppy disk, copy the files
DISKDUPE.EXE, DISKDUPE.OVR, and DISKDUPE.DAT to the floppy.
Then choose the TEMP BUFFER FILE option from the Setup menu.
Press the backspace key till there is no entry. Then press
<ENTER> to record the changes. This will erase the TEMP
BUFFER option so that DiskDupe will not try to buffer a disk
image. (See the next section on how to configure DiskDupe.)
CONFIGURING
Now that DiskDupe is installed, you need to configure it for
your computer.
- Start DiskDupe by typing: DISKDUPE and pressing <ENTER>.
- If the floppy disks are not set up according to what is in
your computer, at the DiskDupe main menu move the bar
cursor over to the Setup option and press <Enter>.
- Choose the disk drive you want to setup by moving the bar
cursor up and down with the cursor keys or by typing the
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
letter of the drive and pressing <Enter>. A menu of all the
available types of drives will pop up. Choose the
appropriate selection from the menu.
- If you are using an auto-loader with AutoLoad software,
specify which drive your auto-loader is connected to.
- If you are using DiskDupe on floppy disks, type T and
press the backspace key till there is no entry. Then press
<ENTER> to record the changes. This will erase the TEMP
BUFFER FILE option so that DiskDupe will not try to buffer a
disk image.
STARTING DISKDUPE
DiskDupe can be run manually or, if you have an auto-loader,
can be used in conjunction with AutoLoad software.
FROM AUTOLOAD
If you are using DiskDupe with AutoLoad, follow the
directions in the AutoLoad manual to start AutoLoad.
(Usually you can start AutoLoad by typing AL and pressing
<ENTER> from the DOS prompt C>.) Then, select DiskDupe from
the AutoLoad menu. (If DiskDupe is not on the Main Menu,
first select the Utility Menu and then select DiskDupe from
this menu.)
MANUAL DISKDUPE
If you are using DiskDupe manually without AutoLoad
software, follow the instructions below:
- Boot up your computer as usual until a C> prompt appears.
- Type CD \DISKDUPE and press <ENTER>.
- Type DISKDUPE and press <ENTER>.
(DiskDupe will search your PATH for its data file. This
means that if the DiskDupe directory is included in your
PATH command, DiskDupe can be started from any
subdirectory.)
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
DISKDUPE SCREEN
When you first start DiskDupe, the following screen will
appear:
Go Source Destination Type Setup Quit
╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║ ║
║ DiskDupe Version 2.0 ║
║ ║
║ (c) 1989 Micro System Designs, Inc. ║
║ 1309 El Curtola Blvd. ║
║ Lafayette, California 94549 ║
║ (415) 944-9994 ║
║ ║
║ Written by Max S. Dunn & Paul J. Perry ║
║ ║
║ ║
║ ║
║ Press Alt-Q to Exit to DOS, Press Alt-G to Start disk Copying ║
║────────────────────────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────────────║
║ Drive A: 5.25" 360k │ Temp buffer file: DISKDUPE.TMP ║
║ Drive B: 5.25" 360k │ Base Address: 03F0 Hex ║
║ 3rd Drive: NONE │ Data Rate: Auto ║
║ 4th Drive: NONE │ Auto-loader drive: (Not Present) ║
║────────────────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────────────║
║ Source: A: │ Copies: 99 ║
║ Destination: B: │ Format: ONLY IF NECESSARY ║
║ Copy type: 5.25" 360k │ Verify: ONLY AFTER FORMAT ║
╚════════════════════════════════════╧═════════════════════════════════════════╝
USING THE MENUS
To change a menu choice, either move the cursor along the
top bar cursor or type in the first letter of the menu you
want to pull down and press <ENTER>. For instance to change
the source disk, press the right arrow key once and press
<ENTER>. Then move the cursor up and down to select the
appropriate drive letter.
When you are ready to start copying, press <Alt>-G. If you
want to exit to the DOS prompt press <Alt>-Q.
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
SOURCE
The source can either be a drive, a filename, a list of
filenames, the word INITIALIZE, or the word RELAY.
SOURCE DRIVE
The source drive is the drive letter where the master will
be read from. This can be the same as the destination drive
although it doesn't have to be. If you have more than two
floppy drives attached to your computer, you can enter 3rd:
or 4th: to specify the third or the fourth floppy drive
respectively.
SOURCE IMAGE FILE
If you have previously created a disk image, you can specify
the filename of the disk here. For instance, if you have a
disk image named DISK1, type in DISK1 here and the copies
will be made from this image.
SOURCE IMAGE FILE LIST
You can also specify a list of disk images. Suppose you want
to make 10 copies of three master disks which you have
created disk images for, then you could enter
DISK1,DISK2,DISK3 here. You can enter as many images as you
want however the total number of characters in these
filenames can not be more than 80 characters.
INITIALIZE
If you want to pre-format your disks to save time when you
copy them, choose INITIALIZE here. The disks will be
formatted and verified which will save a lot of time when
you later use them to make copies. For this to work properly
the DiskDupe Setup Menu should have the FORMAT option set to
"ONLY WHEN NECESSARY" and to save even more time the VERIFY
option should be set to "ONLY AFTER FORMAT".
NOTE: Disks that are pre-formatted using this option can
only be used with DiskDupe (or the DOS DiskCopy program). If
you want to format a disk to use for DOS file storage, copy
from a blank DOS formatted disk. (See the "Examples" section
for more information.)
Page 13
DiskDupe Owner's Manual
RELAY
If you want to make backup copies of a stack of floppy
disks, the easiest way to do it is to use RELAY. To use
RELAY, simply choose RELAY from the Source pulldown menu.
Then put write protect tabs on your master disks and behind
it put as many blank disks as you want copies for. Then put
this stack in the auto-loader drive and start copying.
DiskDupe will read the first disk and copy it to all of the
disks behind it until it reaches the next disk with a write-
protect tab. It will then read that disk in and copy it to
all the disks behind it. This will continue until all the
disks are copied.
If you are using DiskDupe manually, you can still use RELAY.
However when you are done, you will need to press <ESC> to
exit.
CAUTION: Be sure to put write protect tabs on all of your
master disks. If you don't, they will be overwritten.
DESTINATION
The Destination can either be a drive, a filename or a list
of filenames.
If Destination is a drive, this drive will be used to copy
the disks.
If Destination is a filename or a list of filenames, the
source disks will be read and disk images created on your
hard disk.
COPY TYPE
The Copy Type that you can use depends on what type of disk
drives are installed in your computer. (Be sure that your
drive types have been set up correctly on the Setup Menu.
See INSTALLATION for more information.)
If either the source or destination drive is a 5.25" 360k
drive, then the copy type can be either 360k or 320k disks.
A 360k disk is the standard DOS format. If you are copying
CPM/86 disks (or need to copy disks that have 8 sectors) use
the 320k disk format.
If both the source and destination drives are 5.25" 1.2Mb
drives then you can copy either 320k, 360k or 1.2Mb disks.
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
Note: Although you can copy 360k and 320k disks in a 5.25"
1.2Mb drive, it is not recommended. Because the 5.25" 1.2Mb
drives write a smaller track than usual, they can not be
reliably read in a 5.25" 360k drive.
If either the source or destination drive is 3.5" 720k
drive, the copy type will be the same.
If both the source and destination drives are 3.5" 1.4Mb
drives, you can copy either 720k or 1.4Mb disks.
COPIES
To select the number of copies choose the Copies option from
under the Go pulldown menu. You can enter any number from 1
to 32000 here. If you are creating a disk image file or
doing a RELAY copy, the copy number has no affect.
SETUP MENU CHOICE
Go to the Setup Menu to change various system parameters.
Refer to the next section for more information on the Setup
Menu.
SETUP MENU
The Setup Menu is used to change various system parameters.
This menu looks like the following:
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
Go Source Destination Type Setup Quit
╔═════════════════════════════════════════┌────────────┐═══════════════════════╗
║ │ A: │ ║
║ │ B: │ ║
║ │ 3rd: │ ║
║ │ 4th: │ ║
║ │ Format │ ║
║ │ Verify │ ║
║ │ Temp file │ ║
║ │ AutoLoader │ ║
║ └────────────┘ ║
║ ║
║ ║
║ ║
║ ║
║────────────────────────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────────────║
║ Drive A: 5.25" 360k │ Temp buffer file: DISKDUPE.TMP ║
║ Drive B: 5.25" 360k │ Base Address: 03F0 Hex ║
║ 3rd Drive: NONE │ Data Rate: Auto ║
║ 4th Drive: NONE │ Auto-loader drive: (Not Present) ║
║────────────────────────────────────┼─────────────────────────────────────────║
║ Source: A: │ Copies: 99 ║
║ Destination: B: │ Format: ONLY IF NECESSARY ║
║ Copy type: 5.25" 360k │ Verify: ONLY AFTER FORMAT ║
╚════════════════════════════════════╧═════════════════════════════════════════╝
DRIVE TYPE
Choices A: through 4th: are used to setup the drives that
are in your system. Simply enter the number of the correct
drive and then a menu of all drive types will appear. Then
enter the correct drive type. This setup information will be
stored so that you only need to change it once.
The 3rd: and the 4th: drives on this menu refer to the third
or fourth floppy disk installed on your system. For
instance, if you are using an XT and have a drive hooked up
to a connector on the back of your computer, it is probably
the 3rd: floppy drive.
Page 16
DiskDupe Owner's Manual
FORMAT AND VERIFY OPTIONS
The Format and Verify options are used to help speed up the
disk copying time. If you always use new disks when making
copies, set Format to ALWAYS. This will save a few seconds
that DiskDupe normally takes to identify that a disk is
blank and shift into Format mode. When Format is set to
ALWAYS a 360k disk will take less than 58 seconds to copy.
If however, you sometimes use disks that are pre-formatted
(by the DiskDupe Format routine described above), you can
save a lot of time by setting the Format option to ONLY IF
NECESSARY. This will skip the format step on disks that have
been pre-formatted. You can use this option even if you use
a combination of pre-formatted and new disks because
DiskDupe will still sense when a disk is new and
automatically shift into format mode for that disk.
If you are confident that the disks you have pre-formatted
have not been subsequently damaged, you can also set VERIFY
to ONLY AFTER FORMAT. On pre-formatted disks this can cut
the copying time on a 360k disk down to less than 18 seconds
per disk.
Be aware however, that if the disks have been damaged after
they were formatted (for instance, someone accidently
touched the floppy disk surface), DiskDupe will probably not
detect this damage. If you are concerned about this, you can
set VERIFY to ALWAYS to double check the disk for errors.
Copy times for pre-formatted disks when you VERIFY is set to
ALWAYS are still fairly quick. For a 360k disk it will still
be less than 42 seconds.
TEMP BUFFER FILE
The Temp Buffer File is the file where DiskDupe stores any
part of the disk that will not fit in memory. If you have at
least 640k of RAM memory in your computer and are copying
360k disks, the entire disk will fit in memory and will not
have to be buffered. If however, you are copying another
type of disk or don't have as much memory, part of the disk
will probably be buffered to this file.
DiskDupe will only store the parts of the disk with data on
it. For instance, if you are copying a disk that is only
half full, only that half of the disk that has data on it
will be stored.
Note: If files have been erased from a disk, DiskDupe may be
fooled into thinking that there is more data on the disk
than there really is. To help DiskDupe work most
Page 17
DiskDupe Owner's Manual
efficiently, it is best to make a clean master disk by
copying the necessary files onto a disk that has just been
formatted by DOS. (See the "Examples" section on a quick way
to do this.)
DiskDupe is also designed so that the copy time will not
slow down even when parts of the disk are buffered to your
hard disk.
This option will not create a disk image file. If you want
to create an image of a master disk, put that filename in
the Destination field of the Main Menu.
AUTO-LOADER DRIVE
This option is used to specify which drive your auto-loader
is attached to. If you don't have an auto-loader and
AutoLoad software, this option will be disabled.
RUNNING DISKDUPE
The following is the display of the DiskDupe screen as it is
running.
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║ Source disk Loaded in drive A: ║
║ Press <ESC> key to abort ║
║─────────────┬────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────║
║ │ Track = 27 Head = 1 ║
║ KEY │ ║
║ Read = * │ 1 2 3 3 ║
║ Format = ∙ │ Track = 0123456789012345678901234567890123456789 ║
║ Write = o │ Head 0: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ║
║ Verify = O │ Head 1: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ║
║ │ ║
║ │ ║
║ │ ║
║ │ ║
║─────────────┴────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────║
║ Disks per Hour: 216 Disks Requested: 99 ║
║ This Disk Time: 16.7 ║
║ Good Disks: 0 ║
║ Bad Disks: 0 ║
║────────────────────────────────────┬─────────────────────────────────────────║
║ Source: A: │ Copies: 99 ║
║ Destination: B: │ Format: ONLY IF NECESSARY ║
║ Copy type: 5.25" 360k │ Verify: ONLY AFTER FORMAT ║
╚════════════════════════════════════╧═════════════════════════════════════════╝
This screen gives the user useful information while running
DiskDupe. The top line of the screen gives the user
messages regarding what disks to enter. The Bars give the
user the status of the disk copying as it is being done.
Other important information displayed on this screen is
listed below:
Disks per Hour - Gives the total number of disks which will
be copied in one hour with the current setup.
This Disk Time - Tells the user how long it will take to
copy the current disk in seconds.
Disks Requested - Lists the number of disks which have been
requested to be copied.
Good Disks - Lists the total number of disks done.
Disks Bad - Lists the number of bad disks which have been
encountered.
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
MANUAL MODE
DiskDupe can be used manually as well as in conjunction with
your auto-loader.
CHANGING DISKS
In manual mode, DiskDupe will prompt you to change disks and
then wait until you press <ENTER>. Otherwise the operation
is exactly the same.
RELAY
In RELAY mode, DiskDupe will keep copying disks until the
auto-loader is empty. If you are using RELAY manually, press
<Esc> when you are done. Be sure to put write protect tabs
on all your masters or they will be overwritten.
COMMAND LINE AND BATCH FILES
Most DiskDupe parameters can be entered from the DOS command
line. This allows you to create DOS Batch files to automate
the use of DiskDupe.
COMMAND LINE
Here is an example of a DiskDupe command line:
DISKDUPE A: B: 10 NOPAUSE
This will start DiskDupe with A: as the source drive and B:
as the destination drive and will make 10 copies. The
NOPAUSE statement instructs DiskDupe to start copying and
then return to DOS without stopping at the menus. This is
useful if you want to use DiskDupe in a batch file.
Here is the form for the DiskDupe command line:
DISKDUPE (SOURCE) (DESTINATION) (COPIES) [NOPAUSE]
You must enter the Source, Destination and Copies. If you
don't want DiskDupe to pause at the menus, also add the word
NOPAUSE
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
Notice that this format is very similar to the DOS command
DISKCOPY. The major difference is that you have to enter the
number of copies that you want made.
Source can be a drive, a filename, a list of filenames, the
word FORMAT or the word RELAY. Destination can be a drive, a
filename or a list of filenames.
BATCH FILES
You can combine DiskDupe commands into DOS batch files to
automate sequences of tasks.
The following is a batch file that reads in three source
disks creating disk images and then makes ten copies of each
disk.
DISKDUPE B: DISK1,DISK2,DISK3 1 NOPAUSE
IF ERRORLEVEL 1 GOTO END
DISKDUPE DISK1,DISK2,DISK3 B: 10 NOPAUSE
:END
Notice that you can test if there was a problem using the
ERRORLEVEL command. An ERRORLEVEL of 1 or greater indicates
that there was an error.
MAXIMUM SPEED
There are several ways in which you can optimize the speed
of the copies made with DiskDupe.
CLEAN MASTER
DiskDupe works faster when the master disk is "clean". This
means that the master disk was formatted before any files
were copied to it and no files have been deleted. The reason
that this speeds up the copy is that DiskDupe is now able to
sense which part of the disk has valid data on it and only
copy that part of the disk. If you have a master disk which
has had many different files copied to it and then erased,
DiskDupe will have to copy the entire disk even though all
of the disk might not contain real data.
To make a clean master disk, first format a disk using the
DOS FORMAT command. (Or use the trick in the "Examples"
section below to make a DOS Formatted disk more quickly.)
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Then use the DOS COPY command to copy the necessary files
onto this newly formatted disk. This disk can now be used as
your clean master disk.
FORMAT AND VERIFY OPTIMIZATION
The following table lists the maximum time it takes DiskDupe
to copy a 360k disk. If the source disk is not completely
full, the copy times will be faster than this.
Format on, Verify on 58 seconds
Format off, Verify on 42 seconds
Format off, Verify off 18 seconds
Notice that if you don't need to format or verify the disk,
the copying can take as little as 18 seconds!
To do this, you need to pre-format the disks. This can be
done by choosing FORMAT as the copy Source. The disks will
be formatted and verified and any bad disks will be
rejected. You can format disks at any time that is
convenient.
Then, use these pre-formatted disks later when you make
copies. Make sure that Format is set to ONLY IF NECESSARY
and Verify is set to ONLY AFTER FORMAT on the Setup Menu.
If you are nervous about not verifying the disk after you
write to it, set the Verify option to ALWAYS. This will
increase the copy time but will re-verify the entire disk.
EXAMPLES
This section lists several different ways of copying disks
with DiskDupe and shows the best way to do it.
All these examples assume that your auto-loader is hooked up
to the B: drive. If your auto-loader is hooked up to a
different drive (like the third floppy drive) use that
letter instead of B:.
If you would like to specify the 3rd: or 4th drive on the
command line use either 3: or 4: to refer to the third or
fourth drive.
If you are using DiskDupe manually you can still use these
examples however you will have to change disks by hand.
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STANDARD COPYING
- You have 1 master disk and want to make 50 copies.
Put the master disk in the auto-loader and then place 50
blank (or pre-formatted) disks behind it. Start DiskDupe and
set Source and Destination to B: and Copies to 50. Or at the
DOS prompt type:
DISKDUPE B: B: 50
- You want to keep a stack of blank (or pre-formatted) disk
in the auto-loader and don't want to have to unload them to
put in the master disk.
Put the master disk in the A: drive and keep your blank (or
pre-formatted) disks in the auto-loader. Start DiskDupe and
set Source to A:, Destination to B: and Copies to 50. Or
type at the DOS prompt:
DISKDUPE A: B: 50
PRE-FORMATTING
- You only copy 200 disks a month but when you get an order
you need those disks as quickly as possible.
Pre-format the disks ahead of time. You can do this at your
convenience during lunch or at night. To do this, place a
stack of new disks in the auto-loader, start DiskDupe and
enter FORMAT as the Source, B: as the Destination and 200
for the Copies. You can also do this at the command line by
typing:
DISKDUPE FORMAT B: 200
Then when you get the order to copy the disks, use these
pre-formatted disks. Make sure the Setup Menu has Format set
to ONLY WHEN NECESSARY and Verify set to ONLY AFTER FORMAT.
(You can also set Verify to ALWAYS to double check the disks
although this takes a longer.)
IMAGE FILES
- You have 10 master disks that you need to copy
periodically and you don't want to keep using the masters
over and over again.
Create image files of the masters on your hard disk. Do this
by putting your master disks in the auto-loader and then
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
starting DiskDupe and setting Source to B: and Destination
to D1,D2,D3,D4,D5,D6,D7,D8,D9,D10. Or type:
DISKDUPE B: D1,D2,D3,D4,D5,D6,D7,D8,D9,D10
Then to make 3 copies of these 10 masters, set Source to
D1,D2,D3,D4,D5,D6,D7,D8,D9,D10 and Destination to B:. Or
type:
DISKDUPE D1,D2,D3,D4,D5,D6,D7,D8,D9,D10 B: 3
BACKING UP FLOPPIES
- You just received PageMaker (or another software program)
and the instructions tell you to backup the 13 program disks
before using it.
- Or, your secretary has been keeping all of your letters on
floppy disks and you want to make a backup copy of these in
case something happens to them.
Put write protect tabs on every master disk. Place a blank
(or pre-formatted) disk behind each master. Put this stack
in the auto-loader and start DiskDupe. For the source, enter
the word RELAY and for the destination, enter B:. Or type:
DISKDUPE RELAY B:
Each master disk will be copied to all of the blank disks
that is behind it. Be SURE to put write protect tabs on your
master disks or they will be overwritten.
If you are using DiskDupe manually, you will need to type
<ESC> when you are finished.
CAUTION: Be sure to put write protect tabs on all of your
masters or they will be overwritten.
MAKING BLANK DOS DISKS
- You sell floppy disks and you want to pre-format them for
your customers.
- Or, you are responsible for formatting and distributing
all the blank floppy disks that your business receives. You
also re-format old disks to remove any potentially sensitive
information from them before you redistribute them.
First, use the DOS FORMAT command to format a disk. If you
like, use the FORMAT /S option to put the system on the
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
disk. Then start DiskDupe and select B: as Source and type
the word BLANK for Destination. Or type:
DISKDUPE B: BLANK
You only need to do the above step once. Then if you want to
make 10 blank DOS disks, start DiskDupe and set Source to
BLANK and Destination to B: and Copies to 10. Or type:
DISKDUPE BLANK B: 10
GETTING HELP
DiskDupe is backed by a technical support system designed to
offer you fast, courteous service. This section explains
what to do if you need assistance beyond what the manual can
provide.
NOTE: We are sorry but we cannot offer technical support to
the many users who are trying DiskDupe before they send in
the registration fee. After you register, you will receive
30 minutes of free technical support (See the 30/60/75
Support Plan below.)
WHAT TO DO BEFORE CALLING
There is a program called HELPME included on the DiskDupe
disk that prints out instructions on what to do before you
call, the phone number of where to call, and technical
information about your computer. To run HELPME, follow these
steps:
1. Make sure that your printer is on and ready.
2. Type HELPME and press <ENTER>.
That should do it. However, if you get a message that says:
BAD COMMAND OR FILE NAME, do the following:
Type C: and press <ENTER>, type CD \DISKDUPE and press
<ENTER>, then type HELPME and press <ENTER>.
Be sure to read the HELPME printout and follow the
directions before you call.
(ADVANCED USERS: If your printer is hooked up to another
port besides LPT1 (or PRN) then type HELPME followed by the
name of your printer's port. For instance, if you have a
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
serial printer hooked up to your COM1 port, type HELPME
COM1.)
30/60/75 SUPPORT PLAN
-30- After you return your registration card and pay your
license fee, you will receive 30 minutes of free technical
support.
-60- This free time is good for 60 days following your first
call.
-75- Technical support after that is 75 cents per minute.
OTHER PRODUCTS
If you are interested in automating your disk duplication,
Micro System Designs also offers other products to help you.
AUTOLOAD
If you already have an auto-loader, DiskDupe can be used in
conjunction with another software product called AutoLoad to
automate disk changing. This will allow you to put a whole
stack of disks in the auto-loader to be copied
automatically.
AutoLoad also allows you to use your auto-loader and a hard
disk backup program (like FastBack) to automatically back up
your hard disk.
DISKMACHINE
If you don't have an auto-loader, you might be interested in
the DiskMachine package. This includes an auto-loader and
the AutoLoad software in a reasonably priced package.
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
FOR MORE INFORMATION
For more information on AutoLoad and the DiskMachine
contact:
Micro System Designs, Inc.
1309 El Curtola
Lafayette, CA 94549
(415) 944-9994
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DiskDupe Owner's Manual
INDEX
30/60/75 Support Plan..............................27
3rd: floppy drive..................................17
<ESC>..........................................15, 21
A
Auto-loader Drive..................................19
AutoLoad...........................................27
B
Backing up Floppies................................25
Batch files....................................21, 22
C
Clean Master.......................................22
Command line.......................................21
Configuring........................................11
Copy Times.........................................23
Copy Type..........................................15
Copying Disks Examples.............................23
D
Destination........................................15
Disk formats........................................9
Disk image.........................................14
DiskDupe Menus.....................................13
DiskMachine........................................27
Drive Type.........................................17
E
ERRORLEVEL.........................................22
Examples...........................................23
Exit to the DOS prompt.............................13
F
Floppy Disk Installation...........................11
For More Information...............................27
FORMAT.........................................14, 23
Format and Verify Optimization.....................23
Format Option......................................18
G
Getting Help.......................................26
Governing Law.....................................III
H
Hard Disk Installation.............................11
I
Image File.........................................14
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Image Files........................................24
Installation.......................................11
Introduction........................................9
L
License Agreement.................................III
Limited Warranty..................................III
List of disk images................................14
M
Making Blank DOS Disks.............................25
Manual Mode........................................21
Maximum Speed......................................22
Menus..............................................13
N
NOPAUSE............................................21
O
Other Products.....................................27
P
Pre-format.........................................14
Pre-formatted......................................18
Pre-Formatting.....................................24
R
Registration Form...................................V
Registration Information...........................IV
RELAY.......................................9, 14, 21
S
Setup Menu.........................................16
Source.............................................13
Standard Copying...................................24
Starting DiskDupe..................................12
Summary of Features.................................9
System Requirements................................10
T
Table Of Contents.................................VII
Technical Support..................................26
Temp Buffer File...................................18
Third or fourth floppy disk........................17
V
Verify Option......................................18
Verifying the disk.................................23
W
Write protect tabs.................................14
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