Readme for Dreckbak ver. 5.c Hard Disk Backup Utility Suite (Shareware)

by Murray Weismer

Please note. This document is taken from DreckBak.txt, which may be more accurate and complete than this document.

THE NAME:
Yes!!! Many of you have inquired about the name, DreckBak. The word "dreck" comes from the secret, mystical, and almost forgotten language of the mythical Illuminatti. A vernacular translation is "Crap" Since there is a feature in DreckBak to exclude unwanted directories and files from your backup to avoid saving a lot of needless crap in your backup set, hence the name "DreckBak" (G)

REQUIREMENTS:
No special hardware required. All you need is an OS/2 system and some hard disk space on any device that has a drive letter! You also need zip.exe (ver. 2.2) and unzip.exe from Info-zip. There's no longer an excuse to have NO BACKUP.

OVERVIEW:
Thank you for trying this simple, yet complete backup solution. In my experience, many computer users do not have a workable backup strategy, and in too many cases, none at all. Compounding this problem is a lack of a reliable, and reasonably priced OS/2 backup program. The included utilities with Warp are next to useless. The enclosed program will help solve this problem with minimal expense and hassle. While neither elegant nor sexy, it does the job. It will back up in ZIP format to either a Hard Drive, or removable media, such as an ORB or SyJet drive. It can also create the backups on the Hard disk and copy it to another drive. (Removable media?, CD burner) I use this approach to back up my 3 critical partitions daily and have been able to successfully restore my boot drive PAINLESSLY using the zip files created by this utility. You can also EASILY access any file in the archive using any program, or file manager, that can handle a zip file. (Yes Mr. OldDos, you can use the unzip command line) Quick and easy restorations of specific files and/or directories are a snap.

LEGAL STUFF:
This software is guaranteed to do nothing but take up disk space. Your system may blow up, your drives may fry, your mate could run off with the cable guy. (Sorry Jim) You may hit the lottery. Monica Lewinsky may run for president. She may even win! (by a swallow). Howard Stern could get an Oscar for Fartman. Elvis may come back. None of it is my fault!! You, the user, assume all risk and responsibility for any damage or data loss to your system. I will not be liable for anything as the result of your use of these files.

I have no reason to expect that this utility will cause any damage of any kind, but beware---- especially if you have no backup strategy!!

SHAREWARE:
This program is Shareware. The cost is $25.00 US. The program is in NO WAY crippled. It will not time out. If after trying the program for 30 days, and you do not wish to register, you must delete it from your system. If you are one of those people who never registers your software, there is nothing to prevent you from stealing DreckBak. When DreckBak saves your ass the first time, please reconsider and register it.

   INSTALLATION:
      

  

      1) Copy the contents of this package to any temporary directory
      
  

      2) Run INSTALL.EXE and follow the prompts.  It will create all of the program
      	objects, including the main utilities, all of the DOCS, Editing objects, all
      	needed directories, and the support site URL object.
        	NOTE:  If you are using all of the default locations, you just need to hit
      	the "ENTER" key.  No need to type anything.  
	(See NOTES for info about the "Copy TO" feature.  
      
  

      3) Install SCHEDB2.ZIP or a CRON program for scheduled, automatic backups 
      
  

      4) Open the DreckBak folder that was created on your desktop.  
      
  

      5) If you are using the included SCHEDB2.ZIP, open the Properties (settings)
      	notebook for the DRECKBAK program object.  Set the backup times and
      	days on the Schedule Page of the Properties Notebook.  
      
  

      6) If needed, edit "Edit test.lst" It is pre-configured to exclude un-needed
              files and directories (Dreck) for most systems.  It is not necessary to
              remove any entries here.  Non-existant entries are ignored. You may add
              any files or directories that you wish to exclude from your backup.  
      
  

      7) After you are sure all is working well, you may wish to edit the program
              object to start minimized, and close on exit.

   MANUAL INSTALL:  
      

  

      1) Create a directory to hold DreckBak 
      
  

      2) Create a directory for log files 
      
  

      3) Create a directory for the Backups 
      
  

      4) Copy the lines below and save as "SetEnv.cmd" in the DreckBak directory 
      
  

      5) Edit the "SET STATEMENTS" to reflect your system setup. (note:  some
              entries are not yet implemented)
       	
      
  

      ---Start Marking Here -------- 
      @ECHO OFF 
      REM ***** EDIT BELOW 	
      SET TEMP=f:\temp (choose a directory on a drive with the most space) 
      SET PATH=d:\ztb;d:\dreckbak; (you only need the path to DreckBak and ZIP) 
      SET BACKDIR=J:\FRESHBAK (Directory to keep you backup zips){no need to edit
              as above} 
      SET LOGDRV=D  
      SET LOGDIR0=LOGS 
      SET LOGDIR=D:\LOGS (Directory to store LOG files){No need to edit as above}
      SET HOMEDIR=D:\DRECKBAK (Directory that DreckBak resides in) {No need to edit
              as above} 
      SET HOMEDIR0=DRECKBAK 
      SET HOMEDRV=D  
      SET BACKDRV=J:  (Drive Letter only of BACKDIR above){No need to edit as above} 
      SET BACKDIR0=FRESHBAK (Directory name ONLY of BACKDIR above)
      		{No need to edit.......} 
      SET COPYDRV=K:  (Drive letter to copy backups to - this is an optional feature,
              and not required) 
      SET COPYDIR=K:\FRESHCPY (Directory to copy backups to - optional feature) 
      SET COPYDIR0=FRESHCPY 
      SET ZIPDRV=D  
      SET ZIPDIR0=ZTB 
      SET ZIPDIR=D:\ZTB (Location of ZIP.exe and UNZIP.exe) {No need to edit....etc}
      SET ZIPOPT=-rgSu9Tv (Options to control ZIP behavior - see zip.doc for info)
      	(Above line does not need to be edited, and I recommend you not change it
              unless you know what you are doing, except the number (9) which is best
              size, longest time) 	
      SET LOGNAMEB=DreckBak.log 
      SET LOGNAMEI=Integrty.log 
      REM ******END OF SETS *****
      REM ** Be Sure that the the following 2 lines are typed on ONE line***
      

      SET >%LOGDIR%\setenv.txt %HOMEDIR%\logit.exe %LOGDIR%\%LOGNAMEB%
      "Environmentsavedto%LOGDIR%\%LOGNAMEB%" 
      GOTO END
      :END


      ------------END MARKING HERE----------------
<   

  

      6) Create program objects for DreckBak.exe and Freshbak.exe if desired. 
      	Parameters for DreckBak are drive letters to be backed up.  ie:  [c d e ]

GETTING STARTED:

If you are going to use a CRON program to automate the backups, or if you use the included WPS extension, SCHEDB2, you can set the DreckBak object to start minimized and close on exit. For best results, critical backups should be done from the maintenance partition to avoid any problems with opened files and .INI's. (I have successfully restored using an archive created from my main boot partition, but the GURU's say this is a No-No, so be advised.) This utility will not abort the backup in this case, but will report that files could not be opened, post a warning in the warn log, and make some mild noises.

Install SCHEDB2 for automation. (Any other CRON or scheduler will work if you do not wish to use the enclosed program.) Be sure to set the last page in the settings notebook for DrekBak.cmd for the schedule. I have been unable to contact the author of SCHEDB2 in over a year, so I do not know the current status of this software. It does work very well for me but there is a small bug. Trying to change a schedule will hang the computer. REMOVE the schedule item and ADD the revision. Everything else works fine.

USAGE:
DreckBak.exe is the file that controls the backup process. You can run this by double clicking its Icon, or better still, for automated use, use a cron program, the included SCHEDB2, or other scheduler. (Note**** If using a CRON or schedule utility, be sure to pass the drive letters you want backed up as parameters. This is not needed with SCHEDB2, as it directly executes the program object) You should set up this utility (DreckBak) to back up all of your partitions that change. I run a backup 6 nights a week. Whenever I make a "major" change to the system, ie: FixPak, etc, I make a full backup, using FRESHBAK.exe, of my Boot Partition, and call it something like "E_FullFP10.ZIP. I do this BEFORE making the change, and again, afterwards, when I am satisfied that the the change should stay. I back up both my DOS and OS2 boot partitions, as well as my data partition, daily. DreckBak will give me 2 days worth of backups, for extra safety.

DreckBak.exe calls FILZ.EXE which manages existing backup zips and feeds command lines and parameters to ZIP.EXE. (produced by Info-Zip). You must first create SetEnv.cmd if you didn't run the installer.

Please note.... All default locations may EASILY be changed during installation or at any later time.

DreckBak.exe assumes that FILZ.EXE, test.lst, SetEnv.cmd, BEEP.EXE and LOGIT.EXE are all in the DRECKBAK directory on drive D: (Drive D is my maintenance partition) The file, test.lst may be edited (not required) to point to every directory that you DO NOT want backed up. Prime examples would be TMP, TEMP,and CACHE. Some other good ones may be x:\TCPIP\TMP and x:\NETSCAPE\PROGRAM\USER\USERNAME\CACHE. It's a good idea to include items on all of your drives, not just the ones that you will back up using DreckBak. FRESHBAK.exe also will use this file when creating a backup of any drive. There is no need to delete invalid directories in this file. They will be ignored. Most of the commonly excluded directories and files are already included in this file.

The default destination directory for the zips to be stored in is j:\freshbak. Be sure that there is sufficient space for your backups. This program will keep 2 sets. If you do not have enough space, you will get an error posted to the log file and hear a series of beeps. Either create this directory (done by the install program) or edit SetEnv.CMD to reflect the correct directory for your system. If using removable media, be sure the directory exists on all media that you will use.

The directory I use to store the log files is d:\logs. Either create this directory (also done by the install) or edit for your system. The logs for each backed up partition are overwritten on each run. The DreckBak.LOG and INTEGRTY.LOG are appended.

DreckBak is set to backup drives F, E, and C (can be changed during the install, or any later time) and to TWICE verify the integrity of the backup. You can either add more drives by entering them at the prompt during the install, or later by changing the parameters line in the DreckBak.exe Properties notebook.

Unless you have Mucho Hard disk space, I advise you to set this up to backup the largest drives first and smallest last. Zip will create temporary files during the backup in your TEMP directory, as defined in the SET commands or during installation. (Default is F:\TEMP) There must be enough room on that drive to hold this file.

SUGGESTION: (This is NOT required)
Before getting started using DreckBak for regular backups, create a backup of each partition on your system. Use the FreshBak object to do this. If you have enough removable media, or hard disk space, be sure to back up all partitions that you wish to be able to easily recreate.

Now you are ready to use DreckBak to make regular, frequent, scheduled backups.

Remember, the safest backup is one that is not located with your computer, so use removable media if possible, and rotate them. Consider that if you are backing up to your hard drive, you will not be protected against any problems that may affect your drive. A second physical drive is better than a partition on a drive that you are backing up. Although most Hard Disk problems can be corrected with FDISK or CHKDSK, if your machine cannot read your drive, it cannot read your backup, either. Even if you do not have removable media, backing up to your hard drive is FAR better than no backup at all.

RESTORING a Backup:

Example: "j:\freshbak\H_Ebak.zip" "e:\" This will restore the file H_Ebak.zip to the root directory of drive E.

To restore your boot drive, you must be either booted to a Maintenance partition or to Floppy disks. If you do not have WPS support, just call at the OS/2 prompt, "drive:\path\UNZIP.EXE SourceDrive:\Filename.zip -d TargetDrive:\ "

      Example ** From the A:\ prompt, assuming boot drive is C and unzip.exe is in 
                      D:\ZTB, you should type .......
      D:\ZTB\UNZIP.EXE J:\FRESHBAK\H-CBAK.ZIP -D C:\
      

Many files on the boot drive are READ ONLY. They will not be restored unless you change the attributes. For a clean, quick restore, format the drive first. (Type HELP FORMAT for more info) (format c: /FS:HPFS)

Also be aware that empty directories will not be restored. You can use the included "dummy.dat" zero byte file in your empty directories as a place holder to be sure that restores will recreate these directories. Also, any directories that you have excluded by listing them in the TEST.LST will likewise NOT be recreated. By default, TEMP, TMP, DELETE, and TCPIP\TMP will not be recreated, as well as some others. Simply recreate them after the restore.

** Notes** The following line will be logged in the warn log at the creation of each archive . It is not an error.

"zip warning: j:/freshbak/H_Fbak.zip not found or empty"

The COPY-TO function, has been implemented. It can be used to copy your backup.zip from the FreshBak directory to another drive/directory of your choice. It may also be used in the future to fire up other software needed to get the files on your tape drive or CD burner. It's currently set up to copy all files with a zip extension at the end of the backup. It will not do anything with the backup zip (zipfile.1) and will overwrite the existing Zip file. This way, you will have 2 generations of the backup on the hard drive and the latest version copied to removable media. If you wish to use it to fire up other utilities, please let me know the exact command line that you need, and I'll put it together for you.

I envision this as being able to call existing software, such as Backmaster, Colorado Backup, BA/2, etc, and have it place the backup files created by DreckBak onto your tape drive.

SUGGESTION:
FRESHBAK.exe: This object will allow the creation, or the freshening, of a zip file. You may specify any drive, directory or filename for the zip, as well as the source, and logfile name. This can be used to back up an entire drive or just a portion of the drive tree. (ie: x:\TCPIP - Will back up the TCPIP directory, as well as all subdirectories). It will also freshen (add new or changed files to) existing zip files. This is useful when you have a drive that has files that change or are added. Freshbak will update the existing backup file with the new or changed files. It will not remove any files, so files no longer on the drive will still be in the backup.

I use this approach on the partition that holds downloadable files for the users of my BBS. Files are added to this drive frequently, but almost never are there deletions.

TO-DO:
Add user definable command line in the COPY-To feature. You Tell Me!!!

Any suggestions and help with this project are QUITE WELCOME!!!!

CREDITS:
I have included Logit.exe and its docs by Julian Buss. It is FREEWARE.
Beep.exe is also a freeware utility contained in the FM2UTILS.zip by M. Kimes.
Info-Zip programs (Zip and Unzip) are available on most major OS2 sites.
Some Icons taken from the Icon Heaven collection by The Frobozz Magic Software Company.
If I left anyone out, let me know, and I'll put ya' in.
All other files in this archive written by Murray Weismer.

Many thanks go out to a "buddy" that I found in one of the OS/2 news groups whose input has been indispensable in improving this program, and to David G of the PACS OS/2-Warp SIG who "showed me the light".

SUPPORT:
If you have any comments, suggestions, improvements, bug reports, or problems, please contact me at the support web site below or...

Dreckbak@weismer.virtualave.net or log on to RPS.BBS at 215-624-8960

The latest version of this program, along with some screen shots may be found at http://weismer.virtualave.net/DreckBak.html Easy access is provided by clicking the URL object in the DreckBak folder.

This Program is SHAREWARE

Murray Weismer

SUPPORT OS/2 - JOIN YOUR LOCAL USER GROUP

Member "Philadelphia Area Computer Society (PACS) OS/2-JAVA Special Interest Group (SIG) http://www.phillyos2.org for info.

DreckBak is available at NO CHARGE to all verified members of the above users group. IT PAYS TO BELONG - In more ways than one!!!!

ENJOY!