SuperCache-NT/VLM 4.0-1E with Lazy Write Mode
for Windows NT V4.0 SP4 or later

Last Updated: February 16, 1999

A license key from EEC Systems, Inc. is required to operate this
software. We recommend you use NT 4.0 SP4 or later. This software 
does not support Windows 2000 field test kits.

Copyright (c) 1996, 1999 EEC Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

U.S. Patent Number 5577226. Other U.S. and Foreign
Patents Pending. 

EEC Systems Inc.
Millbrook Park
327 Boston Post Road
Sudbury, MA 01776, USA

Phone        +01(978)443-5106
Tech Support +01(978)443-5079
Fax          +01(978)443-9997

E-mail: eecsys@eecsys.com
Internet: http://www.eecsys.com

Kit contents
____________

LicQuery.exe     - SuperCache-NT license program
setup.bat        - SuperCache-NT installation script
SCache.sys       - SuperCache-NT device driver
ScAllsrv.exe     - SuperCache-NT support service
ScConfig.exe     - SuperCache-NT configuration tool
ScStats.exe      - monitors SuperCache-NT cache hit rates
ScFlush.exe      - SuperCache-NT manual flush for Lazy Write buffers
ScRemove.exe     - SuperCache-NT deinstall tool
ScReadMe.txt     - Instructions and release notes - this document
tune.exe         - SuperCache-NT Tuning Engine

IMPORTANT!!!!!
______________

SuperCache-NT has an optional lazy write mode. There are many 
different types of caches in disk controllers. Many hardware 
RAID disk controllers have optional lazy write mechanisms. Before 
enabling SuperCache-NT in lazy write mode, be sure that the 
lazy write mode in the hardware disk cache has been disabled. 
Please consult the hardware manufacturer for more details about 
how to turn off their lazy write mechanism. If you have multiple 
lazy write mechanisms enabled simultaneously, you risk corrupting
your data. 

Many database applications also have lazy write caches. 
Please ensure that your database has its lazy write caching 
disabled, if it has one, if you are using SuperCache-NT 
in lazy write mode.

SuperCache-NT compliments the caching in Windows NT.


New for This Release
____________________

This release allows you to use up to 3GB minus 32MB of physical
memory to cache the partition you select. You may use this software
in conjunction with SuperDisk-NT. If you have any questions, please
contact our technical support hotline.

The initial memory allocation for the cache on systems with
64 MB of memory or less has been reduced. 

An applet has been added which will allow you to measure the
actual effectiveness, in terms of cache hits, of SuperCache-NT
for your application. Invoke by typing ScStats from the command
prompt, or double-click on %SystemRoot%\System32\ScStats.exe in
Windows Explorer or File Manager.

Memory Considerations
_____________________

SuperCache-NT/VLM uses system main memory to store the data you 
access most frequently. In order to benefit from caching 
technology it's necessary to have enough memory available to 
cache the data. EEC Systems recommends having at least 3-5% of 
the size of the partition you want to cache available for the 
cache. Remember that Windows NT takes about 16MB just to be 
able to run. SuperCache-NT/VLM requires a minimum of 32MB of 
memory on the system, before it will load and become operational.

SuperCache-NT/VLM takes 25% of the memory on the system as an initial 
size for the cache. The cache will grow and contract based on 
memory demands from the cache and other demands from the operating 
system.

The general rule of thumb is the more memory the better. 
SuperCache-NT/VLM will automatically grow using all of the 
memory on the system less 32MB. If you're lucky enough to have 
512MB or 1GB of main memory, we'll show you amazing performance. 
Note that SuperCache-NT/VLM uses about 0.4% of the
size of the partition you're caching for internal buffer allocation.
This memory is used even if you have no data cached. So for a 1GB 
partition, you need about 4MB just to set up the data tables. 


Lazy Write Mode
_______________

SuperCache-NT supports either write through mode or lazy write mode.
In write through mode, all writes to disk are written sychronously.
If you are running in write through mode and your system experiences
a power failure or crash, all your data is 100% safe. 

In lazy write mode, SuperCache-NT writes the data you write to disk
into a special lazy write buffer. This buffer is in an area of main 
memory we have reserved for this purpose. The advantage of using 
lazy write mode is that you don't have to wait for the slow hard 
disk drive to write the data. The disadvantage is that this main 
memory is volatile, and its contents are lost if the system crashes 
or experiences a power failure before the data has been written to 
disk. The lazy write cache is flushed to disk automatically at 
system shutdown time. You may also flush it at any time by 
executing the ScFlush command from the MSDOS command line.

EEC strongly recommends use of an uninterruptable power supply if
you use SuperCache-NT in lazy write mode. You don't need one for
write through mode. In write through mode, your data is 100% safe
even if you have a crash or power failure. If you use NTFS your
system will recover all data at boot time and continue to run
perfectly!

In the event of a power failure with a very large lazy write cache, 
a UPS system, and a very slow disk, it is possible that some of the 
data will not make it to disk before the UPS runs out. You should 
check the time rating on your UPS. If you have a 1GB cache, and 
your disk has a transfer rate of 20MB/sec, then you need your 
system to stay up for 50 seconds after the power failure to make 
sure your data gets flushed to disk. Most UPS systems will keep 
you up for much longer than 50 seconds, so all your data will 
be safe except if you have a system crash, and the lazy write 
buffer still has unwritten data in it.

You can check the actual flush time of the lazy write cache by
executing the Scflush command from the DOS prompt. You should
perform the Scflush command after running a large batch job or
some other function that fills the lazy write buffer.

The lazy write mechanism, writes data to disk once a second in the
background. If you have a large amount of data in the lazy 
write buffer which has not been written to disk and your system
crashes, that data will be lost!

We are working on a solution which will ensure your data is 100%
safe in lazy write mode under all possible conditions.


Restrictions
____________

The following restrictions apply to this release.
These restrictions will be removed in future SuperCache-NT releases:

    - SuperCache-NT can be used with just one disk partition at
      a time.

    - SuperCache-NT does not currently support removable disks
      or CD ROM drives.

    - SuperCache-NT may not be used with software RAID disks or
      with software shadowing. Hardware RAID devices are supported.
      See note above regarding memory considerations.

    - SuperCache-NT has not been fully tested with NT clusters.

    - If you are already running EEC's SuperDisk-NT, disable it
      before attempting use of SuperCache-NT. If you wish to 
      run both together please contact technical support.


Use of SuperCache-NT with Disk Defragmenters
____________________________________________

Defragmenters such as Executive Software's Diskeeper, Symantec's 
SpeedDisk-NT, and Raxco's PerfectDisk-NT use the move files
primative to make files contiguous on the physical disk.  

You cannot use these products at the same time as SuperCache-NT on
the same partition. The reason you cannot use them at the same 
time is that defragmenters move the files around on the disk.
 
SuperCache-NT keeps parts of the files in memory. If you use them 
at the same time, SuperCache-NT doesn't know to which location 
the defragmenter has moved various parts of the file. 
Use of SuperCache-NT together with a defragmenter , will  
corrupt your disk partition!!!  

There is absolutely no problem in using a defragmenter on a 
SuperCache-NT partition when SuperCache-NT is disabled. 
Please ensure you disable SuperCache-NT on the partition in 
question, and you reboot your system before attempting to 
defragment your disk.

To disable SuperCache-NT, run ScConfig from the DOS prompt.
On the partition configuration screen, select Disable SuperCache-NT.
Then click on Finish, and reboot your system.

Once you have defragmented your disk, you can disable the 
defragmenter on the SuperCache-NT partition, and re-enable
SuperCache-NT. 

We are working on making SuperCache-NT a loadable driver. When
complete, you will be able to turn it on and off without 
rebooting your system.


Known problem
_____________

Installing SuperCache-NT on a Windows NT V4.0 beta 1 system may
cause a system crash. EEC recommends you run this driver only
on V3.51 or V4.0 final releases with the latest service packs.

Adjusting the Size of your Page File
____________________________________

Before installing SuperCache-NT/VLM, it might be necessary to adjust
the size of your page file. EEC recommends that your page file be at 
least twice the size of physical memory. If you have 512MB of main 
memory we suggest a page file size of 1GB. It may even be necessary 
to have a page file size of 3 times physical memory.

If you check the Event Viewer after installing SuperCache-NT and 
re-booting your system, and you see an event error message -

ScAlloc service terminated with the following error:

"Insufficient system resources exist to complete the requested 
service ",

this means your page file(s) were not large enough to allocate the 
necessary virtual address space for SuperCache-NT. If you adjust your
page file size, you must reboot your system to ensure the change is 
in effect.

If you have any questions, please contact technical support.


Installation
____________

If you've been running SuperDisk-NT, please run the Sdremove
program from the DOS prompt, and reboot your system 
before continuing with the installation. 


1. We urge you to make a new repair disk immediately before
   installing SuperCache-NT. 

2. Open a DOS window. Change your directory to C:\superc - or the
   directory to which you restored the software installation kit. 

3. At the DOS prompt type setup followed by a RETURN. You will be 
   asked to accept the terms of the EEC License Agreement. If you 
   accept, the kit files will be copied to the system directories 
   on your system.

4. Next, the SuperCache-NT configuration wizard will start. A 
   System ID for your system will be displayed. You need this ID to 
   get a permanent license key from EEC Systems, Inc. Please contact
   us to obtain your temporary or permanent license
   key. If you need a demo license key please e-mail a request to
   eecsys@eecsys.com. If you have your license key already, select 
   the Next button in the wizard. You can restart the configuration 
   wizard by typing "ScConfig" from a DOS prompt.

5. Enter the license code in the indicated fields and select Next.

6. Select the partition you wish to use with SuperCache-NT and select
   your preferred Lazy Write option. Lazy Write improves performance
   for write I/O, but increases the risk of losing data if you 
   experience a sudden power failure or system crash. EEC Systems, 
   Inc. recommends that you use this option ONLY with an 
   uninterruptable power supply. For more details see "Lazy Write 
   Option" above.

7. SuperCache-NT will start on the selected partition after the next 
   system reboot.


Configuring and or Reconfiguring SuperCache-NT
______________________________________________

You may start or restart the configuration wizard,
ScConfig, at any time by typing "ScConfig" from the command prompt. 
Use ScConfig whenever you want to change the SuperCache-NT partition. 
You may also use ScConfig to disable SuperCache-NT. You can also 
use it to select or disable the lazy write feature. Remember, 
you must reboot your system before the changes you have made will 
take effect.

You can move the ScConfig utility to the desktop if you wish. To 
accomplish this, first log in as Administrator. Then right mouse
click on the start button on the taskbar. Then left mouse click
on Explore. This will bring up the Windows Explorer. Select the
system directory (for NT 4.0 this is probably Winnt40). Under
the system directory is the system32 directory. Select it. 
Then on the right hand portion of the screen look for ScConfig. 
Left mouse click on it and continue to hold down the left mouse 
button. This will enable you to drag it over and place it 
anywhere you want on the desktop. When it is where you want it 
on the desktop, release the left mouse button. A Shortcut to 
ScConfig will then appear on your desktop. If you decide later 
you want to delete the shortcut, simply select it with a single 
left mouse click and press the delete key. The system will ask 
you if you want to send it to the recycle bin. Click on YES and 
it's gone. To activate the shortcut from the desktop, just 
double click on it.

Getting a License Key
_____________________

You probably received a temporary license key when you installed your
software. If you did not, please e-mail us at eecsys@eecsys.com and 
we will send you a temporary key as soon as possible, usually in
one business day or less. 

Each system has a unique system ID which is generated by the 
ScConfig utility described in the previous section. To generate 
your system ID, run the ScConfig utility. After you have accepted 
the terms of the license agreement, the system will present the 
licensing screen. It will show you the system ID. Please write 
it down. If you need a permanent license, please e-mail the 
system ID to us at eecsys@eecsys.com. 


Deinstalling SuperCache-NT or Upgrading to a New Version
________________________________________________________

You must first log in from the system Administrator account.
If you wish to deinstall SuperCache, you must first deactivate the 
ScAlloc Service. To accomplish this, select the Control Panel.
Then from the Control Panel select Services. Scroll down until 
you see the ScAlloc Service. Left mouse click on it. It will be 
highlighted in blue. Then select the Startup Button on the right 
hand side of the applet. It should be set for Automatic Startup. 
Change it to Manual Startup and exit by clicking the OK button. 
Now shutdown your system and reboot it. When you reboot the 
system, the ScAlloc service will not start.


After the system reboots, open an MS-DOS window and type "ScRemove" at 
the prompt. This will remove all the components of SuperCache-NT from
your system, and also remove all the registry entries that 
SuperCache-NT placed there when it was installed. After the next 
reboot, your system will be exactly as it was before you 
installed SuperCache-NT.

Under certain circumstances you may need to manually delete the ScAlloc
entry from the registry.

Run regedt32

select HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
SYSTEM
Current_Control_Set
Services

Then scroll down on the left hand side until you see the ScAlloc 
service.

Select it with a left mouse click and then hit the delete key. This 
will delete the service from the registry. Then exit from regedt32.

Now reboot your system.

If you wish to install an upgrade, now is the time to do so. After
installing the upgrade, double check the ScAlloc service under 
services in the control panel to be sure it was reset to Automatic 
startup. It should always be set to Automatic Startup mode, except 
when you are completely removing the software.


Caching the Page File
_____________________

Many of our customers have found that moving the page file to 
a disk other than the system disk, and Lazy Write Caching the
partition containing the page file helps performance considerably.

_______________________________________________________________________

SuperCache-NT Tuning Engine for Intel Systems ONLY

Tuning Engine License Agreement
_______________________________
 
THIS SOFTWARE AND ACCOMPANYING WRITTEN MATERIALS (INCLUDING 
INSTRUCTIONS FOR USE) ARE PROVIDES "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY 
KIND. FURTHER, EEC DOES NOT WARRANT, GUARANTEE, 
OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE, OR THE RESULTS OF USE, 
OF THE SOFTWARE OR WRITTEN MATERIALS IN TERMS OF CORRECTNESS, ACCURACY,
RELIABILITY, CURRENTNESS, OR OTHERWISE. 

THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE RESULTS AND PERFORMANCE OF THE SOFTWARE IS 
ASSUMED BY YOU. IF THE SOFTWARE OR WRITTEN MATERIALS ARE DEFECTIVE YOU,
AND NOT Alexander Peter Kowalski or EEC Systems OR ITS DEALERS, 
DISTRIBUTORS, AGENTS, OR EMPLOYEES, ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL 
NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR, OR CORRECTION.
  
NEITHER Alexander Peter Kowalski nor EEC Systems, Inc., NOR ANYONE 
ELSE WHO HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN THE CREATION, PRODUCTION OR DELIVERY OF 
THIS PRODUCT SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL OR 
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS, 
BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION, AND THE LIKE) 
ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE SUCH PRODUCT EVEN IF 
Alexander Peter Kowalski or EEC Systems HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE 
POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
 
BY USING THIS SOFTWARE YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ THIS LIMITED
WARRANTY, UNDERSTAND IT, AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY ITS' TERMS AND 
CONDITIONS. 

YOU ALSO AGREE THAT THE LIMITED WARRANTY IS THE COMPLETE AND EXCLUSIVE
STATEMENT OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE PARTIES AND SUPERSEDE ALL PROPOSALS 
OR PRIOR AGREEMENTS, ORAL OR WRITTEN, AND ANY OTHER COMMUNICATIONS 
BETWEEN THE PARTIES RELATING TO THE SUBJECT MATTER OF THE LIMITED 
WARRANTY. 

THIS IS A LICENSED MODEL.  IT IS NOT FOR PUBLIC REDISTRIBUTION. 

This software contains CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION of Alexander Peter 
Kowalski and EEC Systems, Inc.

Tuning SuperCache-NT/VLM (Intel Systems Only)
_____________________________________________

A FREE SuperCache Tuning Engine 3.0 for SuperCache-NT/VLM 
V3.x-x is included in this kit. It helps you get the most from your 
investment in SuperCache for the Power Users among you.  It is an 
easy way to NOT make mistakes editing the SuperCache-NT parameters 
in the registry, and has many error correcting routines. The registry
is updated immediately. No changes to SuperCache-NT/VLM will take 
place until the next system reboot.
 


Tuning Software Installation
____________________________

Log in as System Administrator.

To create a shortcut to the tuning software (Tune.exe) on your desktop,
go to your winnt\system32 directory using the Explorer. Find the Tune
executable image on the right hand side of the screen. Left click on 
Tune, and create a shortcut to Tune.exe by dragging the "Tune" symbol
(the Tune executable) to the desktop. Release the left mouse 
click when you have the symbol where you want it on the desktop. To
activate the tuning software, double click on it from the desktop.

This installation procedure may be completed after installing the 
SuperCache-NT/VLM software. The tuning software is for use on the
Intel version 3.x-x of SuperCache-NT ONLY! It should be used to fine 
tune the SuperCache-NT parameters. Changes to the parameters take 
effect ONLY after the next Windows NT system reboot.

Main Button
___________

There is a "Main" button in the top left hand corner of the tuning
engine. It leads to a menu of many functions.


The SuperCache-NT Parameters, and What They Mean
________________________________________________


Pending Limit
_____________

The pending limit controls how many of the lazy write buffers are
flushed to disk, each time the lazy write mechanism flushes data
to disk. By increasing this parameter, you will decrease the amount
of data stored in the lazy write buffer. Increasing this parameter
may reduce the write performance of SuperCache-NT/VLM. 


PageSize
________

This parameter controls how wide the cache is. It is measured in
bytes. Each disk block is 512 bytes. If you perform a sequential
file read operation, even though you only read just one disk block,
the read ahead mechanism in SuperCache-NT will fill the buffer
up to its maximum size. This will increase performance for sequential
reads.

The PageSize sets the maximum size of data that will fit into each
cache bucket. Setting it too large may waste space in the cache.

By increasing this parameter, you will decrease the number of
cache buckets that you can have, given a specific amount of
memory on your system available for caching.

We suggest that you set the PageSize to no less than 8192 bytes.

Recommended values for PageSize
_______________________________

Setting the PageSize parameter to its correct value is extremely
important. The length of time that it takes to search the cache is
determined by the PageSize. If you set it to the wrong value, your
performance will be less than optimal.

Please follow the recommendations below for best results:-

Number of CPUs in your System       PageSize in Bytes
_____________________________       _________________

    1                               32768
    2                               16384
    4 or more                        8192



MinLRU
______

This parameter controls the Minimum number of cache buckets of
size PageSize, that you can have on your system. As such, it
sets the minimum size for your SuperCache-NT. The minimum size of
the cache is MinLRU times the PageSize in Bytes.

MaxLRU
______

This parameter controls the Maximum number of cache buckets
of size PageSize, that you can have on your system. It controls
the maximum size to which SuperCache-NT can grow. The Maximum size
of SuperCache-NT is MaxLRU times PageSize in Bytes. The tuning 
software allows you to use up to 90 percent of Total Physical Memory 
less 32MB for SuperCache-NT.

Helpful Information and Tuning Tips
___________________________________

Please check our web site http://www.eecsys.com for additional tuning
and performance tips.

