SQPREP Utilities (c)SyQuest Technology, 1990 Release 2.1 January, 1990 The 2.1 release of the SyQuest Utilities incorporates some small improvements over the prior release, 2.0. COPYSAVE has been updated to have a similar interface to SQPREP, and to better utilize available memory. SQPREP has been updated to support the Adaptec 1540/1542 host adapters (see below for limitations), and the Always IN-2000 host adapter. SQPREP now also offers the ability to modify the default cartridge label. A problem with the way SQPREP scanned high memory for BIOS addresses has also been corrected. SYQ55.SYS now displays volume name during boot time, and displays whether the volume is new to the system, already partially supported by DOS, or a "dummy" partition since no valid ones are currently available. There is an open issue on installing WINDOWS 3.0 with the SyQuest device driver, SYQ55.SYS, installed. An "Invalid Path" message will occur towards the end of WINDOWS installation, and your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files will not be correctly updated for WINDOWS. The workaround for this issue is to remove the device driver SYQ55.SYS from CONFIG.SYS (a "rem" at the start of the line will keep it from installing at boot time), install WINDOWS, and then reinstall the device driver. The next release of SyQuest software should contain a fix for this situation. There is other WINDOWS comments in the SYQ55.SYS portion of this README file. A new feature that was included in the 2.0 release was the ability of the boot record and device driver to handle any type of host adapter translation scheme, assuming a standard DOS disk format. An example of this would be a cartridge prepared on an Adaptec host adapter (translation scheme 64 heads, 32 sectors/track) can be booted on a Seagate (translation scheme: 7 heads, 17 sectors/track) with no modifications. This feature will not work on a Western Digital host adapter with Columbia Data software, since this combination does not use a standard DOS disk format. Note: the different translation feature does not work on Zenith MS-DOS 3.3 if it is the boot device. The software is SyQuest tested and approved on the following Host Adapters: - Adaptec 1540/1542 (see limitations below) - Always IN-2000 (3.32c BIOS) - Seagate ST-01B/02B (3.1.9 and 3.2 BIOS) - Advanced Information Concepts (1.1 and 2.11 BIOS) - Storage Dynamics Inc. T-1008 (3.018 BIOS) - Datamatic Systems Inc. (all BIOS) - Storage Dimensions (1.3d7 BIOS) - Future Domain TMC-841 (5.0D-SYQUEST-B2 BIOS) The Adaptec 1540/1542 has the following limitations that the other host adapters on the list do not have: 1. The device driver (SYQ55.SYS) will only support the SQ555 if the Adaptec BIOS installs it. This limits support to the first two drives in the system only. 2. You must not have the "ASPIDISK.SYS" or "ASPI4DOS.SYS" drivers from Adaptec installed when you run SQPREP. 3. You must use the +s option on the SYQ55.SYS driver. 4. S-LOCK and S-UNLOCK do not work on the Adaptec host adapter. On original IBM AT machines (BIOS date before 1985), SCSI host adapters may cause a "162-System Options Not Set" error at boot time. This is caused because the IBM BIOS senses the host adapter has a valid device attached, even though no CMOS setup value is used on SCSI devices. Later versions ignore the attached device unless a value was set in CMOS setup tables. The system will work fine, except for the annoying message at boot time. SQPREP To begin a cartridge preparation, type SQPREP and follow the menu instructions. Note that ENTER always selects a menu item, and ESC always takes you back without executing a function. The F1 key provides extensive on-line help from any menu. For the user in a hurry or for someone that does not wish to get involved with details of partitioning, follow the menu path below: Select device from the first screen (default is 0). Check the LED's, and answer Y if the correct LED is on. Select Prepare Cartridge For DOS. Select Automatic DOS Preparation. Answer the prompt screens as they appear, ending with a reboot of your system. Your cartridge should be ready to use - even if you intend to boot from it. For further details or explanations, refer to the User's Manual, Chapter 3. The files HELP and INDEX are support files for SQPREP, and have no value unless you are in SQPREP. The file CONFIG.NEW is a template CONFIG.SYS that will be used by SQPREP when setting up the boot volume. SYQ55.SYS The file SYQ55.SYS is the device driver for the SQ555 drive. It enables all the removable features necessary for operations under DOS. SQPREP will automatically install it on your boot volume for you. Please do not remove and replace a cartridge in your system unless this driver is installed! Data loss will result, since DOS does not monitor the Media Changed status. Most caching software does not monitor Media Changed status either, so please do not use caching software with a cartridge drive unless it explicitly states that it supports SyQuest. (Note: SyQuest expects to be able to recommend caching software that works with removable media drives sometime in the future.) SQPREP will install the device driver on your boot device with the default configuration (no command line parameters). This will work for most installations. Driver syntax is: device=[ path ]SYQ55.SYS [/o] [/z] [+s] [-s] [/n] [/x] Note that in the command line above, the [ and ] characters should not be typed; they are used here to show the parameters are optional. Driver command line parameters are used for exception cases. The following list briefly describes the parameters: /o The /o parameter inhibits the driver from posting run time messages to the screen. This is necessary with multi-tasking software (such as Windows, DR-DOS or Concurrent DOS), since the driver does not know which window is active at that moment. Use this if multi-tasking software hangs on the SyQuest device. /z This option is for Zenith computers only. It enables a reset of the cartridge change condition. +s "s" stands for a digit, 0 - 9, that instructs the driver to specifically support the partitions on that device. To specifically support the first device in the system, use "+0". To support the third, use "+2", etc. -s "s" stands for a digit, 0 - 9, that instructs the driver to specifically NOT support the partitions on that device. To not support the third device, use "-2". /n "n" is a digit that indicates the number of volumes to reserve for a device at boot time if no volumes were found at boot time. The default is to reserve 1 for DOS versions 3.31 and above, and to reserve 2 for DOS versions 3.0 through 3.30. /x For Zenith DOS 3.3 Plus only. Forces the driver to handle 3.3 Plus large partitions like Compaq DOS 3.31. SYQ55 and WINDOWS To use the device driver with Microsoft Windows, make sure you use the "/o" command line option. This will inhibit the driver from trying to post messages to the screen, which can cause Windows to hang. Also, many host adapters require you to add the statement EMMExclude=xxxx-yyyy to the SYS.INI file. The xxxx is the starting BIOS address (e.g. C800, CC00, D800, etc.) and the yyyy is the ending address, which is generally the start plus 300 hex (e.g. CB00, CF00, etc.). This keeps HIMEM.SYS from attempting to allocate the host adapter RAM area as usable memory. Make sure you review the comment about WINDOWS at the top of this README file. COPYSAVE The COPYSAVE program is a utility much like XCOPY. It enables the copying of files from one volume to another. Additional features included in COPYSAVE are the ability to span cartridges, and a volume to volume copy. The ability to span cartridges means that you can copy files off of a large fixed disk to a cartridge, and COPYSAVE will prompt you when one cartridge is full to insert a new one. Huge fixed disks can be backed up this way. COPYSAVE maintains the original directory structure of the source, so programs can be executed from this backup. Volume to volume copy is a feature that allows you to duplicate a cartridge when you have only one SyQuest device. Use the same drive letter as SOURCE and TARGET, and COPYSAVE will prompt you to swap cartridges. COPYSAVE syntax is: [path]COPYSAVE [source path] [target drive] [/options] The command line options are: /e Erase files on target before copying /m Copy modified files only (archive bit set) /n Copy files that do not exist on target /s Include subdirectories /h Include hidden files /v Verify on /d:mm-dd-yy Copy files dated on or after parameter If COPYSAVE is run with no command parameters, a menu will appear that asks you the source path, target drive destination, and allows you to select parameters. S-LOCK and S-UNLOCK The S-LOCK and S-UNLOCK utilities allow you to lock or unlock the SyQuest drive door, restricting the ability to remove the media. The syntax is: S-LOCK address S-UNLOCK address where "address" is the installed address, or installed order of the drive in the system. Allowed range is 0 - 7. The command S-LOCK 0 would lock the door on the first hard disk in the system, S-UNLOCK 3 would unlock the door on the fourth hard disk in the system. SYQDD This utility dumps the extended BIOS parameter block kept by the device driver. It is useful as a debug utility only. Syntax is: SYQDD [volume] where "volume" is the DOS volume parameter block you wish displayed. If volume is not specified, the current volume is displayed.