PCjs Machines
Home of the original IBM PC emulator for browsers.
PC-SIG Diskette Library (Disk #933)
[PCjs Machine "ibm5170"]
Waiting for machine "ibm5170" to load....
Information about “SORTED DIRECTORY AND FLIST / PC”
SDR.COM provides more information than the resident DOS DIR command
about the files on a disk, and lets you select, sort, format, and
display the information in a variety of ways. You can specify a
pattern name to select the desired files and by specifying any of a
variety of command line switches. The default switch values have been
carefully chosen to reflect their most common use, and for
compatibility with the standard DIR command. Select files by
attribute, age, or string match. Sort on any directory field. Global
disk directories can be searched for files matching the specified
criteria.
Use in stand-alone mode or as memory-resident. It is possible to use SD
in an almost infinite variety of ways by using the switches in different
combinations. Designed to be as transparent as possible in normal
operation, it does not impose itself between the user and the operating
system. Novices or experienced users both can profit from this utility.
FLIST/PC is a selection menu for manipulating your files in a more
efficient manner.
Copy, move, rename, delete, edit, and execute a file by simply
indicating the desired action. Multiple actions can be executed with a
function key. FLIST/PC can be used with your own word processor or
text editor without exiting FLIST/PC. The disk file directory can be
sorted by filename, extension, size, or date. You can easily scroll
through a directory, display the tree structure of all subdirectories
on the current disk drive, and select new paths and directories to be
displayed.
FILE0933.TXT
Disk No: 933
Program Title: SORTED DIRECTORY version 6.0 and FLIST/PC version 3.2
PC-SIG version: 2
SORTED DIRECTORY lets you select, sort, format, and display information
in various ways. You specify command line switches to modify the
behavior of the program. Although the program is relatively small, it
is possible to use it in an almost infinite variety of ways by using the
switches in different combinations. The program is designed to be as
transparent as possible in normal operation and does not impose itself
between the user and the operating system. Therefore, novices or
experienced users can use it in a way that best meets their needs.
FLIST/PC acts as a selection menu to use your files more efficiently.
You can copy, move, rename, delete, edit, and execute a file by simply
indicating what you want on the display line with the file name.
Multiple actions can then be executed with the press of a function key.
FLIST/PC can run with your wordprocessor or text editor without exiting
FLIST/PC. The directory can be sorted by filename, extension, size, or
date. You can easily scroll through the directory, display the tree
structure of all subdirectories on the current disk device, and select
new paths and directories to be displayed on the screen.
Usage: DOS Utilities
Special Requirements: None.
How to Start: Type GO (press enter).
Suggested Registration: $20.00 for DIRECTORY SORTING UTILITIES and
$15.00 for FLIST.
File Descriptions:
-------- --- FLIST
FLCONFIG EXE Configuration program.
FLIST EXE Main program.
FLIST PRN Documentation.
PGMDESC TXT Program description.
README TXT How to print the documentation.
-------- --- SORTED DIRECTORY
DEMO BAT Batch file demonstrating the SD program.
DEMO2 BAT Batch file demonstrating related products.
DEMO? COM Executable files called by DEMO2.BAT (4 files).
SD COM Executable file for sorted directory utility.
SD DOC Documentation file for SD.COM
SD PIF Microsoft Windows Program Information File for SD.COM
SDB BAT Uses SD to process multiple drives.
SDR COM Memory resident version of SD.
SDR DOC Documentation file for SDR.COM
VSN COM Volume serial number utility.
VSN DOC Documentation file for VSN.
PC-SIG
1030D E Duane Avenue
Sunnyvale Ca. 94086
(408) 730-9291
(c) Copyright 1987,88,89 PC-SIG, Inc.
GO.TXT
╔═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║ <<<< Disk No 933 SORTED DIRECTORY and FLIST/PC >>>> ║
╠═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║ To print the documentation for SORTED DIRECTORY, Type: ║
║ COPY SD.DOC LPT1: (press enter) ║
║ ║
║ To start the SORTED DIRECTORY, Type: CD (press enter) ║
║ ║
║ To print the documentation for FLIST/PC, Type: ║
║ COPY FLIST.PRN LPT1: (press enter) ║
║ ║
║ To run the program FLIST/PC, Type: FLIST (press enter) ║
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
PGMDESC.TXT
PGMDESC TXT - YOUR LOOKING AT IT.
README TXT - HOW TO GET DOCUMENTATION AND START THE PROGRAM.
FLIST EXE - DOS SHELL AND FILE LIST MANAGER
FLIST PRN - DOCUMENTATION
FLCONFIG EXE - FLIST/PC CONFIGURATION PROGRAM
README.DOC
January 8, 1989
PC-SIG UPDATES
1030D East Duane Avenue
Sunnyvale, Ca. 94086
Attn: Brian Tuck
Dear Brian,
I have enclosed a disk containing the latest version of my Sorted
Directory Utility Program for IBM-PC and compatible computers (SD V6.0)
which is on PC-SIG disk number 0933.
This new version includes many enhancements, including a full screen
System Information Summary of installed hardware, system memory and disk
parameters, Multi-Drive processing, more user-customizable screen colors,
support for large (GT 32Mb) hard disk partitions, a utility to change
disk Volume Serial Numbers, and much more. The SD60.ARC file is being
distributed as Shareware with a $20 contribution requested. Thanks for
your continuing help with the distribution of this product.
Yours Truly,
John F. Stetson
42 Tivoli Lake Court
Silver Spring, Md. 20906
README.TXT
FLIST/PC is not copy-protected. You may copy it to your hard
disk (if so equipped) if you desire.
To print a copy of the FLIST/PC documentation, ready your printer
using letter size paper (8 1/2 X 11) and enter the following
command:
A:>PRINT A:FLIST.PRN
To start working with FLIST/PC, enter the following command:
A:>FLIST
Thank you for trying FLIST/PC.
SD.DOC
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SD: IBM-PC Sorted Directory Utility V6.0
Copyright (C) 1986-89 By John F. Stetson
SHAREWARE - All Rights Reserved
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contents
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Program Requirements
1.2 Design Philosophy
1.3 Distribution Files
1.4 Installation
2.0 OVERVIEW
2.1 Modes of Operation
2.2 Command Line Syntax
2.3 Controlling Program Output
2.4 Examples of Use
3.0 FILE SELECTION AND SORTING
3.1 File Selection By Attribute
3.2 File Selection By Date
3.3 ARC File Processing
3.4 Global Subdirectory Processing
3.5 Sort Field Selection Switches
4.0 OUTPUT FORMAT CONTROL
4.1 Output Mode Switches
4.2 Output Toggle Switches
4.3 Filename Column Switches
4.4 EGA and VGA Switches
5.0 SYSTEM INFORMATION SUMMARY
5.1 System Hardware
5.2 System Memory
5.3 Disk Parameters
6.0 CUSTOMIZATION
6.1 Configuring the Program
6.2 Patch Area Format
6.3 Multiple Drive Processing
6.4 Multitasking Environments
7.0 APPENDICES
7.1 Error Messages and Return Codes
7.2 Modification History
7.3 Product Support
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.1 Program Requirements
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is a user-supported SHAREWARE product. Please see the section
titled Product Support at the end of this document for details.
SD.COM is a Sorted Directory utility program which operates on IBM-PC
compatible computer systems using the IBM PC-DOS or Microsoft MS-DOS
Operating System Version 2.0 or higher.
SDR.COM is the memory resident (TSR) version of the program. Since some
users may not wish to use this version of the program, its documentation
has been placed in a separate file.
This version of the program requires about 14Kb of disk space and
about 32-64Kb of memory during execution, depending on the number
of files and directories being processed.
Current program limitations are about 625 total directories when
processing global directories, about 1600 files per directory, and about
1400 files per ARC file, assuming that 64Kb of memory is available.
Support is provided for IBM-PC compatible MDA, CGA, MCGA, EGA, and VGA
video adaptors and monitors.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.2 Design Philosophy
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SD provides more information than the resident DOS DIR command about the
files on a disk, and allows the user to select, sort, format, and
display the information in a variety of ways. This is accomplished by
specifying a pattern name to select the desired files and by specifying
any of a variety of command line "switches" which allow you to modify
the behavior of the program. The switch names have been designed using
letters, as much as possible, so that it is easier to associate the
function of a switch with its name. In addition, the default switch
values have been carefully chosen to reflect their most common use.
Although the program is relatively small, it is possible to use it in an
almost infinite variety of ways by using the switches in different
combinations. A significant amount of effort has gone into optimizing
the performance of the program, due to the number of times it is
typically used. The program is designed to be as transparent as
possible in normal operation, and does not impose itself between the
user and the operating system. This allows both novice and
experienced users to use it in the way that best meets their needs.
As a default, the program writes output directly to video display memory
which results in noticeably faster output than that possible with DOS.
Output can still be redirected to an output device or file by specifying
the standard DOS redirection symbol (>) on the DOS command line.
Maximum possible use is made of the horizontal dimension of the screen
to minimize the loss of previously displayed data by screen scrolling.
Support is provided for a variety of file selection attributes.
Support is provided for a variety of screen display formats with varying
amounts of detailed file information displayed.
A variety of user customizable command line switches and screen field
display colors are also supported.
Every effort has been made to keep the size of the program to a minimum,
for efficient use on systems having floppy disks. However, many of the
capabilities of both DOS and this program are only fully realized when
using large hard (fixed) disks with hierarchical directory structures
to organize files.
Two of the most valuable resources in a computer system are memory and
disk storage. Many applications make little or no attempt to use these
resources efficiently. Not only does this program attempt to provide
many useful (and hopefully frequently used) capabilities in an efficient
package, but it can be used to manage the system memory and disk space
so that they are used to best advantage.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.3 Distribution Files
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The SD program and the associated files are distributed in the form of
an ARC file called SD60.ARC. This is done to save disk space and
time when transferring files over Computer Bulletin Board systems and
to insure the integrity of the files. You will need a utility program
which is capable of extracting the files from the SD60.ARC file. These
types of programs are normally available on most Computer Bulletin Board
systems.
The SD60.ARC file contains the following files:
SD .COM - Executable File for SD - Sorted Directory Utility
SD .DOC - Documentation File for SD
SD .PIF - Microsoft Windows PIF File for SD
SDB .BAT - Batch File - Uses SD to Process Multiple Drives
SDR .COM - Executable File for SDR - Memory Resident Version of SD
SDR .DOC - Documentation File for SDR
VSN .COM - Executable File for VSN - Volume Serial Number Utility
VSN .DOC - Documentation File for VSN
DEMO .BAT - Batch File Demonstrating the SD Program
DEMO2 .BAT - Batch File Demonstrating Related Products
DEMO3-6 .COM - Executable Files Called By DEMO2.BAT
The following files are also provided when you register your copy of SD:
SD .ASM - Assembly Language Source File for SD
SDR .ASM - Assembly Language Source File for SDR
VSN .ASM - Assembly Language Source File for VSN
SDC .BAS - BASIC Language Source File for SDC
SDC .DOC - Documentation File for SDC
SDC .EXE - Executable File for SDC - Configuration Program
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.4 Installation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Copy SD.COM, SDR.COM, VSN.COM and SDB.BAT to the root directory of the
system boot disk (normally C:\) or to another directory of your choice
which is specified in the DOS PATH command in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
The best way to quickly familiarize yourself with the features and
capabilities of SD is to run the DEMO.BAT file. For best results, copy
the DEMO.BAT file to the root directory of the system boot disk, make
sure this is the default directory (type CD C:\), and type the command:
DEMO
You can optionally specify a target drive and/or directory for the files
to be displayed. For example:
DEMO D: or DEMO D:\BIGDIR
Only the files in the target directory and its subdirectories will be
processed, so it is best to specify the root directory of the drive in
order to be able to access a large number of files. The demonstration
is designed to be run with a copy of the distributed SD.COM file, before
any program defaults are changed by the user. This demonstration simply
displays information about the computer system and the files on the
selected disk; it does not write anything to the disk.
Once you are familiar with SD, you may wish to run the DEMO2.BAT file
for a quick demonstration of several related products. See the
section titled Product Support for additional information.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.1 Modes of Operation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SD is a versatile program that can be used in a variety of ways:
The most common use is to simply display information about files (and
subdirectories) in a single (usually the current) directory. Most of
the sort field switches are used in this mode.
The program can be used to display detailed information about the
system hardware configuration, the availability and current use of
different kinds of system memory and fundamental disk characteristics.
The /i switch is used in this mode.
The program can be used to search or scan all (or a subset) of the
ARC files on a disk for one or more files which meet the specified
criteria (file name pattern or age). This processing makes effective
use of ARC file storage by allowing easy access to ARC file directories.
The /a switch is used in this mode.
The program can be used to search or scan all (or a subset) of the
directories on a disk for one or more files or directories which meet
the specified criteria (file name pattern, file attributes, or age).
The /g switch is used in this mode.
The program can be used to create an output file by redirecting console
output which may be subsequently used as input to another program. The
/r switch can be used in this mode, but is optional since the program
will automatically detect the use of DOS command line redirection.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.2 Command Line Syntax
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The complete form of the DOS command line to run the program is:
D>sd [drive][path][filespec] [/switches] [>[>]device/file]
In most cases, only one or two parameters are specified, so the command
syntax isn't as formidable as it may appear at first. Each of the
command line parameters is optional (as the [] characters indicate) and
may be used together in any combination or order. Spaces may also be
freely used at any point to improve readability. The various command
line parameters are described below:
[drive]
This parameter specifies the name of the disk drive to be processed.
Typical drive letters are A: or B: for floppy disks and C: for a hard
disk. RAM (memory) disks implemented via device drivers may also be
specified, as can other types of disks, such as CD-ROM drives or logical
Network drives. If no drive letter is specified, the currently logged-in
drive (shown in the DOS prompt) is used.
[path]
This parameter specifies the path through the hierarchical directory
structure to the desired directory which contains the files to be
processed. The general form of the path parameter is shown below:
[\][directory][\directory]...[\directory][\]
The path name may simply be the name of the root directory (\), or the
name of a subdirectory in the root directory. The standard DOS . and ..
directory names may be used to refer to the current and parent
directories, respectively. If a path is not specified, the current
directory on the specified disk drive is used. If the path name is the
first parameter on the DOS command line after the program name, then
they must be separated by a space.
[filespec]
This parameter specifies which file names are to be selected for
processing from the previously specified directory (if any). A complete
(unambiguous) file name may be specified, or an ambiguous file name,
containing "wildcard" characters (? or *) may be specified to select
several files. Either the file name (first 8 characters) or the file
extension (last 3 characters) or both may be completely omitted. In
these cases, wildcard characters are automatically used to match all
possible file names in the selected directory. You may specify leading
characters of the file names you wish to match, omitting the trailing
characters of the name, the period delimiter, and the file extension. In
this respect, SD processes file specifications differently than DIR.
For example: SD ABC is equivalent to DIR ABC*.*
If you specify a filespec which exactly matches a subdirectory name,
then only the files in the subdirectory will be selected. If you wish
to select other files in the parent directory with leading characters
the same as the subdirectory name, you must use the following notation:
Instead of SD ABC, use SD ABC*, where ABC is a subdirectory name.
[/switches]
This parameter specifies one or more "switch" or option values which
modify the operation of the command. All switches are optional and may
be specified before the drive, path, and filespec, after them, or both
before and after. Each switch has a default value, which has been
carefully selected to represent the most frequently used option, for
most users. Specifying a switch overrides or "toggles" the current or
default value of that command option. The SDC program can be used
to change the default values of the switches, or they can be patched
using the standard DOS DEBUG utility program. If you find that you
frequently wish to override a default switch value, you can permanently
change the default switch value by using either of these methods.
If a default switch value is overridden, specification of that option
will toggle the option back to its original state, if appropriate.
Detailed descriptions of all switches are given below.
[>[>]device/file]
This parameter is actually a standard feature of DOS called redirection
of output to the "standard output" (STDOUT) device. This allows the
console output generated by the program to be transmitted to either
another device (usually the printer device: PRN), or to a disk file. By
redirecting the output of the command to a file, you can later use the
file as input to a word processor, disk catalog system, etc. If this
parameter is specified, the program will automatically detect this and
will use standard DOS console output services rather than writing
directly to video display memory.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.3 Controlling Program Output
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unlike most programs, you can't type ahead while the program is running.
This is due to the need to monitor the keyboard in order to pause the
screen output. If you wish to begin typing a new command, simply press
ESCAPE (preferred), Control-C, or Control-Break to immediately terminate
the program, and then type the next command.
Console output may be paused by typing any other character and may be
restarted in two different ways. If RETURN is pressed, screen output
resumes until the either the screen fills or the output finishes. If
any other character is typed, only a single line of additional screen
output is displayed. This allows you to easily control the displayed
output so as to minimize the loss of existing screen data by scrolling.
The recommended single line scroll keys are the Space Bar or Down Arrow.
As an experiment, try typing the command SD, immediately followed by
two carriage returns. You will see only one line of output and can use
the space bar to display additional lines. When you have seen enough,
press the ESCAPE key to terminate the program. By carefully selecting
the proper switch values and using this technique, you can minimize the
loss of previously displayed information on the display screen.
If /q is specified, the console output isn't paused when the screen
fills. This is necessary when redirecting output to a file or device,
or when you wish to browse through large amounts of output.
Output lines which are longer than 80 characters are truncated at column
80 when writing to video display memory, but not when redirecting output
to a file or device.
Program output may be sent to a printer in several different ways:
You can use the technique of "echoing" console output to the printer by
pressing either Control-P or Control-Print-Screen to start and stop.
You can use the technique of printing the entire contents of the screen
by pressing Shift-Print-Screen.
You can use the technique of redirecting all program output to the
printer by using the DOS command line redirection symbol and the printer
device name: SD ... >PRN
Since the vertical bar used to separate the columns of displayed output
is a graphics symbol (not a standard printable ASCII character), you
must be careful to specify the /r switch if you have a printer which is
unable to print graphics characters.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.4 Examples of Use
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A>sd
Display the current directory of drive A.
C>sd /?
Display program help information.
A>sd c:/i/m
Measure CPU performance and display system information summary including
information for the disk in drive C.
B>sd/f/6
Display the current directory of drive B, sorted by file name, using the
six column format (file names only).
D>sd c:\/ss/1
Display only the system files in the root directory of drive C, using
the one column output format.
C>sd /j
Display the currently configured screen colors.
A>sd c:\/sd
Display all of the subdirectories in the root directory of drive C.
A>sd /lp/sf c:\ >files.dat
Create a file called "a:files.dat" which contains a sorted list of all
files with path names (no directories) in the root directory of drive C.
A>sd .asm/b-
Display all files having an extension of "asm" in the current directory
of drive A and sort the output by descending file size.
B>sd \/n/4/z
Select all files in the root directory of drive B, do not sort the file
entries, display the output using the four column format and restore
the original console screen when done.
C>sd \/35
Display all of the files in the root directory of drive C using 35 lines
on the screen with an EGA or VGA.
C>sd \/u/50/w
Display all of the files in the root directory of drive C in upper case
using 50 lines on the screen with an EGA or VGA and automatically reset
to 25 lines when done.
B>sd temp.* >c:temp.dir
Select all files having a name of "temp" in the current directory of
drive B, and redirect the console output to file "c:temp.dir".
B>sd/1 c:\*.com >>c:temp.dir
Select all files with an extension of "com" in the root directory of
drive C, format using one output column, and redirect the console
output, appending to the file "c:temp.dir".
D>sd a:/v/p/1
Display the disk volume label and all file information for the current
directory of drive A without a column title line.
B>sd e:/k/u
Display the current directory of drive E, rounding the space values to
Kilobytes and displaying the file names in upper case.
C>sd /h/2
Display all files and directories in the current directory on drive C
sorted and displayed from left to right, using the two column format.
A>sd t/e/k/q
Select all files in the current directory of drive A whose names begin
with "t", erase the screen before displaying output, display file size
and disk space values in Kilobytes and do not pause the console output.
C>sd \
Display all files in the root directory of drive C sorted by file
extension and by file name using the two column format.
B>sd temp
If temp is an existing subdirectory in the current directory of drive B,
then select all of the files in that directory. Otherwise, select all
files in the current directory of drive B whose names begin with "temp".
B>sd temp*
Display all directories and files in the current directory of drive B
whose names begin with "temp".
A>sd ../sar
Display all files in the parent directory of the current directory of
drive A with either the archive or read/only attribute.
A>sd c:/d/@+30
Display all files in the current directory of drive C which were created
during the past month sorted by date and time, using two output columns.
C>sd \/v/g/1
Display the disk volume label and all information for all files in all
directories of drive C.
C>sd \/gt
Display grand totals information only for all directories on drive C.
C>sd \/g/t/s
Display totals information only for all directories on drive C.
C>sd d:\test/g
Display information for files and directories at and below the "test"
directory level of drive D.
A>sd c:\*.exe/g
Display information for all .exe files in all directories on drive C.
A>sd c:\/g/sd
Display all directory names on drive C.
B>sd ..\*.a?m/d+/1
Display all files in the parent directory of the current directory of
drive B whose extensions begin with "a" and end with "m" and sort the
output by ascending date and time using the one column output format.
C>sd /a/1
Display all files in all ARC files in the current directory of drive C
using the one column format.
C>sd /a:*.com/4
Display all .com files in all ARC files in the current directory of
drive C using the 4 column format.
C>sd abc/a/@+365
Display all files less than one year old in all ARC files whose names
begin with "abc" in the current directory of drive C in 2 column format.
C>sd \/a+/gt
Display grand totals information only for all files in all directories
and all files in all ARC files in all directories of drive C.
C>sd/v/1 b:\dir1\dir2\dir3\*.doc/d >prn
Select all files having an extension of "doc" in the directory
"\dir1\dir2\dir3" of drive B. Sort the output by date and time. Use
the one column output format and include the disk volume label.
Redirect the console output to the printer.
A>sd/r/q b: (Type Control-P/RETURN)
(console output is duplicated on the printer)
A> (Type Control-P/RETURN)
Display the current directory of drive B and duplicate the console
output on the printer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.1 File Selection By Attribute
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: /s[attr-switch]...[attr-switch]
/s - Select all files and directories
/sd - Select Directories only (no files)
/sf - Select Files only (no directories)
/sa - Select files with the Archive attribute
/sr - Select files with the Read/Only attribute
/sh - Select files with the Hidden attribute
/ss - Select files with the System attribute
These switches are used to further restrict which files are selected
(in addition to any filespec) based on the attributes of the files.
As a default, the /s switch is configured ON. This means that all files
(including Hidden and System files) are selected as a default. If you
prefer to not see these files (like DIR) unless you type /s, set the /s
switch OFF using the SDC program or DEBUG.
If /sd is specified, all and only the subdirectories in the specified
directory are selected, including the current (.) and parent (..).
If /sf is specified, all and only the files (regardless of attribute) in
the specified directory are selected.
If an /sa, /sr, /sh, or /ss switch is specified by itself, all and only
the files with the specified attribute are selected. These switches may
also be combined in any order and the intervening /s switch(es) omitted.
For example: SD C:\DIR/SA/SR is equivalent to SD C:\DIR/SAR
When multiple /s switches are specified, the effect is "additive"; i.e.
for the example above, all files with either the Archive or Read/Only
attribute will be selected from the specified directory.
Specification of any /s switch(es) other than /sd causes an additional
'totals' line to be displayed which summarizes the number of files which
have each of the requested attributes. If files with the Archive
attribute are selected, the percent of files with this attribute is also
displayed. This provides an indication of the need to back up files on
a hard disk.
Since separate colors are used to identify System and Hidden files from
normal files, it is possible to permanently configure the /s switch ON
without losing the ability to distinguish the different file types.
One difference between SD and CHKDSK is that CHKDSK considers a disk
volume label to be a "hidden file", whereas SD does not.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.2 File Selection By Date
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: /@[+/-][days][+/-]
The /@ switch is used to select files based on their age (the date the
file was created or last updated). Since dates are specified relative to
the current system date (normally set by the DATE command or real time
clock at boot time), it is essential that the system date be set
correctly in order for this feature to work properly.
Files may be selected which are exactly the specified number of days
old, or either newer (+) or older (-) than the specified number of days.
The number of days specified may range from 0 to 9999, syntactically,
but cannot be so large as to pre-date January 1, 1980, which is when the
universe was created (according to DOS!).
Think of the date specification process in two steps: go back the
specified number of days and then find the files written before (-), on,
or after (+) that date.
For example:
/@ select files written today (days=0)
/@1+ select files written during last 2 days
/@7 select files written exactly one week ago
/@+30 select files written during the past month
/@-365 select files written more than a year ago
The +/- may be specified either before or after the number of days.
Regardless of the default sort type, specifying the /@ switch will cause
the /d switch to be set automatically. If you wish to specify a
different sort switch, you must specify it after the /@ switch. If the
number of filename columns is not already set to 1, specifying the /@
switch will cause the /2 switch to be set automatically. If you wish to
specify a different number of filename columns, you must specify it
after the /@ switch.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.3 ARC File Processing
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: /a[+][:filespec]
The /a switch requests ARC file processing instead of or in addition to
normal file processing. All other switches operate as usual with the
exception of those noted below. In the simplest case (/a specified),
all files in the specified directory with extensions of .ARC are
automatically processed. Although the .ARC file type is assumed, any
other file type (such as .PAK or .PKA) may also be specified.
Each file is opened, the ARC directory entries are read and saved, and
the file is closed. Information for each of the files in the ARC file
is then displayed. This process repeats until all of the selected ARC
files have been processed. The ARC files are processed in the order
they are found in the directory and are not sorted. Entries inside each
selected ARC file are sorted and displayed in the usual way except that
some additional information is displayed if the /1 switch is specified.
The information displayed for each file in a selected ARC file includes:
Filename, Original Length, Storage Method, Packing Percent, Packed Size,
Date, Time, and CRC code. After the entries in each ARC file are
displayed, a totals line is displayed which summarizes this information
for the ARC file as a whole. After all ARC files have been processed,
a grand totals line is displayed which summarizes the information for
all of the selected ARC files.
If a primary file specification is used with /a (SD ABC/A), it is used
to select a subset of the available ARC files. If a secondary file
specification is used (SD /A:ABC), it is used to select a subset of
the available files inside the selected ARC files. The /@ switch may
also be used to select files inside ARC files by the age of the files.
If /a+ is specified, normal file processing occurs first, followed by
ARC file processing for each of the selected ARC files. This process
can also be applied to all directories on a disk by using the /g switch.
Processing for /a may take considerable time if many ARC files are
present and the disk space is heavily fragmented. In this case, you may
wish to specify the /q switch and control the console output manually.
The /s switches are not applicable to ARC file entries since no file
attribute information is maintained inside ARC files. The /c switch
is not particularly useful either since it sorts by the file CRC codes!
Nested ARC files (ARC files inside ARC files) cannot be processed since
this would require the full extraction code for the ARC compression
algorithms to be included in this program, which is not appropriate.
ARC files have become something of a standard for the transfer of
DOS disk files across Computer Bulletin Board systems since they
can significantly reduce the transfer time, allow multiple files to
be combined into a single file, insure the integrity of the files by
storing and checking CRC codes, and preserve the original file dates,
times and sizes. They are also useful for long term disk storage
since they reduce the number of floppy disks needed to store data.
It is therefore highly desirable to be able to display the directories
of these files in an efficient and flexible manner. The integration
of ARC file processing with normal directory processing in this program
allows you to take full advantage of the benefits inherent in ARC files.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.4 Global Subdirectory Processing
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: /g or /gt
The /g switch requests global subdirectory processing. All other
switches operate as usual. After the specified target directory
(usually, but not necessarily, a root directory) is processed, all
subdirectories below that directory are processed in alphabetic order.
After all directories have been processed, a grand totals line for all
of the directories and files is displayed, followed by a grand totals
line for file attributes (if a /s switch was specified). Specifying the
/gt switch suppresses the totals lines for individual directories and
only displays the grand totals.
If the current directory on the target drive is not the root directory,
you must explicitly specify it (\), if you wish to process all of the
directories on that drive: SD \/G ...
Processing for /g may take considerable time if many directories are
present and the disk space is heavily fragmented. In this case, you may
wish to specify the /q switch and control the console output manually.
The /g switch has a variety of uses. It can be used to display a summary
of the total number of directories and files on a disk similar to the
CHKDSK command if /gt is specified. Somewhat more information for each
individual directory is displayed if /g/t is specified.
It can be used to locate any and all occurrences of a file anywhere on a
disk with a complex directory structure by simply specifying a filename.
If no matching files are found, the displayed path name is that of the
last directory which was searched for the file.
Another interesting use is to specify the /sd switch, which will display
all of the directories on the disk below the specified directory.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.5 Sort Field Selection Switches
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: /sort-switch[+/-]
/b - Sort by file size in Bytes
/c - Sort by file Cluster number
/d - Sort by (1) file Date and (2) time
/f - Sort by (1) File Name and (2) extension
/x - Sort by (1) file Extension and (2) name
/n - No sort - display entries in directory order
These switches specify which fields are to be used as sort "keys" when
formatting the output information. These switches are all mutually
exclusive; i.e. only one sort switch should be specified. If no sort
switch is specified, the default is by file extension and name (/x).
Sort switches may be optionally followed by a + for an ascending sort or
a - for a descending sort. The default sort direction is ascending for
all sort switches except /d, which is descending (so the newer files
appear first). The + and - options are not meaningful for the /n switch.
The /b switch is used to find either the smallest or largest files on a
disk, or to discover which file(s) have sizes which lie in a given
range. This can be helpful when it is known that a file of a given
size is missing from a disk, and it is desired to find its identity by
examining the contents of another disk which does contain the file.
The /c switch sorts the file entries by the first or starting cluster
number allocated to the file. This is simply the absolute location on
the disk where the file begins. Although not used very frequently,
this switch can be used to determine the actual order of the files on a
disk, which is independent of their order in the disk's directory,
especially on a disk whose space has become "fragmented" by the creation
and deletion of many files with differing sizes. Regardless of the
default value for the number of filename columns, specifying the /c
switch will cause the /1 switch to be set automatically. If you wish to
specify a different number of filename columns, you must specify it
after the /c switch.
The /d switch is a frequently used sorting option, especially when
combined with the /2 or /1 switch. This allows either the newest or
oldest files on a disk to be easily identified. Of course, the validity
of this information is once again dependent on the correct setting of
the system date at the time the files were written. If the number of
filename columns is not already set to 1, specifying the /d switch will
cause the /2 switch to be set automatically. If you wish to specify a
different number of filename columns, you must specify it after the /d
switch.
The /f switch simply sorts the selected directory entries by file name
and extension, which is perhaps the most used sorting sequence. Any
"strange" file names containing unusual special characters will tend to
collect at the beginning and end of the list, where they can be easily
identified.
The /x switch is helpful in identifying which, if any, files have
"strange" file name extensions. Since most standard files have one of
only a few possible types (extensions), such as .BAT, .COM, .EXE, etc.
using this switch will separate out any non-standard file names.
The /n switch bypasses the sort process with the result that the file
entries are displayed in the order they occur in the disk directory.
This is helpful when examining a bootable disk to insure that the order
of files is optimal (in the order they are needed during the boot
sequence, and by frequency of use after boot-up). This is the same
order of file names as that displayed by the DIR command.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.1 Output Mode Switches
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: /output-switch ... /output-switch
/? - Display program help information
/i - Display system Information summary
/j - Just display configured screen colors
/l - List file names and (p)ath names only
/r - Redirect output to a device or file (optional)
/t - Display only the Totals output lines
The /? switch requests that a help screen be displayed which summarizes
the command line syntax used to invoke the program and switch meanings.
The /? switch output may be redirected to a file as follows: SD /? >FILE
The /i switch requests that a screen be displayed which summarizes the
system hardware configuration and memory and disk characteristics. See
the section titled System Information Summary for details.
The /j switch requests that a summary of the configured screen colors
be displayed. This switch is useful when you can't remember what the
color values are for a specific type of file attribute or screen area.
The /l switch requests that a list of file names (only) be generated.
All other output (file information and totals lines) is suppressed.
This switch is normally used with the /sf switch (to suppress any
directories), and the /r switch to redirect the output to a file for
processing by another program. The filename column switches are ignored
(/1 is assumed) if they are specified with the /l switch. Since any
embedded spaces are removed, the file names are ready to be operated on
by copy commands which might be generated automatically by another
program. Specifying the /lp (path name) option causes the file names to
be prefixed with their path names. This can be useful when another
program is to subsequently process the file name list from another
directory. /l is mutually exclusive with the /t and /gt switches.
The /r switch requests that console output be written using DOS
services, rather than directly to video display memory for higher speed.
Although this slows down the output and suppresses the screen colors,
this is necessary when the need arises to redirect the output to a file
or a device (printer) for subsequent processing. /r is also used to run
the program in a window with a multitasking environment (see below).
If /r is specified, it should be the first parameter on the command line
after the command name, so that any error messages which are generated
for subsequent parameters can be redirected. The /r switch is set
automatically when the program detects that console output is being
redirected, so it does not normally need to be specified.
If output is not being redirected but is to be captured from the screen
directly, it may be desirable to specify /r so the program will convert
the graphics vertical bar symbols it uses to separate adjacent columns
of output information to the standard ASCII printable character (|).
You may wish to place the output file on a different drive or directory
than the one being processed or the output file may be included in the
directory list as a zero byte file. For example: SD A: >C:\TEMP.DIR
The /t switch suppresses the display of detailed information for
individual files and directories and only displays the directory,
file attribute (see the /s switch) and disk space totals lines.
The directory totals line includes the target directory path (if the /v
switch isn't specified), the number of subdirectories, the number of
files selected, the total number of bytes and clusters in the selected
files, and the percent of space used in the clusters allocated to the
selected files. This last value provides an indication of how
efficiently disk space is being utilized for the selected files and
depends on the number of files selected, the file sizes and the disk
cluster size. The disk space totals line includes the space used,
percent used, space free, total space on the disk, and the current date
and time.
The /t switch is used when you wish to compare the total number or size
of files on two different disks or directories. If a difference is
detected, other switches (such as /b or /d) can be used to determine
which files are missing (or different).
Another difference between SD and DIR is that SD counts directories and
files separately; DIR includes both in its "file" count.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.2 Output Toggle Switches
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Syntax: /output-switch ... /output-switch
/e - Erase the screen before displaying output
/h - Display output using Horizontal sequence
/k - Display memory and disk space in Kilobytes
/m - Measure CPU performance for /i switch
/o - Switch between long and short date and time formats
/p - Print column title lines for /1 switch
/q - Quick output (no prompts when the screen fills)
/u - Switch between Upper and Lower case filenames
/v - Display disk Volume label and path at start
/w - Reset the screen to 25 lines at exit
/z - Restore the original screen at exit
These output switches are all "toggles". This means that specifying the
switch on the command line toggles the switch value to the opposite
state of the default value (either ON or OFF). For example, the value
of the /k switch is normally OFF. Specifying /k on the command line
will cause space values to be shown in Kilobytes, rather than Bytes.
However, if /k is configured to be ON as a default, specifying it on the
command line will cause space values to be shown in Bytes rather than
Kilobytes. These switches may be used together and with other switches
in many different combinations.
The /e switch causes the display screen to be cleared before any output
is displayed. The screen is cleared using the current number of screen
lines (rows), which may be different from the standard 25 lines if an
EGA or VGA adaptor and monitor are being used.
The /h switch causes the file entries to be displayed in horizontal
rather than vertical sequence according to the sort option specified.
This is handy when more than a screen's worth of output is generated, so
that the sequence of file entries is continuous when the screen scrolls.
The /k switch requests that system memory and disk space information be
displayed in units of Kilobytes (1024 bytes), rather than the default
units of bytes. In addition, these values are rounded upward, taking
into account the allocation unit (cluster) size for the specified disk.
System memory values are simply rounded to the next higher Kilobyte. Use
of the /k switch will reveal the actual amount of disk space used by
each file, rather than the normal file size, which may be much less.
If an individual file has a size greater than 999,999 bytes, the file
size is displayed in Kilobytes, even if the /k switch isn't specified.
This is necessary since the width of the file size field is limited to
six digits.
The /m switch requests that the system CPU performance be measured and
displayed when the /i switch is also specified. Since this process can
take up to about 10 seconds on an 8088 system, the default is OFF. If
you are using a fast system, you may prefer to configure the value ON.
See the section titled System Information Summary for details.
The /o switch requests that an alternate format be used when displaying
system and file date and time values. Two formats are supported, long
and short. For example, for the long format values: 25-Nov-88 12:55:32,
the equivalent short format would be 11-25-88 12:55p. The advantage of
using the long format is that the month is more readable and times are
displayed in seconds for better accuracy. The advantage of the short
format is that dates are easier to compare when using the /d switch, and
the format is similar to the standard DOS date and time format.
The /p switch requests that a title line be displayed which labels the
individual output columns displayed for the /1 switch. The format of
the displayed information is somewhat different when both the /a and /1
switches are specified. You may wish to turn off the /p switch when
redirecting the program output to a file to be used as input to another
program.
The /q switch suppresses the console reads which normally occur when
output information is about to scroll off the screen. You may wish to
specify this switch when a large amount of output is being generated
(/g or /a used without /t).
The /u switch requests that an alternate format be used when displaying
individual filenames. Two formats are supported, upper and lower case.
The lower case format is usually more readable, but this depends on the
video monitor and number of screen lines being used.
The /v switch causes the disk volume label (if any), and the target
path name to be displayed before the information for individual files.
In this case, the path name is not displayed on the first totals line,
which is the normal default. You may wish to use this switch when you
are working with long path names, to prevent truncation of information
on the first totals line.
The /w switch requests that the number of screen lines be reset to 25
when the program is about to exit in a video mode with more than 25
screen lines when an EGA or VGA adaptor is in use. A necessary side
effect of this is that the program must wait for the user to press a key
just prior to exiting and the screen is cleared. If this switch is
configured ON, you will have to specify /w/z when you wish to use the /z
switch. See the section titled EGA and VGA Switches for additional
information.
The /z switch requests that the program save the contents of the screen
(including the cursor location and size) on entry, and that these be
restored when the program terminates. This requires that the program
wait for the user to press a key just prior to exiting, so that the
final screen output is not prematurely lost. Screen sizes of up to 80
columns by 50 lines for EGA and VGA adaptors are supported. /z may be
ignored if used together with either the /w, /25, /35, /43, or /50
switch since the restored screen size could be incorrect after the video
mode change requested by these other switches.
It is also possible that /z will be ignored if used together with the
/g switch when processing a large number of directories. The directory
buffer size is 2000 bytes which allows up to about 125 16 character
directory names to be processed. If the directory buffer fills, it
automatically expands into the screen save buffer (an additional 8000
bytes), which allows up to a total of about 625 16 character directory
names to be processed.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.3 Filename Column Switches
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The /1, /2, /4, and /6 switches specify the number of filename output
columns and, inversely, the amount of file information displayed:
/1 - 1 column - File name, size, clusters allocated, % of space used,
date, time, starting cluster and sector, and attributes
/2 - 2 columns - File name, size, date and time
/4 - 4 columns - File name and size
/6 - 6 columns - File name only
A larger number of columns allows more files to be displayed on the
display screen at one time, at the cost of losing some of the detailed
file information. A smaller number of columns allows more detailed file
information to be displayed, at the cost of only being able to display a
limited number of files. All of these switches are mutually exclusive;
only one should be specified. The default switch is /2.
Subdirectory entries (normally found in the root directory) are shown
with special screen colors, for emphasis. This is especially helpful
when using the /6 switch, since there isn't room for the <Dir> indicator
(directory names may be up to 11 characters long, just like file names).
File name colors indicate the most significant attribute of the file in
the order: System, Hidden, Read-Only, Archive, and Normal.
The file size is normally displayed in bytes, or Kilobytes if the /k
switch is specified. If /1 is specified, the number of clusters which
are allocated to the file and the percent of space actually used are
also displayed.
The date and time the file was last modified are displayed in either
long or short format, depending on the /o switch value. The time a file
was last written is only accurate to a resolution of two seconds; all
values will have an even number of seconds. Files created with early
versions of DOS may not have either a date or time stamp. In this case,
the date and time fields will appear as periods.
If /1 is specified, the starting cluster number and starting logical
sector number for the file are displayed, as are the file attributes:
A - Archive R - Read/Only H - Hidden S - System
------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.4 EGA and VGA Switches
------------------------------------------------------------------------
/25 - Display 25 lines on EGA or VGA monitor
/35 - Display 35 lines on EGA or VGA monitor
/43 - Display 43 lines on EGA or VGA monitor
/50 - Display 50 lines on EGA or VGA monitor
These switches change to the specified number of screen lines (rows)
when an Enhanced Graphics Adaptor (EGA) or Video Graphics Array (VGA)
video adaptor and monitor are in use. The screen is automatically
cleared and the screen remains set to this size when the program
terminates (unless /w is specified when it is reset to 25 lines).
If the number of screen lines has already been set to a value greater
than 25, the program will automatically use the current value. The
use of a monochrome monitor connected to an EGA card is not supported
by these switches.
For an EGA, the native modes are 25 and 43 lines. The 35 and 50 line
modes are synthesized by dynamically creating new EGA fonts. The 35
line mode is more readable than the 43 line mode. The 50 line mode is
rather difficult to read since it is formed by dropping the last scan
line of each character which causes the partial loss of the descenders
of some lower case letters.
For a VGA, the native modes are 25, 43, and 50 lines. The 35 line mode
is synthesized as for the EGA. The 50 line mode is readable, since the
VGA can use 400 vertical scan lines, rather than the 350 of the EGA.
Since versions of DOS prior to 4.0 neither properly recognize nor fully
support all of the operational modes possible with the EGA/VGA BIOS
(43 line mode, for example), you may experience strange results when
using these modes at the DOS command prompt. In particular, ANSI.SYS
does not recognize 43 line mode and may cause the DOS command prompt to
appear on screen line 25, overlaying data previously displayed there.
If you normally use ANSI.SYS (or other equivalent ANSI console device
drivers) with an EGA/VGA monitor, you may wish to configure the /w
switch ON which handles this problem. Turning the option ON will cause
SD to wait for a character to be typed when it is about to exit in an
EGA/VGA video mode with more than 25 screen lines. After a character is
typed, the standard 25 line video mode is reset, the screen is cleared
and the program terminates.
If you are using DOS 4.0 with ANSI.SYS, you MUST specify the new /L ANSI
command line switch if you plan to use more than 25 screen lines. You
may also change the number of screen lines using the MODE command:
DEVICE=ANSI.SYS /L (In CONFIG.SYS)
MODE CON LINES=25 or 43 or 50 (In AUTOEXEC.BAT or at DOS prompt)
SD will decline to execute if the current video mode is other than 2
(80x25 B/W) or 3 (80x25 Color) when a color monitor is in use. The
other 40 column text modes and graphics modes are not supported, but it
is rare to encounter these modes other than in BASIC programs.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.0 System Information Summary
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The /i switch requests that a screen be displayed which summarizes the
system hardware configuration and memory and disk information. The
information is presented in six boxes. The upper left box summarizes
the system hardware configuration. The upper middle and right boxes
summarize DOS and system memory information. The lower three boxes
summarize the technical information for the specified disk. Other
switches which can be used with the /i switch include /e, /k, /m and /o.
For example, to compare two sets of drive parameters using an EGA/VGA:
D>SD C:/I/50 - display info for drive C: using 50 lines
D>SD D:/I/E - display info for drive D: without clearing screen
Output generated by the /i switch may be redirected as follows:
D>SD C:/I >FILE
------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.1 System Hardware
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PC System Type - The PC System Type Code, followed by the Submodel Type
and BIOS Level for PS/2 systems. Typical system codes are as follows:
Code System Types
---- ------------
FF IBM PC
FE IBM PC-XT, IBM PC-PORTABLE
FD IBM PC-Jr
FC IBM PC-AT, IBM PC-XT/286, IBM PS/2-50,60
FB IBM PC-XT/2
FA IBM PS/2-30
F9 IBM PC-CONVERTIBLE
F8 IBM PS/2-70,80
ROM BIOS Date - The date contained in the ROM BIOS chip which provides
an indication of when the system was manufactured.
Processor Type - The type of CPU chip in the system. Possible types are
8086/8, 80286, or 80386.
Performance - The computing performance of the system CPU relative to
the original IBM PC and PC-XT. The /m switch must be specified or
configured ON. Memory Resident (TSR) programs that intercept the timer
interrupt may make the computed CPU performance value appear
artificially low. You may wish to temporarily rename the CONFIG.SYS and
AUTOEXEC.BAT files, reboot the system and execute the command: SD/I/M
to determine the true CPU performance. Processing time ranges from 10
seconds on 8088 systems to less than 1 second on 80386 systems. You may
wish to run the test several times, since the value may fluctuate.
Typical system performance values are as follows:
System CPU MHz Waits Perf
------ --- --- ----- ----
INTEL 80386 25 0 18.18
COMPAQ 386 80386 20 0 15.15
IBM PS/2-70 80386 20 1 14.08
IBM PS/2-80 80386 16 0 11.36
AT-CLONE 80286 12 1 8.69
IBM PS/2-60 80286 10 1 6.99
AT-CLONE 80286 8 0 5.88
IBM PC-AT 80286 8 1 5.52
AT-CLONE 80286 6 0 4.23
IBM PC-AT 80286 6 1 4.14
IBM PC-XT 8088 4.77 - 1.00
Video Adaptor - The type of Video Display Adaptor currently being used.
Possible types are MDA, CGA, MCGA, EGA or VGA.
Drives (F/H/L) - The number of (F)loppy and (H)ard drives in the system
and the DOS (L)ASTDRIVE value which may be specified in CONFIG.SYS.
Ports (S/P/G) - The number of (S)erial, (P)arallel, and (G)ame ports in
the system. Serial ports are often used for a modem or mouse, parallel
ports are often used for printers and game ports are used for joysticks.
ANSI/CP/Mouse - ANSI indicates whether or not an ANSI Console Device
Driver is installed in the system (via CONFIG.SYS). CP indicates
whether or not an 80x87 math Coprocessor chip is installed in the
system. Mouse Type indicates whether or not a Microsoft Mouse
compatible software device driver is installed in the system.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.2 System Memory
------------------------------------------------------------------------
DOS Version - The version of PC-DOS or MS-DOS installed in the system.
Program Memory - The amount of memory used by the program, excluding the
buffer used to hold file entries, which is variable in size.
Environment - The amount of memory currently being used by the DOS
Environment allocated to the program. The DOS SET command is used to
add or delete Environment variables.
DOS Memory - The amount of memory used by the following DOS system
components: Interrupt Vectors in low memory, the Disk BIOS (IBMBIO.COM),
the DOS kernel (IBMDOS.COM), FILES, BUFFERS, and any Device Drivers
specified in CONFIG.SYS, and any memory they allocate.
TSR Memory - The amount of memory used by the resident portion of
COMMAND.COM (at a minimum) and memory allocated to any subsequently
loaded Terminate-and-Stay-Resident type programs (such as SDR.COM).
It also includes any currently free memory blocks which do not reside in
high memory (those previously released by TSR programs).
The DOS and TSR memory values can be very useful in analyzing how the
memory currently being used is allocated and in finding overallocations.
Used Memory - The amount of system memory currently in use.
Free Memory - The amount of system memory currently not in use.
Total Memory - The total amount of system memory (below 640K).
EMS Version - The version of the Lotus-Intel-Microsoft Expanded Memory
Manager installed in the system, if any. EMS allows any PC system to
share paged memory on an EMS memory card between applications. A device
driver must be installed in CONFIG.SYS to use this memory.
EMS Memory Used - The amount of EMS memory currently in use.
EMS Memory Free - The amount of EMS memory currently not in use.
EMS Memory Total - The total amount of EMS memory in the system.
EGA Memory - The amount of video memory installed (up to 256K) on an EGA
or VGA video display adaptor.
XMS Version - The version of the Lotus-Intel-Microsoft Extended Memory
Manager installed in the system, if any. XMS allows a 286 or 386 system
to share Extended memory between applications. A device driver must be
installed in CONFIG.SYS to use this memory.
Free Memory - The amount of Extended memory (above 1Mb) managed by XMS
which is currently available for an 80286 or 80386 system.
Extended - The amount of Extended memory (above 1Mb) which is currently
available for an 80286 or 80386 system.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.3 Disk Parameters
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Disk Drive - The name of the target disk drive from A: to Z:. The drive
letter will be followed by one of the following descriptors, if the
drive type can be determined:
NET - Logical Network Drive
BIG - Hard Disk Partition GT 32Mb
HARD - Hard Disk Partition LE 32Mb
5.25" - 5.25" Floppy Drive
3.5" - 3.5" Floppy Drive
OEM Boot Information - The name of the Original Equipment Manufacturer
(OEM) and the version of DOS used to format the disk.
Hidden Sectors - The number of sectors on a hard disk hidden from use by
DOS when processing the current disk partition. This area on the disk
may either contain partition table information, or the data in another
partition, depending on the partitioning scheme used.
Reserved Sectors - The number of sectors reserved at the beginning of
the disk for the boot sector, partition tables, etc.
FATs/EntrySize - The number of File Allocation Tables (FATs) and the
number of Bits Per File Allocation Table Entry for the disk. This value
is 12 for disks formatted prior to DOS 3.0 and either 12 or 16 for disks
formatted with DOS 3.0 or later. DOS uses 16 bit FAT entries if a disk
has 4086 or more data clusters.
Sectors Per FAT - The number of Sectors Per File Allocation Table.
Directory Sector - The logical sector number of the Root Directory for
the disk (or hard disk partition).
Data Sector - The logical sector number of the Data (File) Area on the
disk (or hard disk partition).
Root Directory Size - The maximum number of entries in the disk's Root
Directory.
Total Sectors - The total number of sectors on the disk, including the
Boot sector(s), FAT sectors, Root Directory sectors, and Data sectors.
Sectors Per Track - The number of Sectors Per Track on the disk.
Heads (Sides) - The number of Heads (Sides or Surfaces) for a hard or
floppy disk. Some RAMDISKs may have too many heads for their own good!
Cylinders - The number of Tracks Per Side (Head or Surface) for a floppy
disk or a hard disk partition. This value may be slightly smaller than
the number of physical cylinders for a hard disk partition, due to the
use of some cylinders for partition information, bad sector tables, or
diagnostic purposes. For a hard disk, the total number of cylinders on
the drive is also displayed, but only for the first drive and partition.
Media Byte - The Media Descriptor Byte is used to describe the size and
format of the disk media and is based on the following disk parameters:
Sectors per Track, Heads (Sides), and Cylinders (Tracks Per Side).
Although the Media Byte is used by the BIOS to determine the disk
characteristics in certain cases, not all DOS BIOS implementations
use exactly the same Media Bytes for the same disk types. An example is
the 5.25" 1.2Mb and 3.5" 720Kb disk types which both use media byte F9.
Bytes Per Sector - The number of Bytes Per Sector on the disk.
Sectors Per Cluster - The number of Sectors Per Cluster on the disk.
Bytes Per Cluster - The number of Bytes Per Cluster on the disk.
Volume Serial Number - The Volume Serial Number for the disk. DOS 4.0
places an 8 digit hexadecimal Volume Serial Number in the Boot Sector of
each disk when it is formatted. This value can be used to uniquely
identify a disk since it is different for each disk (unlike disk Volume
Labels which may be the same). The VSN.COM utility provided can be used
to create, change and delete Volume Serial Numbers on disks which are
either formatted or used with any version of DOS. See the VSN.DOC file
for additional information.
Volume Label - The Volume Label for the disk. Volume Labels are created
either when the disk is formatted or when the LABEL command is used.
Create Date - The date when the Volume Label was created.
Create Time - The time when the Volume Label was created.
Used Clusters - The number of Clusters in use on the disk.
Free Clusters - The number of Clusters not in use on the disk.
Total Clusters - The total number of Clusters available on the disk.
This does not include the space used by the Boot Sector, the FATs, or
the Root Directory.
Used Space - The number of Bytes used and the Percent of space used on
the disk.
Free Space - The number of Bytes free and the Percent of space free on
the disk.
Total Space - The total number of Bytes available on the disk. This
does not include the space used by the Boot Sector, the FATs, or the
Root Directory.
Some of the disk information is obtained by reading the Boot Sector of
the disk. If either an error occurs when reading the Boot Sector, or
invalid data is detected, this information will appear as NONE or zeros.
The values affected are the OEM Boot Information through Cylinders and
the Volume Serial Number value.
Standard DOS disk formats and their characteristics are shown below:
Disk Type Size SPT Heads Cyls Media BPC FAT
--------- ---- --- ----- ---- ----- --- ---
5.25" SS 48 TPI 160K 8 1 40 FE 512 12
5.25" SS 48 TPI 180K 9 1 40 FC 512 12
5.25" DS 48 TPI 320K 8 2 40 FF 1024 12
5.25" DS 48 TPI 360K 9 2 40 FD 1024 12
5.25" DS 96 TPI 1.2M 15 2 80 F9 512 12
3.5" DS 135 TPI 720K 9 2 80 F9 1024 12
3.5" DS 135 TPI 1.4M 18 2 80 F0 512 12
PC-XT Hard Disk 10M 17 4 305 F8 4096 12
PC-AT Hard Disk 20M 17 4 611 F8 2048 16
PC-AT Hard Disk 30M 17 5 731 F8 2048 16
------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.1 Configuring the Program
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The SD program may be configured (using SDC) or patched (using DEBUG) to
change the various program defaults to those you prefer. The SDC
program is preferred over DEBUG since it is much easier and safer to use
and allows you to decide which combination of screen colors you prefer.
It also allows you to judge the effect of your changes by alternately
modifying the SD program and executing the modified program, all without
having to leave the configuration program. Run the DEMO2.BAT file to
see some examples of SDC program output.
If you are using DEBUG, you will need to refer to the section titled
Patch Area Format to obtain the necessary offsets and data values.
The following example shows how to use DEBUG to patch the SD program:
D>DEBUG SD.COM (Load SD.COM into memory using DEBUG)
-E107 '4' (Change the default number of columns to 4)
-E118 01 (Display the volume label as a default)
-E11B 1E (Change directory colors to Yellow on Blue)
-W (Write the modified file back to disk)
-Q (Exit to DOS from DEBUG)
D>SD (Execute the modified version of SD.COM)
Screen Color Configuration
Although it is possible to configure the SD program using either a color
or monochrome monitor, best results will be obtained if you are using
the target monitor since you will be better able to judge the effect
of different screen color combinations. If you are using a laptop
computer with a LCD display screen, you may wish to set all colors to
White on Black for better readability. You can do this as follows:
D>DEBUG SD.COM (Load SD.COM into memory using DEBUG)
-F11B L E 7 (Change all screen colors to White on Black)
-W (Write the modified file back to disk)
-Q (Exit to DOS from DEBUG)
D>SD (Execute the modified version of SD.COM)
The foreground and background colors (screen attributes) used for the
following screen fields may be configured:
Directory Colors apply to individual subdirectory entries.
System Colors apply to files with the System attribute.
Hidden Colors apply to files with the Hidden attribute, but not the
System attribute.
Read/Only Colors apply to files with the Read/Only attribute, but
neither the System nor Hidden attribute.
Archive Colors apply to files with the Archive attribute, but neither
the System, Hidden, or Read/Only attribute.
File Colors apply to files with none of the above mentioned attributes.
ARC File Colors apply to file entries inside ARC files.
File Size Colors apply to the file size, clusters, and percent of space
used fields.
File Date Colors apply to the file date and time fields.
File Misc Colors apply to the file starting cluster and sector and file
attribute fields for non-ARC files and file CRC codes for ARC files.
Graphics Colors apply to the graphics characters which are used to
vertically divide the filename columns and to form the lines of boxes.
Text Colors apply to the text strings which precede numeric or string
values in the leading and trailing text lines and to the text in the
boxes displayed for the /? and /i switches.
Info Colors apply to the numeric or string values which follow the text
strings in the leading and trailing text lines and to the values in the
boxes displayed for the /i switch.
Normal Colors apply to the trailing characters on each output line, the
new output lines created when the screen is scrolled, the SDR prompt
line, and the title fields for the various boxes displayed by the /?
and /i switches. These colors should be set to the standard screen
colors used at the DOS command prompt.
The Graphics, Text, Info and Normal Colors should be selected so that
they all use the same background color (the default is black), for best
results. The remaining colors should be selected so that they are
sufficiently different from one another to be individually recognizable
and are easily readable on the video monitor being used. Although there
are 1792 possible color combinations, only a few are tolerable for long.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.2 Patch Area Format
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following information is only provided as a reference for those who
need to use DEBUG to change the program defaults; it is not needed to
run the SDC configuration program.
The following data area at the beginning of the SD.COM file may be
modified using the standard DOS DEBUG program. Only the data values
beginning with the Sort Type field should be modified. Only the toggle
switches marked (SDC) should normally be turned ON as a default.
SDC DEBUG Field Default Possible
Offset Offset Description Value Values
------ ------ ----------- ------- --------
01 0100 Jump Instruction - ?? ?? ??
04 0103 Program Type - 1=SD.COM, 2=SDR.COM
05 0104 Program Version - 60H = Version 6.0
06 0105 Sort Type 'X' 'B','C','D','F','X','N'
07 0106 Sort Direction '+' '+','-'
08 0107 Filename Columns '2' '1','2','4','6'
09 0108 Process ARC Files 0 /A = 0,1
10 0109 Erase Console Screen 0 /E = 0,1 (SDC)
11 010A Process Global Dirs 0 /G = 0,1
12 010B Horizontal Sequence 0 /H = 0,1 (SDC)
13 010C System Information 0 /I = 0,1
14 010D Just Display Colors 0 /J = 0,1
15 010E Space in Kilobytes 0 /K = 0,1 (SDC)
16 010F List File Names 0 /L = 0,1
17 0110 Measure CPU Performance 0 /M = 0,1 (SDC)
18 0111 Date/Time Format 0 /O = 0,1 (SDC)
19 0112 Print Title Lines 1 /P = 0,1 (SDC)
20 0113 Quick Output 0 /Q = 0,1 (SDC)
21 0114 Redirected Output 0 /R = 0,1 (SD)
22 0115 System & Hidden Files 1 /S = 0,1 (SDC)
23 0116 Totals Lines Only 0 /T = 0,1
24 0117 Upper/Lower Case 0 /U = 0,1 (SDC)
25 0118 Display Volume Label 0 /V = 0,1 (SDC)
26 0119 Reset to 25 Screen Rows 0 /W = 0,1 (SDC)
27 011A Restore Original Screen 0 /Z = 0,1 (SD)
Suppress Activation Msg 0 /Z = 0,1 (SDR)
28 011B Directory FG/BG Colors 7+16*1 White on Blue
29 011C System FG/BG Colors 4+16*3 Red on Cyan
30 011D Hidden FG/BG Colors 5+16*3 Magenta on Cyan
31 011E Read/Only FG/BG Colors 6+16*3 Brown on Cyan
32 011F Archive FG/BG Colors 0+16*3 Black on Cyan
33 0120 File FG/BG Colors 1+16*3 Blue on Cyan
34 0121 ARC File FG/BG Colors 3+16*1 Cyan on Blue
35 0122 Size FG/BG Colors 1+16*7 Blue on White
36 0123 Date FG/BG Colors 0+16*7 Black on White
37 0124 Misc FG/BG Colors 4+16*7 Red on White
38 0125 Graphics FG/BG Colors 4+16*0 Red on Black
39 0126 Text FG/BG Colors 2+16*0 Green on Black
40 0127 Info FG/BG Colors 3+16*0 Cyan on Black
41 0128 Normal FG/BG Colors 7+16*0 White on Black
42 0129 Directory Mono Attrs 0+16*7 Reverse Video
43 012A System Mono Attrs 9+16*0 Intensified Underlined
44 012B Hidden Mono Attrs 1+16*0 Normal Underlined
45 012C Read/Only Mono Attrs 1+16*0 Normal Underlined
46 012D Archive Mono Attrs 15+16*0 Intensified
47 012E File Mono Attrs 7+16*0 Normal Video
48 012F ARC File Mono Attrs 7+16*0 Normal Video
49 0130 Size Mono Attrs 7+16*0 Normal Video
50 0131 Date Mono Attrs 7+16*0 Normal Video
51 0132 Misc Mono Attrs 7+16*0 Normal Video
52 0133 Graphics Mono Attrs 15+16*0 Intensified
53 0134 Text Mono Attrs 7+16*0 Normal Video
54 0135 Info Mono Attrs 15+16*0 Intensified
55 0136 Normal Mono Attrs 7+16*0 Normal Video
56 0137 Hot Key Control Code 4 0-15 (SDR)
57 0138 Hot Key Scan Code 1 0-255 (SDR)
58 0139 Hot Key String CTRL-ESCAPE Keys 16 chars,NULL (SDR)
75 014A Prompt Character 26 0-255 (SDR)
76 014B Dir Buffer Length 1024 512-4096 (SDR)
78 014D File Buffer Length 10240 2560-40960 (SDR)
80 014F Screen Buffer Type 1 1/2=4000/8000 (SDR)
Color Codes
0 = Black 1 = Blue 2 = Green 3 = Cyan
4 = Red 5 = Magenta 6 = Brown 7 = White
SD dynamically selects either the color or monochrome attributes
specified at the offsets in the table above, based on the type of
video display adaptor being used.
Once the desired foreground and background colors (attributes) have been
selected for a screen field, compute the field attribute byte using the
formula: ATTRIBUTE = FCOLOR+16*BCOLOR, where FCOLOR and BCOLOR are the
foreground and background colors (attributes), respectively.
Intensified foreground colors corresponding to the 8 standard colors may
be selected by adding 8 to the foreground color number. For example,
specify foreground color (6+8)=14 to get a foreground Yellow color
instead of the unintensified Brown. The blinking attribute (for
foreground characters) may be selected by adding 8 to the background
color number. However, use of this attribute is not recommended, since
it may be distracting. For a monochrome monitor, selecting Blue on
Black (1+16*0) will cause the screen field to be underlined.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.3 Multiple Drive Processing
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The SDB.BAT batch file allows you to execute the SD program for multiple
disk drives automatically. This is especially useful when searching for
files which may be on other drives and possibly in other directories or
ARC files on other drives. It is also handy when displaying totals
information for one or more directories or ARC files on several drives.
Before using SDB, you must use a text editor to edit the file to select
the disk drives you wish to process (the default is drives C, D, and E).
It is recommended that you only select partitions on hard disks, and
possibly other drives which are not floppy disk drives, but any valid
drive letters may be selected, and in any desired order. You may abort
the output at any point by pressing ESC or CTRL-C, so you should order
the drive letters by expected frequency of use. The following two
statements must appear in the batch file for each drive (d):
sd d:%1%2%3%4%5%6%7%8%9/$
if errorlevel 2 goto end
The last drive is an exception, where the /$ and following if statement
must be omitted. The /$ switch tells SD to provide a pause between
successive drives in order to synchronize screen scrolling. Once you
are familiar with the use of SDB, you may wish to remove the help
information at the beginning of the file to keep the file as small as
possible. If you are using DOS 3.3 or higher, you may wish to add an @
character before the echo off statement to suppress it.
Although you can use almost any valid SD command line with SDB, the
following restrictions exist:
1) You must type a space before any command line parameters.
2) You must not specify a specific drive letter on the command line.
3) Output redirection to a device or file isn't supported.
4) If you don't specify any command line parameters, help information
is displayed. To select the current directory, specify * or ? or
edit the file to remove the help information as described above.
Some typical examples of using SDB are provided below:
D>sdb \abc/g
Display information for all files whose names begin with abc in all
directories on all selected drives.
D>sdb /v/t
Display volume label and totals information for the current directory
on all selected drives.
D>sdb \/gt
Display volume label and grand totals information for all directories
on all selected drives.
D>sdb \/gt/a
Display volume label and grand totals information for all ARC files on
all selected drives.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.4 Multitasking Environments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are two different ways to use SD with various multitasking
environments such as Microsoft Windows or DESQview. The first method
is to use SD in its normal mode where it writes output directly to
Video Memory for fast color output. This method will not allow it to
run in a window. The supplied SD.PIF file tells Microsoft Windows that
SD is to be used in this mode. The second method is to make a copy of
SD (SDW) which will have the /r switch turned on as a default. This
will allow it to run inside a window, but more slowly and without color.
Create the SDW file as follows:
D>COPY SD.COM SDW.COM
D>DEBUG SDW.COM
-E114 1
-W
-Q
For Microsoft Windows, copy SD.PIF to SDW.PIF and use the PIFEDIT
utility to edit the SDW.PIF file to indicate that the program does not
directly modify the screen. For DESQview, SDW may be used without being
specially defined. However, you must add SD as a program which will tell
DESQview that it writes directly to the screen.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.1 Error Messages and Return Codes
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following error messages are displayed and system return codes set
for various conditions which may arise. An audible tone is generated to
alert the user of the error (for code 2 and above) in case the output is
being redirected. The return codes may be tested using the standard DOS
IF ERRORLEVEL statement in a .BAT file.
0 - One or more matching files were found.
1 - No matching files were found.
2 - Bad switch or ESC or CTRL-C pressed.
3 - Bad drive (doesn't exist or syntax error).
4 - Bad path (doesn't exist or syntax error).
5 - Bad file specification (syntax error).
6 - Bad date (too large or syntax error).
7 - Too many directories (when /g is specified).
8 - Bad video mode (unsupported video mode).
Other errors which are detected relate to the processing of ARC files.
The first type are standard DOS file I/O error codes which can occur
when opening, reading, or closing ARC files. The error message is:
Error <n> on <drive><path><filename>, where <n> is as follows:
1 - Invalid function code 5 - Access denied
2 - File not found 6 - Invalid handle
3 - Path not found 12 - Invalid access value
4 - Too many open files
The only one of these errors which is likely to occur is 4, in which
case you need to increase the FILES specification in CONFIG.SYS.
The second type of error is caused by bad data in the header field for a
file in an ARC file, or attempting to process a file with the /a
switch which is not an ARC file. The error message is:
Bad header in <drive><path><filename>
------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.2 Modification History
------------------------------------------------------------------------
01-Jan-89 ... V6.0
Added /gt switch for Grand Totals information only.
Created SDB.BAT file for processing multiple drives.
Added new /$ switch to display "More" message and read
keyboard before exiting for use in batch file mode.
Set exit code 2 if user types ESC/CTRL-C for batch files.
Display "More" message when exiting with /w or /z.
Added target path name to No Matching Files message.
Reorganized System Information Summary display screen.
Added Title Line with Current Date and Time. Added CPU
Processor Type, Environment Size, and Extended Memory
Specification (XMS) Version and Free Memory Size.
Improved /r processing for multitasking environments.
Added separately configurable colors for File Size,
Date and Time, and Miscellaneous File Information.
Changed System, Hidden, Read/Only, and File Colors
to use Cyan background color rather than White.
Changed ARC colors from Blue on Cyan to Cyan on Blue.
Use new-style INT 25H system call to read the Disk
Boot Sector for Hard Disk Partition Sizes GT 32Mb.
Identify Floppy Drives, Hard Disks and Big Partitions.
Only display Total Cylinders for Hard Disk Drive C:.
Improved tests for Network Drives when errors occur.
Improved detection of Submodel Type and BIOS Level.
Identify "Crushed" Storage Method for .ARC Files.
Determine Hidden Sectors, Sectors Per Track, Heads,
and Cylinders for RAMDISKs with valid Boot Sectors.
Handle Boot Sector Jump Offset GT 128 bytes correctly.
Improved SDR installation and activation messages.
Added SDR /q (suppress installation message) and /z
(suppress activation message) DOS command line switches.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.3 Product Support
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This product represents more than a thousand hours of work over several
years. I believe it is a good example of the SHAREWARE concept; you
get to try the product without prior commitment and only chose to
support it if you find it useful. Many of the continuing improvements
have been implemented in response to user suggestions and requests.
If you find that you continue to use this product once you have become
familiar with it, it is obviously of some value to you; please support
the SHAREWARE concept by registering your copy and sharing the SD60.ARC
file with others.
The SD60.ARC file may be freely copied and distributed as long as the
only charge is for media and reproduction costs, etc. Under no
conditions should the program either be sold for a profit or distributed
in modified form without the permission of the author. Commercial site
licenses or special versions are available on request.
As supplied, the programs in this product are fully functional with no
missing or crippled features. However, the SHAREWARE concept is a two
way process. In order to keep the size of the distribution file
reasonable, and to encourage users to register their copy of this
product, the SDC configuration utility program is only available through
the mail when you register your copy of SD.
This easy-to-use program provides full screen color menus which allow
you to change any of the default sort options, screen colors, command
line switch values, or other program options in SD or SDR to the
defaults you prefer. Although you can also use the DOS DEBUG program to
make these changes by patching the SD or SDR files, SDC makes this
process much quicker and safer.
To register your copy of SD, please complete the order and registration
form below and return it together with a contribution of $20. In return,
you will receive a disk containing the latest version of all of the SD
utility programs (including the SDC program), together with the complete
source code! This will allow you to see how the programs work, learn
more about assembly language programming, or make your own enhancements.
If you do improve the program, please let me know so that the results
can be shared with other users. I prefer to coordinate all changes so
that they are released in an orderly fashion.
A comprehensive DOS HELP utility is available separately which provides
quick, friendly access to complete DOS command reference information for
DOS 2.0-4.0. The DEMO2.BAT file provides a demonstration of some of the
capabilities of this product. The DOS HELP utility is also available
for a contribution of $20, or you can receive BOTH the SD Utility Disk
and the DOS HELP Disk for a contribution of $30. Please specify whether
you want the IBM PC-DOS or ZENITH MS-DOS Version of the HELP Utility.
Even if you don't register or formally support this product, please
share copies of the SD60.ARC file with other users and/or upload copies
to Computer Bulletin Boards you use.
Users who have supported this product in the past are largely
responsible for the existence of the current version. Previously
registered users can receive the latest version of either SD or HELP for
a $10 contribution, at any time. Normally I only supply 5.25" 360Kb
floppy disks. If you can only use 3.5" 720Kb disks, either add $2.50
per disk, or include the appropriate number of 3.5" disks with your
order. I can accept checks, money orders and purchase orders.
If you wish to contact me with problem reports, suggestions for
improvements, and/or especially large financial donations, I can be
reached using the information provided below:
John F. Stetson (Home) (301) 946-5615 (8PM-11PM EST)
42 Tivoli Lake Court (Work) (301) 340-4544 (10AM-6PM EST)
Silver Spring, Md. 20906
------------------------------------------------------------------------
IBM and PC-DOS are trademarks of IBM Corporation.
MICROSOFT and MS-DOS are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
DESQview is a trademark of Quarterdeck Office Systems.
ARC is a trademark of SEA Corporation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SD V6.0 Order and Registration Form
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quantity Item Price Total
------------------------------------------------------------------------
___ Sorted Directory Utility Disk $20.00 $_______
___ IBM PC-DOS HELP Utility Disk $20.00 $_______
___ ZENITH MS-DOS HELP Utility Disk $20.00 $_______
___ SD Utility Disk AND DOS HELP Disk $30.00 $_______
Specify IBM (_) or ZENITH (_)
Subtotal $_______
Update For Previously Registered User
Subtract 50% of Subtotal $_______
Subtotal $_______
Add $2.50 Per Disk For 3.5" Diskettes $_______
Subtotal $_______
MD Residents Please Add 5% Sales Tax Tax $_______
Thanks For Your Support! Total $_______
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name _______________________________________________________________
Company _______________________________________________________________
Address _______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Phone(W) ___________________________ Phone(H) __________________________
Where did you obtain SD (Bulletin Board, Software Library, Friend)?
_______________________________________________________________
Comments _______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SDR.DOC
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SDR: IBM-PC Resident Sorted Directory Utility V6.0
Copyright (C) 1986-89 By John F. Stetson
All Rights Reserved
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contents
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Program Requirements
1.2 Design Philosophy
2.0 PROGRAM USAGE
2.1 Installation
2.2 Activation
2.3 Execution
2.4 Termination
2.5 Removal
3.0 APPENDICES
3.1 Switch Differences
3.2 Configuration
3.3 Error Messages
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.1 Program Requirements
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SDR.COM is a memory resident sorted directory utility program which
operates on IBM-PC compatible computer systems using the IBM PC-DOS or
Microsoft MS-DOS Operating System Version 2.0 or higher.
SD.COM is the non-memory resident version of the program. Since the
capabilities and command syntax of the two programs are virtually
identical, only the differences and additional capabilities of SDR.COM
are covered in this document. It is recommended that the user first
become familiar with the use of SD.COM before using SDR.COM. The bulk
of the command syntax for SDR.COM is therefore covered in the document
for SD.COM.
This version of the program requires about 16Kb of disk space and
about 24-68Kb of memory during execution, depending on the size of
the directory, file and screen buffers configured by the user. With the
default buffer sizes, the program uses about 32Kb of system memory.
Support is provided for IBM-PC compatible MDA, CGA, MCGA, EGA, and VGA
video adaptors and monitors.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.2 Design Philosophy
------------------------------------------------------------------------
As is the case for SD.COM, SDR.COM provides more information than the
resident DOS DIR command about the files on a disk, and allows the user
to select, sort, format, and display the information in a variety of
ways. This is accomplished by specifying a pattern name to select the
desired files and by specifying any of a variety of command line
"switches" which allow you to modify the behavior of the program. The
switch names have been designed using letters, as much as possible, so
that it is easier to associate the function of a switch with its name.
In addition, the default switch values have been carefully chosen to
reflect their most common use.
The advantage of a memory resident program is that it is almost always
available for use, regardless of the other program(s) currently running.
Otherwise, it would be necessary to either exit the current program and
return to the DOS system command prompt in order to run the program, or
use the "shell" facility that some programs provide to execute other
programs and then regain control. Since not all programs provide this
capability, having your frequently used utilities in memory resident
form greatly increases their availability. In addition, execution of a
memory resident program is virtually instantaneous, since the program is
only loaded from disk once.
The primary disadvantage of a memory resident program is that it
consumes system memory which would otherwise be available to execute
other programs. Most memory resident programs are loaded once at system
boot time and remain in memory permanently. Well designed memory
resident programs are carefully written to minimize the amount of memory
they use, and allow the user to configure the program to achieve a good
balance between functionality and memory consumption. Another more
subtle disadvantage is that most non-trivial memory resident programs
must employ a variety of techniques to work around the limitations in
the DOS operating system and the IBM-PC BIOS. Since there is not yet a
universally accepted standard for what these techniques should be, there
is no guarantee that any one memory resident program will be compatible
with another, or even with other non-memory resident programs.
However, enough of a standard has emerged to write useful memory
resident programs, and the benefits of frequently used programs greatly
outweigh the occasional incompatibilities for most users. This program
has been designed in such a way as to try and maximize its compatibility
with other programs. However, there is no guarantee that
incompatibilities will not arise with a specific program. When this
occurs, a good strategy to follow is to try to simplify the environment
as much as possible; remove other memory resident programs one at a
time, or try changing the order in which they are loaded.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.1 Installation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unlike non-memory resident programs, SDR is normally only executed once,
immediately after the operating system is booted. This is best done by
placing the command "SDR" in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file which is
automatically executed by DOS after boot-up. As mentioned above, it may
be necessary to experiment with different loading orders of multiple
Terminate-and-Stay-Resident programs. In general, the more complex TSR
type programs (such as BORLAND's SideKick) should be loaded after
simpler TSR programs. Like most TSR programs, SDR should only be
installed at the top DOS command level, not from inside another program.
There are two SDR DOS command line switches (/q and /z) which may be
specified at installation time. A third switch (/r) is used to remove
the program from memory and is described below. These switches should
not be confused with those used once you have activated the program and
are operating inside it. The help screen displayed in response to the
/? switch (inside SDR) flags these switches with an (*) character as a
reminder that they are to be used on the DOS (not the SDR) command line.
The /q switch requests "quiet" installation mode. Normally, if the
installation is successful, SDR will display a message in a box showing
the total amount of memory it is using and the activation key sequence.
This message cannot be suppressed by redirecting it to the DOS "NUL"
device, since it is not displayed using standard DOS video services.
Specifying the /q switch will prevent the message from being displayed.
Similarly, the /z switch causes suppression of the message box which is
normally displayed when the program is activated by pressing the hot key
sequence. See the sections below for additional information. As an
example, you can install SDR and suppress both message boxes as follows:
D>SDR /Q/Z
Although it is rather unlikely, installation of SDR can be denied for
the following reasons:
1) DOS 2.0 or later is required.
2) The program has already been loaded into memory.
3) The directory or file buffer sizes requested are out of bounds. The
program was incorrectly patched - this can't happen if the available
configuration program (SDC) is used.
4) There is insufficient system memory available for the resident code,
data, directory and file buffers.
5) The program is unable to release memory it no longer needs.
6) The program is unable to allocate memory for the screen buffer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.2 Activation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since the program is "memory resident", it is available for use even
though another program is currently running. The program is activated by
pressing the activation or "hot" key combination. The default activation
key combination is CTRL-ESC (while holding down the CTRL key, press the
ESC key at the same time). These key combinations can be changed using
the configuration program so as not to conflict with their possible use
by other programs.
Although the program will usually be able to "go active" or "pop up",
there are a few situations where this is not possible (or desirable!):
1) If the program is already active. Pressing the activation key while
inside the program is sometimes used to exit a TSR program. Since a
different key (ESC) is used for this purpose in SDR, this is not
allowed.
2) If Disk I/O is in progress. Although not recommended, you may find
that you can safely pop up SDR in the middle of reading or writing to
a disk. At other times, the request may be denied. This is due to
the need to serialize access to non-reentrant code in the PC BIOS.
3) If the current video mode is either 40 column text or graphics.
Since SDR requires the full width of the screen in 80 column text
mode, it will decline to activate if the current video mode is
incompatible with these requirements. The primary programs which use
these video modes are BASIC programs.
4) If a multitasking environment such as Microsoft Windows or DESQview
is currently being used. Since these environments involve complex
memory management functions, you should use SD rather than SDR. You
CAN use SDR with Windows/386 if you install it while inside Windows.
In the situations above, the activation request will be acknowledged by
an audible tone or "beep", so that there is no doubt that the request
was declined. However, there is another situation where the program may
not appear to activate. Some programs or commands may perform certain
long-running functions which do not provide an opportunity for TSR
programs to activate. A simple example is the TYPE command. If you
type a large file and press the activation key during the output, the
program will probably not go active and the audible tone will not be
generated. However, when the command ends, either normally or by a
CTRL-BREAK interrupt, SDR will activate. Some TSR programs simply
refuse to activate in this situation.
Another similar situation can occur when one TSR program is already
active and refuses to allow a second TSR program to even "see" its hot-
key sequence. This is a characteristic of "ill-behaved" TSR programs
which are all too common. Yet another scenario occurs when SDR "pops-
up" over another TSR program but appears to be "dead". Sometimes simply
pressing a few keys will cause the "deadly embrace" to end, although
these keys may be passed back to the previously invoked program.
Since SDR dynamically determines the video configuration, this means
that you can install it using one kind of video monitor and activate it
from another kind. You can switch between MDA, CGA, and EGA or VGA
monitors at will and SDR will adapt its operation to the monitor in use.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.3 Execution
------------------------------------------------------------------------
After the activation key is accepted, the program "goes active" or "pops
up". At this point, the top few lines of the screen are cleared and a
box with several lines of information is displayed. A prompt appears on
the screen line below the box. Once you are familiar with the operation
of the program, you may wish to use the SDR DOS command line /z switch
to eliminate the box in order to save screen space. The following
options are now available:
1) Enter a valid command line. See below for details.
2) Press the RETURN key to display the current directory.
3) Enter /? to display command help information.
4) Press ESC or CTRL-C to return to the suspended program.
The complete form of the command line is:
D:\path> [/switches] [drive][path][filespec] [/switches]
The prompt string consists of the current drive letter, followed by the
current directory path for the drive, followed by the prompt character
(which may be configured). The SDR prompt may appear alarmingly similar
to your DOS system prompt; the DOS command: PROMPT $P$G generates the
same type of prompt string. To avoid confusion, SDR allows the prompt
character to be changed, and the default is a graphics character
different from the usual (>) character.
The rest of the command line parameters (drive, path, filespec, and
switches) are just like those accepted by the SD.COM program. Please
refer to the documentation for SD for details.
The command line must be terminated by the RETURN or ENTER key. The
Backspace key may be used to remove previously typed characters on the
command line. Since SDR must avoid the use of DOS console services in
resident code, utilities like PCED, CED, and DOSEDIT which allow editing
the DOS command line will unfortunately not function inside SDR.
After the output of the current command is displayed, the prompt string
is redisplayed. This allows you to enter as many commands as desired
before returning to the suspended program. Keep in mind that the
program which was in control when the activation key was pressed is in a
suspended state; this implies that you will not wish to activate SDR
(even though it is allowed) when executing a time-critical program. A
good example of this is a modem communication program which is in the
middle of a file transfer with a remote system.
To see SDR in operation, try the following example:
1) Execute the BASIC language interpreter with the command: BASICA
2) Enter the following BASIC command: FOR I=1 TO 999 : ? I,SQR(I) : NEXT
3) Press RETURN and wait until the screen fills
4) Press the SDR activation keys: CTRL-ESC
5) Press RETURN several times to display the directory
6) Press ESC to return to the BASIC program
7) Notice that the program picks up where it left off
8) Press CTRL-BREAK to terminate the BASIC program
Unlike most programs, you can't type ahead while the program is running.
This is due to the need to monitor the keyboard in order to pause the
screen output. If you wish to begin typing a new command, simply press
ESCAPE (preferred) or Control-C to immediately terminate the output,
and then type the next command.
Console output may be paused by typing any other character and may be
restarted in two different ways. If RETURN is pressed, screen output
resumes until the either the screen fills or the output finishes. If
any other character is typed, only a single line of additional screen
output is displayed. This allows you to easily control the displayed
output so as to minimize the loss of existing screen data by scrolling.
The recommended single line scroll keys are the Space Bar or Down Arrow.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.4 Termination
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The only way to exit from SDR to the suspended program is by pressing
the ESC or CTRL-C key from the SDR command prompt. Pressing CTRL-BREAK
will not exit from SDR and will appear to be ignored, but the interrupt
may be seen by the suspended program when SDR is exited normally.
If the ESC key is used to exit from SDR, the console screen is restored
to its original state, and the cursor position and size are restored to
their original state when the original program was suspended.
If the CTRL-C key is used to exit from SDR and the original screen line
containing the cursor before SDR was activated is still visible, the
cursor is restored to its original state, but the screen is NOT
restored. A divider line is displayed over the last SDR prompt line to
clearly separate the original and subsequent screen output. The reason
for this behavior is to allow you to retain output generated by SDR in
order to be able to refer to it when you return to the suspended
program. Once the original cursor line is overwritten, either by screen
output, scrolling, or clearing the screen, CTRL-C will cause the entire
screen to be restored, just like ESC. Therefore, if you plan to use
this feature, you will want to position the cursor as close to the
bottom of the screen as possible before activating SDR. Once you have
referred to the SDR output, you may wish to perform an action in the
suspended program which will cause the screen to be rewritten, in
order to avoid confusion and to resynchronize the display.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.5 Removal
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SDR prevents the user from loading multiple copies of itself in order to
avoid wasting memory. It can be removed from memory by running it again
with the /r command line switch specified. This is helpful when the
program is being configured for different screen colors, etc. in order
to avoid a system reboot to load a new copy of the program. It can also
be useful if the need arises to release as much memory as possible for
some other purpose.
Although it is rather unlikely, removal of SDR can be denied for the
following reasons:
1) The program is not already loaded in memory.
2) Interrupt vectors previously saved and changed by the program have
been subsequently altered by another program.
3) The program is unable to release memory it no longer needs.
SDR will decline to remove itself from memory if it determines that
another TSR program has stolen one of the interrupt vectors which it
saves and then changes. In this case, you must remove the other program
from memory before you can remove SDR. A good example is when BORLAND's
SideKick utility is used with SDR. In this case, install SDR first and
SideKick second. You must remove SideKick first, and SDR second. This
is necessary since SideKick constantly monitors the interrupt vectors it
steals and if it detects that another program has stolen them, it steals
them back again!
Although a few TSR programs provide a means of deinstalling themselves
from memory (such as SDR), most do not. However, there are several
utilities available which provide this capability. MARK and RELEASE by
TurboPower Software and INSTALL and REMOVE by PC Magazine are readily
available on many bulletin boards. These programs require that you
execute a special program before installing a TSR program, and another
program when you wish to remove the TSR program. They work by saving
information about the state of the Interrupt Vector Table and DOS Memory
Control Blocks so that this information can be subsequently restored,
thus effectively removing the TSR program.
There are also several utility programs available which display all of
the currently loaded TSR programs, along with information on how much
memory they use, which interrupts they "steal", etc. By observing which
interrupts are stolen by each TSR program, it is possible to determine
which programs are likely to conflict with each other.
If you use one of these programs to display the currently loaded TSR
programs, you may notice that some are identified by their program
names and some are not. Starting with DOS V3, the path and program
name used to execute a program are stored in the program environment
memory block. It is generally considered good practice for a TSR
program to release this environment block (usually less than 100 bytes)
at the time it is installed, and SDR does this. A side effect of this
action is that programs which scan the memory control blocks and
display information about TSR programs cannot obtain the program name.
When any TSR program is removed from memory and it is not the last
loaded TSR program, a gap in memory will result from the creation of
the resulting free memory block. DOS will not normally be able to
use this memory unless all TSR programs above it are first removed.
This implies that TSR programs should always be removed in the opposite
order in which they were installed, in order to maximize the use of
available memory for other programs.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.1 Switch Differences
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Although most of the command line switches function the same in SDR as
they do in SD, there are differences due to the operating environment.
Although the /e switch may still be used to clear the screen before the
execution of an individual command, using the SDC program to turn this
switch ON as a default will cause the entire screen to be cleared each
time SDR "pops-up", but not automatically for each subsequent command.
The Environment Size, TSR Memory, and System Memory Used and Free values
displayed by the /i switch reflect the system memory at the time just
after SDR was installed and may be incorrect if other TSR programs have
been subsequently loaded. SDR will not be able to read the Boot Sector
for drives above C: when it is activated from the DOS command prompt
(rather than when inside most other programs). In this case, some of
the disk parameter values will appear as NONE or zeros.
The /q switch requests "quiet" installation of SDR when specified on the
DOS command line as described above. When used inside SDR, it functions
just as it does in SD to generate "quick" output without user prompts.
The /r switch is normally used in SD to allow the program output to be
redirected to a file or to the printer. Since this function is performed
by the DOS command interpreter, it is not available inside a memory
resident program. The /r switch is used to remove SDR from memory (when
specified on the DOS command line to execute SDR), and is ignored if it
is specified on the command line inside SDR.
The /w switch resets the screen to 25 lines after the execution of the
current command in SDR, NOT when SDR returns to the suspended program.
The /z switch is normally used in SD to cause the screen to be saved and
restored. When specified on the SDR DOS command line, it suppresses the
activation message box. If you often use the CTRL-C key to exit from
SDR, you may wish to specify /z when installing SDR so that you have
more room to use on the screen. The /z switch is ignored if it is
specified on the command line inside SDR.
The SD /$ switch, which is designed to facilitate the operation of SD
when it is executed inside a DOS Batch file, is not implemented in SDR.
The EGA and VGA switches (/25, /35, /43, /50) should be used cautiously.
If you use an EGA or VGA video adaptor and wish to use more than 25
screen lines, make sure you select screen buffer type 2 (8000 bytes) in
the configuration program. Otherwise, only the first 25 lines of the
original screen will be restored. Even so, it is recommended that you
reset the screen to its original size before returning to the suspended
program, unless it is known to be able to tolerate this kind of dynamic
video mode switching.
It should be kept in mind that SDR has several restrictions placed on it
which do not apply to the simpler operating environment of SD. Even
though SDR can be activated from the DOS command prompt, you may prefer
to use SD in this situation for the following reasons:
1) Previous screen output is more readily visible.
2) More directories and files can be processed.
3) Output may be redirected to a file or device.
4) Full disk parameter information for drives above
C: is available when requested by the /i switch.
SDR should therefore not be viewed as a total replacement for SD, but as
a supplementary program which is available in more environments.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.2 Configuration
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The SDR program may be configured (using SDC) or patched (using DEBUG)
to change the various program defaults to those you prefer. The SDC
program is preferred over DEBUG since it is much easier and safer to use
and allows you to decide which combination of screen colors you prefer.
It also allows you to first configure the SD program for the default
switches and screen colors you prefer and to then transfer these values
to the SDR program, without having to leave the configuration program.
You will then only have to configure the options which are unique to
SDR. Run the DEMO2.BAT file to see some examples of the SDC program.
If you are using DEBUG, you will need to refer to the section titled
Patch Area Format in the SD.DOC file to obtain the necessary offsets and
data values.
Activation Key Specification
Great care should be taken in selecting the activation or hot key
sequence. It must be unique enough that it will never be needed for any
other purpose by any program you normally use. This usually means that
an ALT or CTRL key combination is the best choice.
For PC-AT style keyboards, the SysReq key cannot be used as a hot key
since it is processed differently from the other standard keys. The
new keys on enhanced 101 key keyboards such as F11 and F12 also cannot
be used since they are processed differently by the ROM BIOS.
Hot Key Control Codes (select any combination from 0-15)
1 = Right Shift Key 4 = Ctrl Key
2 = Left Shift Key 8 = Alt Key
The default hot key control code is 4 (CTRL).
Hot Key Scan Codes (select any value from 0-255)
Escape = 01 Home = 71 Shift F1-F10 = 84- 93
1234567890-= = 02-13 Up Arrow = 72 Ctrl F1-F10 = 94-103
Back Space = 14 Page Up = 73 Alt F1-F10 = 104-113
Tab = 15 Left Arrow = 75 Ctrl PrtSc = 114
QWERTYUIOP[] = 16-27 Right Arrow = 77 Ctrl Left Arrow = 115
Enter = 28 Keypad + = 78 Ctrl Right Arrow = 116
ASDFGHJKL;'` = 30-41 End = 79 Ctrl End = 117
\ZXCVBNM,./ = 43-53 Down Arrow = 80 Ctrl PgDn = 118
* = 55 Page Down = 81 Ctrl Home = 119
Space = 57 Insert = 82 Alt 1234567890-= = 120-131
F1-F10 = 59-68 Delete = 83 Ctrl Pgup = 132
The default hot key scan code is 1 (ESC).
Hot Key String
You may enter a character string of from 1 to 16 characters which will
be displayed as part of the program's installation message as a reminder
of the hot key sequence. The default hot key string is CTRL-ESCAPE Keys.
If you use DEBUG, make sure that the string is padded with trailing
spaces through the 16th character, if necessary, and that the next
character is a NULL (hexadecimal 00).
Prompt Character Specification
The default prompt character (code 26, a graphics right arrow symbol)
was chosen to be different from, but similar to the standard DOS command
line prompt character. You may change it to any standard or extended
ASCII character from 0-255.
SDR Memory Usage
Dir Buffer Minimum Default Maximum
---------- ------- ------- -------
Bytes 512 1024 4096
Dirs 32 64 256
File Buffer Minimum Default Maximum
----------- ------- ------- -------
Bytes 2560 10240 40960
Files 102 409 1638
ARC Files 88 353 1412
Memory Usage Minimum Default Maximum
------------ ------- ------- -------
Code & Data 16928 16928 16928
Dir Buffer 512 1024 4096
File Buffer 2560 10240 40960
Screen Buffer 4000 4000 8000
Total 24000 32192 69984
Buffer Size Specifications
The choice of the directory and file buffer size values is based on a
trade-off between minimizing the amount of memory used and allowing for
a reasonable number of directories and files. Each directory buffer
entry uses a variable number of bytes from 4 to 70, depending on the
length of the directory name. For the purposes of performing some
calculations, we will assume an average directory name length of 13
characters, or 16 bytes per directory buffer entry. Each file buffer
entry uses 25 bytes per file or 29 bytes for files inside ARC files.
The default buffer sizes are 1024 bytes for about 64 directory entries
and 10240 bytes for about 409 files/directory or 353 files/ARC file.
The directory buffer is only used when processing global directories
with the /g switch. Its size may range from 512 to 4096 bytes. The
file buffer is always used and contains all of the file and subdirectory
names for an individual directory or ARC file. Its size may range from
2560 to 40960 bytes. The size of the resident code and data excluding
these two buffers is currently about 16928 bytes. The buffer used to
save the screen may be configured for either 4000 or 8000 bytes. You
can therefore configure the program to use as little as about 24Kb of
memory or as much as about 68Kb.
The total memory used not including the screen buffer must be less than
64Kb. This limit is strictly enforced; you will receive the "Memory
error" message when installing SDR if the total configured memory size
exceeds this. If you attempt to exceed the configured buffer size
limits when running the program, you will receive the "Too many dirs" or
"Too many files" message, and the resulting output will be incomplete.
The default screen buffer size is 4000 bytes. This is sufficient for
either a Monochrome or CGA equipped PC. However, if you use an EGA or
VGA monitor and sometimes use more than 25 lines on the screen, you may
wish to configure an 8000 byte screen buffer to allow for up to 50 lines
of 80 characters. Failure to do this will result in only the first 25
screen lines being restored.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.3 Error Messages
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following error messages are displayed and system return codes set
for various conditions which may arise. An audible tone is generated to
alert the user of severe errors. The return codes may be tested using
the standard DOS IF ERRORLEVEL statement in a .BAT file.
No matching files (directory may be empty)
Bad switch (use /? for help information)
Bad drive (doesn't exist or syntax error)
Bad path (doesn't exist or syntax error)
Bad filespec (syntax error)
Bad date (too large or syntax error)
Too many dirs (buffer limit exceeded for /g)
Too many files (buffer limit exceeded)
Disk error (floppy disk may not be in drive)
0 - Removed (in response to /r switch)
1 - Already loaded (can't reload unless removed)
2 - Not loaded (can't remove unless loaded)
3 - Can't remove (interrupt vectors changed)
4 - Memory error (insufficient or (de)allocation problem)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
IBM and PC-DOS are trademarks of IBM Corporation.
MICROSOFT and MS-DOS are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
DESQview is a trademark of Quarterdeck Office Systems.
SideKick is a trademark of BORLAND International Corporation.
ARC is a trademark of SEA Corporation.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
VSN.DOC
------------------------------------------------------------------------
VSN: Volume Serial Number Utility V1.0
Copyright (C) 1989 By John F. Stetson
All Rights Reserved
------------------------------------------------------------------------
VSN.COM is utility program which is used to manage DOS Disk Volume
Serial Numbers. It operates on IBM-PC compatible computer systems using
the IBM PC-DOS or Microsoft MS-DOS Operating System Version 2.0 or
higher.
Disk Volume Serial Numbers were introduced with DOS 4.0. When a disk is
formatted by FORMAT or copied with DISKCOPY, an 8 digit hexadecimal
Volume Serial Number is automatically placed in the Boot Sector of the
disk. Subsequent execution of the DOS CHKDSK, DIR, LABEL, TREE or VOL
command will cause the Volume Serial Number to be displayed. However,
no mechanism is provided for the user to create a specified VSN, change
an existing VSN, or to delete an existing VSN. The VSN.COM utility
provides these functions.
Perhaps even more useful is its ability to perform these functions for
disks formatted under ANY version of DOS from 2.0 through 4.0, and it
can be executed under ANY version of DOS from 2.0 through 4.0. This
greatly enhances the possible benefits of using Volume Serial Numbers.
The main reason for using Volume Serial Numbers is to establish a unique
means of identifying a disk. Disks may have identical Volume Labels or
even identical Directories, but may still contain different data. Since
DOS 4.0 forces the user to accept the VSN it selects for a disk, and the
method used is based on the current time, each VSN will be unique.
However, this means that the assigned VSN's follow no logical pattern
and are difficult to relate to one another. The VSN utility retains the
benefits of the concept, but allows the user to establish a numbering
scheme which can be used to form a disk cataloging sequence which makes
sense, and is compatible with the format used by DOS 4.0.
The DOS command line syntax is as follows:
VSN [drive:] [xxxx-xxxx] [/d]
where all parameters are optional. If no parameters are specified, help
information is displayed. If a drive letter is specified, the current
Volume Serial Number is displayed, or the user is informed that none
exists. If an 8 hexadecimal digit value is specified, the VSN for the
specified drive is changed to the specified value. If no drive is
specified, the current drive is used. VSN's are always specified and
displayed as 4 hex digits (0-9 or A-F), followed by a dash (-), followed
by 4 hex digits. The /d switch causes the current VSN for the specified
drive to be deleted.
Error Messages
Unable to Read Disk Boot Sector - an error occurred when trying to read
the boot sector for the specified drive.
Unable to Locate System Boot Code - there was no jump instruction at the
start of the boot sector for the specified drive.
Insufficient Room for Volume Serial Number - the data area after the
jump instruction in the boot sector was too small to contain the VSN.
Unable to Write Disk Boot Sector - an error occurred when trying to
write the boot sector for the specified drive.
Status Messages
Drive D: Has No Disk Volume Serial Number
Drive D: Old Disk Volume Serial Number is: XXXX-XXXX
Drive D: New Disk Volume Serial Number is: XXXX-XXXX
Drive D: Volume Serial Number Deleted
Examples of Use
VSN C: - display the VSN (if any) for drive C:
VSN C: 0001-0002 - create or change the VSN for drive C:
VSN A: 1989-0001 - create or change the VSN for drive A:
VSN C: /D - delete the VSN for drive C:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Directory of PC-SIG Library Disk #0933
Volume in drive A has no label
Directory of A:\
DEMO BAT 2342 1-06-89 12:00p
DEMO2 BAT 1769 1-06-89 12:00p
DEMO3 COM 4256 1-06-89 12:00p
DEMO4 COM 4256 1-06-89 12:00p
DEMO5 COM 4256 1-06-89 12:00p
DEMO6 COM 4256 1-06-89 12:00p
FILE0933 TXT 2442 6-28-89 1:45p
FLCONFIG EXE 3779 9-27-87 2:26p
FLIST EXE 53992 9-27-87 3:08p
FLIST PRN 26285 9-27-87 3:44p
GO BAT 38 10-19-87 3:56p
GO TXT 1002 2-25-88 12:53p
PGMDESC TXT 236 9-27-87 5:44p
README DOC 911 1-08-89 1:16p
README TXT 512 9-27-87 2:54p
SD COM 14678 1-06-89 12:00p
SD DOC 89160 1-06-89 12:00p
SD PIF 369 1-06-89 12:00p
SDB BAT 1173 1-06-89 12:00p
SDR COM 16797 1-06-89 12:00p
SDR DOC 32124 1-06-89 12:00p
VSN COM 1080 1-06-89 12:00p
VSN DOC 3808 1-06-89 12:00p
23 file(s) 269521 bytes
38912 bytes free