www.pudn.com > minix.instalation.cd-rom-2.0.rar > README.1ST


This is FIPS v1.5  
  
FIPS is a program for non-destructive splitting of harddisk partitions.  
  
IMPORTANT:  
Please _carefully_ read the file FIPS.DOC for instructions on the use of  
FIPS. FIPS is _not_ self documenting. I urge you to read at least sections  
2, 5, 7 and 8. In case of problems read 4, 9 and 10 and the file FIPS.FAQ.  
  
Muto Toshihisa has been so kind as to translate the docs into japanese.  
They are available in Japan from NIFTY-Serve as FPCUPRO LIB1 #463.  
Japanese users will hopefully know what this means.  
  
One frequent problem people encounter is that their defragmentation program  
leaves unmovable sectors at the end of the partition. It is addressed in  
detail in FIPS.DOC. Other frequently asked questions are answered in the  
file FIPS.FAQ.  
  
If you use OS/2, a disk driver like OnTrack Disk Manager or a disk com-  
pressor like Stacker, please read the relevant sections in the file  
SPECIAL.DOC.  
  
The changes from previous version are listed in the file HISTORY.TXT.  
The latest version is available from my FIPS WWW page at  
  
http://www.student.informatik.th-darmstadt.de/~schaefer/fips.html  
  
  
FIPS has been out for about two years by now. It has been used by many  
people on the Internet successfully. No serious bugs have been reported.  
Nevertheless one can never be sure one hundred percent. FIPS reads and writes  
the essential harddisk sectors, so an undiscovered bug may still corrupt your  
harddisk. Use at your own risk!  
If you want to make sure not to lose any data, make a complete backup before  
using it (in this case you at least save yourself the time needed for re-  
storing if it works).  
  
However, every effort has been made to provide a maximum of safety. When  
there is anything suspicious with the hard disk, the program will typically  
exit with an error message, even if DOS doesn't complain.  
If an error occurs, an error message is displayed together with a short  
explanation. If you don't know what to make of it, read FIPS.DOC and  
FIPS.FAQ.  
  
If you still can't resolve the problem, make a transcript of your session  
using the -d switch and send it to me at schaefer@rbg.informatik.  
th-darmstadt.de. I usually try to answer within two or three days. Please  
understand that the support for FIPS takes a considerable amount of time,  
so that it may happen that I put back some of the harder problems and then  
forget about them. In this case it may help to send another mail.  
  
If you want to know how FIPS works, read the file TECHINFO.TXT. If you have  
additions or corrections to make, please let me know.  
  
FIPS is free under the GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE (GPL). See the file COPYING.  
You may freely redistribute FIPS under the condition that you include all of  
the files listed below without changes. If you modify it, you must follow  
the conditions of the GPL.  
  
I hold the copyright of FIPS. If you want to use parts of the source code in  
your programs, you may do so under the conditions of the GPL. Of course I  
would like to hear about it. If you want to use the code in a program that  
is not covered by the GPL (shareware or commercial), I will probably agree  
also, but you must ask me first.  
  
You should have received the following files in this archive:  
  
CALCULAT.CPP    - calculation of the new root-/bootsector  
CHECK.CPP       - checking of the root-/bootsector  
CMDL_ARG.CPP    - evaluation of commandline arguments  
DISK_IO.CPP     - low level disk io  
FAT.CPP         - some operations on the FAT  
GLOBAL.CPP      - global procedures  
HDSTRUCT.CPP    - harddisk specific code  
FIPSSPEC.CPP    - FIPS-specific adaption of harddisk classes  
INPUT.CPP       - User input  
LOGDR_ST.CPP    - operations on logical drive  
MAIN.CPP        - main()  
SAVE.CPP        - saving root- and bootsector  
HOST_OS.CPP     - OS detection  
DISK_IO.H       - low level disk io classes  
FAT.H           - FAT classes  
GLOBAL.H        - global definitions  
HDSTRUCT.H      - harddisk specific classes  
FIPSSPEC.H      - FIPS-specific adaption of harddisk classes  
INPUT.H         - user input prototypes  
LOGDR_ST.H      - logical drive classes  
TYPES.H         - global type definitions  
HOST_OS.H       - The class host_os  
PRIMPART.H      - class for primary partitions  
GETOPT.C        - Simple UNIX getopt clone for commandline parsing  
GETOPT.H        - prototypes etc. for for GETOPT.C  
VERSION.H       - FIPS version  
  
RTYPES.H        - type definitions for RESTORRB  
RESTORRB.C      - a program that restores root and boot sector  
RVERSION.H      - RESTORRB version  
  
FIPS.EXE        - the executable of FIPS  
RESTORRB.EXE    - the executable of RESTORRB  
COPYING         - the GNU general public license  
README.1ST      - this file  
FIPS.DOC        - the documentation of FIPS  
SPECIAL.DOC     - special topics: OS/2, Stacker, OnTrack Disk Manager  
FIPS.FAQ        - some frequently asked questions with answers  
TECHINFO.TXT    - technical info on FIPS  
ERRORS.TXT      - a brief explanation of FIPS' error messages  
HISTORY.TXT     - the revision history  
  
If you lack any of these files, try to get the original archive. If you can't  
find it, contact me.  
  
  
Arno Schaefer  
schaefer@rbg.informatik.th-darmstadt.de