Subject: REVIEW: AmiBack Tools version 1.02
From: [email-masked] (David Griffiths)
Date: 16 Apr 1993 14:47:24 GMT
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.reviews

PRODUCT NAME

	AmiBack Tools (version 1.02)

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

	AmiBack Tools is a "disk maintenance" program which can diagnose and
repair many common disk problems, and offers a variety of utilities which
help with maintenance and security.  

AUTHOR/COMPANY INFORMATION

	Name:		Moonlighter Software Development Inc.
	Address:	3208-C East Colonial Drive, Suite 204
			Orlando, Florida 32803

	Telephone:	(407)384-9484
	FAX:		(407)384-9391

	BBS:            (407)292-6080 (12-9600)
			(407)295-6992 (12-14.4)
			(407)292-6952 (12-24)

	BIX:		gwholland (Gary Holland)
			michaelmounier (Michael Mounier)
	CIS:		76420,606 (Gary Holland)
	GENie:		f.aziz (Hap Aziz)

LIST PRICE

	As this is a new product, I haven't seen a list price for it...  I
purchased it for $64 Canadian.  [MODERATOR'S NOTE:  I believe the list price
in the USA is $79.95, with street prices approximately $45-55.  Moonlighter
offers a special price to owners of AmiBack, their backup program, and a
"trade-in" price to owners of other disk tools programs.  Contact Moonlighter
for details.  - Dan]

SPECIAL HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

	HARDWARE

		512K RAM required.

		In order to perform many operations on a hard drive, a
		SCSI drive is required, although the IDE drives in the
		Amiga 4000/4000T, 600, and 1200 will also work.

	SOFTWARE
	
		Kickstart 1.2 or higher.

COPY PROTECTION

	None.

MACHINE USED FOR TESTING

	- Amiga 1200 (KS 39.106, WB 39.29)
	- 2MB Chip RAM, 4MB Fast RAM
	- Microbotics MBX 1200 (4MB Fast RAM & 68882 math coprocessor)
	- Maxtor 2.5" 120MB hard drive

ABOUT AMIBACK TOOLS

	AmiBack Tools has a wide variety of utilities which can deal with
most disk problems an Amiga owner will encounter.  The product is packaged
neatly in a white cardboard container with a full-colour cover.

	Inside the package is a neatly printed manual, and one disk
containing the Commodore Installer application and a ReadMe file with updates
to the manual.  Installing the program is easily accomplished by clicking
the "Installer" icon and following the prompts.  Installation takes
approximately 1 minute.

PROGRAM OPTIONS

	The "REVIVER" option allows you to recover files quickly and easily
which have been deleted from a drive, as long as they have not been
overwritten nor wiped with the "ANTISEPTIC" option.  The REVIVER is easy to
use, and VERY fast, even on large drives.  Files can be recovered by simply
marking them, then clicking the "Revive Data" gadget.  The program can
identify duplicate files when reviving data, and notify the operator to
rename or skip the file.

	"ANALYST" searches a drive for errors, and allows the operator
easily to repair any errors found.  Common errors such as "Drive Not
Validated," "Key Already Set," and "CheckSum" are easily corrected here.
This module operates quite quickly and can be set for "AUTO" or "Ask Repair"
modes.  The program can also check all information on the drive, or simply
check the file headers.

	"911-RECOVERY" allows you to recover files from drives that, due to
some problem, are no longer recognized as AmigaDOS devices.  This option
allows the user to recover files from the damaged device by storing them on
floppies or any other accessible AmigaDOS device.  This module has two modes
of operation.  In the "Recovery" mode, the program reads all data blocks
from the damaged device, attempts to locate files on the drive, and presents
you with a window with a list of the files.  Then, you can indicate which
files you want to recover.  Files can be recovered onto another device, and
may also be compressed if you are recovering to floppies.  After you recover
all of the files, the program is set to the "RESTORE" mode, the files are
read back from the drive (only necessary with floppies), and the information
can then be written to any valid AmigaDOS device.

	"GENERAL PRACTITIONER" is the optimizing module, which rearranges
your drive data more efficiently.  Fragmented files are combined into a
single unit, free space is combined, and directory access speeds are
improved.  This operation takes quite a while to complete (20-30 minutes on a
45MB partition); however, it dramatically speeds up file loading times and
directory accesses.  It is possible to turn on/off any of the optimization
options, so you can (for example) tell the program to optimize files/free
space/directories only in order to speed up the optimization process.

	"LAB TEST" allows the operator to generate and store a "CRC" table
for all files on any device.  Your files may then be compared to the table
entries at a later date to check for corruption due to natural or artificial
means (viruses).  It is easy to build database modules with this option,
although it takes some time even on accelerated machines.  After the
database has been built, AmiBack Tools can reread the database and
compare the files on the drive to the database file.

	"ANTISEPTIC" is a security operation which allows the user to
overwrite all empty space on the drive or the entire device with random
information, so files cannot be recovered by any means.  This operation is
very fast, and an option is available to provide multiple "passes" to ensure
that data is totally erased.

CONFIGURATION OPTIONS

	AmiBack Tools offers a wide variety of configuration options which
allow the operator to set the look and feel of the program, as well as
security and caching options.  The security option allows the operator to
restrict "write" access to the drive, so that a password must be given
before any data is modified with the program.  The Disk Cache improves
optimization times in the "General Practitioner".

MISCELLANEOUS FEATURES

	As of version 1.02, the ARexx port is not installed; however, a note
in the README file on the disk promises that a patch will be available in
the future to include ARexx commands.

	Included with the program is "AmiSched-II", a very slick scheduling
program which can allow you to run both AmiBack Tools and AmiBack (the HD
backup program) on a scheduled basis without operator intervention.  The
interface is nicely done, and the program works well.

DOCUMENTATION

	Documentation is contained in a 66-page manual, bound on the spine
with a plastic (CERLOX) edge.

	The documentation is nicely styled, with large arrows to mark
important or dangerous operations.  The manual also offers a section at the
beginning called "In Case of Emergency."  The documentation is written for
all levels of users, from beginner to expert, although expert readers may
find it slightly wordy.

LIKES AND DISLIKES

	Likes:
	
		The program's functionality is excellent.  The "REVIVER"
	(undeletes files) is amazingly fast, even on large drives.  All of
	the other modules are easy to use and work well.

	Dislikes:

		The disk optimizer seems rather slow. I still find "ReOrg"
	[on a Fish Disk] to be a MUCH faster optimizer, although it doesn't
	work with the new Directory-Cached Filing Systems of AmigaDOS 3.0
	(and AmiBack Tools does).

		My only other dislike is that the "Save Password" option
	saves the password in the config file in "S:".  I would much prefer
	having it write directly into the file to reduce the possibility of
	tampering.  This would also be handy if you install it on an
	accessible computer at work:  if the employees don't know the
	password, they're less likely to walk away with a copy.

COMPARISON TO OTHER SIMILAR PRODUCTS

	AmiBack Tools performs many of the same operations that "Quarterback
Tools" does (i.e., Undeleting files, Optimizing Drives, repairing errors,
etc.).  AmiBack's slick user interface and compatibility with new filing
systems give it much more functionality than Quarterback Tools has.
Quarterback Tools has not been updated (to my knowledge) since 1991, and has
fallen far behind the other disk maintenance tools.

	The new version of DiskSalv 2 from Dave Haynie is also quite similar
to AmiBack Tools, and performs many of the same operations.  [MODERATOR'S
NOTE:  As of this writing, DiskSalv 2 is not yet generally available.  - Dan]

BUGS

	None found.

VENDOR SUPPORT

	Excellent!  The author has released two freely-distributable patches
already, and will likely continue to produce patches to correct bugs and add
features as time progresses.

WARRANTY

	None.

CONCLUSIONS

	AmiBack Tools is on the cutting edge of disk maintenance utilities.
A slick user interface combined with a functional program make this utility
a "must" for all Amiga owners.

	I have no problems giving AmiBack Tools a 5-star rating (out of a
total of 5), both for the program's functionality, and for Moonlighter
Software's support for their products.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

	This review is freely distributable on all media as long as it is
not modified in any way.  All opinions expressed are those of the author,
and not those of Moonlighter Software Development Ltd, or any other business.

	Copyright 1993 David Griffiths.  All rights reserved.

David Griffiths  //  Internet: [email-masked]
____________  _ //    Fidonet: David Griffiths @ 1:153/765.0 or 1:153/910.0
 DLG "Pro"  | \\/    Broadcast TV @ British Columbia Institute of Technology
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