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Configuring ByteBack Data Recovery Investigative SuiteTM.
ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM has a number of configurable options. In most scenarios the default
options will do fine, but there are situations that might require a little
fune-tuning:
- Changing the location where ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM writes
logfiles etc.: While running, ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM creates and writes to several files
during different stages
of the recovery. ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM creates a configuration file (bb.cfg), a logfile
(bb.log), a state-file (bb_state.nnn) and an undo file (bb_undo.nnn). Note
that '.nnn' will be replaced by the system assigned decimal disk number for
which the file is created; for example bb_undo.128 is the file created when
you make repairs on the first disk in the system.
ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM will automatically detect if it runs from read-only media (for example when you are running ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM from
CD-ROM). If so, you are prompted to either (1) select a different location or
(2) disable all features that require read-write file access. If you choose the
latter, features as the 'undo' will be
unavailable!
When you are prompted to change the location for the files, enter the root of
any drive available to the DOS operating system (for example d:\ or
z:\). ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM will create a folder on that drive (bb_files) to store all
the files that are created.
If for any reason ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM fails to detect that it's running from read-only media,
you can start ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM using the /fil switch (bb4 /fil <Enter>). ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM will then
prompt you to either (1) select a different location or (2) disable all features that require read-write file access.
To get access to the command-line and enter the ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM command-line
parameters select either option 3 or option 4 from the bootdiskette startup
menu.
- Changing behavior when dealing with 'bad disks': You may want to
change the way ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM handles unreadable sectors, for instance during a
clone operation. You can change the corresponding settings in the Options menu.
Read-Errors: During all operations that read the disk, ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM
counts the number of unreadable sectors or 'bad sectors' that are
encountered. By default, if 32 read-errors have been counted the current
operation is halted. This behavior can be changed. Say for instance that you
wish to clone a disk that is going bad. If you don't want the clone
operation to stop after 32 read-errors, you can change the read-error
threshold. The value can range from 1 to 255. If you select 0, all
read-errors are counted but ignored; ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM will not halt after
encountering x readerrors. You can change this setting from the 'Options'
menu.
Note: If the max read-error threshold is exceeded while 'processing' a disk,
ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM will prompt you:
You can at this point (1) choose to ignore the max read-error threshold, (2)
reset the read-error counter or (3) to abort the operation.
Read-Retries: When an unreadable sector is encountered, default
ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM behavior is to try (up to 32 times) to try to read that sector.
Between each read-retry a short time-out is applied to allow disk mechanics
to have a positive influence on the next retry attempt. When many bad sectors are present and
you're trying to clone a dying disk as fast as possible, decrease
the number of read-retries to shorten the clone process. If you're looking
for the fastest clone possible and errors don't mean that much to you, you
can disable read-retries alltogether; when the clone operation has finished
you could then retry to clone to another targetdisk with read-retries
enabled to see if more data could be copied.
- Running ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM in Forensic Mode
: When a 'suspect' disk is attached to be cloned for
forensic purposes, or when you have a disk attached that you would like to
examine but should not write to, start ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM with the /for switch.
This switch tells ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM to start in the Forensic mode. In this mode:
- ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM does not write to it's own administrative sector, thus all
attached disks remain 'untainted'
- ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM asks the user to select a disk that should be protected. The
user must select a disk, or exit the program. The protected disk can
not be altered during ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM operations, thus making sure the disk's
contents remain untouched.
- Dump found sectors: Writes a hex dump of any 'significant
sector'
to the log file during the disk analysis. This option is disabled by default,
but a technical support representative may ask you to enable it to
facilitate additional support, or for debugging purposes.
Current settings are displayed in the 'Status' Windows in the main ByteBack D.R.I.S.TM
display.
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