Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!sdd.hp.com!think.com!linus!agate!monsoon.Berkeley.EDU!dburr
From: dburr@monsoon.Berkeley.EDU (Donald Burr)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.system
Subject: Re: Why do Suitcase II & On Cue forget all?
Message-ID: <1991Mar8.104423.15039@agate.berkeley.edu>
Date: 8 Mar 91 10:44:23 GMT
References: <1991Mar8.085219.13408@spool.cs.wisc.edu>
Sender: usenet@agate.berkeley.edu (USENET Administrator)
Organization: ucb
Lines: 49

In article <1991Mar8.085219.13408@spool.cs.wisc.edu> tonyrich@titanic.cs.wisc.edu (Anthony Rich) writes:
>I recently dumped my entire hard disk onto a tape, reformatted
>the hard drive, then restored it from the tape in order to compact
>the hard disk.  When I rebooted, I found to my dismay that
>Suitcase II had forgotten its list of DA's, fonts, etc. (except for
>the basic stuff in the System file, of course).  The On Cue menu
>still had its list of applications and documents, but it had forgotten
>where they all were; the first time I select any one of them, On Cue
>says "I can't find <app name>. If you find it this time, I promise to
>remember where it is, OK?"
>
>It's particularly painful to set up Suitcase II again, since the
>resource files that used to be open are scattered all over various folders,
>and there's no "Find Resource" utility that finds the file that a particular
>resource lives in.  It's hard to remember exactly which files used to be
>open and where they are.
>
>Suitcase II and On Cue use special setup files or resources to
>keep track of what they know, don't they?  So why do they forget
>their stuff after a disk dump/restore?  None of the *names* of the files
>or folders are changed by a dump/restore, only their physical positions
>on the hard disk.  So what gives?
>-- 
>-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>| EMAIL:       tonyrich@cs.wisc.edu     | The essence of learning is  |
>| Disclaimer:  I speak only for myself. | repetition, repetition!     |
>-----------------------------------------------------------------------


I think that Suitcase and On Cue use something akin to UNIX "inode" numbers
to keep track of files.  Basically, each file has something like an "allo-
cation block" that contains directory information, et al, and this block
is referenced by a number or a series of numbers.  When you backup and/or
restore your drive, those numbers change, even though your hard disk's name
and the names of the files/folders in it don't change.

Of course, this doesn't affect programs that find files based on pathnames,
like White Knight (you don't have to reset your setting and procedure file
locations in the Phone Book when you backup/restore).

Note: I have NOT read Inside Mac or Tech Reference to Macintosh, or any
such text, so take this "information" as a "speculation".

Of course, if someone knows any better, please correct me... (Don't flame
me though.. I'm just offering my *THEORY*)
______________________________________________________________________________
Donald Burr; Univ of California, Berkeley | America Online: DonaldBurr
INTERNET: dburr@ocf.Berkeley.EDU          |_CompuServe:_72540,3071____________
      or: 72540.3071@compuserve.COM       |    "Send flames to /dev/null."