Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!ncrlnk!ncr-sd!hp-sdd!hplabs!hpda!hpcupt1!vandys
From: vandys@hpcupt1.HP.COM (Andrew Valencia(Seattle))
Newsgroups: comp.unix.microport
Subject: Re: dump/restore
Message-ID: <10770008@hpcupt1.HP.COM>
Date: 2 Nov 88 22:26:41 GMT
References: <178@celerity.UUCP>
Organization: Hewlett Packard, Cupertino
Lines: 12

/ hpcupt1:comp.unix.microport / guy@auspex.UUCP (Guy Harris) / 11:47 pm  Nov  1, 1988 /
>>How do I make backups of special files with cpio?-- 

>You say "find ... | cpio -o ...".  "cpio" is smart enough not to try to
>open and read special files; it writes special entries that tell the
>"cpio" that reads the tape to "mknod" the appropriate file.

	I believe the "-x" option gives this behaviour; otherwise it
won't be "smart".  I can believe that some vendors have made -x the
default; it seems to be the safer option in general.

					Andy