Xref: utzoo comp.sys.amiga:30278 comp.sys.amiga.tech:4036
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From: jms@antares.UUCP (Joe Smith)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga,comp.sys.amiga.tech
Subject: Re: viruses rumors
Message-ID: <417@antares.UUCP>
Date: 7 Mar 89 05:27:52 GMT
References: <976@geocub.UUCP> <6081@cbmvax.UUCP> <123@unigs.CH>
Reply-To: jms@antares.UUCP (Joe Smith)
Organization: Tymnet QSATS, San Jose CA
Lines: 18

In article <123@unigs.CH> zuber@unigs.CH (Zuberbuehler Ueli) writes:
>Write protection should be handled by the disk drive unit.
>Most disk drives do not handle this correctly. All what they do is to set
>a signal to controller that this disk is write protected. If the software
>doesn`t check this line, then you could write data on a write protected
>disk.

The "controller" you are referring to is the printed circuit board that
is mounted on the disk.  When the disk is write protected, the hardware
prevents writes to the disk, REGARDLESS OF WHAT THE CPU TRIES TO DO.

To repeat: Unless your disk hardware is seriously broken, there is nothing
the software can do to override the write protect switch.
-- 
Joe Smith (408)922-6220 | jms@antares.Tymnet.COM or jms@opus.Tymnet.COM
McDonnell Douglas FSCO  | UUCP: ...!{ames,pyramid}!oliveb!tymix!antares!jms
PO Box 49019, MS-D21    | PDP-10:JMS@F74.Tymnet.COM  CA license plate:"POPJ P,"
San Jose, CA 95161-9019 | narrator.device: "I didn't say that, my Amiga did!"