What files are included in the file backup?

Restore files from an old DOS backup.

• I need to recover a set of document files that were backed up in February, 1993 using the native BACKUP utility of old version of DOS (probably 3.x). I do not know the brand (e.g., MSDOS, IBM, Compaq, DRDOS, etc.) or the percise version of DOS was used to make the backup. As I understand it, the DOS RESTORE utility will only restore files that were backed up using the BACKUP utility that is from the exact (or nearly exact) same version of DOS. Obviously this presents a challenge because there were so many different brands and version/sub-version back then. The 3.5" floppy that I have includes two files: BACKUP.001 (1,218 kb) & CONTROL.001 (108 kb); I have these files backed up on hard drive. An acceptable answer would be any of the following: 1) A link to a 3rd-party backup/restore utility that will restore backup files from any older version of DOS -- i.e., one that will restore the files I have. 3) Detailed information on how to programmatically disect and extract the files using Visual Basic and/or the Win32 API. This would entail a highly specific understanding of how the CONTROL.001 file works. 3) An offer to extract the files for me and send them back to me via email.

• Answer:

  Hello Bob, Thanks for replying. I am glad my research solved your problem and I had figured the holidays had your attention. Thanks for allowing me to post the answer and yes, simply accepting this will take care of things. As I posted above: Have you read this article from th Microsoft Knowledgebase? http://support.microsoft.com/kb/138135/en-us "...SUMMARY The Backup program included with Windows 95 cannot restore files that were backed up with an earlier version of Backup (such as the versions of Backup included with MS-DOS versions 5.0 and 6.x). To restore backups created with earlier versions of Backup, you must use the Restore.exe or Msbackup.exe program located on the Windows 95 CD-ROM... ...Backups Made Using MS-DOS 5.0 To restore a backup created with the Backup program included with MS-DOS 5.0, use the Restore.exe program located in the Other\Oldmsdos folder on the Windows 95 CD-ROM. To run this program, copy it to a folder on your hard disk, and then run it from a command prompt, making sure to use the appropriate syntax. For information about the syntax for the Restore.exe program, type the following line: restore /? If you receive the error message "Incorrect DOS version" when you try to run Restore.exe, type the following line to modify the version table: setver restore.exe 6.22 After you type this line, restart your computer, and then try to run Restore.exe again. Backups Made Using MS-DOS 6.x To restore a backup created with the backup programs included with MS-DOS 6.x, use the Msbackup.exe program located in the Other\Oldmsdos\Msbackup folder on the Windows 95 CD-ROM. To run this program, copy all the files from the folder on the Windows 95 CD-ROM to a folder on your hard disk. Double-click the Msbackup.exe file in Windows Explorer to start it. For information about using the Msbackup.exe program, start the program, and then click Restore on the Help menu..." I think it is extremely likely your backups were made with a version of MSDOS. From what I read, these two approaches should be backward compatible with even earlier versions. And since you have copies of the files, it surely does not hurt to try. Here is link to the msbackup.exe executable if you do not have it: http://www.oldfiles.org.uk/powerload/download/msd50bk.exe As a matter of fact, this link is a treasure trove of DOS files: http://www.oldfiles.org.uk/ Bootdisks can be found here: http://oldfiles.org.uk/powerload/ Even DrDOS is there. This page has a lot of links for Backup and Restore in DOS: http://oldfiles.org.uk/powerload/msdos.htm For example: PD0315.EXE MS-DOS Backup/Restore Supplemental Utilities for MS-DOS Versions 3.x,4.x & 5.0 54KB MSD33BK.EXE Contains v3.3 BACKUP.COM & RESTORE.COM to asisst in restoring Backup Sets 68KB MSD401BK.EXE Contains v4.01 BACKUP.COM & RESTORE.COM to asisst in restoring Backup Sets 74KB MSD50BK.EXE Contains v5.0 BACKUP.EXE & RESTORE.EXE to asisst in restoring Backup Sets 76KB I feel very confident this will assist you in restoring these backups, but since I can not be sure until you achieve success, I will not post as an answer until you confirm your results and request I do. Regards, -=clouseau=-