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16-
How to merge together two DecoTech main folders with the
DecoTech Main Folders Merger Utility application. |
Some information first:
Remember to NEVER manually (with
Windows Explorer by example) overwrite the contents of a DecoTech folder with the contents of another DecoTech folder.
The reason of this restriction is because DecoTech uses a private file system
since its beginning. All the details are explained in
topic #9.
Two possible problems may happen when you manually overwrite the contents of a DecoTech folder:
1- If the same hexadecimal file name is present in
both folders but the DecoTech file names (stored inside each files) are
different, the result is the lost of the overwritten file that had
nothing to do with the other file.
2- If the same DecoTech file name (stored inside each
files), is present in both folders but the files use different
hexadecimal file names, the result is a duplicate displaying of that
DecoTech file name in the file requester with no more possibility to
know which of the two files you are actually accessing for loading,
saving or deleting.
The DecoTech Main Folders Merger
Utility application:
If you need to copy the contents of a DecoTech
folder and the topic #10 cannot
be used or the topic #11 is too
complicated for you, then there is another solution. The DecoTech Main Folders Merger
Utility application.
This application copies (merges) all the DecoTech
files from the source main folder to the destination main folder.
It is perfect to synchronize computers like a computer at the office and
a mobile computer. You can also use it to transfer your existing
DecoTech data files from your old computer to a DecoTech main folder
freshly installed on your new computer. It can also be used to
clean the UAC Virtualization dirty mess created by Windows
7 and Vista
with a DecoTech version 6.08 (or lower).
The DecoTech Main Folders Merger
Utility application is only present in version 6.11 (or
higher) of DecoTech. If your current
version of DecoTech is not at least 6.11, simply download and install
the latest DecoTech Update. You can find the appropriated download webpage,
based on your serial number, directly
at the bottom of the main
Tech Support webpage.
We also suggest you to use a shortcut to this application so you will
be able to specify your own customized parameters in the target command
line found in the shortcut properties. For all the details about
the available parameters, see the About...
dialog box screen capture below and read the example.
Example of customized shortcuts to backup and
restore your DecoTech data files:
Let's say that...
...you have a USB memory key that appears as the drive 'K' when you
connect it to your computer,
...you have created on this USB memory key a folder named "DecoTech
Data Files Backup",
...you have a DecoTech main folder v6.11 (or higher) located at "C:\DDS
Inc\DecoTech\",
1- Go in the "C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\bin\"
folder.
2- Locate the "dtmerger.exe" application and
make a right click on it and select "Create
Shortcut".
3- Rename the shortcut named "Shortcut to
dtmerger.exe" to "Backup my DecoTech data
files".
4- Make a right click on the "Backup my DecoTech
data files" shortcut and select Properties. Then select the
"Shortcut" tab and locate the "Target"
text box that contains...
"C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\bin\dtmerger.exe"
...and replace that by...
"C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\bin\dtmerger.exe" -len -dsa
-or -s"C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech"
-d"K:\DecoTech Data Files Backup"
...and select the OK
button.
5- Again make a right click on the "dtmerger.exe"
application and select "Create Shortcut".
6- Rename the shortcut named "Shortcut to
dtmerger.exe" to "Restore my DecoTech data
files".
7- Make a right click on the "Restore my DecoTech data
files" shortcut and select Properties. Then select the
"Shortcut" tab and locate the "Target"
text box that contains...
"C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\bin\dtmerger.exe"
...and replace that by...
"C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\bin\dtmerger.exe" -len -dsa
-or -s"K:\DecoTech Data Files Backup"
-d"C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech"
...and select the OK
button.
8- Move the "Backup my DecoTech data files"
and "Restore my DecoTech data
files" shortcuts to somewhere more useful to let you easily find
them when you will want to use them. By examples, the
Desktop or the
DecoTech sub-menu located under the
Start -> All Programs menu, are both good locations.
When you use the DecoTech Main Folders Merger
Utility application, it may warn you about the fact that the
source folder, the destination folder or both folders seem not to be
valid DecoTech folders. That may be true since a specified folder
does not necessary contains all the folders normally found in the
DecoTech main folder created during a normal installation. So when
a warning dialog box pops, take time to read it and select the
appropriated action to continue.
Note: All the "dskcat.idx"
files located in the source folders are ignored during the merging and
are deleted from modified destination folders. Some folders, those
are not containing any user's data files, are also ignored. Here
are their path names relative to a DecoTech main folder:
"anim\Samples from CD-Rom\"
"anim\Échantillons provenant du CD-Rom\"
"bin\"
"bin700\"
"divers.ct\hlpfiles\"
"divers.ct\htmlhelp\"
"fonts\"
"images.ct\Samples from CD-Rom\"
"images.ct\Échantillons provenant du CD-Rom\"
"prg_data\"
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