vbbackup (id=256)
VB Backup for Visual Basic 2.0 (and later)

What is VB Backup?

Features

Getting Started

Using VB Backup

Command-Line Arguments

Multiple Backup Generations:

vbbackup.ini Explained

Comments


Install (id=258)
Install


Features (id=259)
Features

VB Backup will remember a unique backup path for each project.

VB Backup can make a backup directory if it doesn't already exist.

Multiple generations of backups can be maintained - automatically.

VB Backup works with VB's .mak files. However, VB 1.0 .mak files are in a binary format and cannot be read by VB Backup. If you try to backup a VB 1.0 file, VB Backup will display an error message and bailout.

VB Backup will not backup any custom controls (.vbx files) that are part of your project.

VB Backup is for VB 2.0 and later (I hope).

VB Backup is freeware.


Getting Started (id=260)
Getting Started

1. Open vbbackup.ini for editing. Put your main VB project's name after MainProject under [Defaults].

For example: MainProject=c:\windows\vb\kiddraw.mak

Also put the path of the default backup directory path after DefaultDestination.

For example: DefaultDestination=b:\vb_proj

VB Backup will always confirm the destination for a project it hasn't handled, but the DefaultDestination setting will give it something to put on the dialog box, so you don't have to type a path for each new project.

2. Then run VB Backup. A dialog box will appear to confirm the entry to be written to vbbackup.ini.


Command-Line Arguments (id=261)
Command-Line Arguments

Specify a project to backup as a command-line argument.

For example: "vbbackup c:\windows\vb\kiddraw.mak".

The destination will be read from the [c:\windows\vb\kiddraw.mak] entry in vbbackup.ini. Just a name without a path will cause VB Backup to concatenate the name of the directory it is being run from with the name of the project. This is convenient if you run VB Backup from the same directory you keep your projects in.

Or use both a project and a destination path as command-line arguments:

vbbackup source destination

For example: "vbbackup kiddraw.mak a:\".

The project will be backed up to the destination path on the command-line, regardless of the destination path in the vbbackup.ini entry.

In all cases, the name of the project to backup can be with or without the .mak extension, and the path of the destination can be with or without an ending '\'.


Multiple Backup Generations: (id=262)
Multiple Backup Generations:

VB Backup can maintain several generations of backups so you can go back to previous versions of your project if necessary.

Multiple generations of backups can be made by setting Generations in vbbackup.ini to something larger than zero (0).

Using Generations=0 will cause VB Backup to use only the destination you specify, overwriting the last backup each time. Setting Generations to greater than zero will case VB Backup to copy files to the directory you specify, then during the next backup to a subdirectory '\1', and so on until it uses the last directory as specified by Generations, when it will begin again with the main backup directory. LastWritten is used by VB Backup to record the last directory it used.

You can set Generations on the dialog that VB Backup brings up for new projects, or by directly editing a project's vbbackup.ini entry.


vbbackup.ini Explained (id=263)
vbbackup.ini Explained

[Defaults]

MainProject=c:\windows\vb\my_proj.mak

DefaultDestination=b:\vb_proj

[c:\windows\vb\my_proj.mak]

CopyTo=b:\vb_proj

Generations=3

LastWritten=2

MainProject is the project to backup when no command-line arguments are used. There must be an entry below for the project you list here.

DefaultDestination is the backup directory that is filled in for you on the dialog box to confirm the project's settings when VB Backup sees a project for the first time.

This entry example is for the project c:\windows\vb\my_proj.mak, which is backed up to b:\vb_proj. Three generations of backups are maintained:

b:\vb_proj

|_ 1

|_ 2

|_ 3

The last directory used was  b:\vb_proj\2.


Comments (id=264)
Comments

Please send comments, questions, etc. to:

Stephen Kearney (internet: neff123@garnet.berkeley.edu)


Using VB Backup (id=265)
Using VB Backup

Double click on VB Backup to backup the project listed after MainProject in vbbackup.ini

Place VB Backup on the desktop (if you use NDW, etc.). Dragging project .mak files on top of VB Backup will launch VB Backup and backup the project. If VB Backup hasn't handled the project before, a dialog box will appear to collect information for the vbbackup.ini entry.

VB Backup can currently backup one project at a time.

The backup can be interrupted while in-progress by hitting the escape key. However, VB Backup will wait until in-between files to pause the backup and verify the abort.


.mak Files (id=266)
.mak Files

Visual Basic uses .mak files to store information about your project such as the files it uses, the name of the .exe, etc.


Xantippe-267 (id=267)
Xantippe-267

.mak Files


.mak files (id=268)
.mak files

Visual Basic uses .mak files to store information about your

project such as the files it uses, the name of the .exe, etc.


What is VB Backup? (id=269)
What is VB Backup?

VB Backup is a utility for conveniently backing up the files belonging to your Visual Basic projects.

Backing up a project with VB Backup is as easy as double-clicking or dragging a file.