README for etc-saver version 0.5
================================

S E C T I O N S
-----------------------------------------
1) WHAT is etc-saver?
2) WHY did I write etc-saver?
3) HOW do I use etc-saver?
4) ARE there limitations to etc-saver?
5) CAN I change etc-saver?


S E C T I O N   1
-----------------------------------------
WHAT is etc-saver?

etc-saver is a bash script.  It has one mission in life: to back up
your /etc tree to a floppy disk.  It is designed to be run once per
day, probably from crontab.  It keeps as many versions of the /etc
archive on disk as it can, removing old archives to add new ones as
available space dictates.  That's it in a  nutshell.


S E C T I O N   2
-----------------------------------------
WHY did I write etc-saver?

I love Unix, and am lucky enough to work at an ISP*.  On June 30, 1998,
the filesystem on our authentication server sort of evaporated.  After
calming down and surveying the damage, we decided to do a clean
reinstall, upgrade a lot of things in the process and then restore all
our configuration stuff from our tape backups.

Imagine our horror when we realized that -- for some reason still not
clearly identified -- out backups did not contain /etc.  The stuff we
needed the most was nowhere to be found.

So in an effort to make sure that that never happens again, we made a
lot of changes in our backup policy...*grin*...and I wrote this little
script.  I know it isn't the end-all be-all of data security and
redundancy but I figured that it couldn't POSSIBLY hurt!  And besides,
it's not like our floppy drives got any use anyway!

I know that most people have very poor backup habits (like me) and I
now know that reconstructing /etc from scratch (400+ user passwd file)
is a very painful thing to do.  etc-saver is a zero-maintenance way to
mirror *most* of your system's configuration with no special equipment.

Also, it was a lot of fun.  I have never done much shell programming
but I think it's great now.  The true meaning of the Unix Toolkit
Philosophy has been revealed to me; I have grown stronger in the
Force.  I hope somebody finds it useful and I hope it saves your butt
if you ever have the same problem we had.


S E C T I O N   3
-----------------------------------------
HOW do I use etc-saver?

First, edit the script "etc-saver" and change the variables near
the top, the ones that say "edit these to suit your tastes...".
There's a good possibility that those variables are all you need to
change, but it can't hurt to look through the rest of the script right
quick (it's really short).

Be sure you have a mountpoint for an ext2-formatted floppy defined
in your /etc/fstab file.  Be sure that the mountpoint actually exists :)

Now put a fresh ext2-formatted floppy in the drive.  Don't mount it.

Move etc-saver somewhere apropos and add it to your crontab (see the
file INSTALL for somewhat more verbose instructions on where to put
etc-saver and a basic example of a crontab entry.

There, you're all set up!

NOTES:
etc-saver expects the disk to be unmounted when it starts and it
unmounts the disk when it is through.  This is to make it easy to have
a rotating set of backup disks.

Whenever a disk is too full, etc-saver will remove old archives,
one-by-one, starting with the oldest on the disk, until there is
enough space to write the new archive.


S E C T I O N   4
-----------------------------------------
ARE there limitations to etc-saver?

Of course.  I tried to make it fairly configurable, but it is really
designed to use a floppy drive since that's what I had in mind and had
to test with.  You could probably change it to use most any device
that can be mounted as a filesystem.  Tapes (especially rewinding types)
are right out (as far as I know.  Admittedly, I have minimal
experience with tape drives other than 6250-type :).

By default, etc-saver does NOT include the termcap file in it's
archive.  This is to save space on the disk.  If you need to have
termcap saved or need to exclude additional files or directories, change 
the variable affecting that behavior at the top of the script.

It is a one-trick pony.  I wrote it to solve a specific problem and to
attempt to prevent a certain occurrence from happening again.  It's
not a professionally designed full-backup program; it's just there to
give you a little more peace of mind, make your life a little easier,
and give your floppy drive something to do late at night :)


S E C T I O N   5
-----------------------------------------
CAN I change etc-saver?

Sure.  etc-saver is just a shell script.  It's public domain.

I would ask that you be so kind as to let me know if you find any
errors or make any improvements to it.  I'd like to include such
modifications and fixes in future releases (if any) and would be more
than happy to give you full credit.

Have fun!

--
Send questions, comments and bug-reports to:

	Shawn Boyette   mdxi@collapsar.org
                        mdxi@collapsar.ml.org
			mdxi@hom.net

