[Ady]

I downloaded HDClone 4.0.4a free (universal) to test it, but it seems to me that something is not correct.

The floppy image size is not 1474560 bytes, as expected, but bigger ( 1475072 bytes ) . I tried opening the iso image with 7zip, and it can't.

I did not try running the floppy or CD creator, but in any case, the issues I already saw make me think that they won't work correctly.

Can you please confirm if these behaviors are actually problems of the specific 4.0.4a release of HDClone? Or maybe I am doing something wrong? Could you publish a correction?

Thank you in advance.

[Alex]

I'll have to have a look into it, there could be a problem with the size of the data on the disk... apparently, it's pretty tight right now, so any changes might exceed the valid limit.

[Ady]

More details so you can test it.

HDClone English free version:
Testing with 7zip:
img: data error in readme.txt. FILE IS BROKEN.
iso: can not open it as archive (while it should).

Testing with Izarc:
img: can't see the contents of the floppy image.
iso: it's opening it.


All this tells me that there is a problem with the formats.

On the other hand, the Italian floppy image of the free version is correct under 7zip! (meaning, I *CAN* open it correctly with 7zip, the result of the "test" function of 7zip is correct, and the size of the floppy image is correct). I had not the same luck with the Italian ISO image :( .

I CAN manage to extract the contents of the floppy image (although, I have no way to know if the extracted files are correct).

Could I (a user) rebuild the English floppy image under Windows? I don't mean like using the Windows version of HDClone (since my guess is that the floppy image is the same as the "Universal" version). I guess the question really is if the floppy image is a standard FAT12 that only contains 3 files (hence, can be rebuilt under Windows or Linux), or the only way for a user to test HDClone this time is to wait for a new version.

Could you post the checksums of those 3 files that should be inside the English floppy, so to test them?

Now, about the floppy size and its contents. A standard FAT12 "1440KB" floppy can contain 1'457'664 bytes (although, it is possible to extend this max capacity with several "tricks"). If the floppy image of HDClone is a supposed to be a FAT12 standard one, then the English version of HDClone has still not passed this limit in HDClone version 4.0.4a. So this shouldn't be the problem.

I hope the clues I gave you here are of help to evaluate the problem.

[Ady]

alex Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'll have to have a look into it, there could be a
> problem with the size of the data on the disk...
> apparently, it's pretty tight right now, so any
> changes might exceed the valid limit.

Alex,

If the floppy image is supposed to be a STANDARD FAT12, then you have 2847 clusters (available for data). Even if the total size of the files is less than 2847 x 512 bytes, the real limit is the OCUPIED (used) CLUSTERS of EACH file (not the size in bytes).

Again, if the image is supposed to be a FAT12, you could gain space by:

1_ Somehow reducing the files, specially the text file (because it is easy to reduce).

2_ Use some "trick" to leave more than 2847 clusters available. You may:

2a_ reduce the number of "root entries"; and/or;
2b_ limit the number of fat (instead of the standard 2 fats, you may try using 1); and/or
2c_ change (reduce) the clusters size (though, this option is much less "standard".

The floppy is physically standard (1440KB), but you have more free data clusters.

Evidently, reducing the text file to the minimum possible is the easiest and more compatible alternative.

[Alex]

I'll have to look into it.
Using the tricks for gaining more sectors on a floppy is a bit futile, as eventually we'll run out of space later, and did you ever try having a file system with only one FAT (or three or four, for that matter) running in Windows XP? It crashes the system... I'm looking into the matter, the floppy size is supposed to be 1474560 bytes in all cases, and as the floppy image is also used for booting the iso image, the same is valid there.

In the future, we plan on switching to the GRUB as boot loader, with multi-floppy support, and native booting on ISO files. We'll have this out hopefully by May.

[Alex]

Ok, we have now updated the free edition package (to 4.0.4b). The non-free editions were already at this version from the end of last week, but only for a fix that didn't affect the free edition (something when writing RAW images). Now, rebuilding the free edition did make some space free (dropping a bit of Debug), and the images are once again 1474560 bytes.

[Ady]

About making a FAT12 floppy with only 1 fat, it is only one of the possibilities. The other possibility I mentioned (besides reducing the text file) is reducing the number of root entries of the floppy. You only use 3 files, so having the standard 224 root entries available is only "wasting" space. Setting the root entries for the floppy to 16 should give you about 14 free clusters (though I haven't really calculated it, so it is only an estimation).

This would give you some more time to prepare and test the change to use another method, like GRUB as you mentioned, and you could leave the Debug code in :) . Just an idea.

Thank you for your answers and your work.

[Ady]

After rechecking HDClone Free English versions 4.0.4a, 4.0.4.b and 4.0.4c, there are still problems with the floppy and ISO images.

As I understood, the hdclone.img should be a FAT12 1440KB standard floppy image, and the ISO image uses this floppy image to boot too.

For the latest version, I think that the FAT 1 and FAT 2 of the floppy image are not equal to each other (and it is possible that there are other problems too, but I don't know if there are or not). The ISO image is still failing to be opened in 7-zip, which I used again as a test tool/method.

I *can* open the ISO image with other compression tools that are more tolerant to image errors, but if 7-zip can't correctly open the image, then this is a sign of an image problem.

TIA.

[Alex]

OK, I've narrowed it down to two things:

a) the FATs in the img are different, the reason for it I'll have to search. I don't think we'll change that before switching to the GRUB...

b) the ISO and the problem with 7z seems to have to do with our implementation of the Joliet file system. If I create the ISO without it, 7z accepts it without hickup. This I'll definitely fix asap.

[Ady]

alex Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> OK, I've narrowed it down to two things:
>
> a) the FATs in the img are different, the reason
> for it I'll have to search. I don't think we'll
> change that before switching to the GRUB...

You don't really have to search anything. You simply need to start from a floppy image as:

1_Standard 1440KB FAT12 (if you actually prepare this image with a physical floppy, then you'd need to chkdsk and be sure it has all its 2880 clusters clean and useable).
2_Full Format the floppy image (NOT quick format) to make it completely empty.

By using this method, both fats should be equal when actually writing the data.

I guess that you actually already know all this better than me. This was only to "make it simple" in words, so the floppy image doesn't have to wait for GRUB :).