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+'\" t
+.TH mtools 1 "21Mar23" mtools-4.0.43
+.SH Name
+mtools - utilities to access DOS disks in Unix.
+'\" t
+.de TQ
+.br
+.ns
+.TP \\$1
+..
+
+.tr \(is'
+.tr \(if`
+.tr \(pd"
+
+.PP
+.SH Introduction
+Mtools is a collection of tools to allow Unix systems to manipulate
+MS-DOS files: read, write, and move around files on an MS-DOS
+file system (typically a floppy disk). Where reasonable, each program
+attempts to emulate the MS-DOS equivalent command. However,
+unnecessary restrictions and oddities of DOS are not emulated. For
+instance, it is possible to move subdirectories from one subdirectory
+to another.
+.PP
+Mtools is sufficient to give access to MS-DOS file systems. For
+instance, commands such as \fR\&\f(CWmdir a:\fR work on the \fR\&\f(CWa:\fR floppy
+without any preliminary mounting or initialization (assuming the default
+\&\fR\&\f(CW\(if/etc/mtools.conf\(is\fR works on your machine). With mtools, one can
+change floppies too without unmounting and mounting.
+.PP
+.SH Where\ to\ get\ mtools
+.PP
+Mtools can be found at the following places (and their mirrors):
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+http://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/mtools/mtools-4.0.43.tar.gz
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR
+.PP
+These patches are named
+\&\fR\&\f(CWmtools-\fR\fIversion\fR\fR\&\f(CW-\fR\fIddmm\fR\fR\&\f(CW.taz\fR, where version
+stands for the base version, \fIdd\fR for the day and \fImm\fR for the
+month. Due to a lack of space, I usually leave only the most recent
+patch.
+.PP
+There is an mtools mailing list at info-mtools @ gnu.org . Please
+send all bug reports to this list. You may subscribe to the list at
+https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/info-mtools. (N.B. Please
+remove the spaces around the "@". I left them there in order to fool
+spambots.) Announcements of new mtools versions will also be sent to
+the list, in addition to the Linux announce newsgroups. The mailing
+list is archived at http://lists.gnu.org/pipermail/info-mtools/
+.PP
+.SH Common\ features\ of\ all\ mtools\ commands
+.PP
+.SS Options\ and\ filenames
+MS-DOS filenames are composed of a drive letter followed by a colon, a
+subdirectory, and a filename. Only the filename part is mandatory, the
+drive letter and the subdirectory are optional. Filenames without a
+drive letter refer to Unix files. Subdirectory names can use either the
+\&'\fR\&\f(CW/\fR' or '\fR\&\f(CW\e\fR' separator. The use of the '\fR\&\f(CW\e\fR' separator
+or wildcards requires the names to be enclosed in quotes to protect them
+from the shell. However, wildcards in Unix filenames should not be
+enclosed in quotes, because here we \fBwant\fR the shell to expand
+them.
+.PP
+The regular expression "pattern matching" routines follow the Unix-style
+rules. For example, `\fR\&\f(CW*\fR' matches all MS-DOS files in lieu of
+`\fR\&\f(CW*.*\fR'. The archive, hidden, read-only and system attribute bits
+are ignored during pattern matching.
+.PP
+All options use the \fR\&\f(CW-\fR (minus) as their first character, not
+\&\fR\&\f(CW/\fR as you'd expect in MS-DOS.
+.PP
+Most mtools commands allow multiple filename parameters, which
+doesn't follow MS-DOS conventions, but which is more user-friendly.
+.PP
+Most mtools commands allow options that instruct them how to handle
+file name clashes. See section name clashes, for more details on these.
+.PP
+All commands accept the \fR\&\f(CW-i\fR flag which allows to specify an
+image file (See section drive letters).
+.PP
+All commands accept the \fR\&\f(CW-V\fR flag which prints the version, and
+most accept the \fR\&\f(CW-v\fR flag, which switches on verbose mode. In
+verbose mode, these commands print out the name of the MS-DOS files
+upon which they act, unless stated otherwise. See section Commands, for a
+description of the options which are specific to each command.
+.PP
+.SS Drive\ letters
+.PP
+The meaning of the drive letters depends on the target architectures.
+However, on most target architectures, drive A is the first floppy
+drive, drive B is the second floppy drive (if available), drive J is a
+Jaz drive (if available), and drive Z is a Zip drive (if available). On
+those systems where the device name is derived from the SCSI id, the Jaz
+drive is assumed to be at SCSI target 4, and the Zip at SCSI target 5
+(factory default settings). On Linux, both drives are assumed to be the
+second drive on the SCSI bus (/dev/sdb). The default settings can be
+changes using a configuration file (see section Configuration).
+.PP
+The drive letter : (colon) has a special meaning. It is used to access
+image files which are directly specified on the command line using the
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-i\fR options.
+.PP
+Example:
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+ mcopy -i my-image-file.bin ::file1 ::file2 .
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR
+.PP
+This copies \fR\&\f(CWfile1\fR and \fR\&\f(CWfile2\fR from the image file
+(\fR\&\f(CWmy-image-file.bin\fR) to the \fR\&\f(CW/tmp\fR directory.
+.PP
+You can also supply an offset within the image file by including
+\&\fR\&\f(CW@@\fR\fIoffset\fR into the file name.
+.PP
+Example:
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+ mcopy -i my-image-file.bin@@1M ::file1 ::file2 .
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR
+.PP
+This looks for the image at the offset of 1M in the file, rather than
+at its beginning.
+.PP
+.SS Current\ working\ directory
+.PP
+The \fR\&\f(CWmcd\fR command (\(ifmcd\(is) is used to establish the device and
+the current working directory (relative to the MS-DOS file system),
+otherwise the default is assumed to be \fR\&\f(CWA:/\fR. However, unlike
+MS-DOS, there is only one working directory for all drives, and not one
+per drive.
+.PP
+.SS VFAT-style\ long\ file\ names
+.PP
+This version of mtools supports VFAT style long filenames. If a Unix
+filename is too long to fit in a short DOS name, it is stored as a
+VFAT long name, and a companion short name is generated. This short
+name is what you see when you examine the disk with a pre-7.0 version
+of DOS.
+ The following table shows some examples of short names:
+.PP
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+Long name MS-DOS name Reason for the change
+--------- ---------- ---------------------
+thisisatest THISIS~1 filename too long
+alain.knaff ALAIN~1.KNA extension too long
+prn.txt PRN~1.TXT PRN is a device name
+\&\&.abc ABC~1 null filename
+hot+cold HOT_CO~1 illegal character
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR
+.PP
+ As you see, the following transformations happen to derive a short
+name:
+.TP
+* \ \
+Illegal characters are replaced by underscores. The illegal characters
+are \fR\&\f(CW;+=[]',\e"*\e\e<>/?:|\fR.
+.TP
+* \ \
+Extra dots, which cannot be interpreted as a main name/extension
+separator are removed
+.TP
+* \ \
+A \fR\&\f(CW~\fR\fIn\fR number is generated,
+.TP
+* \ \
+The name is shortened so as to fit in the 8+3 limitation
+.PP
+ The initial Unix-style file name (whether long or short) is also called
+the \fIprimary\fR name, and the derived short name is also called the
+\&\fIsecondary\fR name.
+.PP
+ Example:
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+ mcopy /etc/motd a:Reallylongname
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR Mtools creates a VFAT entry for Reallylongname, and uses REALLYLO as
+a short name. Reallylongname is the primary name, and REALLYLO is the
+secondary name.
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+ mcopy /etc/motd a:motd
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR Motd fits into the DOS filename limits. Mtools doesn't need to
+derivate another name. Motd is the primary name, and there is no
+secondary name.
+.PP
+ In a nutshell: The primary name is the long name, if one exists, or
+the short name if there is no long name.
+.PP
+ Although VFAT is much more flexible than FAT, there are still names
+that are not acceptable, even in VFAT. There are still some illegal
+characters left (\fR\&\f(CW\e"*\e\e<>/?:|\fR), and device names are still
+reserved.
+.PP
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+Unix name Long name Reason for the change
+--------- ---------- ---------------------
+prn prn-1 PRN is a device name
+ab:c ab_c-1 illegal character
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR
+.PP
+ As you see, the following transformations happen if a long name is
+illegal:
+.TP
+* \ \
+Illegal characters are replaces by underscores,
+.TP
+* \ \
+A \fR\&\f(CW-\fR\fIn\fR number is generated,
+.PP
+.SS Name\ clashes
+.PP
+When writing a file to disk, its long name or short name may collide
+with an already existing file or directory. This may happen for all
+commands which create new directory entries, such as \fR\&\f(CWmcopy\fR,
+\&\fR\&\f(CWmmd\fR, \fR\&\f(CWmren\fR, \fR\&\f(CWmmove\fR. When a name clash happens, mtools
+asks you what it should do. It offers several choices:
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CWoverwrite\fR\
+Overwrites the existing file. It is not possible to overwrite a
+directory with a file.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CWrename\fR\
+Renames the newly created file. Mtools prompts for the new filename
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CWautorename\fR\
+Renames the newly created file. Mtools chooses a name by itself, without
+prompting
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CWskip\fR\
+Gives up on this file, and moves on to the next (if any)
+.PP
+To chose one of these actions, type its first letter at the prompt. If
+you use a lower case letter, the action only applies for this file only,
+if you use an upper case letter, the action applies to all files, and
+you won't be prompted again.
+.PP
+You may also chose actions (for all files) on the command line, when
+invoking mtools:
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ o\fR\
+Overwrites primary names by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ O\fR\
+Overwrites secondary names by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ r\fR\
+Renames primary name by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ R\fR\
+Renames secondary name by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ a\fR\
+Autorenames primary name by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ A\fR\
+Autorenames secondary name by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ s\fR\
+Skip primary name by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ S\fR\
+Skip secondary name by default.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ m\fR\
+Ask user what to do with primary name.
+.TP
+\&\fR\&\f(CW-D\ M\fR\
+Ask user what to do with secondary name.
+.PP
+Note that for command line switches lower/upper differentiates between
+primary/secondary name whereas for interactive choices, lower/upper
+differentiates between just-this-time/always.
+.PP
+The primary name is the name as displayed in Windows 95 or Windows NT:
+i.e. the long name if it exists, and the short name otherwise. The
+secondary name is the "hidden" name, i.e. the short name if a long name
+exists.
+.PP
+By default, the user is prompted if the primary name clashes, and the
+secondary name is autorenamed.
+.PP
+If a name clash occurs in a Unix directory, mtools only asks whether
+to overwrite the file, or to skip it.
+.PP
+.SS Case\ sensitivity\ of\ the\ VFAT\ file\ system
+.PP
+The VFAT file system is able to remember the case of the
+filenames. However, filenames which differ only in case are not allowed
+to coexist in the same directory. For example if you store a file called
+LongFileName on a VFAT file system, mdir shows this file as LongFileName,
+and not as Longfilename. However, if you then try to add LongFilename to
+the same directory, it is refused, because case is ignored for clash
+checks.
+.PP
+The VFAT file system allows you to store the case of a filename in the
+attribute byte, if all letters of the filename are the same case, and if
+all letters of the extension are the same case too. Mtools uses this
+information when displaying the files, and also to generate the Unix
+filename when mcopying to a Unix directory. This may have unexpected
+results when applied to files written using an pre-7.0 version of DOS:
+Indeed, the old style filenames map to all upper case. This is different
+from the behavior of the old version of mtools which used to generate
+lower case Unix filenames.
+.PP
+.SS high\ capacity\ formats
+.PP
+Mtools supports a number of formats which allow storage of more data on
+disk than usual. Due to different operating system abilities, these
+formats are not supported on all operating systems. Mtools recognizes
+these formats transparently where supported.
+.PP
+In order to format these disks, you need to use an operating system
+specific tool. For Linux, suitable floppy tools can be found in the
+\&\fR\&\f(CWfdutils\fR package at the following locations~:
+
+.nf
+.ft 3
+.in +0.3i
+\&\fR\&\f(CWhttp://www.fdutils.linux.lu/.
+.fi
+.in -0.3i
+.ft R
+.PP
+
+\&\fR
+.PP
+See the manual pages included in that package for further detail: Use
+\&\fR\&\f(CWsuperformat\fR to format all formats except XDF, and use
+\&\fR\&\f(CWxdfcopy\fR to format XDF.
+.PP
+.SS \ \ More\ sectors
+.PP
+The oldest method of fitting more data on a disk is to use more sectors
+and more cylinders. Although the standard format uses 80 cylinders and
+18 sectors (on a 3 1/2 high density disk), it is possible to use up to
+83 cylinders (on most drives) and up to 21 sectors. This method allows
+to store up to 1743K on a 3 1/2 HD disk. However, 21 sector disks are
+twice as slow as the standard 18 sector disks because the sectors are
+packed so close together that we need to interleave them. This problem
+doesn't exist for 20 sector formats.
+.PP
+These formats are supported by numerous DOS shareware utilities such as
+\&\fR\&\f(CWfdformat\fR and \fR\&\f(CWvgacopy\fR. In his infinite hubris, Bill Gate$
+believed that he invented this, and called it \fR\&\f(CW\(ifDMF disks\(is\fR, or
+\&\fR\&\f(CW\(ifWindows formatted disks\(is\fR. But in reality, it has already existed
+years before! Mtools supports these formats on Linux, on SunOS and on
+the DELL Unix PC.
+.PP
+.SS \ \ Bigger\ sectors
+By using bigger sectors it is possible to go beyond the capacity which
+can be obtained by the standard 512-byte sectors. This is because of the
+sector header. The sector header has the same size, regardless of how
+many data bytes are in the sector. Thus, we save some space by using
+\&\fIfewer\fR, but bigger sectors. For example, 1 sector of 4K only takes
+up header space once, whereas 8 sectors of 512 bytes have also 8
+headers, for the same amount of useful data.
+.PP
+This method permits storage of up to 1992K on a 3 1/2 HD disk.
+.PP
+Mtools supports these formats only on Linux.
+.PP
+.SS \ \ 2m
+.PP
+The 2m format was originally invented by Ciriaco Garcia de Celis. It
+also uses bigger sectors than usual in order to fit more data on the
+disk. However, it uses the standard format (18 sectors of 512 bytes
+each) on the first cylinder, in order to make these disks easier to
+handle by DOS. Indeed this method allows you to have a standard sized
+boot sector, which contains a description of how the rest of the disk
+should be read.
+.PP
+However, the drawback of this is that the first cylinder can hold less
+data than the others. Unfortunately, DOS can only handle disks where
+each track contains the same amount of data. Thus 2m hides the fact that
+the first track contains less data by using a \fIshadow
+FAT\fR. (Usually, DOS stores the FAT in two identical copies, for
+additional safety. XDF stores only one copy, but tells DOS that it
+stores two. Thus the space that would be taken up by the second FAT copy
+is saved.) This also means that you should \fBnever use a 2m disk
+to store anything else than a DOS file system\fR.
+.PP
+Mtools supports these formats only on Linux.
+.PP
+.SS \ \ XDF
+.PP
+XDF is a high capacity format used by OS/2. It can hold 1840 K per
+disk. That's lower than the best 2m formats, but its main advantage is
+that it is fast: 600 milliseconds per track. That's faster than the 21
+sector format, and almost as fast as the standard 18 sector format. In
+order to access these disks, make sure mtools has been compiled with XDF
+support, and set the \fR\&\f(CWuse_xdf\fR variable for the drive in the
+configuration file. See section Compiling mtools, and \(ifmiscellaneous variables\(is,
+for details on how to do this. Fast XDF access is only available for
+Linux kernels which are more recent than 1.1.34.
+.PP
+Mtools supports this format only on Linux.
+.PP
+\&\fBCaution / Attention distributors\fR: If mtools is compiled on a
+Linux kernel more recent than 1.3.34, it won't run on an older
+kernel. However, if it has been compiled on an older kernel, it still
+runs on a newer kernel, except that XDF access is slower. It is
+recommended that distribution authors only include mtools binaries
+compiled on kernels older than 1.3.34 until 2.0 comes out. When 2.0 will
+be out, mtools binaries compiled on newer kernels may (and should) be
+distributed. Mtools binaries compiled on kernels older than 1.3.34 won't
+run on any 2.1 kernel or later.
+.PP
+.SS Exit\ codes
+All the Mtools commands return 0 on success, 1 on utter failure, or 2
+on partial failure. All the Mtools commands perform a few sanity
+checks before going ahead, to make sure that the disk is indeed an
+MS-DOS disk (as opposed to, say an ext2 or MINIX disk). These checks
+may reject partially corrupted disks, which might otherwise still be
+readable. To avoid these checks, set the MTOOLS_SKIP_CHECK
+environmental variable or the corresponding configuration file variable
+(see section global variables)
+.SS Bugs
+An unfortunate side effect of not guessing the proper device (when
+multiple disk capacities are supported) is an occasional error message
+from the device driver. These can be safely ignored.
+.PP
+The fat checking code chokes on 1.72 Mb disks mformatted with pre-2.0.7
+mtools. Set the environmental variable MTOOLS_FAT_COMPATIBILITY (or the
+corresponding configuration file variable, \(ifglobal variables\(is) to
+bypass the fat checking.
+.PP
+.SH See also
+floppyd_installtest
+mattrib
+mbadblocks
+mcd
+mcopy
+mdel
+mdeltree
+mdir
+mdu
+mformat
+minfo
+mkmanifest
+mlabel
+mmd
+mmount
+mmove
+mrd
+mren
+mshortname
+mshowfat
+mtoolstest
+mtype