CompuServe Messages

David, >> It seems clear to me that the /C switch (according to all my manuals and dos 6.2 help) is simply a command to dump all data that has been previously put into ram by smartdrv. << You seem to be correct in this assertion but I will quote verbatim the setup that the help file gives for the AUTOEXEC.BAT and the /C switch, which led me to believe otherwise. Syntax When starting SMARTDrive from your AUTOEXEC.BAT file or from the command prompt, use the following syntax: [drive:] [path] SMARTDRV [/X] [[drive[+|-]]…] [/U] [/C|/R] [/F|/N] etc. So the question is why would you have /C in your autoexec.bat? The same question you asked me. <g> /C Writes all cached information from memory to cached disks. SMARTDrive writes information from memory to the disk at times when other disk activity has slowed. You might use this option if you are going to turn off your computer and want to make sure all cached information has been written to disk. (SMARTDrive writes all cached information to the disk if you restart your computer by pressing CTRL+ALT+DELETE, but not if you simply turn off the power or press your computer's reset button.) _The fact that [/C|/R] are bundled together on the command line supports your assertion. I assumed because it was listed in the AUTOEXEC.BAT it had a multiple purpose. Another thing which helped confuse the issue was the line regarding /N._ /N Writes cached data when the system is idle. When the command prompt returns, not all cached data may be written yet. To ensure that all the cached data is written, use the /C switch. _I took this to mean that if you didn't want the type of delay provided by /N use the /C switch instead. However after reading your thread, its clear that the use of /C is to insure that the cache is cleared._ _The /R switch I assumed would be used with /N because it states; _ Clears the contents of the existing cache, including writing all write-cached information to disk, and restarts SMARTDrive. The two switches which activate "write caching" are the /F which is like the old SMARTDRV and the /N which does "delayed writes." -JE