XP/Vista user account backup

[llewxam]

I have put together a nice backup app for the computer shop I work for. It backs up XP and Vista user accounts as well as looks for certain other files like Quicken, QuickBooks, TurboTax etc. I have also worked in file ownership for private folders but it requires "takeown.exe", which I have included in "extras.7z" as well as several text files with importing instructions that get copied over to the save location if certain data is saved, such as Outlook or Dialup Networking information.

What I am basically looking for is some critiquing, the app works very well I think but I have not been using AutoIt for very long, so a few puzzling things happen that I don't know how to get around. One such thing is I have a List control which tells the user what data has been found, such as user accounts and for instance TurboTax. For some reason, the user accounts list properly, but then the first "other" data found gets listed at the top of the box, then the rest go to the bottom. WHY?? Also, if not all of the information is filled in before hitting the "GO" the program ends, I'd like to know a way that the user could continue and fill in whatever information is needed.

So, this is a work in progress, it is something I'm happy with as-is but I have more things I'd like to add as time goes by (compress the backups, add an option to specify additional folders, add an option to remove pre-selected folders, maybe even a restore function), but I think I should try to get some suggestions on it before going any further.

Thanks for any help, ideas, suggestions, and any critisisms that you may offer!!

Ian

extras.7z

abcd3.974.au3

Edited August 12, 2009 by llewxam

[llewxam]

Bump

7 downloads for the app and 2 for the extras, not bad, but no feedback. C'mon guys, I know my code may be a bit of a rats nest, but no comments on it? Any little thing may be of some help, any takers?

Thanks!

Ian

Edited May 29, 2009 by llewxam

[kornboy82]

Really great program. I translated it in french and personnalized it for my use. Everything works perfectly. I have seen no errors as for now and your code is really readable.

Do you have a code that can restore the datas to a desired account name ?

[storme]

G'day llewxam

When I started looking through your code I thought you were nuts with all the "fileeexists" commands for windows version checking. Then I realised the program was to backup other HDD then the operating one. Smart code!

Anyway I've only a q quick look over your code and it isn't too bad. Why all the blank lines though?

Also a few errors I've picked up so far.

$basedir = $root & "Videoa"

I guess should be

$basedir = $root & "Videos"

What is this supposed to do ?

For $many = 1 To 13
    $otherextension = ".qdf"
    $otherextension = ".qsd"
    $otherextension = ".qel"
    $otherextension = ".npc"
    $otherextension = ".adb"
    $otherextension = ".eml"
    $otherextension = ".hcx"
    $otherextension = ".qph"
    $otherextension = ".qtx"
    $otherextension = ".qmd"
    $otherextension = ".qdt"
    $otherextension = ".qif"
    $otherextension = ".qdb"
Next

Also if you want others to read your code then a more intuitive naming convertion maybe a good idea. OR putting a comment on the first declaraiton of a variable so that reads can understand that a variable is used for (eg $many and $toomany ???)

Anyway all in all a great program. I've been intending to write one myself for a while and this has given me some good ideas.

Thank you

John Morrison

[kornboy82]

Instead of Quiken data, I will set it up to backup some registry keys I need with some softwares in the company i'm working for. It will be better for my use.

[kornboy82]

Is there a way that instead of selecting drive and having the possibility to go in a folder for the source drive having it to list only the drives in the computer and not all the folders too ?? It would be better and you won't get the error when selecting a folder.

[llewxam]

I'm glad to see there has been some interest here! I honestly thought nobody was using it, I guess I stopped looking for replies too soon! I have made some changes, so check out the new additions! The only things I have left unfinished for now is some of the checks to see if any backup is necessary for certain things like Outlook if no changes have been made to the data versus the default data from installation. XP has much of this done, Vista has none of it done, so when that is the case the backup will be done regardless. Grab the new files and have a look. Thanks!!

Really great program. I translated it in french and personnalized it for my use. Everything works perfectly. I have seen no errors as for now and your code is really readable.

Do you have a code that can restore the datas to a desired account name ?

I plan on doing that in the future at some point. The hard part will be ensuring that things go where they need to - for instance, if a Dell came with the user name as Owner but I made it Bob, I need to have a way to specify that. But it is in the back of my mind.

G'day llewxam

When I started looking through your code I thought you were nuts with all the "fileeexists" commands for windows version checking. Then I realised the program was to backup other HDD then the operating one. Smart code!

Anyway I've only a q quick look over your code and it isn't too bad. Why all the blank lines though?

Also a few errors I've picked up so far.

$basedir = $root & "Videoa"

I guess should be

$basedir = $root & "Videos"

What is this supposed to do ?

For $many = 1 To 13
    $otherextension = ".qdf"
    $otherextension = ".qsd"
    $otherextension = ".qel"
    $otherextension = ".npc"
    $otherextension = ".adb"
    $otherextension = ".eml"
    $otherextension = ".hcx"
    $otherextension = ".qph"
    $otherextension = ".qtx"
    $otherextension = ".qmd"
    $otherextension = ".qdt"
    $otherextension = ".qif"
    $otherextension = ".qdb"
Next

Also if you want others to read your code then a more intuitive naming convertion maybe a good idea. OR putting a comment on the first declaraiton of a variable so that reads can understand that a variable is used for (eg $many and $toomany ???)

Anyway all in all a great program. I've been intending to write one myself for a while and this has given me some good ideas.

Thank you

John Morrison

Thank you for all of your suggestions/info, MUCH appreciated!

I appreciate the correction for "Videoa" to "Videos", that one went unnoticed by MANY people, so my techs are going to get some beatings!!

The $otherextension is specifically for backing up data like Quicken, TurboTax, QuickBooks etc, and the extensions are specified so the entire folder isn't saved, only the files that contain user data. No point in saving the entire folder, the exes etc would be useless anyway.....

hahaha, you are definately right about needing to document what the variables mean, and I'm afraid that for now it will probably be worse than it was before due to the changes I have made! But I will keep this in mind and will comment better for the next time I update the code.

Is there a way that instead of selecting drive and having the possibility to go in a folder for the source drive having it to list only the drives in the computer and not all the folders too ?? It would be better and you won't get the error when selecting a folder.

I suppose, but I left it that way mainly so that if someone (a tech perhaps) has multiple drive hooked up at one time (their OS drive, their internal backup drive, an external storage drive, AND the drive being backed up), being able to see all folders of all drives while choosing their source drive could help eliminate backing up the wrong drive. What I have done is put in a little check so that if more than just the drive is specified, the folders get trimmed, only the drive letter is kept, so the program does not crash.

So, now that the updating is out of the way, I could use a little help with a few things. If anyone can help fill in the blanks for directory sizes of folders that do not yet have sizes specified (like Outlook in XP or Windows Mail in Vista) that would be great, just post it back to this thread. Also I am looking to have a script that backs up drivers, which isn't a big deal if the app is running on the drive to back up, but gets sloppy if backing up a drive that is not currently running the OS (like hooked up through a USB adapter). If anyone can help there, that would be GREAT!

Thanks again

Ian

PS - I reposted the main script, I was slow to catch on to what storme meant about the snippet he headlined with "What is this supposed to do ?", I have corrected that as well now.

Edited August 5, 2009 by llewxam

[llewxam]

Another update has been posted, I now have a swanky progress bar that shows the status of each file's transfer, nice for huge files or sending over slow LANs. Also corrected some paths. Code comments (OK, mainly variable comments) was started, but I didn't get too far, sorry, that will improve over time.

As of now, one of my only sticking points is in the GUI itself, I find it annoying that the progress bar gets interrupted if the window is moved during a large transfer, or if the window is minimized, etc. The window can also just go white if minimized and restored during a large transfer. I was considering using @SW_LOCK and @SW_UNLOCK between transfers, but that seems kinda silly. Any ideas?

Also, still looking for DirSize info for a few items, any help there would be nice.

Thanks, enjoy

Ian

Edit - I also have been looking in to compressing the backup, and have used several UDFs in testing for ZIP, 7Zip, looked in to using native CAB etc, every post I have found through searching mentions the issue I have - I need the compressed archive to maintain the folder structure, and it looks like the only "solution" was to make a temp folder to put the backup, then archive that. Yuk! Anybody have an idea on how to add files, one at a time, to an archive and specify an absolute path?

Edited August 5, 2009 by llewxam

[storme]

G'day

Some great improovments. I havn't tried it yet but it looks good.

BUT there is always a but. Have found one thing I need a "please explain" for.

What does this code do. You've got 2 FOR statments like this. The first is like this teh second appears to be what you intended the code to do.

For $many = 1 To 13
            If $many = 1 Then $otherextension = ".qdf"
            If $many = 2 Then $otherextension = ".qsd"
            If $many = 3 Then $otherextension = ".qel"
            If $many = 4 Then $otherextension = ".npc"
            If $many = 5 Then $otherextension = ".adb"
            If $many = 6 Then $otherextension = ".eml"
            If $many = 7 Then $otherextension = ".hcx"
            If $many = 8 Then $otherextension = ".qph"
            If $many = 9 Then $otherextension = ".qtx"
            If $many = 10 Then $otherextension = ".qmd"
            If $many = 11 Then $otherextension = ".qdt"
            If $many = 12 Then $otherextension = ".qif"
            If $many = 13 Then $otherextension = ".qdb"
        Next

As far as I can see it just loops from 1-13, on each loop it changes $otherextension till eventually it exits with $otherextension = ".qdb".

Any chance of Expanding it for other programs (eg MYOB).

Well done great bit of code!

John Morrison

P.S I did use it yesterday. Had 2 computers (vista) to rebuild the customer SIAD that the data on them wasn't important (I know they will come back and say they did want it...sigh...) So I gave your program (old version) a run... worked perfectly!!! VERY well done.

[llewxam]

What does this code do. You've got 2 FOR statments like this. The first is like this teh second appears to be what you intended the code to do.

For $many = 1 To 13
            If $many = 1 Then $otherextension = ".qdf"
            If $many = 2 Then $otherextension = ".qsd"
            If $many = 3 Then $otherextension = ".qel"
            If $many = 4 Then $otherextension = ".npc"
            If $many = 5 Then $otherextension = ".adb"
            If $many = 6 Then $otherextension = ".eml"
            If $many = 7 Then $otherextension = ".hcx"
            If $many = 8 Then $otherextension = ".qph"
            If $many = 9 Then $otherextension = ".qtx"
            If $many = 10 Then $otherextension = ".qmd"
            If $many = 11 Then $otherextension = ".qdt"
            If $many = 12 Then $otherextension = ".qif"
            If $many = 13 Then $otherextension = ".qdb"
        Next

As far as I can see it just loops from 1-13, on each loop it changes $otherextension till eventually it exits with $otherextension = ".qdb".

HAHAHA, darn it, I did it again!! >_< I dunno how I missed that after I corrected it before, after you pointed it out!! Sorry, I just find that kinda ironic....

OK, corrected, it should have been

$otherfound=0
if FileExists($sourcedrive&"\quickenw") then
    $basedir=$sourcedrive&"\quickenw"
    for $many=1 to 13
        if $many=1 then $otherextension=".qdf"
        if $many=2 then $otherextension=".qsd"
        if $many=3 then $otherextension=".qel"
        if $many=4 then $otherextension=".npc"
        if $many=5 then $otherextension=".adb"
        if $many=6 then $otherextension=".eml"
        if $many=7 then $otherextension=".hcx"
        if $many=8 then $otherextension=".qph"
        if $many=9 then $otherextension=".qtx"
        if $many=10 then $otherextension=".qmd"
        if $many=11 then $otherextension=".qdt"
        if $many=12 then $otherextension=".qif"
        if $many=13 then $otherextension=".qdb"
        $savelocation=$target&"\"&$backupname&"\Quicken\"
        $otherinfo="Quicken data was found"
        theheart($basedir)
    Next
    if $whattodo=2 and FileExists($savelocation) then filewriteline($logfile,"Quicken data copied successfully")
endif

I will update the code in the first post to have this change.

As for MYOB, I assume you have access to computers that have that installed, could you please do me a favor and verify the details in http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=896720&r=14235592#r14235592 so that I can add it to the list, knowing it is accurate? Any other info would be great.

Thank you again for the bug catch and the suggestion!

Ian

Edited August 5, 2009 by llewxam

[storme]

HAHAHA, darn it, I did it again!! >_< I dunno how I missed that after I corrected it before, after you pointed it out!! Sorry, I just find that kinda ironic....

No Problem I do that all the time. Spend hours trying to find a bug when I finally hammer it out (after completly messing up the code) I find it was something basic I had wrong and it was right in front of me the whole time. I think it's because we get too close to the code and start overlooking what we know is right....sigh

OK, corrected, it should have been

<SNIP>

Yeah that is what I thought it was supposed to be. :-)

As for MYOB, I assume you have access to computers that have that installed, could you please do me a favor and verify the details in http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=896720&r=14235592#r14235592 so that I can add it to the list, knowing it is accurate? Any other info would be great.

I don't have MYOB but I do have plenty of customers that do and I've seen it enough times. I'm a quickbooks man myself. :-)

The information from "PowderMonkey" is correct so to my knowledge you'd have to

1. Search for any directory C:\MYOB??

2. Backup any files *.MYO *.BOX *.DAT in that folder.

3. Then backup all in folders \forms and \letters under the MYOB folder.

Thank you again for the bug catch and the suggestion!

Glad to help and keep up the great work.

Ian

[llewxam]

I don't have MYOB but I do have plenty of customers that do and I've seen it enough times. I'm a quickbooks man myself. :-)

The information from "PowderMonkey" is correct so to my knowledge you'd have to

1. Search for any directory C:\MYOB??

2. Backup any files *.MYO *.BOX *.DAT in that folder.

3. Then backup all in folders \forms and \letters under the MYOB folder.

LOL, I had my head so far up (you know where) doing the MYOB backup, it took me forever!! hehehe, after the third re-write I got it there. >_<

$otherfound=0
$myob=FileFindFirstFile($sourcedrive&"myob*")
Do
    $myobfound=FileFindNextFile($myob)
    if @error then ExitLoop
    if FileExists($sourcedrive&$myobfound) then
        $basedir=$sourcedrive&$myobfound
        for $many=1 to 3
            if $many=1 then $otherextension=".box"
            if $many=2 then $otherextension=".dat"
            if $many=3 then $otherextension=".myo"
            $savelocation=$target&"\"&$backupname&"\"&$myobfound&"\"
            $otherinfo="MYOB data was found"
            theheart($basedir)
        Next
        if $whattodo=2 and FileExists($savelocation) then filewriteline($logfile,""""&$myobfound&""" MYOB data copied successfully")    
    endif
    $actionitem="docs" ;switch to docs for recursive searching of subfolders
    $basedir=$sourcedrive&$myobfound&"\forms"
    $defaultsave=$myobfound&"\forms"
    theheart($basedir)
    $basedir=$sourcedrive&$myobfound&"\letters"
    $defaultsave=$myobfound&"\letters"
    theheart($basedir)
    $actionitem="other" ;switch back to other to disable recursion
Until 1=2

Tested good on my end, but not having the actual app installed, I'd like to "know" it worked. If you (or anyone else) could verify it some time that would be awesome.

The code in the first post has been updated to include this change.

Thanks

Ian

[llewxam]

Only real change from 3.7 to 3.8 is a little cleanup with the variables, I got rid of a couple of things from the theheart() function and started using StringRegExp in place of some of the archaic ways I had to find file names, directories etc. Also changed the output folders a little - all user account info now goes in to a folder called "Users", everything else (additional specified folders, tax data, Dialup Networking settings, etc) go in to "Other Saved Data". This was done to make the output folder look a little more organized, and to prepare for a possible beta Restore function which I hope to have done before too long. >_< Fingers crossed on that one, it's a bugger!!

Ian

[llewxam]

TON of changes made - rewrote the engine to only scan once, then make a string which StringSplit breaks down to the component parts. Also changed the Globals to Locals, I saw a memory leak going crazy while copying and this fixed it. Also made some changes to the multiple extensions and how they are searched for based on a suggestion from storme. MANY MANY other changes, so grab it and see. First post updated.

Any suggestions/questions let me know.

Ian