DOS CRON (Scheduler) Needed
Steve
We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've tried a
number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable. Is there
anything out there that is tried and tested?
Your suggestions are appreciated.
Chris Wood
pur...@onthenet.com.au (Steve) wrote:
>We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've tried a
>number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable. Is there
>anything out there that is tried and tested?
There are a number of ports of the UNIX cron utility about. I use one
that I ftp'd many years ago, so I cannot remeber the name, but I think
I got it from Garbo, ftp://garbo.uwasa.fi
_____________________________________________________________________
Chris Wood
Software Developer "Yew Scwewy Wabbit" - Elmer Fudd
MLB 4/70, BT Labs,
Martelsham Heath, TEL: +44 (0)1473 642101
Ipswich, IP5 7RE, UK FAX: +44 (0)1473 647417
Charles Whitby
There is a program called CRONJR that works great. I've used it to kick
off unattended backups and similar jobs. It is NOT a TSR so it doesn't
eat memory.
In article <52fslj$1gg...@demon.co.uk>, pur...@onthenet.com.au says...
>
>We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've
tried a
>number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable. Is
there
>anything out there that is tried and tested?
>
>Your suggestions are appreciated.
Brian Kurtz
In article <52fslj$1gg...@demon.co.uk>, pur...@onthenet.com.au says...
>
> We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've
> tried a number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable.
> Is there anything out there that is tried and tested?
>
I don't know of any on-the-market or otherwise shareware product
however, at the place I work, we use a custom in-house program
to generate flag files each loop though a batch file then use a
IF NOT EXIST statement to branch around a process if flag is not
found. These flags can be generated to run processes hourly, daily,
weekly, or monthly. The program can be realized using QBASIC, or
other langauge rather simply - any language supporting date
calculations would be adaquate. Sample batch code is listed below
to show the general structure needed to create your own scheduler!
:LOOP
.
rem generate flag files
GEN_FLAGS
.
.
:BACKUP
if not exist BACKUP.FLG goto NO_BACKUP
call DOBACKUP
del BACKUP.FLG
:NO_BACKUP
.
.
if not exist STOP.FLG goto LOOP
del STOP.FLG
:END
later,
-bk- <mailto:bku...@swsmail.atlanta.com>
Michael Donn
Well, since everybody seems to be thinking of a non-TSR solution, here is
something I just wrote. SCED.BAT takes two parameters, the time to run, in
the format hh:mm, and the name of the process to run. There are certain
restrictions.
. Your date format (dependent upon the COUNTRY setting) must not include
commas. French Canadian is out.
. You must start SCED.BAT within 12 hours of the scheduled time.
. The process to be run must not require parameters. This restriction can
be bypassed by calling the process from a batch file that is called by
SCED.BAT.
. It would probably be best if the directory pointed at by the TEMP
environment variable is located on a RAM disk.
Example: to run DEMO at 11:15
SCED 11:15 demo
to run BACKUP at 6:45
SCED 6:45 backup
Let me know how you make out.
Mike Donn
:: SCED.BAT 9-27-1996 m.donn
@echo off
%3
set {A}=%1
set {P}=%2
:loop
> %temp%.\{T1}.BAT echo @prompt %0 $t XX goto:2nd
> %temp%.\{T2}.BAT %comspec% /e:500 /c %temp%.\{T1}.BAT
call %temp%.\{T2}.BAT
if not [%{A}%]==[] goto loop
del %temp%.\{T?}.BAT
goto end
:2nd
> %temp%.\{T3}.BAT echo;; | choice /c=%1; %0 XX XX goto:3rd=
call %temp%.\{T3}.BAT
goto end
:3rd
set {T}=%5%6%7%8
if not %9==: set {T}=%{T}%%9
if not %{A}%==%{T}% goto end
set {A}=
CALL %{P}%
set {P}=
:end
Yury Vovk
In article <52fslj$1gg...@demon.co.uk>, pur...@onthenet.com.au says...
>
> We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've
> tried a number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable.
> Is there anything out there that is tried and tested?
>
I tried CronJr by Software Shorts. This is pretty fine shareware
product looking like UNIX's cron. Schedule is described in file similar
to crontab in UNIX. Of course there are some DOS limitations.
Technical Support
-----------------
Questions can be sent to CompuServe ID 70731,2507 or faxed
to (714) 832-2391.
Best wishes,
--
Yury.
Norman L. DeForest
Steve (pur...@onthenet.com.au) wrote:
: We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've tried a
: anything out there that is tried and tested?
: Your suggestions are appreciated.
///////////////////
There are two ways I know of doing it.
One way is to get my EKKO.COM (it's free) from my web site. It is sort
of a super ECHO command that accepts all of the commands that PROMPT does
and a bit more. You can echo the commands necessary to test the current
time against a specified time to another batch file and then execute the
other batch file. If the current time doesn't match the specified time,
the second batch file invokes the original one again. This repeats until
there is a match or you press the Ctrl-Break key.
DO-WHEN.BAT:
@ECHO OFF
SET EKKOTIME=ZU:MI
EKKO @ECHO OFF$_IF NOT "$T"=="$#1" DO-WHEN $#1 $#2$_$#2 >TESTWHEN.BAT
TESTWHEN %1 %2
TESTWHEN.BAT typical contents: (at 12:35 pm, generated by DO-WHEN.BAT
@ECHO OFF
IF NOT "12:35"=="%1" DO-WHEN %1 %2
%2
DOMYSTUF.BAT:
put the stuff you want done here.
then type DO-WHEN 19:00 DOMYSTUF
This is better run from a RAM disk. The SET command sets the format
EKKO uses to expand $T to hh:mm in 24-hour format. With the right settings
for EKKODATE and EKKOTIME variables (optional) you could get the date and
time in any language supported by the IBM PC character set.
You can download my EKKO from my "Computer Hints, Tips, and Utilities" page.
I have versions for the IBM PC, the Sanyo MBC-550 series, and the Texas
Instruments Professional PC.
Or you might try 4DOS as a replacement for COMMAND.COM. It has built-in
functions for accessing system information as strings in the command-line.
%_DATE, %_DAY, %_DOW, %_DOY, %_HOUR, %_MINUTE, %_MONTH, %_SECOND, %_TIME,
and %_YEAR return the current date (mm-dd-yy), the day of the month, the
day of the week, the day of the year (1 to 366), the hour, the minute,
or the second of the current time, the time (hh:mm:ss), or the year (1980
to 2099). Multi-line ifs (using the keyword IFF) and subroutines can be
in a batch file. And a lot more. A hypothetical batch programme could be:
@echo off
:loop
if %_time lt 09:00:00 goto loop
mystuff
I have a link to the supplier, JP Software, on my web site.
1. Go to my site: http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/~af380/Profile.html
2. Select "Computer Hints, Tips, and Utilities" from my "Contents" list.
3. Select "4DOS" from my tips page.
4. Look for the reference to JP Software's site and go there.
5. From their site, you can download a trial shareware copy of 4DOS.
No-one who has used 4DOS would ever want to go back to COMMAND.COM
unless they had to use some poorly-written programme that insisted on
COMMAND.COM that ignored the COMSPEC variable.
Norman De Forest
af...@chebucto.ns.ca (new, being phased in)
--
--
Michiel van der Blonk
> > tried a number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable.
> > Is there anything out there that is tried and tested?
> >
If you're looking for a commercial package, and you have Windows 95 (I
know this is a dos programming group, allright?), then try System Agent,
available in the Plus package. It is a powerful scheduler.
Good luck.
Michiel
----------------
Michiel van der Blonk
"Yon sun now rising to the main will set, - but 'tis to rise again ;-
But we when once our mortal light Is set must sleep in endless night."
John Savage
pur...@onthenet.com.au (Steve) writes:
>We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've tried a
>number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable.
ftp ftp.coast.net /SimTel/msdos/cron/
automite.zip B 146667 940620 TSR executes cmds at specified time/date. DEMO
bywhen10.zip B 22080 950212 Executes [.com .bat .exe] files on date/time
crnjr255.zip B 61635 941027 Run jobs at scheduled times with 0k overhead
cron19.zip B 73351 941210 Timed command dispatcher; like Unix cron
daily280.zip B 8383 930521 Runs an external program once a day or week
dela2.zip B 17236 950731 DELA v2.0: TSR automates executing files
doat.zip B 3852 880911 Execute command at a specified time
night.zip B 39754 880801 Schedule batch files at specified times
pdaily.zip B 9812 880612 Patriquin's execute a program once a day
pep.zip B 118055 910414 Painless Event Processor (program scheduler)
repeatat.zip B 4989 930119 Periodically repeat DOS commands using AT pgm
rtdx090.zip B 32660 900419 DOS shell for timed program execution
scdts25b.zip B 85901 940217 Task Scheduler; Run multiple programs anytime
timerun3.zip B 9860 900120 TSR executes DOS commands at a specified time
All PC schedulers essentially require that the machine be idling at
the DOS prompt to work. They just feed a sequence into the keyboard
buffer, so if you happen to be using an editor at the time, it is
likely to show up as an interesting bit of text in some line.
The Automite demo is limited to the scheduling of only one event.
It appears that DELA is US$5 shareware.
>DELA is a TSR that will execute program(s) at specified time(s) of day.
>
>Features:
>
>* DELA requires only 3.8k of conventional memory.
>
>* DELA can send up to 80 keystrokes for a single event at a specified
> time of day.
>
>* DELA can be configured to send up to 10 different events at 10
> different times of day.
>
>* DELA can REBOOT the computer at a specified time. (USE CAUTION)
>
>* DELA will only send the keystrokes if the computer is at the DOS prompt.
> The user does however have the capability to over-ride this feature.
--
John Savage ko...@sydney.dialix.com.au
Keith Petersen
pur...@onthenet.com.au (Steve) writes:
>We're searching for a DOS (only) scheduler or cron program. We've tried a
>number of really poor batch programs, but all were unreliable.
There is an entire directory on Simtel.Net and its mirrors dedicated to
cron-type scheduling programs.
Indexes of all files in Simtel.Net's MS-DOS, Windows 3.x, and Windows 95
collections are available from FTP.Simtel.Net and its mirrors in two
formats:
Directory /pub/simtelnet/msdos/00_info/
Filename Description
==============================================
simdos-i.zip Comma-delim list of all MSDOS files w/descrip.
simdos-l.zip Text format list of all MSDOS files w/descrip.
Directory /pub/simtelnet/win3/00_info/
Filename Description
==============================================
simwin-i.zip Comma-delim list of all Win3 files w/descrip.
simwin-l.zip Text format list of all Win3 files w/descrip.
Directory /pub/simtelnet/win95/00_info/
Filename Description
==============================================
simw95-i.zip Comma-delim list of all Win95 files w/descrip.
simw95-l.zip Text format list of all Win95 files w/descrip.
This program, which is available in all three of the directories
listed above, is recommended for viewing and searching the index:
Filename Description
==============================================
simdir22.zip Search & display the Simtel.Net file list
Although this is a DOS program it also runs well in a DOS window under
Windows 3.x and Windows 95.
Keith Petersen, General Manager of Simtel(tm)
Simtel.Net is a service mark of Walnut Creek CDROM
Internet: w8...@Simtel.Net http://www.simtel.net/simtel.net/
Uucp: uunet!simtel.net!w8sdz ftp://ftp.simtel.net/pub/simtelnet
Mike McCarty
In article <52l71g$m...@apollo.isisnet.com>,
Norman L. DeForest <af...@ccn.cs.dal.ca> wrote:
)No-one who has used 4DOS would ever want to go back to COMMAND.COM
)unless they had to use some poorly-written programme that insisted on
)COMMAND.COM that ignored the COMSPEC variable.
)
) Norman De Forest
) af...@chebucto.ns.ca (new, being phased in)
That's a very strong statement, Norman. -I- used 4DOS, but went back to
COMMAND.COM
Mike
--
----
char *p="char *p=%c%s%c;main(){printf(p,34,p,34);}";main(){printf(p,34,p,34);}
I don't speak for DSC. <- They make me say that.
Gertjan Klein
In article <5342l5$m...@sun001.spd.dsccc.com>,
jmcc...@sun1307.spd.dsccc.com (Mike McCarty) wrote:
> In article <52l71g$m...@apollo.isisnet.com>,
> Norman L. DeForest <af...@ccn.cs.dal.ca> wrote:
> )No-one who has used 4DOS would ever want to go back to COMMAND.COM
> )unless they had to use some poorly-written programme that insisted on
> )COMMAND.COM that ignored the COMSPEC variable.
> That's a very strong statement, Norman. -I- used 4DOS, but went back to
> COMMAND.COM
At the risk of drifting too much off-topic here - why?
Gertjan.
--
Gertjan Klein <gkl...@xs4all.nl>
jljackso
Mike McCarty (jmcc...@sun1307.spd.dsccc.com) wrote:
> In article <52l71g$m...@apollo.isisnet.com>,
> Norman L. DeForest <af...@ccn.cs.dal.ca> wrote:
>
> )No-one who has used 4DOS would ever want to go back to COMMAND.COM
> )unless they had to use some poorly-written programme that insisted on
> )COMMAND.COM that ignored the COMSPEC variable.
>
> That's a very strong statement, Norman. -I- used 4DOS, but went back to
> COMMAND.COM
I suppose you're right -- Norman should have said "No *sane* person who
has used 4DOS would ever want to go back to command.com." ;-)
J.
--
jlja...@dimensional.com -- finger for PGP 2.6.2 public key
Mike McCarty
In article <537u9f$7...@news.xs4all.nl>,
Gertjan Klein <gkl...@xs4all.nl> wrote:
)In article <5342l5$m...@sun001.spd.dsccc.com>,
)jmcc...@sun1307.spd.dsccc.com (Mike McCarty) wrote:
) > In article <52l71g$m...@apollo.isisnet.com>,) > )No-one who has used 4DOS would ever want to go back to COMMAND.COM
) > )unless they had to use some poorly-written programme that insisted on
) > )COMMAND.COM that ignored the COMSPEC variable.
)
) > That's a very strong statement, Norman. -I- used 4DOS, but went back to
) > COMMAND.COM
)
) At the risk of drifting too much off-topic here - why?
)
) Gertjan.
Several reasons. One was, I sometimes write -real- programs. 4DOS is
-not- just an extension of COMMAND.COM. It truly behaves differently
from the standard shell. If I want to be able to ship programs which
reliably run under COMMAND.COM, then I need to use COMMAND.COM.
Secondly, at the time I used it, I did -not- like some of the extra
features. For example, file name completion upon typing a spacebar. I
-dislike- that "feature". Another example of a disliked feature: not
closing and reopening .BAT files when executing them. This is a
security hole. Also, at the time (perhaps not now) it used more memory
than COMMAND.COM. And it costs money, too. COMMAND.COM is free.
Any -one- of these would be enough. All three were (to me) overwhelming.
Lockheed WsmrSmts
: Well, since everybody seems to be thinking of a non-TSR solution, here is
: something I just wrote. SCED.BAT takes two parameters, the time to run, in
: the format hh:mm, and the name of the process to run. There are certain
: restrictions.
:
Actually, I wrote a TSR version in which you specify one or more DOS
commands and a time that you wish them to run. At that time, the TSR
simply stuffs the commands into the keyboard buffer.
John Q. (Jo...@juno.com)
--