Zippy Backup Assist

Zippy is a backup assist utility that can be used with Access, Mustang or Miami projects to make backup Zip files and repair and compact Access data files. It requires a batch file called “zip.bat” in the same directory as “zippy.exe”.

The batch file must contain a comment that contains the text “ZIPPY=” followed by a project name. This allows ZIPPY to create a parameter that is passed when calling the batch file. If the project name is “fred” and the date is 31st December 2003 then the parameter generated is “fred-2003-12-31”, which allows the batch file to create a ZIP file called “fred-2003-12-31.zip”, provided the batch file contains the required ZIP commands, using either PKZip or WinZip Command Line.

The batch file can also contain any number of comments containing the text “REPC=” followed by an Access file name. If the file specified has been modified in the last 36 hours then Zippy will do a repair and compact of the file, so that the ZIP file does not contain ‘bloated’ files.

A new parameter is the “HOURS=” setting, where you can specify the number of hours old the file should be in order to repair and compact it. The default is 36 hours, i.e. any specified file (mdb or mde) newer than 36 hours will be compacted. Files older than that will not be repaired, even if specified.

The “PAUSE=” setting determines how many seconds Zippy should wait before beginning the Repair and Compact activity. If REPC is specified, the minimum is 20 seconds, to give Access a chance to quit and close the files.

Here is an example of the zip.bat file for Miami itself, with the comments to assist Zippy generate the correct parameters and do the repair and compact.

@echo off
if %1. == . Goto END
rem ZIPPY=Miami
rem MSG=Please quit from Miami and DataMover now
rem HOURS=36
rem PAUSE=5
rem REPC=c:\dev\miami\MiamiCode.mdb
rem REPC=c:\dev\miami\MiamiStartData.mdb
c:
cd \dev\miami
cls
echo ---------------------------------------------------
echo Backup files up to %1
for %%f in (copy*.mdb,db?.mdb,*.ldb) do del %%f
echo ---------------------------------------------------
echo Moving old ZIP files to the archive
md Archive
move *.zip Archive
if exist Archive\%1.* copy Archive\%1.*
pkzipc -add=update -nofix %1 notes.txt
pkzipc -add=update -nofix -Newer=1 %1 *.mdb *.doc *.txt -excl=errorlog.txt -excl=*.old.mdb
echo ---------------------------------------------------
echo Done. You can close this window now
:END

PKZipC can be installed from the pkzc400s.exe file. If you have a new version of WinZip you can download the command line add-in and use that. The syntax for each app is different. WinZip can be downloaded from www.winzip.com, PKZipC from www.pkware.com. PKZipC seems to be faster and more efficient for batch file processing.

Zippy has been improved to prevent duplicate copies running simultaneously on the same machine, and it will use the older Access97 (DAO) method to repair and compact Access 97 files, and the newer ADO method to process Access 2000 and Access 2002 files. It has not been tested on Access 2003/2007 but should work. There is also a "Stop" button to allow cancellation of the process before the batch file runs.

Version 1.0075 adds a second parameter to the zip file: a second date, usually one day behind the first, but you can call zippy.exe with an optional parameter to specify any number of days in the past. The idea behind this is you can use the second parameter to delete old zip files or rename them.

Version 1.0081 makes a backup copy of any data files by renaming the original data.mdb to data.old.mdb and then doing a repair and compact on the original file name. It also adds a MSG= parameter for display purposes.

You can download Zippy version 1.0084 installer (5.11MB) and use it on your PC, provided that you don't try to sell it, either on its own or as part of a collection of software. The program requires the Microsoft Visual Basic 6 Runtime Libraries to work. If the full install doesn't work, try downloading them from the Microsoft web site.

Zippy also requires Microsoft DAO 3.51 Object Library, which comes with Microsoft Access 97 and/or MDAC 2.0 and/or Jet 3.51 Service Pack 3, and the Microsoft Jet and Replication Objects 2.5 Library (Msjro.dll). These DLL files are available after the install of MDAC 2.1. You can download the latest version of MDAC from the Universal Data Access Web Site. See KB article 230501

If you are willing to sign a non-disclosure agreement you can have the source code as well.

Please note: This program is not to be sold, and will remain freeware in the future. You can't make it available for download anywhere else either. All downloads should be made from this page only. You may not list this software elsewhere without written permission. All links should point to this page, not directly to the download file.

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