~04/1995
REDUCING APPLICATION LOADING TIME ON A NETWORK Carefully structured directories and Armboot files can make a big difference to how long it takes for a class full of machines to start up and load applications. But loading a large application to fifteen or so stations can still take two minutes or more, even on AUN Ethernet. This can be frustrating, but there are solutions available. One of these is AppFS, a very fast and lightweight server which reduces loading time by around a factor of four. This read-only network filing system works over Econet, as well as AUN Ethernet, and dramatically boosts network performance by reducing the number of small network transactions that take place when applications are started. It also reads the data across the network in larger chunks, which suits Ethernet very well. It can co-exist on the same machine as a Level4 fileserver, but needs a separate disc or partition that is read-only. * AppFS is available from AngelSoft (0554 776845) WHEN DID YOU LAST..... ? Following on from last month's reminder about the batteries in some Archimedes models, here are some further periodic things worth making time for now for benefit in the future. So, when did you last... * Have the fan filter checked/changed ? A blocked filter will reduce airflow through the computer, leading to an increase in temperature inside the case and (in extreme cases) a greater chance of failure at some point in the future. * Backup your important data ? The importance of keeping backups cannot ever be overemphasized - hours of work can be lost if an error develops on a floppy, or a hard disc fails. The older the hard disc, the more important this becomes - hard discs will eventually wear out! * Check your system is free of viruses ? A virus loose on a system can result in anything from impaired performance to spurious errors and data loss/destruction. There are now over 40 families of virus. * Check how much free space is left on a hard disc ? Running out of space can be very frustrating (and can even result in the loss of the file you were trying to save if the program saving it cannot cope). Ask yourself whether the things on the hard disc are there because they are in sufficiently regular use to preclude having them on a floppy, or whether they could be moved to a floppy without affecting the usefulness of the system. Of course, another solution to the problem is to add another hard disc! However there are limits on how many extra hard discs can be added to various interfaces (ADFS - IDE or ST506; one extra hard disc, SCSI; three extra hard discs).