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 OD-90228                         SUGGESTION                       "PRIDE"-IF
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 MAY 12, 1997                   RELEASE  1.2.0                        PAGE  1

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 REQUIRED DATE- OPEN          USER PRIORITY WEIGHT-  79    RANKING-  0040
 DATE RECEIVED- APR 21, 1997  REQUEST STANDING  - REVIEW   AS OF- MAY 12, 1997
                              TYPE- NEW DEVELOP

 DESCRIPTION-

        The OS/2 Warp file system needs generation datagroups.  This is
        an item the mainframe world has had for many years. It works by:
        Define the file attributes (number of copies to keep) whenever a
        new copy of the file is written a list of files is created.
        When the maximum is reached, the old files roll off the bottom.
        Things like the config.sys could be set at the desired
        retention, it is no longer necessary to specify backup names.
        This could work anytime a critical file changes.  Further for
        data (taxes for example) you could specify the amount of time a
        file is to be retained (7 cycles/years).  This would benefit
        end-users and developers alike for all around system
        maintenance.  This is a very simple yet powerful tool.  You
        want to see your config.sys two copies ago, access file
        config.sys(-2) generation.  Not config.001 ... or was it
        config.bak, etc ...   This would help maximize system
        maintenance, data backup by providing a standardized method for
        naming file backups and cyclical datasets in general.

        ATTRIBUTES:

        MEDIUM Value
        Desired NEXT full release

        Submitted by:

        Steven Green
        Holliston, MA, USA
        slgreen@ma.ultranet.com

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