Need Help!- DX32 torq-cut 22 software needed.

[JohnMckenzie]

Guys,
I have a machine with a failed HDD.
No backups have ever been made,
I have recovered 90% of the software from the HDD but a few pieces are missing.

If someone wouldn't mind sending a zipped copy of your backup disk, it would be much appreciated.

email john-mckenzie at msn.com

or if you can direct me to a site that has the software to download that would be great.

regards,
John

[machintek]

Do you have the DOS disks?
What version of machine software were you using? Bridgeport went through about a dozen. Parameter file has to reflect the type of Z axis motor, etc.

George

[JohnMckenzie]

I do not have the DOS disks. I have formatted the HDD with DOS 6.2 using Format c: /s to place the system files on the HDD,

I've then copied the recovered data from the old HDD. startup fails at BXX.exe which is one of those files that I couldn't recover.

As far as software version, where would I look?

I was able to recover the BMDCPRMS and CFGPRMS which I understand are specific to the machine.

thanks
John

[machintek]

Format C:/S transfers command.com and 2 hidden files that make a disk bootable. There is more to DOS than just these files. Typically these machines were loaded with full DOS which is a set of 3 1.44 MB floppys. The EZTRAKSs used just a few dos files necessary to run but still more than just the 3 basic files to boot.
The BMDCPRMS.sys is the most critical file. As you said it has the machine specific parameters. If necessary some machines had a leadcomp.dat file which also was machine specific. BUT this bmdcprms.sys file is also machine software specific. You may load a version of machine software that will not accept this file. It will come up with a error telling you this. But a generic file can be generated followed by comparing the generic file with the original in the maintenance page. I would rename the original as bmdcprms.old and put it on a floppy and lock it so it cannot be edited.

George

[tpmx57]

I have a Torg-Cut 22 that at one time I copied my hard drive and saved it to a cd.
If George can advice how to do it or what you need I would be happy to send you anything I have that would help you.
George is excellent on these machines and has help me so much.
You two figure out what I could send you and I will get it to you.
I could send it to George if needed and to you.
Is b3t.exe the file you need?
GARY

[machintek]

He could try coping the BXX.EXE file to a floppy and then to the HDD from your CD. Trying to attach a CDROM drive and loading a driver and modifying the config.sys file to use it may not be that easy. There are a LOT of variables here that will need to be worked through one at a time. If time is money, the quickest/easiest solution is to get a preloaded DOM from EMI. But they may need to know a few things too (like does it have a Z axis parvex motor). There will be a few things that will need to be tweaked. TC height. Orient. spindle encoder parameters, etc.

George

[JohnMckenzie]

I first want to thank everyone for your help.

I did fix it on my own and now I want to cover what I did for future inquires to this awesome site.

As I stated earlier I had the HDD fail in a Torq-cut 22 w\ DX32 software.

Luckily was able to recover 97% of the data from the HDD.

Tools I used to recover the data:

1. IDE to USB HDD adaptor IDE to USB Link
2. USB Floppy disk drive (optional if you have an internal FDD)
3. A DOS 6.21 Boot Disk from www.BootDisk.com
4. Restorer 2000 the new version is Restorer Ultimate
5. A replacement HDD less than 10Gb in size

Data Recovery Method:

The HDD was not readable and was pretty much dead.
To coax data from the HDD I placed the HDD in the freezer for 15 minutes. I then placed an ice pack on the HDD to keep it cold. After several attempts it worked and I was able to retrieve the data from the drive using Restorer 2000 (old version). I used an XP machine and saved the data to a folder on the desktop.

Prepare the New Drive

1. Plug the replacement HDD into the Torq-Cut 22 machine.
   
2. Start the machine, and press the delete key to access the BIOS. Choose Auto Detect IDE HDD from the Menu. When it detects the HDD it offers you the option to use LBA or Normal mode. (choose Normal). Save the settings and install the DOS 6.21 boot disk in the floppy drive and reboot.
   
3. It should now boot to your DOS 6.21 boot disk. if not change the boot order in the bios to boot from the FDD first.
   
4. At the A:\> prompt type "Fdisk" (A:\>fdisk). Delete all old Primary, Logical, Extended and unknown partitions. Create a new partition of 490MB and make it Active. Exit fdisk to save your changes.
   
5. Then format the new partition. At the A:\> prompt type "Format c: /s" (A:\>format c: /s) It will now format the HDD and copy system files to the HDD. Remove the floppy disk and confirm the new HDD is bootable by rebooting (ctrl+alt+del) the PC. You should see a C:\>
   
6. Remove the HDD and plug the HDD into the IDE to USB adapter.
   
7. Using the XP machine I copied all the recovered files to the new partition.
   
   Note - DO NOT OVERWRITE the existing files on the HDD. (those are your new boot files)
   
8. Plug the HDD back into the Torq-cut 22 and it's up and running once again.

I then copied the files to a CD-ROM just in case of another failure.

[JohnMckenzie]

Originally Posted by JohnMckenzie I do not have the DOS disks. I have formatted the HDD with DOS 6.2 using Format c: /s to place the system files on the HDD, I've then copied the recovered data from the old HDD. startup fails at BXX.exe which is one of those files that I couldn't recover. As far as software version, where would I look? I was able to recover the BMDCPRMS and CFGPRMS which I understand are specific to the machine. thanks John

On the second recovery attempt from the old dead HDD, I was successful in getting the missing files.

[tpmx57]

Glad you got it going.
Stinks when there down.
Bad thing is you can,t stop working on them because you just want the ease of mind that its going again.(let alone if you have a job that needs done)
You are right,this site is awesome,without guys like George and others on here my machine would be a pile of metal.
I love my TC,for what I do it works great,the software is easy to use and when it is running correctly it never misses a beat.
I also bought an IDE to USB adapter from TIGER DIRECT a couple years ago.
I had my HDD out to clean everything at one time and copied it to a cd just incase.
I am going to print out your post and keep it in a folder for a reference with all the other info I get on this machine.
I do this and keep a folder with info and files I find for each machine I have.
Saves alot of search time later.
Good Luck and HAPPY HOLIDAYS to all!

[machintek]

WOW! Congradulations! Somewhere on bit torrents I saw a file of 200 ways to resurrect a hard drive. Maybe I should download it.
Now. When the machine boots look at the screen. You should see the machine software version. For future reference. Most common is 4.30xxxxxxx. It is displayed close to the top when the machine desktop starts. 4.30 was the first good version but could not do 3D very well. Later versions moved a bit softer.

George