Introduction

illTree is a program that will enable you to remove a directory even if it contains files and subdirectories (which again may contain files and subdirectories). It is very simple to use, just type KillTree C:\DIR to remove the directory C:\DIR and all subdirectories below it.

Requirements

illTree requires DOS 3.1 or higher, and may not work under DOS versions later than 7.1. It requires 125K to run. No special screen card or monitor is required. KillTree also requires access to the SUBST program somewhere in the PATH if you specify /UNSUBST on the command tail.

Switches

KillTree has three switches:

/K Keep the directory you are KILL'ing. "KILLTREE C:\DIR" will remove the C:\DIR directory, whereas "KILLTREE C:\DIR /K" will remove all the directories below C:\DIR but keep the C:\DIR itself.

/W Wait for a disk to be inserted before starting.

/UNSUBST Execute SUBST and delete any SUBST'ed drives found in the path you are killing.

Detailed description

illTree has internal logic that will detect SUBST'ed drives and will act accordingly. Assume the following commands:


        MD C:\DIR
        MD C:\DIR\1
        MD C:\DIR\2
        MD C:\DIR\3
        MD C:\DIR\A
        MD C:\DIR\1\1.1
        MD C:\DIR\1\1.2
        MD C:\DIR\1\1.1\1.11
        MD C:\DIR\A\B
        MD C:\DIR\A\B\C
        SUBST Q: C:\DIR\1\1.1
        SUBST R: C:\DIR\A
        CD Q:\1.11
        CD C:\DIR\A\B\C
        CD R:\B

which gives the following directory tree:

The command KILLTREE C:\DIR will then produce the following output:


        Changing dir on C: to C:\
        Changing dir on SUBST drive Q: to Q:\
        Changing dir on SUBST drive R: to R:\

          C:\DIR\1\1.1\1.11 Removed.
          C:\DIR\1\1.1 Not removed (SUBST Q:)
          C:\DIR\1\1.2 Removed.
          C:\DIR\1 Not removed (SUBST Q:)
          C:\DIR\2 Removed.
          C:\DIR\3 Removed.
          C:\DIR\A\B\C Removed.
          C:\DIR\A\B Removed.
          C:\DIR\A Not removed (SUBST R:)
          C:\DIR Not removed (SUBST Q:)

and will leave a directory tree of the following look:

ie. it will remove as much as possible. If there are any files in the directories not removed, they will still be deleted. The display will show you why it can't remove the directories, as seen above.

If you really want to delete C:\DIR\1\1.1 and C:\DIR\A then you could specify /UNSUBST on the command tail to make KillTree UnSUBST any SUBST'ed drives in the path it it killing.

Support is also present for ASSIGN and JOIN, which KillTree will detect and act accordingly upon. You cannot UnASSIGN or UnJOIN, however.

Technical info

illTree uses FCBs to delete files with, since they allow wildcards to be used in the delete command (handle functions does not!). This may make KillTree not work correctly under some networks.

KillTree uses some undocumented DOS calls to be able to determine the values of your SUBST'ed drives. This means that the program may not be able to run under all versions of DOS. It has been tested under DOS 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.00 and 4.01 and has been found satisfactory. If you use another version of DOS, or if KillTree reports that it can't work under this version of DOS, or if KillTree just doesn't process your SUBST'ed drives correctly, we will be VERY pleased to hear from you. You can call our support BBS via the FidoNet matrix, mail us a letter or you can phone our technical service. See the numbers at the front inlay of the manual.

KillTree has three switches:
/K	Keep the directory you are KILL'ing. "KILLTREE C:\DIR" will remove the C:\DIR directory, whereas "KILLTREE C:\DIR /K" will remove all the directories below C:\DIR but keep the C:\DIR itself.
/W	Wait for a disk to be inserted before starting.
/UNSUBST	Execute SUBST and delete any SUBST'ed drives found in the path you are killing.