Question:
Can Acronis Files Connect (formerly ExtremeZ-IP) simultaneously share the same volumes as Services for Macintosh?
Answer:
Although Acronis Files Connect and Services for Macintosh (SFM) can be running at the same time and can share out different volumes, Acronis Files Connect does not allow sharing of the same volumes as Services for Macintosh (SFM) at the same time. If the volumes are removed from SFM or SFM is stopped then Acronis Files Connect will be able to begin sharing out the volumes. There are several technical reasons why this limitation exists:
First, both Acronis Files Connect and Services for Macintosh store Finder information in the ":AFP_AfpInfo" stream of files and directories on NTFS disks. There are situations in which Services for Macintosh does not pick up on changes made by other applications, such as Acronis Files Connect, to this stream. As a result, Services for Macintosh may not show users the same type and creator information about files. This problem can be made worse later, when a Services for Macintosh user causes the type and creator information to be re-written to disk (such as when an SFM user changes a file?s backup time). At this point, SFM would write the incorrect type/creator information to disk, and Acronis Files Connect would notice the change - from that point on, the correct type and creator information could be lost. Group Logic has tested Acronis Files Connect running in conjunction with Services for Macintosh, and under normal circumstances, these problems do not occur. However, under certain conditions, the problems may happen. Furthermore, under extremely unusual conditions, there is the potential for serious damage to type and creator information. Because of this potential for damage, Group Logic has chosen to disable simultaneous sharing of volumes with SFM.
An additional sharing issue pertains to the network trash folder. If SFM cannot create the network trash folder, it will generate an error message and not allow the volume to be shared over AppleTalk. Because Acronis Files Connect also creates this folder, Services for Macintosh will generate the error message for any simultaneously shared volume if Acronis Files Connect is started first. If, however, you start Acronis Files Connect AFTER SFM, Acronis Files Connect will recognize the presence of the network trash folder and simply use that copy.
More information about this can be found in the online help and the manual.