Can two installations of Newsbin 6.3x be combined into one?

[Moondawgie]

Can two installations of Newsbin be combined into a single installation?

Due to the failure of the hard drive upon which the data folder for my installation of Newsbin existed, I need to download all of the message headers for all of my subscribed newsgroups. I'm wondering if I couldn't speed the process up by utilizing my licensed installation of Newsbin, on my computer, with my internet connection, and my account with Giganews, to retrieve all of the message headers for half of the newsgroups I subscribe to, and my neighbor's licensed installation of Newsbin, on his computer, with his internet connection, his account with Giganews, and an external hard drive of mine, to download the other half of the newsgroups I subscribe to, then combine both data folders into one, as follows:

1. Install Newsbin to my computer's system drive, with the Newsbin Data folder being located in a separate folder on a second (the new) hard drive.
2. Replace the newly created Newsbin.ini file with that from the backup copy from my previous installation.
3. Copy the Newsbin Data folder from my computer system to the external drive.
4. Remove the external drive from my computer.
5. Launch the installation of Newsbin on my computer, select the first half of the subscribed newsgroups, and initiate a download of all headers for those newsgroups.
6. Take the external drive to my neighbor's home, and connect it to his computer.
7. Edit the copy of the Newsbin.nbi file in the Newsbin Data folder on the external hard drive so that the datapath setting matches the location of the Newsbin Data folder on the external drive.
8. Launch my neighbor's installation of Newsbin by selecting "Launch Newsbin" from the menu for the Newsbin.nbi file in the Newsbin Data folder on the external drive, select the second half of the subscribed newsgroups, and initiate a download of all headers for those newsgroups.
9. When the downloading of all headers is complete on my neighbor's computer, and all disk activity has stopped, exit from Newsbin.
10. Disconnect the external drive from my neighbors computer, and restore my neighbor's installation of Newsbin so that it utilizes it's usual Newsbin.ini file, and Newsbin Data folder.
11. After exiting from Newsbin on my computer, connect the external drive to my computer.
12. Copy the files and folders for that half of the newsgroups for which all message headers were retrieved using my neighbor's computer, from the external drive, to my computer's Newsbin Data folder.
13. Say a prayer, then launch Newsbin on my computer.

Would that result in a working installation of Newsbin?

[Quade]

The only thing that really matters is the spool_v6 folder. All the other folder stuff isn't that important.

Just have him download header and you download headers then copy the spool_v6 from his machine to yours. Then subscribe to the missing groups in your end. Everything should work. If you're using the same server on both ends it's even better. Then the record counts would match up. If his server name is different, just set a short "Download age" to catch up the headers on your machine.

[Moondawgie]

Excellent!

Thank you.

[DThor]

I sure hope you're talking about an obscene number of headers, because just hitting 'download all headers' and going to bed is a lot less work with significantly less risk of failure.

DT

[Moondawgie]

I sure hope you're talking about an obscene number of headers, because just hitting 'download all headers' and going to bed is a lot less work with significantly less risk of failure.

DT

The signficant risk of failure while retrieving message headers with Newsbin is always a concern. But the problem is that 12 days before the monthly reset, I've used 92% of my ISP's monthly "service usage" limit. The more message headers that I can download using my neighbor's, much slower DSL, internet service during the day while they aren't using it, the better.