Adding And Removing Programs; Ffs Partitions; Working With Ffs Partitions - Symbol PPT 2800 Series Product Reference Manual

PPT 2800 Series Product Reference Guide

Adding and Removing Programs

Programs pre-installed on your terminal are stored in ROM (read-only memory). You
cannot remove, modify, or accidentally lose this software. You may add programs and data
files to RAM (random access memory).
In addition to the RAM-based storage standard on Pocket PC terminals, the PPT 2800 is
also equipped with a non-volatile Flash-based storage area which can store data
(partitions) that can not be corrupted by a cold boot. This Flash area is divided into two
categories: Flash File System (FFS) Partitions and Non-FFS Partitions.

FFS Partitions

The PPT 2800 terminal includes three FFS partitions. These partitions appear to the
terminal as a hard drive that the OS file system can write files to and read files from. Data
is retained even if power is removed.
The three FFS Partitions appear as three separate folders in the Windows CE file system
and are as follows:
• Platform: The Platform FFS Partition contains Symbol-supplied programs and
Dynamic Link Libraries (DLLs). This FFS is configured to include DLLs that control
system operation. Since these drivers are required for basic terminal operation,
only experienced users should modify the content of this partition.
• Application: The Application FFS Partition is used to store application programs
needed to operate the terminal. This partition includes the Symbol demo program,
which can be overwritten with your own program.
• Data: The Data FFS Partition is optional and if present contains user data files
generated by your custom programs. The default PPT 2800 image does not
contain a Data FFS partition.

Working with FFS Partitions

Because the FFS partitions appear as folders under the Windows CE file system, they can
be written to and read like any other folder. For example, an application program can write
data to a file located in the Application folder just as it would to the Windows folder.
However, the file in the Application folder is in non-volatile storage and is not lost on a cold
boot (e.g., when power is removed for a long period of time).
Standard tools such as ActiveSync can be used to copy files to and from the FFS partitions.
They appear as the "Application," "Platform," and "Data" folders to the ActiveSync explorer.
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