Synchronet BBS Software for Win32 v3.13
This version has been successfully tested with the following MicrosoftÒ operating systems:

·	Windows 95
·	Windows 95a
·	Windows 95b (OSR2)
·	Windows 98
·	Windows 98 SE
·	Windows Me
·	Windows NT 4
·	Windows 2000 (Professional and Server)
·	Windows XP (Home and Professional)
·	Windows Server 2003
Upgrading
To upgrade an existing installation of Synchronet (v2.3 or v3.x), you must choose the "Upgrade" setup option. 

Ø	If you have a modified ctrl\text.dat file, make a back up, as it will be overwritten during the installation.
For a list of the changes made (many of which are required for proper operation), see docs\text*.dif.
•	If you have modified any of the stock command shells or modules (exec\*.src), make a back up, as these files will be overwritten during the installation.
To make the preservation of modified modules easier during future upgrades, it is suggested you utilize the ”mods“ directory feature to store modified command shells and modules.
•	If you’re going to be running the Web server with the updated Web/SSJS files, you may also use the updated FTP HTML interface by changing the HTML Index JavaScript from “ftp-html.js” to “ftp-web-html.js” in the SBBSCTRL FTP Server Configuration dialog or the [FTP] section of your ctrl/sbbs.ini file. The default script (ftp-html.js) still has an updated look, but it’s not nearly as nice as the version that relies on the existence of the Web Server-based CSS, background image, and other files.
Backups
This version of the Synchronet-Win32 installer will automatically create compressed archives (ZIP files) containing all the files and sub-directories in the Synchronet installation target directory before an upgrade begins and after an installation or upgrade has been completed successfully. These files will help sysops easily recover custom-modified files or original/stock/default files after accidental deletion or over-writing.

Pre-upgrade backup file: C:\sbbs\preinstallbackup.zip
Post-install/upgrade backup file: C:\sbbs\postinstallbackup.zip
Installation Directory
It is recommended that you install Synchronet into the default installation directory (C:\sbbs). If you choose to install into a different location, it is strongly recommended that you use \sbbs or another MS-DOS compatible 8.3 format path name (e.g. D:\sbbs, and NOT D:\synchronet).
Synchronet Control Panel
The Synchronet Control Panel (exec\sbbsctrl.exe) is the default system operator console for Synchronet v3 for Win32, utilizing an advanced graphical user interface (GUI).

The installation program will create a shortcut to sbbsctrl.exe on your desktop and in your startup folder (so Synchronet will start automatically during boot-up).
Synchronet Console
There is also a text mode system operator console for Synchronet (exec\sbbs.exec). This console may be used by advanced system operators that do not wish to use the graphical interface. 

SBBS.EXE and SBBSCTRL.EXE use the same underlying server libraries (exec\*.dll) and configuration files (ctrl\*.cnf, cfg, and ini).

See docs\sbbscon.txt for details on using the Synchronet Console.
Synchronet NT Services
This version of Synchronet includes sbbsNTsvcs.exe which may be used to run Synchronet as a set of operating system services on Windows NT based operating systems (including Windows 2000 and Windows XP). The Synchronet Control Panel can still be used to view real-time logs and statistics, monitor and control nodes, and start and stop services, but it is not necessary for the BBS to be running and servicing clients.

See docs\sbbsNTsvcs.txt for details on installing and using the Synchronet NT Services.
Documentation
The majority of the sysop documentation has been converted to HTML format, but is no longer included in the installation package due to size considerations. See http://synchro.net/docs/ for the online documentation or download ftp://ftp.synchro.net/sbbsdocs.zip for a local installation.
Licensing/Registration/Donations
Synchronet is free software covered under the GNU General Public License. No registration or licensing fee is required. See http://synchro.net/copyright.html for details. The author/maintainer (rob@synchro.net) has a PayPalÒ account for accepting voluntary monetary donations.
Source Code
Synchronet is an open source development project with complete anonymous public access to the full C/C++ source code. See http://synchro.net/source.html for details.

Thank you for your interest in Synchronet BBS Software,

Rob Swindell, http://synchro.net/author.html