GRUB prompt

[Gedeon]

If your system is running, your database is a good state in memory.
First action : Connect 4740/4760 (depend your software version) and export all objects (Export on Node level).

Second Action :
If you can login with mtcl or mtch (normally error durant login becaus /usr2 (mao / tel tools) is broken), you can use DEL key to break command lanched by .profile.
If you have prompt, not with (Node)CpuName> you can tar the database to /tmpd (normally /usr4 is in good state) and after transfer this archive to an other PC by ftp.
Check before if you can transfer with FTP on your CPU (connect to CPU as server, or connect to a PC as client).
To tar the database, you have the list of file to backup in /usr2/oneshot/mtch/mao.blf (check on another CPU to have the list). Minimum is /usr3/mao/*.dat /usr3/mao/*.idx /usr3/mao/*.SOS /chetc/TunParams.mao /usr3/mao/*ware* /usr3/mao/*zip /usr3/mao/*w /usr4/account/*.dat /usr4/account/*.idx

Command to TAR the file :
tar cvf /usr4/tmp/MyBackup.tar ListOfFilesToBackup

If FTP is OK, don't forget to transfer in binary mode. Other mode is wermit to transfer using serial port (it's the last solution). Test with a binary file to verify before is your transfer mode is OK (8bits No parity, binary mode).

To restore your backup, use a disk with the same version (same MAO version is mandatory).
Create an empty database, transfer you TAR file in /tmpd and restore it WITHOUT delete the database (it's possible that you don't have many file create by default in you tarfile) and restore it with tar Pxvf /tmpd/MyBackup.tar
Be carefull with path used to create tarfile, if you used /usr3/mao/*dat , the P option in tar command keep the / in the begin of the path, in this condition the file is restored in the absolute place (the good place). If you used relative path (without /) install the tarfile (without P option in command) in the same directory you have used for the backup.

G.

You have a TC to backup data on broken hard disk, I have contribute to create this in the past.