[gmx-users] multiple backups

[Nguyen Hoang Phuong]

> I would like to know what the Gromacs users think of multiple backups.
>
> As of version 3.1.2 Gromacs makes multiple backups of files.
> If you use the same mdrun command four times
> in the same directory you would have for instance:
> #md.log.1#
> #md.log.2#
> #md.log.3#
> md.log
> Before version 3.1.2 Gromacs would make only one backup
> and you would lose all the older files:
> #md.log#
> md.log
>
> I can see that this could be useful in that you never loose files,
> unless you type rm.
> But personally I find all these files quite annoying and I know
> of may people that think the same.
> When doing analysis or when trying to start a simulation which
> has some problems you often type the same command many
> times and the directory is quickly flooded with more than a hundred
> backup files. I have never used a backup file beyond the last backup.
>
> So I propose to go back to the old system which has only
> a single backup for each file.
>
> Berk.

I absolutely agree with Berk's idea.

Phuong