1.  Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and an apparatus to control copying of data on a recording medium, such as magneto-optical disks and magnetic disks, etc. 
2.  Description of the Related Arts
As the recent progress of the computer system, there have been enhancements in the data capacity to be handled and in the variety of the data storing medium.  Particularly in storing information including system files or system data which will not require future amendment there are many cases of employing a full-ROM, an abbreviation of Read-Only Memory, that is exclusively for being "read-out the data" throughout the areas of the medium, such as a CD-ROM, an abbreviation of Compact Disk ROM, which is hereinafter referred to as an F-ROM medium, or employing a partial ROM medium of a magneto-optical disk, referred to hereinafter as a P-ROM, that includes both an area readable as well as writable and an area readable-only. 
FIG.  13 schematically illustrates a structure of a 540 MB magneto-optical medium specified by ISO, the International Standardizing Organization.  The magneto-optical medium is provided with a user area U and Defect Management Areas DMA1 (D1)-DMA (D4).  Prior to and after the user area U are respectively two areas of the DMAs.  The user area is accessable from the user and is divided into eighteen zones from zone 0 (Z0)-zone 17 (Z17).  The read/ write operations are performed from the inner circle to the outer circle of the magneto-optical disk while the disk is rotating at a constant rotation speed.  Therefore, the reading/writing frequency is required to be changable.  Accordingly, the sector number in the physical tracks are different for each zone. 
The above-cited DMA1 (D1)-DMA (D4) are stored with a Disk Definition Structure, referred to hereinafter as a DDS, includes information regarding the quantity of zones, attribute information of each zone to indicate whether it is physically writable, i.e. whether the zone is a ROM area or a RAM area, a Primary Defect List, referred to hereinafter as a PDL, in which are registered defect information, and a Secondary Defect List, referred to hereinafter as a SDL. 
A magneto-optical disk that is called a CD-R is a CD capable of being written-in is different from the CD-ROM in that the attributes are also specified in the destination disk according to the information given from the original medium.  Another magneto-optical disk that have been called a DVD-ROM/DVD-RAM and has a bright future is also such that the attributes are distinguished by zone in the destination disk. 
Hereinafter is described a prior art method and apparatus for controlling copying of the information storing medium.  FIG.  10 is a block diagram of the prior art information storing medium.  FIG.  11 is a flow chart illustrating the operation procedure thereof. 
An original information storage apparatus 5 includes an original information-storing medium 8 typically formed of a magneto-optical disk which stores the data to be copied, which is accordingly referred to hereinafter as an original medium.  The original medium 8 typically formed of a magneto-optical disk partially includes ROM-attributed zones (Z0-Z5). 
A destination information storage apparatus 9 includes a destination information-storing medium 13 typically formed of a magneto-optical disk 9 to copy the data of the original information storing medium, Destination information storage apparatus 9 has its entire zones, for example, (Z0-Z17) as RAM that is readable as well as writable, which will be referred to hereinafter as F-RAM medium, an abbreviation of Full RAM, and a destination medium.  In the ROM-attributed zone in P-ROM medium are generally stored system files and system data of an application program so that no damage of the data, etc.  is caused from an erroneous operation of the operator. 
Control commanding means 2 installed in a host computer 1 connected to both the storage apparatuses 5 and 9 instructs destination attribute information reading means 10 installed in destination information storage apparatus 9 to read out the attribute information of each zone stored in the DDS of the destination information-storing medium 13; and destination attribute information reading means 10 reads the attribute information of the destination information-storing medium 13.  Thus read attribute information is then transferred to a data buffer 3 of host computer 1 (F31 shown in FIG.  11).  Then, the attributes of the entire zones of the destination F-RAM are checked whether they are all of RAM-attributed, i.e. is writable, by host computer 1 (F32).  If it is ROM-attributed indicating that the writing therein is prohibited, no copying operation is executed so as to terminate. 
Next, the control commanding means 2 instructs data reading means 7 to read the information, referred to hereinafter as data, in user area U of original information-storing medium 8.  The data reading means 7 sequentially reads the data out of zone 0 (Z0) of original P-ROM medium 8, then the data is transferred to data buffer 3 (F33).  The reading operation of the data is continuously repeated until data buffer 3 reaches its capacity limit.  Upon reaching the capacity limit the control commanding means 2 instructs data writing means 12 to write the data of data buffer 3 (F34).  Data writing means 12 writes the data of data buffer 3 into the destination F-RAM medium (F35).  Upon completion of the data writing of the data of data buffer 3 the remaining data is read out so as to be written in, in the similar way.  This reading/writing sequence is continuously repeated until the data in the entire zones (Z0-Z17) of the original medium is read out and written into the destination medium (F33-F36).  Upon completion of the writing-in the copying operation is finished (F37). 
The attributes of zones of the destination F-RAM medium corresponding to the ROM-attributed zones (Z0 to Z5) of the original P-ROM medium are writable in the prior art.  Therefore, if the operator erroneously writes over the written data after the data is copied to the destination information-storing medium 13 there is a possibility of damaging the precious data, such as system files or system data; in other words, there is no way to surely prevent the data damage of the destination information storing medium 13 after copying the medium thereto. 
It is possible to prohibit the writing into the entire medium by a write-protect switch provided in the information-storing medium; however it is impossible to protect only a part of information-storing medium.