>>How universal are the CDROM drivers? If one has no documentation
for the CD drive how do you make a boot disc with the appropriate
drivers? Do they go in the autoexec.bat or config.sys. I think I have
seen them in both.
To take the second question first, the driver gets loaded in
Config.sys, where you give it a name with the D switch
(/D:CD0001 or some such). MSCDEX.EXE (Microsoft CD Extension)
gets executed in Autoexec.bat. In it you also specify a
D switch with the name of the driver as assigned in Config.sys
MSCDEX can have more than one D switch if you've loaded
more than one CD driver).
Here's my config.sys
DEVICE=C:\WIN311\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF
DEVICE=C:\WIN311\DOS\EMM386.exe NOEMS x=A000-C7FF
DOS=HIGH,UMB
FILES=60
BUFFERS=15
LASTDRIVE=Z
DEVICEHIGH=C:\WIN311\CDS\LTNIDE.SYS /D:MSCD0001
DEVICEHIGH=C:\WIN311\DOS\SETVER.EXE
SHELL=C:\WIN311\DOS\COMMAND.COM C:\ /p
DEVICE=C:\WIN311\IFSHLP.SYS
STACKS=9,256
Note the cd driver LTNIDE.SYS. Here's my autoexec.bat
C:\WIN311\net start
@ECHO OFF
LH C:\WIN311\MSCDEX.EXE /S /D:MSCD0001 /V
LH C:\Win311\DOS\SMARTDRV.EXE 2048 2048
PROMPT $p$g
PATH C:\WIN311;C:\WIN311\DOS
C:\WIN311\REALS\MOUSE.COM
SET TEMP=C:\WIN311\TEMP
SET TMP=C:\WIN311\TEMP
choice /cYN /tN,5 "Start NTFS "
if errorlevel 2 goto fatso:
C:\PANOS\NTFSDOS\NTFSDOS.EXE /V
:fatso
choice /cYN /tY,5 "Start Windows "
if errorlevel 2 goto doors:
win
:doors
Note the reference to the driver in MSCDEX.EXE. Looks
like you load it rather than executing it.
I left the rest of the stuff in because it shows one
way to load NTFSDOS conditionally, which I thought might
be interesting, but beside the current point. Of course
you wouldn't try to load windows from an emergency boot
disk.
To answer your first question partially, I have sometimes
succeeded and sometimes failed using IDE CDROM drivers
from one manufacturer's CD on another's. It's always best
to have the right driver, obviously. The sound blaster
CD drivers work with a bunch of different CDs, I guess
because creative outsources to so many different places.
I've used SB drivers with non-SB CDs.
Also you never know NOTHING about a CD - there's always
the id plate, though I admit they often tell very little.
Sometimes you can get a driver off the manufacturers web
page.
SCSI cds have the same problem getting drivers, plus you
have to load the SCSI drivers in config.sys as well.
Here are my (considerably simpler) files from Win 95
emergency boot CD:
Config.sys
; DEVICE=a:\CDs\ltnide.sys /D:MSCD0001
; Note: /P:addr,irq. 1E8,11; 170,15, etc
DEVICE=a:\cds\sbide.sys /D:MSCD0001 /P:170,15 /V
Autoexec.bat
rem -- /L:<driveletter> switch to assign MSCDEX drive letter
MSCDEX.EXE /D:MSCD0001 /V
This is a sort of generic CD boot. I keep all the (IDE) CD rom
drivers I can find in a:\CDs, then if one driver won't work I can
boot from floppy, edit config.sys to load a different driver,
then reboot.
BTW, ALWAYS keep EDIT.COM on your boot floppy. Here are
files I consider essential:
attrib.exe,chkdsk.exe, debug.exe, disksave.exe
(replaces a boot sector), edit.com, fdisk.exe, format.com, regedit.exe, scandisk.exe, and NTFSDOS files.
And, of course, mscdex.exe
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