I was able to install FreeDOS with the support of Mark
Bailey.
I think that his instruction file makes it fairly
clear how to install. (I will probably always be a
complete novice in all things pertaining to
computers.)
The following are supplemental notes I made as Mark
helped me. (It is long-winded, novice's record. If
anyone now or in the future would like a PDF copy of
this I will be happy to send it to them):
Loading Free DOS onto a Dell that came with Windows XP
The following is an outline of steps for loading
FreeDOS onto a Dell computer that came with Windows
XP. The steps make reference to files and a detailed
guideline provided by Mark Bailey. Since the
guideline is complete, even for someone who is not
into computers only supplemental comments are
provided that may help the complete novice.
1. Download fdinst.pdf (hereafter called PDF
File by going to
http://odin.fdos.org/dual/fdinst091.pdf
This is a set of step-by-step instructions by Mark
Bailey for loading FreeDOS (or MSDOS) onto a computer
that has only a Microsoft Windows operating system.
Bailey explains what you will be doing and why. It
pays to read ahead several pages as you proceed in
order to understand the bigger picture of what you
will be doing.
2. The PDF File instructs the user to download
fdinst091.iso, a 40-MByte file, onto your desktop by
going to
http://odin.fdos.org/dual/fdinst091.iso
This ISO File is an image of the contents of a FreeDOS
Installation CD that will enable you to create FAT32
space on your computer, load DOS into that space, and
give you the option when booting up your computer to
load either Windows or DOS. For more information on
ISO Images see the following sites.
http://www.magiciso.com/tutorials/miso-whatiso.htm
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/I/ISO_image.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iso_image
http://searchsmb.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid44_gci212402,00.html
3. The PDF File next instructs the User to load the
contents of the ISO file onto a CD such that it is a
bootable CD. (This CD can be either R or R/W). The
PDF File states that Easy CD Creator (by Roxio) is
capable of doing this but this User was not able to
use either Easy CD Creator or Roxios most recent
version of a CD burner
The PDF file provides a Web location from which an
ISORECORDER application, aka Power Toy, may be
downloaded which will burn the contents of the ISO
file onto the CD in a useable form. The site is
http://isorecorder.alexfeinman.com/isorecorder.htm
This is free software however there is a PayPal method
for contributions that enable the author of the site
to continue providing software for the various forms
of Microsoft Windows. A donation is a good thing
considering how quickly (and simply) Power Toy uses
the contents of the ISO File to create a bootable CD.
Note that the particular version of the Iso Recorder
to download depends on the particular version of
Microsoft Windows on the computer. To determine what
version of Windows is on the computer right click on
My Computer and in the dropdown window click on
Properties. Look at the description of the system
on the General Tab. (For example, if the system is
Microsoft Windows XP, Home Edition, Version 2002,
Service Pack 2 then download ISORecorderV2RC1.msi.)
The ISO Recorder page provides instructions for how it
is to be used to create the bootable CD after it is
installed. These instructions can be pasted from the
WEB site into a Word, Word Perfect, or similar
application for future reference. (NOTE: As stated in
the PDF File, what is placed on the CD is a collection
of folders and files. There will not be a file with
an iso extension.
The PDF Files next instruction is to reboot the
computer with the CD just created in the computers CD
drive. But this assumes that the computer will look
at the CD drive for boot instructions before it looks
at its hard drive. Dell computers typically are
provided with the following order of boot targets:
- The 3.5-inch floppy (but you needed to have
purchased the computer with floppy hardware.)
- The hard drive
- The CD drive
- A USB device, such as a memory key (aka stick).
To change the boot order so that the CD is looked at
before the HD when starting up (rebooting) the
computer press the F12 key when the word Dell
appears on the screen at start up. This brings up a
display of several lines. Do the following:
- Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to go to BIOS
Setup.
- Left click
- Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to Boot Sequence
- Press Enter to modify the order of the Boot
Sequence (This highlights the first item)
- Use the Up and Down Arrows keys to select the CD
drive
- The use the U key to place the CD drive before the
HD. (You can use the U and D keys to arrange the
order to what particulat fashion you choose.)
- Press Enter to set the order selected
- Press Esc
- Press the Right Arrow key to select EXIT
- Press Enter.
The User is now ready to proceed with the section of
the PDF File entitled Resizing your NTFS Partition.
Please note the following:
1. -In this section, make note whether or not your
partions have names like /dev/hda or /dev/sda or
something else for the last three alpha characters.
This is important when several pages later in the PDF
File the user is told to type
fdisk /dev/hda.
If the last three character in the partitions are
sda then instead type
fdisk /dev/sda.
2. You may see a partition on your Dell for which
under the Id column the label is db. Mark Bailey
determined that this is a Dell automatic restoration
partition. Dell has bundled Norton Ghost with the
computer to do recovery if the primary NTFS (Windows
XP) partition becomes corrupted.
If there are four partitions after creating the FAT 32
partition for DOS then a third operation system can
not be added without destroying the content of one of
the four. (However, additional partitions for non-OS
things could be added.
3. After completing the part of the PDF File
instructions for which Windows XPruns the chkdisk
utility use the application WordPad to create a
txt file and store this in the new FAT 32 partition
which in Windows XP is called something like Local
Disk E.:
The existence of this file can be used later in PDF
File under the section Installing FreeDOS at the DOS
prompt A:> to determine for certain that you are
selecting the correct partition into which to load
DOS.
At the DOS prompt do:
DIR A and Enter
then
DIR B and Enter
.
.
.
DIR E and ENTER
until one of these results in a display of the the
txt file you created.
If this information appeared for DIR C then at the
DOS prompt enter
SYS C at the DOS prompt
then
C at he DOS prompt
then
A: \ install.
4. It may be that when you then remove the bootable
CD, and select and reboot that you get a multiple-line
error message something like the following:
FreeDOS kernel version 1.1.35w (Build 2035w-UNSTABLE,
Sep 15 2005)
Kernel compatibility 7.10 WATCOMC FAT32 support
Copyright 1995-2005 Pasquale J. Villani and the
FreeDOD Project.
NO WARANTY. Licenced under the GNU General Public
Licence version2.
C: HD1, Pri[ 4], CHS= 6604-0-1, start= 51803 MB, size
402 MB
Error in the DJ mechanism!
Error in the DJ mechanism!
IO error: cylinder >1023
Error in the DJ mechanism!
Error in the DJ mechanism!
IO error: cylinder >1023
Press F8 to trace or F5 to skip
CONFIG.SYS/AUTOEXEC.BAT
(I hit pause. Regardless of whether I pressed
ENTER, F8, or F5 the following then appeared)
Error in the DJ mechanism!
Error in the DJ mechanism!
IO error: cylinder >1023
Error in the DJ mechanism!
Error in the DJ mechanism!
IO error: cylinder >1023
Error in the DJ mechanism!
Error in the DJ mechanism!
IO error: cylinder >1023
Error in the DJ mechanism!
Error in the DJ mechanism!
IO error: cylinder >1023
If so then you will need to overwrite the existing
kernel.sys file with an update. This is done by
going to http://fdos.org/kernel/ and download
kernel.dev.sys. Rename the file kernel.sys and,
under WindowsXP copy it to the FreeDOS partition.
This will over write the existing faulty kernel.
Edward R. Long, Jr.
140 New Hope and Crimora Road
Waynesboro, VA 22980
540-363-0104
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