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Original work by [[Micho Durdevich]]
Original work by Vagif Ashumov [http://www.multiboot.ru/msdos8.htm]


<h2>1. Introduction</h2>
If you don't know DOS, you don't know Windows...


<p>In this article we shall talk about diskless Windows workstations
==Some features of MS-DOS 8.0==
that remote-boot Windows Millennium Edition from OS/2 Warp Server.</p>
* Since September 2000, the latest version 4.90.3000 Windows 98, more commonly known as Windows Millennium Edition ME with removal native mode / real / true / pure MS-DOS mode of booting from the hard disk on the Internet has a patch - Real DOS-Mode Patch for Windows ME v1.3 This removes a deliberate error in the last version of Microsoft MS-DOS 8.0 shipped embedded in Windows Me. Another Russian path also make Command.com DOS version independent.(93040) This Command.com you can launch from Windows NT 5x (2000,XP,2003,WHS). A subset is included with 32-bit versions of Windows XP and Windows Vista. For booting from C: drive IO.SYS and COMMAND.COM can be modified by replacing byte 75 by byte EB at hex offset 00006510 in COMMAND.COM and 000003AA for IO.SYS
* MS-DOS 8.0 Patch:
*:<tt>IO.SYS .... 000003AA 75 -> EB</tt>
*:<tt>COMMAND.COM 00006510 75 -> EB</tt>
:For remove version check replace byte sequence 3D 08 00 74 ->90 90 90 EB
* Third parties have discussed how to restore some aspects of the Real-mode functionality in Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me). The use of third-party methods is neither recommended nor supported by Microsoft as Windows Me has not been tested with nor designed to run with Real-mode terminate-and-stay-resident (TSR) drivers.
* New Real DOS-mode Patch for MS-DOS 8.0 by replacing in IO.SYS first 2048 bytes from original Windows Me OEM CD IO.SYS
* README.TXT - Contents boot disk MS-DOS Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 deleted file restored from an image extracted from diskcopy.dll Windows XP SP3. In this subset Microsoft cut startup message from OS kernel "Starting Windows Millennium Emergency Boot ... " to "Starting...". Format a floppy disk by using My Computer, select the Create an MS-DOS startup disk option. The size of OS Kernel from Windows XP - IO.SYS 116,736


<p> Configurations we are going to present are the most complex, yet the most powerful
* "Merged real mode drivers in Io.sys. Services such as HIMEM and SMARTDRV, which are separate files in Windows 98 that must be loaded during boot, are now built into the Windows Me Io.sys file. This improves read performance of the hard disk during boot. Io.sys is compressed, which reduces disk size and makes it faster to load." Microsoft: Improving "Cold Boot" Time for System Manufacturers Updated: December 4, 2001
Windows RIPLing solutions. We achieve this by combining diverse ideas presented
in the previous articles, with a new structural element: Dynamical transition from real-mode to protected mode networking, during the boot process. </p>


<p> Our RIPL clients start as normal DOS requesters from a virtual
* The decompressor for IO.SYS Version 8 by Rudolph R. Loew will take an Unmodified Compressed version 8 IO.SYS File and create an Uncompressed IO.SYS File that can be used to Boot DOS 8
superfloppy [A:]. During the real-mode boot phase, they create a small RAM-drive [C:]
that holds Registry and some critical Windows files. These files form
what we shall call the <i>sub-nucleus</i> (in contrast to the <i>nucleus</i>
configurations considered previously, the sub-nucleus alone is not enough
to boot GUI).</p>


<p> Using ideas of this article, it is possible to set up RIPL clients that have
* Uncompressed with The Decompressor for IO.SYS Version 8 by Rudolph R. Loew, IO.SYS file size is 280064 bytes can be reduced by stripping the bitmap with any hex-editor.The bitmap starts at 'BM' but ends at 0x44005
<i>absolutely the same functionality, and the same look and feel</i> as
the standard Windows machines. In particular, we can set up a diskless
workstation that runs a standard, full-blown version of Windows Millennium from
OS/2 Warp Server.</p>


<p> More specifically, basic characteristics of our RIPL-clients are:
* Win3xStart path for uncompressed IO.SYS version 8.0: original path by Ralf Buschmann, based on an idea by Samuel Leo
  FF 00 04 73 06 BE 04 ==>> FF 00 03 73 06 BE 04
  C0 58 74 EE 80 0E 5B ==>> C0 58 90 90 80 0E 5B


<ul>
* COMMAND.COM FIX original fix by John Augustine
<li>Dynamical switch from real-mode to protected mode networking during
Show files in hidden sub-directories
the boot process. Full 32-bit networking working.  
  D4 B9 10 00 B4 ==>> D4 B9 16 00 B4
<li>Full long file-name support.
  FC B9 10 00 B4 ==>> FC B9 16 00 B4
<li>At least as stable as standard Windows Millenium Edition systems. Actually, we have an increased
security and stability, because of the RIPL-context.
<li>Ability to play video clips, advanced audio support, games :) Virtually all applications are supported.
<li>The whole HTML-engine working, including the extensive help
subsystem, wizards and IE.
<li>High flexibility in configuring. Possibility to
introduce a local HDD for swapping. A local HDD can also hold
the sub-nucleus files.
<li>Universality: Ideas of this article apply also to Windows 95/98/98SE.
This RIPLing method works for all types of lite Windows versions, too.
</ul>


Diskless Windows 95/98/98SE configurations require much less work.
* Himem.sys, Emm386.exe and Smartdrv.exe versions that are included with Windows Millennium Edition are the best, and work fine under MS-DOS 7.10. Windows Me does not support loading Emm386.exe from the Startup disk. Xmsmmgr.exe(HIMEM: DOS XMS Driver, Version 3.07 - 02/14/92): This file is a TSR (terminate-and-stay-resident) version of HIMEM.SYS(Windows XMS Driver Version 3.95). It is run from the source directory when Setup has determined that there is not an XMS provider loaded in memory.  
Various WinME-specific steps described here are not necessary, while
some other steps require trivial modifications. Therefore, I
decided to illustrate everything on the most challenging case-Windows  
Millennium.</p>


<p>The article is organized as follows. The next section contains
* IO.SYS from the floppy image Windows ME OEM CD load automatically DBLBUFF.SYS and IFSHLP.SYS. Startup message: Now preparing to start your new computer.
a couple of simple, but important remarks, about the server setup. The main
Startup Menu no differences with the Startup Menu Windows 98 SE.
part of the article is Section 3, that describes the boot process and the
{|
design of our RIPL requesters. In particular, it contains the sub-nucleus
|
listing for Windows Millennium. We also explain how to get dynamical networking
  Microsoft Windows Millennium Startup Menu
transition working, with the help of SNAPSHOT.EXE and SNAPSHOT.VXD. </p>
  =========================================
  1. Normal
  2. Logged (\BOOTLOG.TXT)
  3. Safe mode
  4. Step-by-step confirmation
  5. Command prompt only
  6. Safe mode command prompt only
  Enter a choose 1.
  F5=Safe mode Shift+F5=Command prompt Shift+F8=Step-by-step confirmation[N]
|}
Restart your computer. Press and hold down CTRL until the Startup Menu appears.
This menu appears only from the floppy image Windows ME OEM CD IO.SYS.


<p>Section 4 discusses two sample configurations (that use NETBIOS and IPX as real-mode
In Russian forum topic starter fps posted: "WinME has a normal DOS"
protocols, respectively). In particular, it contains
PROTOCOL.INI and mini-Registry descriptions for these configurations.</p>


<p>In Section 5, concluding remarks and observations are made.  
http://forum.ixbt.com/topic.cgi?id=22:10612
This includes modifying original fully diskless setup,
in order to include configurations that have a local hard drive. As
we already mentioned, a local HDD
can be very useful as a swapping media. It can also hold
the subnucleus package. It is also possible to install more Windows files
locally, which enables us to fine-tune the performance of network clients. </p>


<p>The article ends with two appendices. The first appendix (having an
No cracks and patches. MS cares about herself, but from users is away scraps.
independent interest) describes a very elegant procedure to enable
real-mode DOS support in Windows Millennium Edition. The second appendix
discusses a couple of strange properties of Windows 98SE/ME. I do not
see any other purpose of these "new features" except to make
it exceedingly difficult to run Windows in any non-standard
environment, including our RIPL context. </p>


<p>After all, there is something good in the fact that Windows designers
The following files are only on the Windows Me OEM bootable CD
decided to introduce such puzzling obstacles. One of the best
Tools\NetTools\FAC\cbs.dta\winboot.sys (118784)
ways to learn any subject is, perhaps, by solving non-trivial
Tools\NetTools\FAC\cbs.dta\winboot.lf (116736)
problems appearing in the game.</p>
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\io.sys (116736)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\msdos.sys (7)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\command.com (92992)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\setucase.com (688)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\pld.dta\reboot.exe (755)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\tee.com (1298)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\imdump.exe (11628)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\setini.exe (20364)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\pbf.img (512) - floppy bootsector
Everything! "Command Prompt Only" is present.


<p>In the spirit of this, the paper features a variety
Autoexec + Config.sys is processed
of <i>exercises.</i> Some of them are easy, some of them are tricky. And
the solution is not always unique! Anyway, I hope that solving
exercises, or just thinking about possible solutions, can help
you understand better a very subtle and exciting theory of RIPLing
diskless Windows workstations from OS/2 Warp Server. </p>


<h2>2. Notes on Servers Involved</h2>
This command.com no have Strange Instructions Built Into COMMAND.COM as noted in the article by Micho Durdevich [[RIPLing Windows Millennium Edition]] from OS/2 Warp Server


<p>It is important to distinguish between three different possible roles
Appendix A: Enabling Real-Mode DOS Support in Windows Millennium Edition "Our main idea is to replace the file VMM32.VXD by the appropriate command interpreter. The simplest solution would be to use the standard COMMAND.COM. However, a slight technical problem appears here, because of a funny mistake in the standard command interpreter COMMAND.COM"
that a server system could play in a RIPL game:</p>


<p><b>The RIPL Server:</b> Enables a diskless system to start over a network,
Appendix B: Weird Changes in Design of Windows Millennium
loading a DOS kernel and initiating the 16-bit networking.</p>


<p><b>The Operating System Server:</b> It is where Windows
If you copy any normal DOS executable over VMM32.VXD, it should start without problems, as a part of WinME "boot". The only ME-runnable program I know that does not start properly is the command interpreter COMMAND.COM
files are stored. This server enables the  
RIPL workstation to boot into a full 32-bit Windows
client.</p>


<p><b>The Applications Server:</b> It is where all application
IO.SYS outdated.
files are stored.</p>


<p>The simplest setup is that a single OS/2 Warp Server
WARNING: MS-DOS Does Not Properly Process Hard Disk Hardware Errors. Microsoft updated ms-dos kernel files both version 7.10 & 8.0
machine plays all these roles. In more complex networks however, it might
be a better idea to designate different server machines to
perform different remote-boot-related tasks. And of course, it is possible
to have several server machines, within the same
group (for example, a couple of RIPL servers). This
could be interesting in the situations where the network is heavily
loaded by RIPL requests. </p>


<p>I strongly recommend that all these three principal
Microsoft REMOVED the display of the Startup Menu from Windows ME & MS-DOS 8.0 startup disk from Windows XP , Vista, Seven.
tasks be performed by OS/2 machines (strictly speaking,
{|
you need an OS/2 server only for RIPL service, while
|
OS/2 clients can be used to provide Windows operating system and
                  Microsoft Windows Startup Menu
applications). I consider OS/2 as by far the most reliable
                  ==============================  
remote-boot solution.</p>
   
 
  1. Normal
<p>It should be noted however, that you can easily set
up things in order to use different operating
systems on server machines (as Windows or UNIX).  </p>
 
<h2>3. Description of the Boot Process</h2>
 
<h3>Initial Real-Mode Boot</h3>
 
<p>In this first phase, we RIPL-start a DOS requester
from a virtual superfloppy of at least 8MB (the
creation of such superfloppy images was described in
articles 4/5).</p>
 
<p>I recommend installing <i>two network adapters</i> per diskless
workstation, during the testing and building of the RIPL clients.
The first network adapter should be dedicated to <i>initial
RIPL-processing</i> and the second adapter should be used for
 
<i>M$ networking</i> (in both real and protected modes). Once
our RIPL client is working properly, we can fine-tune it and
switch to a single-adapter setup easily. </p>
 
<p>The superfloppy contains the following software components:</p>
 
<h4>Real-Mode System</h4> <p>It consists of IO.SYS, MSDOS.SYS
(in the root directory) with IFSHLP.SYS (in WINDOWS folder)
and VMM32.VXD=COMMAND.COM (as explained in Appendix A).
Here is a possible listing of the [Paths] section of MSDOS.SYS file:</p>
 
<pre>WinDir=F:\WINDOWS
WinBootDir=A:\WINDOWS
HostWinBootDrv=F
</pre>
 
<h4>Real-Mode M$ Networking</h4>
 
<p>It is composed from the following files:</p>
 
<pre>NET.EXE    NET.MSG    NETH.MSG    PROTMAN.DOS  PROTMAN.EXE  SUBST.EXE
  PROTOCOL.INI    SYSTEM.2    &lt;16nicdrv&gt;.DOS SNAPSHOT.EXE NDISHLP.SYS
</pre>
 
<p>Here, SYSTEM.2 is the mini-registry containing
necessary information for the 16-bit networking to start. A blueprint of
the mini-registry is listed in WiRIPL3. Protocol-related entries are
discussed within the next section. Here, this file has a <i>weird extension</i>. This is
because IO.SYS of WinME examines the Registry (if it finds it!)
from the very beginning, and the system somehow
<i>remembers</i> something of it. This can totally confuse the system
during the GUI boot (where we switch to the full Registry). The
mini-Registry is renamed to SYSTEM.DAT later, just before
starting the real-mode network client. </p>
 
<p>Observe also that we do not have any CONFIG.SYS
file! Actually, IO.SYS of WinME is <i>unable to
load</i> any real-mode device drivers listed in CONFIG.SYS
(except IFSHLP.SYS that is loaded automatically and HIMEM.SYS
that is pre-built into IO.SYS). It simply ignores
the CONFIG.SYS file. </p>
 
<p>A workaround is to use the appropriate command-line
utility for loading device drivers (as LDEVICE by Adlersparre &amp;
Associates, for example).</p>
 
<p>The only driver here that we would normally load
from CONFIG.SYS is RAMDRIVE.SYS. The network
adapter driver and NDISHLP.SYS are loaded by
NET.EXE, when starting the network protocol (which
by the way enables SNAPSHOT.EXE to properly capture
the whole contents of the real-mode networking). </p>
 
<h4>Ramdrive Software</h4>
<p>A possible solution is given by LDEVICE.EXE and RAMDRIVE.SYS!</p>
 
<h4>Sub-Nucleus Files</h4>
<p>The WINDOWS folder contains all the above mentioned network &amp;
 
ramdrive-related files. The most important files are in subfolders
SYSTEM and SYSTEM32.</p>
   
   
<p><b>System Subfolder</b></p>
Enter a choose 1.
   
   
<p><b>CriticalFiles={ </b>kernel32.dll, user32.dll, vmm32.com,
F5=Safe mode Shift+F5=Command prompt Shift+F8=Step-by-step confirmation[N]
krnl386.exe, systray.exe<b> }</b></p>
|}
 
*Last update: With Windows Vista the files on the startup disk are dated 18th April 2005 but are otherwise unchanged,
<p><b>Network-related={</b> vredir.vxd, netbeui.vxd, nwlink.vxd,
:Io.sys file size is 116736 bytes
vnetbios.vxd<b> }</b> </p>
*Kernel loading menu minimal - Normal, the remaining modes by hot keys.. For Safe mode command prompt only, without implementation of the configuration files config autoexec hold shift during loading. Existing options configuration of msdos.sys or winboot.ini with higher priority (Winboot. Ini is an interim version Msdos.sys file created during installation Win9x): Logo = 0 not display a logo for loading; DisableLog = 1 not to log bootlog.txt ; SystemReg = 0 not preload the system registry; BootGUI = 1 parameter is not working. Windows will not automatically loaded when Windows folder have command.com. If command.com only source drive and the path to Windows folder true specified in the msdos.sys and config.sys added line FAT32 support driver device=ifshlp.sys, then Windows will load automatically. There is no need to set anything in the autoexec.bat.
 
*Disable the F8 startup menu in Uncompressed IO.SYS by Dencorso
<p>At the protected mode level, our RIPL clients use both NETBIOS
:1) Search for B4 02 CD 16 A8 07 74 and patch the red 74 to EB
and IPX protocols, and the primary network logon is given by client
:2) Search for 36 01 B4 01 CD 16 75 :
for M$ networks. </p>
:you'll find it to be 36 01 B4 01 CD 16 75 XX , where XX is any value.  
 
:Patch this to become 36 01 B4 01 CD 16 90 90
<p><b>KnownDLLs={ </b>nt1003.sys, advapi32.dll, netapi32.dll, msgsrv32.dll, netbios.dll, lz32.dll, lzexpand.dll,  
*ScanDisk cannot process on a FAT32 drive, if the volume size more 127.53 gigabytes (GB). Limitations of FAT32 File System
linkinfo.dll, ntdll.dll, svrapi.dll, wmi.dll, wmiexe.exe, mpr.dll, mprexe.exe, version.dll, ver.dll<b> }</b></p>
*Sys.com version 8.0 is functionally limited, using sys.com version 7.10 is included in Windows 98SE and put it to the table version setver.exe from boot disk Windows ME, as a driver (line device = setver.exe in config.sys ), you can remove the restrictions functionality of MS-DOS 8.0. Instead of file setver.exe can use the driver ver710.sys by Dencorso (put DEVICE=VER710.SYS as the very first line in CONFIG.SYS). Another way use deversioned sys.com version 7.10 (3D 07 0A 74->90 90 90 EB)
 
*Windows XP Professional operating system CD contains a modified file format.com - Oformat.com. Run Oformat on the versions of MS–DOS in Windows Millennium Edition or Windows XP. Oformat does not prompt for confirmation before formatting a disk. Oformat creates a FAT32 volume with clusters that are aligned in an optimal way for when the volume is later converted to NTFS file system format. Oformat does not force sector verification at the first disk format. As a result, you can do a Quick Format immediately after creating a new partition, which is significantly faster in the manufacturing environment than using the conventional Format. Russian analogue oformat.com - patched FORMAT.COM: Option /Q (QuickFormat) now can be used to format floppies and hard disks quickly even if they're never been formatted before MS-DOS version check has been removed You cannot format a volume larger than 32 gigabytes (GB) in size using the FAT32 file system during the Windows XP installation process. Another option is to start from a Microsoft Windows 98 or Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me) Startup disk and use the Format tool included on the disk.
<p><b>Miscellaneous={ </b>locale.nls, unicode.nls, cp_1252.nls, cp_437.nls<b> }</b></p>
 
<p><b>System::Iosubsys={ </b>Basically, all vxd/pdr/drv files that are  
present in standard configurations<b> }</b></p>
 
<p><b>System::VMM32={}</b></p>


<p><b>System32-subfolder={</b>
Limitations of the FAT32 File System in Windows XP
This subfolder should contain all device drivers
that are associated to the loader NTKERN.VXD, which by default is an
integral part of the monolithic VMM32.COM. In particular,
the corresponding 32-bit network adapter driver &lt;drv32nic&gt.SYS
should be in SYSTEM32<b>. }</b></p>


<h3>Real-Mode Game and VMM32-Initialization</h3>
*SYS.COM, FORMAT.COM, OFORMAT.COM Fix (original path by Petr Soucek)
:Modify boot record code from 75 06 to B2 0E at specific location
:This modification causes using INT 13 Extensions(LBA addressing) regardless on partition or media type.
:FC 75 06 -> FC B2 0E
:WARNING: This fix is not intended for computers that do not have support for Int13h extensions!
*SYS.COM, FORMAT.COM, OFORMAT.COM check OEM System Name (MSWIN4.1; sometimes called the "OEM ID") is the eight-byte ASCII string that identifies the system that formatted the disk. Many floppy disks have the letters IHC in their OEM ID field.The whole string begins with five pseudo-random hex bytes, and always ends with the characters IHC. (Alex Verstak & Daniel B. Sedory ). You can replace the OEM string in SYS.COM, FORMAT.COM, OFORMAT.COM from MSWIN4.1 to MSDOS8.0


<p>At first, we have to create the approptiate RAM-disk.  
The maximum possible number of clusters on a volume using the FAT32 file system is 268,435,445. With a maximum of 32 KB per cluster with space for the file allocation table (FAT), this equates to a maximum disk size of approximately 8 terabytes (TB).
For example, one solution is given by executing


<font color=#660000>
*Fdisk.exe is a simple boot manager, if you hard drive have more than one primary partition -use Set active partition option to select bootable partition. IDE hard disks larger than 128 GB using the 48-Bit logical block addressing (LBA). If installed on your computer BIOS does not support 48-Bit LBA, disk space outside the boundaries of 128 GB not specified. Windows ME's FDISK an entry : "MS-DOS Version 8 (C) Copyright 1981-1999." FDISK may create more than one primary partition, if you after the first primary partition make it hidden by third-party. Fdisk.exe Unable to Partition Drives Larger Than 512 Gigabytes. Maximum Sizes on FAT32 Volumes is 127.53 GB Maximum file size is 4 GB. NTFS compared to FAT and FAT32
<center>LDEVICE RAMDRIVE.SYS /E 10000</center></font></p><p>
Next, it is necessary to copy the entire
WINDOWS folder (with subfolders) into the newly
created RAM-disk [C:]. Rename SYSTEM.2 into SYSTEM.DAT.</p>


<p>Furthermore, we execute from [C:] the following
*You can install MS-DOS 8.0 on FAT32 partition as second OS to boot.ini.
<center><font color=#660000>RPLTERM, SUBST A: C:\</font></center><div>
which will terminate the connection with the virtual
superfloppy, and create a new [A:]-drive, as a
<i>substitution</i> by [C:].</div></p>


<p><b>Exercise:</b> Explain reasons why do we need the
==MS-DOS 8.0 Files without real-mode network drivers==
SUBST step at all? What could be an alternative? </p>
All binary files with strings "MS-DOS Version 8 (C)Copyright 1981-1999" or "Microsoft"


<p>The 16-bit networking is started by the following
Unofficial standalone Full MS-DOS 8.0 Distribution Disk
sequence of commands:
<font color=#660000><center>SNAPSHOT /M:&lt;xyz&gt;<br>
              net start &lt;protocol&gt;&nbsp;<br>
              net start workstation<br>   
              net use F: \\OS2Server\WinME<br>
              SET path=F:\windows;F:\windows\SYSTEM</center></font></p><p>


where &lt;protocol&gt; is IPX or NETBEUI and &lt;xyz&gt; is the amount of memory
Download installation Boot CD ISO image (MSDOS8.ISO)
in Kilobytes, that should be reserved for real-mode networking.</p>


<p>After establishing a network connection, we should
Contents of the Windows XP SP3 & Windows 7 MS-DOS startup disk extracted (Disk Extract) from DISKCOPY.DLL.
copy the full
<center><b>Registry={ </b>SYSTEM.DAT, USER.DAT, CLASSES.DAT<b> }</b></center></p><p>
from a client-specific location into C:\WINDOWS. </p>


<p><b>Exercise:</b> Explain how to take advantage of the
Another application to get the image you can download from http://jacevedo.phstech.info/getbtdsk.zip
powerful OS/2 Warp Server <i>filtering mechanism</i>  
<pre>
that is built into its DOS-RIPL subsystem, in order to
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
be able to automatically transfer the appropriate
IO.SYS 116 736 A R S H 18-04-2005 17:54:34
requester-specific Registry files. </p>
EGA2.CPI 58 870 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
 
EGA3.CPI 58 753 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
<p>Before going further, let us emphasize that <i>all Windows
EGA.CPI 58 870 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
Millennium files/folders</i> are stored on a redirected drive [F:].  
KEYB.COM 21 607 A 18-04-2005 3:04:42
Consequently <i>all Registry entries</i> should point
KEYBOARD.SYS 34 566 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
to [F:], <i>except the entry</i>  </p>
KEYBRD2.SYS 31 942 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
 
KEYBRD3.SYS 31 633 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
<pre>[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup]
KEYBRD4.SYS 13 014 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
"WinBootDir"="A:\\WINDOWS"
MODE.COM 29 239 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
COMMAND.COM 93 040 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
DISPLAY.SYS 17 175 A 18-04-2005 17:54:34
MSDOS.SYS 9 A R S H 18-04-2005 17:54:34
</pre>
</pre>
The MS-DOS startup disk only allows the system to boot into an MS-DOS prompt. The disk contains no additional tools.
An MS-DOS startup disk is useful when you need to update a computer’s BIOS.


<p>Technically, in preparing a diskless RIPL client, we would
Contents of the Ebd.cab File recovered from Windows XP MS-DOS startup disk
normally start from a "blueprint" machine equipped with a local
{| class="wikitable sortable"
hard disk, and install Windows in a standard way on this machine.
!Filename!!Size!!Attributes!!Creation Date!!Creation Time
We would then copy all Windows stuff on the server, and change
|-
configuration files, in order to point to a new drive letter
|Attrib.exe||15 252||A||06-07-00||20:05
(in case local Windows drive letter differs from F). In particular,
|-
we would have to export, edit and re-compile the Registry. </p>
|Chkdsk.exe||27 968||A||06-07-00||20:05
 
|-
<p><b>Exercise:</b> What is the correct command-line syntaxt for creating
|Debug.exe||20 490||A||06-07-00||20:07
the Registry from a text file, in the case of Windows ME?</p>
|-
 
|Edit.com ||69 854||A||06-07-00||20:17
<p>Finally, we are ready to launch VMM32.COM from  
|-
[C:], which starts a "true" Windows ME boot. </p>
|Ext.exe||13 299||A||06-07-00||18:09
 
|-
<h3>Dynamical Networking Transition</h3>
|Format.com||49 415||A||06-07-00||21:13
 
|-
<p>This part of the boot process is played by a
|Help.bat||36||A||02-06-98||17:47
small but extremely powerful static VXD driver
|-
SNAPSHOT.VXD. It is responsible for <i>dynamical
|Mscdex.exe||25 473||A||06-07-00||20:13
transition</i> from real-mode to protected mode networking during
|-
the boot process, so that we end up with a clean
|Scandisk.exe||245 324||A||06-07-00||23:04
32-bit network client. It is loaded from the
|-
Registry, with the corresponding entry block:</p>
|Scandisk.ini||7 329|| A||03-03-99||16:22
 
|-
<pre>[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\SNAPSHOT]
|Sys.com||21 943||A||06-07-00||20:14
"Start"=hex:00
|}
"NetClean"=hex:01
"StaticVxd"="snapshot.vxd"
</pre>
 
<p>The driver SNAPSHOT.VXD uses the information
gathered by SNAPSHOT.EXE, to transform the initial 16-bit into
a 32-bit connection to [F:]. Both files SNAPSHOT.VXD/EXE are
available from any Win95 distribution.</p>
 
<p><b>Exercise:</b> What do you think could happen, and why, if
we excluded the network files NWLINK.VXD, NETBEUI.VXD ,
VREDIR.VXD and &lt;32nicdrv&gt;.SYS from the Sub-nucleus
on the local RAM-drive (but leaving them intact on the main Windows
drive [F:])?</p>
 
<p><b>Exercise:</b> What is the best that we could expect to
happen if we <i>eliminated</i> SNAPSHOT.VXD from this game,
leaving everything else untouched? Similarly, is it possible to
get rid of SNAPSHOT.EXE?</p>
 
<p><b>Exercise:</b> As we know, Windows 95/98/98SE all have the ability to
process CONFIG.SYS, and thus to naturally
load real-mode device drivers. Why it is not
a good idea, in this context, to load the 16-bit
protocol manager and the DOS adapter driver from
the CONFIG.SYS file?</p>
 
 
<h3>Protected Mode Boot Phase</h3>
 
<p>This is the final part of the boot process, and there is nothing
RIPL-specific here. After initializing the Configuration Manager and
Windows core components such as KRNL386.EXE, KERNEL32.DLL, GDI32.EXE
and USER32.DLL, a control is given to CMDNINST.EXE, which in its turn
initiates M$ logon. After logon processing, the graphical interface is
presented by EXPLORER.EXE.</p>
 
<h2>4. Sample Configurations</h2>
 
<p>Now, we are going to talk about two sample WinME diskless configurations:  
The first one is based on a single OS/2 Warp Server (Aurora) machine
and the client uses NETBIOS as the main network
protocol. The second one is using an auxiliary
Win95 machine as an Operating System
Server, while RIPL service and applications are provided
by the Aurora server (much less reliable of course,
but its a fun to boot WinME from Win95). The Win95 "server" machine
uses IPX protocol and has peer-to-peer networking installed.</p>
 
<p>We assume here that the RIPL client is using a Fast EtherLink 905X
adapter. At the 32-bit level, the client machine has both IPX and
NETBIOS installed. </p>
 
<p>In my lab, I constructed both these configurations using various
types of machines. In particular, the following hardware gives one solution:
RIPL clients are IBM Netvista (Network Station 2800) with 128MB of RAM.
The built-in IBM EtherJet adapter was used during boot-block processing.
A second network adapter (3Com Fast Etherlink 905C) was used for
the main network connections (M$ 16-bit and 32-bit networking). </p>
 
<p>As server systems, I used two IBM ThinkPads 765D (P166MMX with 32MB)
running Aurora and Win95 respectively. I also worked with two more
powerful OS/2 servers (running both OS/2 Warp Server Advanced 4 and
Aurora). The first one is AMD K6-II 300Mhz with 256MB of RAM, 6GB Maxtor EIDE
HDD, Tyan/Via Apollo. The file system used is HPFS386. The second server
is Athlon 700Mhz, AOpen/Via Apollo, 256MB RAM and 6GB Maxtor
EIDE HDD. The file systems used are HPFS for the main operating systems
and JFS for the RIPL stuff. Both servers use 3Com Fast EtherLink
905C-TX adapters. </p>
 
<h3>NETBIOS Configuration</h3>
 
<p>The network starts by invoking
<font color=#660000><center>NET START NETBEUI</center></font></p><p>
and the Real Mode Network Registry section looks like</p>
 
<pre>[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Network\Real Mode Net]
"transport"="ndishlp.sys,*netbeui"
"netcard"="el90x.dos"
"LoadRMDrivers"=hex:00,00,00,00
"PreferredRedir"="VREDIR"
"Transition"=hex:01
"StaticDrive"="F"
</pre>
 
<h3>IPX Configuration</h3>
 
<p>The network starts by
<font color=#660000><center>NET START IPX</center></font></p><p>
and the corresponding mini-Registry section is:</p>
 
<pre>[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Network\Real Mode Net]
"transport"="ndishlp.sys,*nwlink"
"netcard"="el90x.dos"
"LoadRMDrivers"=hex:00,00,00,00
"PreferredRedir"="VREDIR"
"Transition"=hex:01
"StaticDrive"="F"
</pre>
 
<p>Here are the listings of PROTOCOL.INI for both configurations:</p>
 
<pre>                           
    [protman$]                                [protman$]
    DriverName=protman$              DriverName=protman$
    priority=NDISHLP$                  priority=NDISHLP$
 
    [ndishlp$]                                [ndishlp$]
    DriverName=ndishlp$              DriverName=ndishlp$
    Bindings=EL90X$                      Bindings=EL90X$
 
    [Data]                                        [Data]
    netcards=EL90X$                      netcards=EL90X$
                                 
    [netbeui$]                                  [nwlink$]
    DriverName=netbeui$                DriverName=nwlink$
    Lanabase=0                              Frame_Type=4
    sessions=10                              cachesize=0
    ncbs=12                                           
    Bindings=EL90X$                      Bindings=EL90X$
 
    [EL90X$]                                    [EL90X$]
    DriverName=EL90X$                  DriverName=EL90X$
</pre>
<p><b>Exercise:</b> Explain why it might be easier to set up RIPL
clients using two network adapters for different boot tasks? Discuss
problems that could occur if we straightforwardly used a single adapter in
building a RIP  L client? Discuss additional technical steps that are
recommendable in case of single-adapter clients?</p>
 
<h2>5. Concluding Remarks and Observations</h2>
 
<p>In this study, we have focused ourselves to diskless WinME systems.
However, there is nothing in our considerations that is incompatible
with the existence of a local HDD. A local
swapping media can be very useful, decreasing the network load. In adition,
a local HDD can be used to hold the subnucleus package, thus avoiding
the transfering the whole subnucleus over network, each time the
client boots.</p>
 
<p>For security reasons, it is better to use RIPL as the boot method,
instead of booting directly from a HDD (which should not be bootable).
The system Registry should be almost always stored on a server, so that it
is transferred into the appropriate RAM-drive before VMM32.COM starts. 
Initialization scripts should be modified accordingly. </p>
 
<p>Of course, if security is not an issue, we can further simplify our
configurations and have a local bootable HDD, installing the subnucleus
and full Registry locally. </p>
 
<p>Another simple variation is to use a standard floppy to boot the
workstation.</p>
 
<p><b>Exercise:</b> Explain in detail all the steps/changes necessary to perform
in order to:
<ul><li> Start a diskless workstation from a real bootable floppy;
 
<li> Start the system from a bootable local HDD, and optionally have
the Registry transferred from a server.
</ul></p><p>
In both cases we do not need any RIPL server.</p>
 
<p>All diskless systems should be configured to start with Active Desktop
turned off (Active Desktop works fine, and can be turned on after the
system has booted). </p>
 
<h2>Appendix A: Enabling Real-Mode DOS Support in Windows Millennium Edition</h2>
 
<p>We shall describe here a very simple and elegant method of enabling real-mode DOS in WinME.
It requires changing <i>only one byte</i> of the standard command interpreter COMMAND.COM.
Alternatively, it is possible to incorporate non-standard command interpreters in
this procedure. </p>
 
<p>The problem is that for some strange reasons WinME designers decided to completely
disable real-mode DOS. The kernel IO.SYS of WinME was rewritten following this idea. </p>
 
<p>According to Microsoft, the elimination of the real mode support substantially improved
the system stability and decreased the system boot time.</p>
 
<p>Roughly speaking, the boot process of WinME looks like as follows:</p>
 
<p>After reading the boot sector of the WinME partition, the system loads the DOS-kernel
IO.SYS. The kernel IO.SYS reads the file MSDOS.SYS (located in the root directory) in order
to figure out where is the main Windows folder. The kernel loads its internal
HIMEM.SYS and also VFAT support driver IFSHLP.SYS (located in the main Windows
folder). Furthermore, IO.SYS gives control to VMM32.VXD (which is located
in the SYSTEM subfolder of the main Windows folder). The monolithic VMM32.VXD creates virtual machines,
loads all static VxDs, and switches the processor to protected mode. Finally,
protected mode components are loaded, including critical files such as
KERNEL32.DLL, KRNL386.EXE, GDI32.DLL and USER32.DLL. </p>
 
<p>In particular, WinME does not need any command interpreter to
boot. Moreover, its default incarnation does not need the file WIN.COM!</p>
 
<p>Our main idea is to <i>replace the file</i> VMM32.VXD by the appropriate
command interpreter. The simplest solution would be to use the standard COMMAND.COM.
However, a slight technical problem appears here, because of a funny mistake
in the standard command interpreter COMMAND.COM. Fortunately, this error is only
one-byte long... </p>
 
<p>The original Windows loader VMM32.VXD can be started from the command line, which
would then initiate the protected-mode boot, as usual.  </p>
 
<p>More precisely: </p>
 
<h3>Step 1: Binary Editing of COMMAND.COM</h3>
 
<p>At the hexadecimal offset 00006510, replace 75 by EB :) This will correct the
above mentioned error. More precisely, we are here replacing a conditional jump
instruction (75 10) with an unconditional jump (EB 10). I recommend error-correcting
both copies of COMMAND.COM (in the root of the boot drive and in the main
Windows folder, however Windows will work fine without both of these copies). I
assume you are using release 4.90.3000 of WinME (English version).</p>
 
<h3>Step 2: Adjusting The Loader</h3>
 
<p>Rename the file VMM32.VXD into VMM32.COM. Copy the improved COMMAND.COM into the
SYSTEM subfolder, as a new "loader" file VMM32.VXD.</p>
 
 
<h3>Step 3: Getting rid of WIN.COM</h3>
 
<p>Rename the file WIN.COM into WINME.COM!</p>
 
<p>Now, when we start WinME it will stop at the command prompt, displaying
an error message that it can not find WIN.COM. At this point, we have
WinME running in real DOS-mode :)</p>
 
<h3>Step 4: Final adjustments</h3>
 
<p>This error message is harmless. Optionally, it gives us a nice opportunity to
replace it by another, personalized message. Simply binary-edit the file
COMMAND.COM (but of course, replace the message-do not change the size of
the file!)...</p> 
 
<h3>Loading WinME Graphical Interface</h3>
 
<p>To load full GUI, simply launch VMM32.COM from the command prompt!</p>
 
<h3>Interesting Variations</h3>
 
<p>Instead of using the error-corrected COMMAND.COM, we can put another
program in place of VMM32.VXD. For example, we can use another command
interpreter, or custom-build a nice DOS-program, giving us something like
a startup meny, and so on.</p>
 
<p>For example, we can use a simple (and very old!) unix-like command shell
csh4 (by Kent Williams). The package includes the full source code. In this
case, we have to copy the shell program SHELL.COM over VMM32.VXD.</p>
 
<p>Another illustrative example is to use 4DOS from JP Software: After
installing the files into a separate directory (say C:\4DOS) all
we have to do is to copy 4DOS.COM over VMM32.VXD and create
the appropriate 4DOS.INI file (which should stay in the SYSTEM
subfolder). Note that this solution does not depend of COMMAND.COM
and in particular it is not necessary to binary-edit anything. </p>
 
<p>As a third example--it possible to use Orchard House (very nice and compact
DOS shell, by Gleason Pace). The package consists of a single executable OH.EXE and a
configuration file (managed within the program). In this case, we copy OH.EXE
over VMM32.VXD.</p>
 
<p>Since the full WinME is loaded by VMM32.COM, we do not need the file WIN.COM,
as we already mentioned. The same trick is applicable with
earlier versions of Windows, however <i>assuming that we use IO.SYS from Windows
Millennium.</i> Interestingly, in all my experiments non-ME DOS kernels were
causing Win95/98-based VMM32.COM to crash. Anyway, it looks like that Win95/98
workstations run a little smoother with a WinME kernel IO.SYS. In order to make a
standard DOS command Window fully usable (for launching various Windows programs
for example), it is also necessary to replace CONAGENT.EXE and files in
COMMAND subfolder, with their WinME counterparts... </p>
 
<p>A more conservative method of booting WinME from DOS is to binary-edit
WINME.COM (the renamed WIN.COM) and change it so it will load VMM32.COM instead of
VMM32.VXD. Of course, in this case Windows starts by invoking WINME at the
command prompt. </p>
 
<p>We can use the above ideas to create a bootable WinME floppy, using the same
kernel IO.SYS as for the hard disk boot. Unfortunately, it seems that SYS.COM
supplied with WinME is unable to transfer the system files to a floppy (by default,
Windows Millennium is using a special DOS kernel IO.SYS to boot from a floppy). Perhaps
the cleanest method would be to start from a blank floppy, overwritting the boot
sector by the appropriate code (the boot sector is the same as for a Win95/98
bootable floppy, the fourth article contains a boot sector explanation/listing). Next, we
have to copy IO.SYS and IFSHLP.SYS to the root directory of the floppy.
Finally, we have to create SYSTEM subfolder and copy the standard COMMAND.COM
as VMM32.VXD in SYSTEM. </p>
 
<p>********<br>Interestingly, in the case of such bootable floppies, the file COMMAND.COM works
fine and it is not necessary to perform any error-corrections. The same property
applies for <i>virtual floppies and superfloppies</i> used for RIPLing
diskless workstations from OS/2 Warp Server. </p>
 
<h2>Appendix B: Weird Changes in Design of Windows Millennium</h2>
 
<h3>Problems with big RAM-drives</h3>
<p>This problem affects both Win98SE and WinME. It seems that
the system gets confused by real-mode RAM-drives that are bigger
than 10MB. Trying to load such a real-mode RAM-drive results in a
dramatically increased instability. In addition,
such a RAM-disk would not support long filenames&nbsp;(?!?)</p>
 
<p>The file that is responsible for this hostile behavior is the
Input-Output Supervisor IOS.VXD. Normally, it is an integral part
of VMM32.COM.</p>
 
<p>On the other hand, Windows 95 works fine with all sorts of
RAM-drives, of any sizes. </p>
 
<h3>Unflexibility with locations of device drivers</h3>
 
<p>It seems that all drivers that are loaded by NTKERN.VXD
<i>must stay</i> in one of the subfolders
{SYSTEM32, SYSTEM, SYSTEM32\DRIVERS} of the folder pointed
by winbootdir from MSDOS.SYS.</p>
 


<p>In our case, winbootdir=C:\WINDOWS and this means
{| class="wikitable sortable"
that all NTKERN-related drivers must be a part of the
|+DOS Files from Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition OEM CD
subnucleus and stay on the RAM-drive [C:].</p>
!Filename||Size||Attributes||Creation Date||Creation Time
|-
|Ansi.sys||9 719||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|choice.com||5 239||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|country.sys||30 742||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|dblbuff.sys||2 614||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|deltemp.com||496||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|deltree.exe||19 083||A||08-06-2000||17:00
|-
|diskcopy.com||21 975||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|doskey.com||15 495||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|extract.exe||53 767||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|fc.exe||20 574||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|fdisk.exe||66 060||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|find.exe||6 658||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|ifshlp.sys||3 708||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|iso.cpi||49 754||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|label.exe||9 324||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|mem.exe||32 146||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|mode.com||29 239||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|more.com||10 471||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|move.exe||27 315||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|nlsfunc.sys||6 295||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|ramdrive.sys||12 663||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|setver.exe||18 939||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|sort.exe||26 682||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|subst.exe||17 904||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|xcopy.exe||3 878||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|-
|xcopy32.exe||3 878||A||08-06-2000||17:00
|-
|xcopy32.mod||41 472||A||08-06-2000||17:00
|-
|QBASIC.EXE||183 837||A||08-06-2000||17:00
|-
|QBASIC.HLP||130 881||A||08-06-2000||17:00
|-
|HELP.com||413||A||08-06-2000||17:00
|-
|HELP.HLP||350 751||A||12-07-2005||00:00
|-
|MSD.EXE v2.14||166 023||A||08-06-2000||18:00
|}
HELP.HLP compilation by Wendy Krieger


<p>Together with the IOS-related obstacle, this gives us a very
Deploy.cab MS-DOS Files from Windows XP Service Pack 3 - ISO-9660 CD Image File
interesting problem: To see which NTKERN drivers are really used (Windows
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
installation puts a lot of files into SYSTEM32\DRIVERS, only a
Oformat.com 50 055 A   12-29-06 19:50
fraction of them are really needed) in order to make the subnucleus fit
Cvtarea.exe 27 968 A   12-29-06 19:47
into 10MB limitation.</p>


<p>In case there are too many NTKERN drivers, there are several possible
DOS Files from Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 SP1
workarounds:
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
Mouse.com 9 169 A   04-30-2008 17:00
Cdrom.sys 5 241 A   04-30-2008 17:00


<ul><li>Use a local media to store the subnucleus, as discussed in
DOS Files from Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition
Section 5.
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
<li>Change the system Registry so that some drivers are not loaded by
Sys.com 19 159 A   05-05-1999 22:22
NTKERN :)
<li>Use a compressed RAM-drive [C:], in a way similar to our nucleus
configurations of WiRIPL4.</ul></p>


<p><b>Exercise:</b> Explain in detail the steps/changes necessary to perform
DOS Files from Windows XP Embedded SP1 tools
in order to: [1] Avoid loading selected drivers via NTKERN;
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
[2] Get compressed RAM-drive [C:] configurations working.</p>
Bootprep.exe 20 927 A   09-04-2002 16:48


<h3>Inability to process CONFIG.SYS</h3>
DOS Files from Windows CE Embedded Tools
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
vesatest.exe 7 121 A   28-01-2004 17:50


<p>This is related with so-called "removal" of real-mode DOS support
MS-DOS File Manager DOSSHELL from Microsoft MS-DOS 6.22 Supplemental Disk
from Windows Millennium. As explained in the previous appendix,
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
in reality there is no any DOS removal, just the kernel IO.SYS was
DOSSHELL.COM   4 620 A   31-05-1994 06:22
redesigned in order to start loading Windows immediately, and to
DOSSHELL.EXE 236 378 A   31-05-1994 06:22
ignore CONFIG.SYS.</p>
DOSSHELL.HLP 161 323 A   31-05-1994 06:22
DOSSWAP.EXE 18 756 A   31-05-1994 06:22


<p>With very little efforts, it is possible to incorporate into
© V. Ashumov 2007-2010
IO.SYS the ability to present something like a menu at start-up,
with different options (this can be done very easily by writting
a customized VMM32.VXD). </p>


<h3>IO.SYS-Registry Coupling</h3> <p>The real-mode kernel IO.SYS
MS-DOS Version 8 (C)Copyright 1981-1999 Microsoft Corp Licensed Material - Property of Microsoft All rights reserved.
examines the system Registry, before it gives control to
VMM32.VXD. This can cause all sorts of weird phenomena if we
change the registry during the real-mode boot. As explained,
the solution is to start with a <i>renamed</i> mini-Registry.</p>


<h3>Strange Instructions Built Into COMMAND.COM</h3>
In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this page is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.


<p>If you copy any normal DOS executable over VMM32.VXD, it should
[[Category:Miscellaneous Articles]]
start without problems, as a part of WinME "boot". The
only ME-runnable program I know that does not start properly is
the command interpreter COMMAND.COM&nbsp;(?!?) As explained in Appendix A,
there is a hostile conditional jump instruction that prevents us
from loading COMMAND.COM as VMM32.VXD, in the case of a normal
HDD boot.</p>

Latest revision as of 17:25, 27 December 2019

Original work by Vagif Ashumov [1]

If you don't know DOS, you don't know Windows...

Some features of MS-DOS 8.0

  • Since September 2000, the latest version 4.90.3000 Windows 98, more commonly known as Windows Millennium Edition ME with removal native mode / real / true / pure MS-DOS mode of booting from the hard disk on the Internet has a patch - Real DOS-Mode Patch for Windows ME v1.3 This removes a deliberate error in the last version of Microsoft MS-DOS 8.0 shipped embedded in Windows Me. Another Russian path also make Command.com DOS version independent.(93040) This Command.com you can launch from Windows NT 5x (2000,XP,2003,WHS). A subset is included with 32-bit versions of Windows XP and Windows Vista. For booting from C: drive IO.SYS and COMMAND.COM can be modified by replacing byte 75 by byte EB at hex offset 00006510 in COMMAND.COM and 000003AA for IO.SYS
  • MS-DOS 8.0 Patch:
    IO.SYS .... 000003AA 75 -> EB
    COMMAND.COM 00006510 75 -> EB
For remove version check replace byte sequence 3D 08 00 74 ->90 90 90 EB
  • Third parties have discussed how to restore some aspects of the Real-mode functionality in Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me). The use of third-party methods is neither recommended nor supported by Microsoft as Windows Me has not been tested with nor designed to run with Real-mode terminate-and-stay-resident (TSR) drivers.
  • New Real DOS-mode Patch for MS-DOS 8.0 by replacing in IO.SYS first 2048 bytes from original Windows Me OEM CD IO.SYS
  • README.TXT - Contents boot disk MS-DOS Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 deleted file restored from an image extracted from diskcopy.dll Windows XP SP3. In this subset Microsoft cut startup message from OS kernel "Starting Windows Millennium Emergency Boot ... " to "Starting...". Format a floppy disk by using My Computer, select the Create an MS-DOS startup disk option. The size of OS Kernel from Windows XP - IO.SYS 116,736
  • "Merged real mode drivers in Io.sys. Services such as HIMEM and SMARTDRV, which are separate files in Windows 98 that must be loaded during boot, are now built into the Windows Me Io.sys file. This improves read performance of the hard disk during boot. Io.sys is compressed, which reduces disk size and makes it faster to load." Microsoft: Improving "Cold Boot" Time for System Manufacturers Updated: December 4, 2001
  • The decompressor for IO.SYS Version 8 by Rudolph R. Loew will take an Unmodified Compressed version 8 IO.SYS File and create an Uncompressed IO.SYS File that can be used to Boot DOS 8
  • Uncompressed with The Decompressor for IO.SYS Version 8 by Rudolph R. Loew, IO.SYS file size is 280064 bytes can be reduced by stripping the bitmap with any hex-editor.The bitmap starts at 'BM' but ends at 0x44005
  • Win3xStart path for uncompressed IO.SYS version 8.0: original path by Ralf Buschmann, based on an idea by Samuel Leo
 FF 00 04 73 06 BE 04 ==>> FF 00 03 73 06 BE 04
 C0 58 74 EE 80 0E 5B ==>> C0 58 90 90 80 0E 5B
  • COMMAND.COM FIX original fix by John Augustine

Show files in hidden sub-directories 

 D4 B9 10 00 B4 ==>> D4 B9 16 00 B4
 FC B9 10 00 B4 ==>> FC B9 16 00 B4
  • Himem.sys, Emm386.exe and Smartdrv.exe versions that are included with Windows Millennium Edition are the best, and work fine under MS-DOS 7.10. Windows Me does not support loading Emm386.exe from the Startup disk. Xmsmmgr.exe(HIMEM: DOS XMS Driver, Version 3.07 - 02/14/92): This file is a TSR (terminate-and-stay-resident) version of HIMEM.SYS(Windows XMS Driver Version 3.95). It is run from the source directory when Setup has determined that there is not an XMS provider loaded in memory.
  • IO.SYS from the floppy image Windows ME OEM CD load automatically DBLBUFF.SYS and IFSHLP.SYS. Startup message: Now preparing to start your new computer.

Startup Menu no differences with the Startup Menu Windows 98 SE. 

 Microsoft Windows Millennium Startup Menu

 =========================================

 1. Normal
 2. Logged (\BOOTLOG.TXT)
 3. Safe mode
 4. Step-by-step confirmation
 5. Command prompt only
 6. Safe mode command prompt only 



 Enter a choose 1.




 F5=Safe mode Shift+F5=Command prompt Shift+F8=Step-by-step confirmation[N]

Restart your computer. Press and hold down CTRL until the Startup Menu appears. This menu appears only from the floppy image Windows ME OEM CD IO.SYS.

In Russian forum topic starter fps posted: "WinME has a normal DOS"

http://forum.ixbt.com/topic.cgi?id=22:10612

No cracks and patches. MS cares about herself, but from users is away scraps.

The following files are only on the Windows Me OEM bootable CD 

Tools\NetTools\FAC\cbs.dta\winboot.sys (118784)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\cbs.dta\winboot.lf (116736)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\io.sys (116736)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\msdos.sys (7)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\command.com (92992)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\ltools.dta\setucase.com (688)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\pld.dta\reboot.exe (755)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\tee.com (1298)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\imdump.exe (11628)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\setini.exe (20364)
Tools\NetTools\FAC\tls.dta\pbf.img (512) - floppy bootsector

Everything! "Command Prompt Only" is present.

Autoexec + Config.sys is processed

This command.com no have Strange Instructions Built Into COMMAND.COM as noted in the article by Micho Durdevich RIPLing Windows Millennium Edition from OS/2 Warp Server

Appendix A: Enabling Real-Mode DOS Support in Windows Millennium Edition "Our main idea is to replace the file VMM32.VXD by the appropriate command interpreter. The simplest solution would be to use the standard COMMAND.COM. However, a slight technical problem appears here, because of a funny mistake in the standard command interpreter COMMAND.COM"

Appendix B: Weird Changes in Design of Windows Millennium

If you copy any normal DOS executable over VMM32.VXD, it should start without problems, as a part of WinME "boot". The only ME-runnable program I know that does not start properly is the command interpreter COMMAND.COM

IO.SYS outdated.

WARNING: MS-DOS Does Not Properly Process Hard Disk Hardware Errors. Microsoft updated ms-dos kernel files both version 7.10 & 8.0

Microsoft REMOVED the display of the Startup Menu from Windows ME & MS-DOS 8.0 startup disk from Windows XP , Vista, Seven. 

                 Microsoft Windows Startup Menu
                 ============================== 

1. Normal

Enter a choose 1.

F5=Safe mode Shift+F5=Command prompt Shift+F8=Step-by-step confirmation[N]
  • Last update: With Windows Vista the files on the startup disk are dated 18th April 2005 but are otherwise unchanged,
Io.sys file size is 116736 bytes
  • Kernel loading menu minimal - Normal, the remaining modes by hot keys.. For Safe mode command prompt only, without implementation of the configuration files config autoexec hold shift during loading. Existing options configuration of msdos.sys or winboot.ini with higher priority (Winboot. Ini is an interim version Msdos.sys file created during installation Win9x): Logo = 0 not display a logo for loading; DisableLog = 1 not to log bootlog.txt ; SystemReg = 0 not preload the system registry; BootGUI = 1 parameter is not working. Windows will not automatically loaded when Windows folder have command.com. If command.com only source drive and the path to Windows folder true specified in the msdos.sys and config.sys added line FAT32 support driver device=ifshlp.sys, then Windows will load automatically. There is no need to set anything in the autoexec.bat.
  • Disable the F8 startup menu in Uncompressed IO.SYS by Dencorso
1) Search for B4 02 CD 16 A8 07 74 and patch the red 74 to EB
2) Search for 36 01 B4 01 CD 16 75 :
you'll find it to be 36 01 B4 01 CD 16 75 XX , where XX is any value.
Patch this to become 36 01 B4 01 CD 16 90 90
  • ScanDisk cannot process on a FAT32 drive, if the volume size more 127.53 gigabytes (GB). Limitations of FAT32 File System
  • Sys.com version 8.0 is functionally limited, using sys.com version 7.10 is included in Windows 98SE and put it to the table version setver.exe from boot disk Windows ME, as a driver (line device = setver.exe in config.sys ), you can remove the restrictions functionality of MS-DOS 8.0. Instead of file setver.exe can use the driver ver710.sys by Dencorso (put DEVICE=VER710.SYS as the very first line in CONFIG.SYS). Another way use deversioned sys.com version 7.10 (3D 07 0A 74->90 90 90 EB)
  • Windows XP Professional operating system CD contains a modified file format.com - Oformat.com. Run Oformat on the versions of MS–DOS in Windows Millennium Edition or Windows XP. Oformat does not prompt for confirmation before formatting a disk. Oformat creates a FAT32 volume with clusters that are aligned in an optimal way for when the volume is later converted to NTFS file system format. Oformat does not force sector verification at the first disk format. As a result, you can do a Quick Format immediately after creating a new partition, which is significantly faster in the manufacturing environment than using the conventional Format. Russian analogue oformat.com - patched FORMAT.COM: Option /Q (QuickFormat) now can be used to format floppies and hard disks quickly even if they're never been formatted before MS-DOS version check has been removed You cannot format a volume larger than 32 gigabytes (GB) in size using the FAT32 file system during the Windows XP installation process. Another option is to start from a Microsoft Windows 98 or Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me) Startup disk and use the Format tool included on the disk.

Limitations of the FAT32 File System in Windows XP

  • SYS.COM, FORMAT.COM, OFORMAT.COM Fix (original path by Petr Soucek)
Modify boot record code from 75 06 to B2 0E at specific location
This modification causes using INT 13 Extensions(LBA addressing) regardless on partition or media type.
FC 75 06 -> FC B2 0E
WARNING: This fix is not intended for computers that do not have support for Int13h extensions!
  • SYS.COM, FORMAT.COM, OFORMAT.COM check OEM System Name (MSWIN4.1; sometimes called the "OEM ID") is the eight-byte ASCII string that identifies the system that formatted the disk. Many floppy disks have the letters IHC in their OEM ID field.The whole string begins with five pseudo-random hex bytes, and always ends with the characters IHC. (Alex Verstak & Daniel B. Sedory ). You can replace the OEM string in SYS.COM, FORMAT.COM, OFORMAT.COM from MSWIN4.1 to MSDOS8.0

The maximum possible number of clusters on a volume using the FAT32 file system is 268,435,445. With a maximum of 32 KB per cluster with space for the file allocation table (FAT), this equates to a maximum disk size of approximately 8 terabytes (TB).

  • Fdisk.exe is a simple boot manager, if you hard drive have more than one primary partition -use Set active partition option to select bootable partition. IDE hard disks larger than 128 GB using the 48-Bit logical block addressing (LBA). If installed on your computer BIOS does not support 48-Bit LBA, disk space outside the boundaries of 128 GB not specified. Windows ME's FDISK an entry : "MS-DOS Version 8 (C) Copyright 1981-1999." FDISK may create more than one primary partition, if you after the first primary partition make it hidden by third-party. Fdisk.exe Unable to Partition Drives Larger Than 512 Gigabytes. Maximum Sizes on FAT32 Volumes is 127.53 GB Maximum file size is 4 GB. NTFS compared to FAT and FAT32
  • You can install MS-DOS 8.0 on FAT32 partition as second OS to boot.ini.

MS-DOS 8.0 Files without real-mode network drivers

All binary files with strings "MS-DOS Version 8 (C)Copyright 1981-1999" or "Microsoft"

Unofficial standalone Full MS-DOS 8.0 Distribution Disk

Download installation Boot CD ISO image (MSDOS8.ISO)

Contents of the Windows XP SP3 & Windows 7 MS-DOS startup disk extracted (Disk Extract) from DISKCOPY.DLL.

Another application to get the image you can download from http://jacevedo.phstech.info/getbtdsk.zip 

Filename	Size	Attributes	Creation Date	Creation Time
IO.SYS		116 736	A R S H	18-04-2005	17:54:34
EGA2.CPI	58 870	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
EGA3.CPI	58 753	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
EGA.CPI		58 870	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
KEYB.COM	21 607	A	18-04-2005	3:04:42
KEYBOARD.SYS	34 566	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
KEYBRD2.SYS	31 942	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
KEYBRD3.SYS	31 633	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
KEYBRD4.SYS	13 014	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
MODE.COM	29 239	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
COMMAND.COM	93 040	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
DISPLAY.SYS	17 175	A	18-04-2005	17:54:34
MSDOS.SYS	9	A R S H	18-04-2005	17:54:34

The MS-DOS startup disk only allows the system to boot into an MS-DOS prompt. The disk contains no additional tools. An MS-DOS startup disk is useful when you need to update a computer’s BIOS.

Contents of the Ebd.cab File recovered from Windows XP MS-DOS startup disk

Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
Attrib.exe 15 252 A 06-07-00 20:05
Chkdsk.exe 27 968 A 06-07-00 20:05
Debug.exe 20 490 A 06-07-00 20:07
Edit.com 69 854 A 06-07-00 20:17
Ext.exe 13 299 A 06-07-00 18:09
Format.com 49 415 A 06-07-00 21:13
Help.bat 36 A 02-06-98 17:47
Mscdex.exe 25 473 A 06-07-00 20:13
Scandisk.exe 245 324 A 06-07-00 23:04
Scandisk.ini 7 329 A 03-03-99 16:22
Sys.com 21 943 A 06-07-00 20:14
DOS Files from Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition OEM CD
Filename Size Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
Ansi.sys 9 719 A 08-06-2000 18:00
choice.com 5 239 A 08-06-2000 18:00
country.sys 30 742 A 08-06-2000 18:00
dblbuff.sys 2 614 A 08-06-2000 18:00
deltemp.com 496 A 08-06-2000 18:00
deltree.exe 19 083 A 08-06-2000 17:00
diskcopy.com 21 975 A 08-06-2000 18:00
doskey.com 15 495 A 08-06-2000 18:00
extract.exe 53 767 A 08-06-2000 18:00
fc.exe 20 574 A 08-06-2000 18:00
fdisk.exe 66 060 A 08-06-2000 18:00
find.exe 6 658 A 08-06-2000 18:00
ifshlp.sys 3 708 A 08-06-2000 18:00
iso.cpi 49 754 A 08-06-2000 18:00
label.exe 9 324 A 08-06-2000 18:00
mem.exe 32 146 A 08-06-2000 18:00
mode.com 29 239 A 08-06-2000 18:00
more.com 10 471 A 08-06-2000 18:00
move.exe 27 315 A 08-06-2000 18:00
nlsfunc.sys 6 295 A 08-06-2000 18:00
ramdrive.sys 12 663 A 08-06-2000 18:00
setver.exe 18 939 A 08-06-2000 18:00
sort.exe 26 682 A 08-06-2000 18:00
subst.exe 17 904 A 08-06-2000 18:00
xcopy.exe 3 878 A 08-06-2000 18:00
xcopy32.exe 3 878 A 08-06-2000 17:00
xcopy32.mod 41 472 A 08-06-2000 17:00
QBASIC.EXE 183 837 A 08-06-2000 17:00
QBASIC.HLP 130 881 A 08-06-2000 17:00
HELP.com 413 A 08-06-2000 17:00
HELP.HLP 350 751 A 12-07-2005 00:00
MSD.EXE v2.14 166 023 A 08-06-2000 18:00

HELP.HLP compilation by Wendy Krieger

Deploy.cab MS-DOS Files from Windows XP Service Pack 3 - ISO-9660 CD Image File 

Filename	Size	Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
Oformat.com	50 055	A	   12-29-06	 19:50
Cvtarea.exe	27 968	A	   12-29-06	 19:47

DOS Files from Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 SP1 

Filename	Size	Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
Mouse.com	9 169	A	   04-30-2008	 17:00
Cdrom.sys	5 241	A	   04-30-2008	 17:00

DOS Files from Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition 

Filename	Size	Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
Sys.com	19 159	A	   05-05-1999	 22:22

DOS Files from Windows XP Embedded SP1 tools 

Filename	Size	Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
Bootprep.exe	20 927	A	   09-04-2002	 16:48

DOS Files from Windows CE Embedded Tools 

Filename	Size	Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
vesatest.exe	7 121	A	   28-01-2004	 17:50

MS-DOS File Manager DOSSHELL from Microsoft MS-DOS 6.22 Supplemental Disk 

Filename	Size	Attributes Creation Date Creation Time
DOSSHELL.COM	  4 620	A	   31-05-1994	 06:22
DOSSHELL.EXE	236 378	A	   31-05-1994	 06:22
DOSSHELL.HLP	161 323	A	   31-05-1994	 06:22
DOSSWAP.EXE	 18 756	A	   31-05-1994	 06:22

© V. Ashumov 2007-2010

MS-DOS Version 8 (C)Copyright 1981-1999 Microsoft Corp Licensed Material - Property of Microsoft All rights reserved.

In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this page is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.

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