goldman@mbcl.rutgers.edu (05/31/91)
I have a copy of IBM's os/2 1.3 on 3.5" disks that I'd like to install on my Compaq, which doesn't have a 3.5" disk drive. I have access to a machine which has both 3.5 and 5.25" disk drives. How would I go about making an os/2 bootable 5.25" disk drive to start installing os/2 1.3 on my Compaq? Thanks in advance.... Adrian -- Adrian Goldman | Internet: Goldman@MBCL.Rutgers.Edu Molecular Biology Computing Laboratory | Bitnet: Goldman@BioVAX Waksman Insitute, | Phone: (908) 932-4864 Rutgers University, | Fax: (908) 932-5735 Piscataway, NJ 08855 USA |
mshiels@tmsoft (Michael A. Shiels) (06/01/91)
I just did this for OS/2 2.0 release 2 disks which we could only get in 3 1/2" format and we all have 5 1/4" drives. Copying the data is no problem. Most of the time they leave enough space free in the 3 1/2" disk to fit onto a 5 1/4". The tricky part of record the contents of the real 5 1/4" boot block (512 bytes) and then writing the 3 1/2" boot block over it and patching the first portion of it to be the same. If you know the format of boot blocks you should have no problem. DEBUG can be used to read/write the sector but we used our own
roelofs@nas.nasa.gov (Cave Newt) (06/02/91)
In article <457.2844fde8@mbcl.rutgers.edu> goldman@mbcl.rutgers.edu writes: >I have a copy of IBM's os/2 1.3 on 3.5" disks that I'd like to install >on my Compaq, which doesn't have a 3.5" disk drive. I have access to a >machine which has both 3.5 and 5.25" disk drives. How would I go about >making an os/2 bootable 5.25" disk drive to start installing os/2 1.3 >on my Compaq? I posted the following instructions in January; they're just the reverse of what you want, but I think it's pretty obvious what to change, once you read the message. Feel free to e-mail me if you have questions, though. (And debug *should* work just like symdeb in the following (no symbols :-), but check your manual to be sure. Or just use a binary editor or Norton or something.) "A boot record is a wonderful thing to waste." Greg __________________________________ >Is there a way to transfer the installation flop [from 5.25"] to 3.5" so >we can get it working on the IBM? No sweat. All you need to do is make some small modifications to the boot sector, copy it and the regular files onto the 3.5" disk, and you're set. To fool with the boot sector you need debug, symdeb ("debug++": what I use), or something similar. Here are the basic steps (from memory, but I think it's right): Start with the 1.2MB OS/2 installation diskette. Rev up debug/symdeb/ whatever, and type: -l 100 0 0 1 [the leading dash is symdeb's prompt; "l" = load; "100" = memory address in the current segment (hex); first "0" = drive A: (change as required); second "0" = sector 0 (boot sector); "1" = number of 512-byte sectors to read] First save the unmodified boot record to a file for future reference: -r cx [change Register CX] CX 0000 [symdeb prints current value] :200 [change it to 200h = 512 = file length] -n boot_12m.os2 [Name of file to be written] -w [Write it] Writing 0200 bytes - Now take a look at what you've got: -d [or "d 100" if you want to Dump it again] xxxx:0100 EB zz 90 xx xx xx xx xx-xx xx xx 00 02 01 01 00 k3.ID STRNG..... xxxx:0110 02 E0 00 60 09 F9 07 00-0F 00 02 00 00 00 00 00 .`.`.y.......... [etc.] ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ The "EB zz" and "90" are machine-language JMP and NOP instructions; the xx's are an ASCII identifier string (probably something like "IBM 10.3"); and the rest are either disk parameters or are reserved for something equally nefarious. The important ones are the under-caretted ones: the first two give the number of 512-byte sectors (0960h = 2400 = 1200KB), the next one is the "media [sic] type," the next one (or two?) is the number of sectors in the file allocation table (FAT), and the last byte is the number of sectors per track. For a 1.4MB diskette these parameters should be 40 0B F0 09 00 12; to change them, type: -f 113 L6 40 0B F0 09 00 12 [Fill, starting at offset 113, for Length 6, ...] -d 100 xxxx:0100 EB zz 90 xx xx xx xx xx-xx xx xx 00 02 01 01 00 k3.ID STRNG..... xxxx:0110 02 E0 00 40 0B F0 09 00-12 00 02 00 00 00 00 00 .`.@.p.......... [etc.] ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Assuming you've succeeded so far, you'll probably want to save the new boot record to a file: -r cx [this should still be set to 200, but check anyway] CX 0200 : -n boot_14m.os2 -w Writing 0200 bytes - And then you can write it to your new, 3.5" installation-floppy-to-be (format the thing first, of course): -w 100 1 0 1 ^ [change this as necessary; here I'm assuming B: is the 3.5" drive. Be VERY CAREFUL you don't overwrite your hard disk boot record!!! Remem- ber, 0 = A:, 1 = B:, etc., for symdeb; your kilometerage may vary.] -q [quit] Now you can pretty much just copy on over the other OS/2 installation files. As usual, the important ones are hidden (OS2LDR and OS2KRNL); use appropriate tools to unhide them and/or copy them. I don't think it matters where on the disk those two files end up, but it's probably safest to make sure they're the first two on the disk. Finally, for what it's worth, I've never done this to an OS/2 boot diskette, but I have messed around with OS/2 boot records, and I've also successfully transferred a DOS boot record from 1.2MB to 1.44MB diskettes. So it SHOULD work. :-) E-mail if you have problems, but I've already used up this month's quota of miracles... Greg
dperks@hobbit.gandalf.ca (Dave Perks) (06/03/91)
In <457.2844fde8@mbcl.rutgers.edu> goldman@mbcl.rutgers.edu writes: >...How would I go about >making an os/2 bootable 5.25" disk drive to start installing os/2 1.3 >on my Compaq? (which doesn't have a 3.5" disk drive.) 1) find a machine with a 3.5" A: drive and a 5.25" B: drive. If necessary, swap the drive cable or move the drive select jumpers temporarily. 2) boot using the 3.5" OS2 INSTALL disk. When the IBM blue screen appears, hit escape to get to command mode. 3) C>sysinstx b: which copies a boot record, OS2LDR, and OS2KRNL onto the (previously formatted, I forgot that part ;-) 1.2Mb 5.25" disk. 4) copy all the rest of the files from A: to B: leaving out the ones that are not needed (like the xxxx02.SYS files) so that they fit on the smaller disk. 5) label the disk OS2 INSTALL 6) copy all the other disks over, labels and all. I don't know if they fit. Disclaimer: I followed this procedure up to step 5) and it worked for my noname clone. Then I gave up and put a 3.5" drive on instead! Too bad noone seems to stock the 5.25" version of OS/2 "But all IBM machines have 3.5" drives... AT? We haven't been in business that long." dave perks
TURGUT@TREARN.BITNET (Turgut Kalfaoglu) (06/05/91)
1) Try COPYIIPC. I believe I succeeded doing some conversions this way. 2) Switch your drives around. Make 5 1/4 your 'A' drive. -t
BP3@psuvm.psu.edu (Larry Belan) (06/05/91)
From what I've discovered, converting a 3.5 install disk to a 5.25 WON'T work in a AT/386 clone...... The 3.5 version seems to look for the ABIOS that is loaded into the PS/2 systems....My Hauppauge 386 clone chokes on them constantly....I ended up requesting BOTH 5.25 and 3.5 versions of OS/2. Maybe a genuine IBM AT may work..?? Larry Belan PennState - Fayette Campus Computer Center
Conrad.Bullock@comp.vuw.ac.nz (Conrad Bullock) (06/05/91)
In article <91155.171811BP3@psuvm.psu.edu>, BP3@psuvm.psu.edu (Larry Belan) writes: |> From what I've discovered, converting a 3.5 install disk to a 5.25 |> WON'T work in a AT/386 clone...... |> |> The 3.5 version seems to look for the ABIOS that is loaded into the |> PS/2 systems....My Hauppauge 386 clone chokes on them |> constantly....I ended up requesting BOTH 5.25 and 3.5 versions of |> OS/2. I have had no problem booting the 3.5" version of OS/2 1.3 on a standard 386 clone with an AMI BIOS, exiting the Install program, running SYSINSTX on a 5.25" disk, and transferring the files to 5.25". (That machine certainly doesn't have an ABIOS!) There is an old problem with very old Phoenix BIOSes - for some reason their BIOS returns a submodel ID which indicates that they are PS/2s - perhaps you have a similar problem? Also, I have found that some Award BIOSes refuse to boot OS/2 off a 3.5" drive. -- Conrad Bullock | Domain: conrad@comp.vuw.ac.nz Victoria University of Wellington, | or: conrad@cavebbs.gen.nz New Zealand. | Fidonet: 3:771/130 | BBS: The Cave BBS +64 4 643429
roelofs@nas.nasa.gov (Cave Newt) (06/06/91)
Conrad.Bullock@comp.vuw.ac.nz (Conrad Bullock) writes: >Also, I have found that some Award BIOSes refuse to boot OS/2 off a 3.5" >drive. I can confirm this problem--the BIOS incorrectly identifies the drive as having either 9 or 15 sectors per track (I forget which), instead of the proper 18. The strange thing is that there IS a correct drive parameter table buried in the BIOS; it just isn't used. The problem exists in Award BIOS v2.00 but is claimed to be fixed in v2.30 and later. I wouldn't know. :-) It's possible (and even fairly simple) to rewrite the boot sector to avoid this (the thing's only 512 bytes long!), but I'd recommend trying to find a replacement BIOS, if possible. Greg