[syslinux] booting from MS-dos disk.

[Bernd Blaauw]

Dinesh P. schreef:
> Hi, there
>            Well i am currently using DOS 6.22 bootdisk for booting from 
> memdisk with network drivers for connecting windows share on network, so 
> i want to know that is it possible to break dos 640k memory limition 
> using WinXp DOS boot disk with network drivers. please tell me if it is 
> possible.

not possible, the bootdisk that Windows XP creates contains a Windows 
Millennium kernel (io.sys, msdos 8.00) and command.com and a few other 
files, most of them useless (SYS and FORMAT cannot handle C:, blame 
Microsoft).

BartPE, WinPE and perhaps ReactOS are suitable environments for getting 
rid of a 640KB limitation if you insist on booting from a non-harddisk 
device. Also available are Linux live cdroms. You're simply not 
indicating what your purpose is with the windows share, so nobody can 
determine which operating system is required.

Any DOS has a 640KB limit for conventional memory by definition.
The only thing you can do to increase the amount of memory is using XMS 
(extended memory), HMA (put the kernel there, through use of DOS=HIGH) 
and UMB (upper memory).

MSDOS 7 and newer (and other DOS flavours) have increased possibilities 
to make use of UMB. Examples are FILESHIGH, BUFFERSHIGH, SHELLHIGH etc.
You'll have to compare memory use and available memory of different DOS 
flavours and versions yourself.

I'm certainly not claiming FreeDOS would be best for your purpose, but 
on the other side you don't need a license from Microsoft for using it.
(and they no longer support/sell DOS)

I hope you'll be able to use your WinME bootdisk created on XP by 
appending 'RAW' keyword to your pxelinux configuration file.

Bernd