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Create Refdisk/Diags Restoring Special Byte Code FORCEDOS under NT4 TG0 Utility LDF.COM or Tgsfx.com DSK Utility loaddskf.exe Refdisk Requires Cold Start Can the Wrong Refdisk Damage My PS/2? Copying Option ADFs Correctly Accessing Advanced Diags from the Refdisk SC.EXE Trivia Running SC.EXE from the Hard Drive Common Refdisk Files Creating a Refdisk and/or Diagnostics Disk Under DOS-OS/2 Download the file (rf*.exe for refdisk, rd*.exe for diags) onto your hard disk. Put a blank, formatted 1.44MB floppy (caution, some options or early refdisks use 720KB disks) into A:, run the executable. Follow the instructions... Self-Extractor Screen Messages
Self-extracting diskette image processor (OS/2), Version 1.03... Please enter a drive letter compatible with a 1.44M
3.5" disk, NOTE: At this time, enter "a" for your A drive, or "b" if you have a 1.44MB B drive) Press ENTER to continue (read license agreement) NOTE: This screen pops up: IBM PERSONAL SYSTEM/2 REFERENCE/OPTION DISKETTE... NOTE: Bottom line
says: NOTE: Watch for this line! It will dump you out if you only hit enter. If you agree, type Y and press ENTER... Insert a blank high-density diskette in drive A:. Press "Y" to do another copy: Note: Just hit
enter to end this program. Under Win NT/9x I have created MANY ref/diags disks with W95/NT 4.0 using Windows Exploiter/NT Exploiter, and NONE of them refused to work. Just double click on the file, and the DOS window pops up. Do NOT do a "DIR" under MS-Doze mode! If you want to surf through the new refisk, close the MS-Dos window and return to Exploiter. NOTE: Microsoft uses a 8 byte block on the diskette for labeling purposes in WIN95. During execution of the "DIR" command, this 8 byte block is written to by WIN95. IBM uses this same 8 byte block on the diskette for ID purposes. Write protecting the diskette prior to the "DIR" command has shown to safeguard against this exposure. Or, you could exit the MS-DOS mode without doing a "DIR"... Restoring
Special Byte-Code FORCEDOS
under NT Disk Utility
for TG0 Files Disk Utility
for DSK Files Refdisk
Requires Cold Start Could
I Damage My System with the Wrong Refdisk?
NOTE: For certain
Flash-based systems, specifically the 9585 (X vs K / N
models) and any system with an upgrade planar (50 thru
80), you CAN duff it up. Reply made upgrade planars
under their name (and specific BIOS) AND under the IBM
name (and specific BIOS). We are not sure if IBM played
about with the POS registers with the re-branded Reply
boards, but it sure looks like the ADF resources are
different... YMMD... Copying
Option ADFs to the Refdisk CORRECTLY On the later systems with a refdisk and diags disk, you need both IF you are installing an IBM option (IBM adapters have *.dgs files). Accessing
Advanced Diagnostics from Refdisk SC Trivia >Time for wild speculation and downright baseless opinions. Which version of IBM PC Dos would work best with the 1990 vintage SC.EXE? From Peter The SC.EXE however should not query the DOS version number, because the modified COMMAND.COM used on the reference disks does not return any DOS version number at all. So it will -most likely- run under any DOS version 4.0 and above. I -at least- had no problem booting up a Mod. 70 for example under PC DOS 7 - putting the refdisk in A: and type "SC" at the A:> prompt. Run SC.EXE
from HD? Found we usually could run sc.exe (set
config) to add/remove memory, also adapter cards if the
adf's were there, and also setclock.exe and few
others. Someone discovered you could type
c:\refdisk>command and that would bring up the
opening refdisk menu Common Refdisk Files -------------------------------------------------- SHARE.EXE COMMAND.COM BACKUP.EXE Backs up reference and diagnostics disk, or does it back up the CMOS contents to floppy? CMD.COM CONFIG.SYS DIAGS COM The big enchilada that calls up the *.dgs files and runs diagnostics. KP.COM Keyboard password utility (KP.COM) locks the keyboard temporarily without turning the system off. LLFORMAT.COM Called up by DIAGS.COM (?) PASSWORD.COM Power-On Password application? POSTERR.COM Brings up a simple message in case of a POST error... RECV35.COM (Thanks, David Beem!) A parallel port Interlink (before there was such a thing). IBM sold an option of a dongle that was attached to the DB-25 PS/2 parallel port & had a Centronics 36-pin connection on the other side. The option included a diskette with the file send.com for running on the other system with the printer cable to connect to the dongle. On the PS/2 you could map the others' drives to copy files (It was marketed as a way to transfer files from the older 5-1/4 format to the new 3.5 format used on the PS/2.). Look at the Data Migration Facility SETCLOCK.COM Sets the date/time. Runs from command line. SETRATE.COM Sets typematic rate for KB. Runs from command line. SC.EXE The big enchilada for setting configuration. Will run and configure from command line in a pure DOS (M$ or PC) environment. UPDATE.EXE Updates BIOS in CMOS? Or does it update CMOS info on floppy? USERINT EXE DSPREVL.EXE "Display Release Level" (?) where it shows BIOS and ref/diags levels. IBMCACHE.COM Disk cache? For Autoexec.bat? IBMCACHE.SYS Disk cache? For Config.sys? INSTALL.COM I think this is "User Install" where you can install utilities like KP.COM and PASSWORD.COM. DASDDRVR.SYS (Thanks, David Beem!) This is the "Direct-Access Storage Device Driver" collection of software patches to fix ROM BIOS bugs for the early models of pre-IML PS/2s. Only the PS/2-minimum DOS 3.3 and later versions need this driver; OS/2 has the same patches built-in. I don't think the system files in Windows 95 have the patches (and some of the Models fixed by the patches are a 286 or lower; Win95 COMMAND.COM wants a 386 or better.). The patches are system-specific & fix known issues. The driver just overlays the selected areas of affected BIOS, so it uses no more memory. INSTDBUF.COM Install Double Buffer? DISK386 SYS UNDOSCN EXE CHKPARM EXE |