This is the sequence that has to be followed when installing up the STACKER software on your Tandy 2800HD laptop. It was explained to me by Techsupport personel that due to the way that Tandy implemented their DMA controller this is the only way to install and maximize the harddrive using the STACKER 2.0 software from STAC ELECTRONICS, CARLSBAD CA. MAIN THING: BACK UP YOUR HARDDISK BEFORE PROCEEDING !!!!!!! 1) Start with an empty harddisk!!! the only thing on it should be your SYSTEM i.e. your COMMAND.COM interpreter and your IBMCOM.COM and IBMSYS.COM files in the case of DOS 3.xx or IO.SYS and MSDOS.SYS in the case od DOS 5. Boot the computer from a FLOPPY in DRIVE A: with just the minimum amount of devices loaded go operate, since this is just for the installation of the stacker system , all you really need is the system, the FORMAT.COM file and the SYS.COM file on this boot diskette. The simple way to accomplish this is to format the disk using the DOS format utility with the optin switch /S { format c: /S } Create a \STACKER directory and copy the following files (minimum needed) STACKER.COM and SSWAP.COM from the stacker disk into this directory. Copy the following files onto the newly formatted C: drive. Command.com, Temm28.sys Ega.sys Ansi.sys Setver.exe and any other devices that you need during the initial boot phase (see your config.sys file for what you need) 2) Insert the stacker disk in drive a: and log into drive a: Issue the following command: SCREATE c: /i /=p /C=c /=dd /c=1 the /c=1 switch leaves 1meg unstacked and your boot files will live there as well as your config.sys and autoexec.bat files. as well all needed boot system files (ansi.sys ega.sys temm28.sys setver.exe command.com and any other device that gets installed before the last two lines are reached in your amended CONFIG.SYS file) see item 3) below. after the proceedure has run its course run this command: (ignore the error message) SCREXEC c:\stacvol.dsk /p /=p /&& You should now have an empty stacker volume of about 38meg available You can check that with the DIR /AH command. You can use your original CONFIG.SYS file, just copy it back to the C: drive and add the lines as described below in step 3. Also the AUTOEXEC.BAT file can be reused, just amend the PATH statement as in step 4. 3) Now you have to amend your CONFIG.SYS file with the following lines, they must be the last two lines in the file: DEVICE=C:\STACKER\STACKER.COM C:\STACVOL.DSK DEVICE=C:\STACKER\SSWAP.COM /SYNC 4) In your AUTOEXEC.BAT file add this to the end of your PATH statement ;C:\STACKER 5) Remove the stacker disk and reboot your computer. The config.sys file statements that you added should set you up and you should be in a empty 38meg large space. 6) now restore all your files and directories as you normally would to drive c: from drive a: I do not know what you use as a backup/ restore utility but after I reinstalled all my programs an files this is what i ended up with. a) before stacker I had about 5meg free space left over. after installing STACKER I have 18meg left free. The second DEVICE statement swaps drive C: and D: making the stacvol.dsk your C: drive thus allowing you to work of your normal command line but be in the STACKER drive. The D: drive is about 1meg big and holds the system files needed to boot the computer and get you started Joerg Sattler [SAT-CABS]