FreeDOS command: config.sys (original) (raw)

Command: config.sys / fdconfig.sys

FreeDOS reads the CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS file at startup to configure the DOS system. It is read before the AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT file is run. FreeDOS first tries to use FDCONFIG.SYS first (and ignores CONFIG.SYS). If FDCONFIG.SYS does not exist, FreeDOS will use CONFIG.SYS instead. CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS are text files. They can be created or edited with a text editor such as EDIT or EDLIN. CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS must ALWAYS be in the root directory of the boot media.

Syntax:

none -

Options:

none -

Comments:

When booting DOS, you will find it only supports a subset of the devices available on many computers. To support additional devices and advanced features, device specific driver and memory resident software must be loaded. This allows the kernel to be easily extended to support hardware not presently available and take better advantage of installed hardware without wasting resources on computers lacking it. This software is generally loaded during the kernel initialization phase, with details describing what to load expressed in the file CONFIG.SYS. The FreeDOS kernel will first look for a file named FDCONFIG.SYS, should it exist, it will be used instead of CONFIG.SYS; this allows the FreeDOS kernel to coexist and be configured differently than another DOS kernel. There are additional options available to adjust other aspects of the kernel's behaviour. There is a special set of commands for use in the CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS file, see the links below. DOS prompt and BATCH FILE commands generally cannot be used in CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS. See also the MENU command. If you press "F5" while booting up the system, CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT commands are ignored. This is helpful if you have a driver installed which crashes while booting up the system. With this option you can repair a system by removing the crashing driver / command from CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT. If you press "F8" while booting up the system, each command in CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS and in AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT has to be confirmed with "yes" or "no". This is helpful if you want to find out which driver crashes.

Examples:

Simple example for german settings (Load FreeDOS with JEMM386,

(no EMX, max RAM free, modified from FreeDOS 1.3 live HD):

SET DOSDIR=C:\FREEDOS
COUNTRY=049,858,C:\FREEDOS\BIN\country.sys (german setting)
LASTDRIVE=W
BUFFERS=20
FILES=40
DOS=HIGH
DOS=UMB
DOSDATA=UMB
DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\himemx.exe
DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\jemm386.exe NOEMS X=TEST I=TEST I=B000-B7FF
       NOVME NOINVLPG
SHELLHIGH= C:\FREEDOS\BIN\command.com C:\FREEDOS\BIN /E:1024
       /P=C:\FDAUTO.BAT

!SET DOSDIR=C:\FREEDOS
!COUNTRY=049,858,C:\FREEDOS\BIN\country.sys (german setting)
!LASTDRIVE=W
!BUFFERS=20
!FILES=40
!MENUCOLOR=7,0

MENUDEFAULT=1,5
MENU 1 - Load FreeDOS with JEMM386 (no EMS, max RAM free)
MENU 2 - Load FreeDOS with JEMM386 (Expanded Memory)
MENU 3 - Load FreeDOS low with some drivers (Safe Mode)
MENU 4 - Load FreeDOS without drivers (Emergency Mode)

12?DOS=HIGH
12?DOS=UMB
12?DOSDATA=UMB
123?DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\himemx.exe
1?DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\jemm386.exe NOEMS X=TEST I=TEST I=B000-B7FF
         NOVME NOINVLPG
2?DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\jemm386.exe X=TEST I=TEST I=B000-B7FF NOVME
         NOINVLPG
34?SHELL=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\command.com C:\FREEDOS\BIN /E:1024
         /P=C:\FDAUTO.BAT
12?SHELLHIGH=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\command.com C:\FREEDOS\BIN /E:1024
         /P=C:\FDAUTO.BAT

Note: SHELL / SHELLHIGH indicates the shell to use; often used to alter COMMAND.COM's behavior. It is command.com that processes AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT; by using the SHELL option you have to choose which XY.BAT / AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT you want to use. /pre>