Copyright: (c) 1993 - 1994 Central Point Software


Emergency Disk Help Contents
 Contents for Build Emergency Disk Help

For information about using Help, press F1 or choose Using Help from the Help menu.

How to...

Create an Emergency Disk

Update an Emergency Disk

Use an Emergency Disk

Enter Command-Line Options for Build Emergency Disk

Command Buttons

Create

Update

Settings

Done


About Build Emergency Disk

Your emergency disk is a vital part of PC Tools for Windows.

It can contain fundamental information about your machine configuration as well as other files that reflect the current state of the directory tree and file system on your hard drive.


Emergency Disk keys
Build Emergency Disk Shortcut Keys

.Print this page.

Key	Action

 Tab	Move clockwise between buttons or boxes in a window.

Shift+Tab	Move counterclockwise between buttons or boxes in a window.

F1	Displays context-sensitive help.

Alt+F4	Closes the Build Emergency Disk program

Enter	Chooses active command button.

Esc	Cancels the command and closes the dialog box.


Create

Creates an emergency disk containing the files, programs, and drive settings shown in the Settings dialog box.


Update

Changes an existing emergency disk to include changed operating system, drive, or accessory information.


Settings

Use the Settings dialog box to specify the capacity of the emergency disk and the files and programs you want to copy to it.

By default, the disk is formatted with system files before any disk information and data recovery programs are added.


Done

Exits from the Build Emergency Disk program without performing any further action.


Settings Dialog Box

Specifies the files and programs you want on your emergency disk, whether the disk should be formatted first, and what capacity it has.

Choose files and file groups from the list in the list box. Only the names of files that will fit on a disk of the size specified in the Media list box are shown in the list.

If there is room and you want to add other files to the emergency disk, you can copy them manually.

Note

Most DOS systems boot from the A drive if it contains a disk. If your system will not boot from the A drive, see Command Line Options to find out how to change the drive for creating your emergency disk.

Dialog Box Controls

Include on Emergency Disk
A list of files, programs, and information to be written to the emergency disk. You can select and deselect files and file categories individually by clicking on the file or file category name. To select or deselect all files, choose the Select All or Deselect All button.

Format Disk First	Check this box to make the disk bootable by formatting it with system files before any files are written to it. This is the default. In an emergency, you usually want to boot your system directly from the emergency disk instead of using another boot disk first.

Media	Specifies the capacity of the drive where the emergency disk is located. This should be your default boot drive.

Send Mail	Lets you send files to the network administrator or other network maintenance user for creation of an emergency disk for your local system. This option is available only if Microsoft Mail is running on your system.

When you choose Send Mail, the Microsoft Mail Send Note window opens with all the selected files attached. Enter the name of the network user who will create your emergency disk and send the message.


Creating an Emergency Disk
Creating Your Emergency Disk

After you start Build Emergency Disk, you create your emergency disk in these steps if you boot from drive A in an emergency:

If you are using a high-density, system-formatted floppy disk:

1.	Insert the floppy disk in drive A.

2.	Choose Create to make an emergency disk.

If you are using a lower density, unformatted floppy disk:

1.	Insert the floppy disk in drive A.

2.	Choose the Settings button in the main Build Emergency Disk window.

Although you can select a different disk density in the dialog box that asks you to insert a floppy disk for your emergency disk, you can also set the correct density here.

3.	Select the files or file categories you want on the emergency disk. See Emergency Disk Files for a file list with descriptions.

4. 	Select Format Disk First if the disk is not already formatted as a bootable disk with system files.

5.	Choose OK to return to the Build Emergency Disk main window.

6.	Choose Create to make an emergency disk according to the settings you specified.

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See Also

What to do if your emergency boot drive is not A


Emergency Disk Files

The following files are copied from your fixed boot disk to your emergency disk.

 	To get more information about any file or category, click the file name.

Basic Files and Utility Programs

CMOS and partition table information
This information is essential to repairing disk problems. If your partition tables are damaged, you cannot access any files on the disk partition. If CMOS information is lost, the operating system does not know what drives your system has.

FDISK 	The DOS hard disk partitioning program.

Mouse driver 	The mouse driver loaded in your AUTOEXEC.BAT or CONFIG.SYS is copied to the emergency disk. But note that it is not loaded in the basic CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT on the emergency disk because of possible memory conflicts with DiskFix when it is run from the emergency disk.

AUTOEXEC.BAT file
A basic AUTOEXEC.BAT file. This file contains only the necessary commands for a clean and complete boot of your system.

CONFIG.SYS file
A basic CONFIG.SYS file. The emergency disk CONFIG.SYS file loads only essential device drivers and specifies the FILES and BUFFERS settings in your original CONFIG.SYS file. No mouse driver is loaded in the basic CONFIG.SYS file, however.

Special Purpose Files

Disk driver 	If you have a special disk driver, such as a driver that automatically compresses files on the disk, this driver must be copied to your emergency disk. Build Emergency Disk can copy drivers that are loaded in the CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files only if the full path name is specified.

Network files	Files that attach your computer to your network.

SYS 	The DOS utility program that copies system files to a disk, which makes it bootable.

DR DOS system login
If you use DR DOS to password-protect your disk, copy this program to your emergency disk.

International keyboard and display
Copy KEYB.COM, KEYBOARD.SYS or KEYBOARD.EXE, and COUNTRY.SYS if your system is customized for a language other than U. S. English.

DOS utility programs
These files are copied to the emergency disk automatically if there is room. You can use the command line options to specify a different disk, or you can use the files directly from the DOS Utility disk.

Note

Online help for PC Format and PC Unformat is not included on the DOS utility disk. Help for other DOS utilities is available on the DOS Utility disk, but it is not copied to your emergency disk if there is not enough room for it.

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See Also

Enter Command Line Options for Build Emergency Disk


AUTOEXEC.BAT

This is not the full AUTOEXEC.BAT file you use on your C: drive to boot your system in ordinary circumstances. It contains only instructions for using the emergency disk, and sets your DOS prompt so that it displays the current drive and directory.

If there is space on the emergency disk, you may make a copy of your original AUTOEXEC.BAT file with another name, such as AUTOEXEC.SAV, to use as a reference in reconstructing your system configuration if you have to reformat your hard disk.


CMOS Information

DOS cannot start your system without some basic CMOS information, such as what kind of floppy drives are present. If you have lost your CMOS information, you might have to enter at least the floppy drive information manually before you can use your emergency disk.

After the system can recognize the default floppy boot drive, you can boot from your emergency disk and run DiskFix with the /CMOS command-line option to get DiskFix to restore all CMOS information.


Partition Table Information

The emergency disk contains partition table information that DiskFix can use to rebuild partition tables on your hard disk.


FDISK DOS Utility

Use FDISK to examine existing partition table information or to create partitions on a newly formatted hard disk.

You use FDISK from your emergency disk to verify that your disk partitions are recognizable. Do not use FDISK to reformat your disk unless you have a complete, recent backup of the entire physical disk, or as a last resort if DiskFix is unable to restore the disk.


Mouse Driver

The mouse driver loaded from your AUTOEXEC.BAT or CONFIG.SYS file is copied to your emergency disk. If you do not load a mouse driver in either of these startup files, no mouse driver is copied to your emergency disk.

The mouse driver is not loaded automatically, however, because of potential memory conflicts when DiskFix is run from the emergency disk.

To load the mouse driver after you boot from your emergency disk, type MOUSE -- or the name of your mouse driver command -- at the DOS prompt.


CONFIG.SYS File

This is not the complete CONFIG.SYS file from your C: drive. It contains only the FILES and BUFFERS commands that enable you to run DiskFix and other repair programs.

If there is space on the emergency disk, you may make a copy of your original CONFIG.SYS file with another name, such as CONFIG.SAV, to use as a reference in reconstructing your system configuration if you have to reformat your hard disk.


Disk Drivers

Only disk drivers that are used for the bootable fixed disk are copied to your emergency disk. Other drivers, such as Bernoulli .OAD drivers, are not copied. The PC Tools for Windows manual contains a complete list of drivers copied to the emergency disk.

If you use disk compression software, such as Stacker, make sure that your driver is copied. You might also need to use the Build Emergency Disk /BOOT_DEV command-line option to make sure that you get copies of the basic bootup files instead of the compressed drive versions of these files.


Network Drivers

If you are on a network, network drivers are copied from your Windows directory by default.

Use the /NET command line option to specify a different directory for these files. For example, if your network files are in C:\NOVELL, run Build Emergency Disk by entering

WNEDSK /NET=C:\NOVELL

on the command line.


SYS Utility Program

The SYS program copies system files to a local physical disk. It does not format the disk. You cannot use SYS to copy system files to network drives.


DR DOS Login File

DR DOS lets you assign a password to your fixed hard disk so that an unauthorized user cannot access your hard disk or boot from it. If you use DR DOS with this feature, make sure that your DR DOS login file is copied to your emergency disk.


International Files

Build Emergency Disk includes the DOS files that manage language-specific keyboard input and screen output only if your CONFIG.SYS file contains a country code other than 001, or a keyboard code other than 'us'.

For more information about customizing your system for international use, refer to your DOS manual.


DOS Utility Programs

Emergency disk files usually take up less than 250K of disk space. Remaining space on the disk is used for the DOS versions of the utility programs you use to restore a damaged disk or recover lost data. These utility programs include Memory Information, DiskFix, Undelete, PC Format, and Unformat.

The installation program also copies the DOS utility programs to your hard disk.


Updating an Emergency Disk
Updating Your Emergency Disk

You can update an existing emergency disk, and add new files to it or replace old ones.

If you add a new drive, or change an existing drive, or if you add or replace any disk drivers on the system, you should update your existing emergency disk. If you reformat and repartition your disk or install a new version of DOS you should make a completely new emergency disk.

However, if you omitted some of the files or file categories when you made your original emergency disk, you can add them by following these steps:

1.	Start the Build Emergency Disk program and insert your existing emergency disk in the floppy drive where you created it.

2.	Choose the Settings button and click to select only the new file names in the Include on Emergency Disk list box.

3.	Choose OK, and return to the Build Emergency Disk main window.

4.	Choose Update.

Note

The Update utility does not allow you to format an existing emergency disk. If the disk does not contain system files, use the DOS SYS command to add them to the disk. The Update utility creates new versions of the AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files, but it does not remove any existing files.


Using Your Emergency Disk

You boot from your emergency disk in these emergency situations:

You cannot boot from your hard drive.

DiskFix recommends that you repair the CMOS or partition table information.

Your emergency disk is useful at other times, too. If your system is behaving oddly and you cannot use the PC Tools for Windows utility programs such as DiskFix, use the PC Tools utilities on the Emergency Utility disk included with PC Tools for Windows.


Insert DOS Utilities Message Box
Insert DOS Utilities Disk

Build Emergency Disk has not found the DOS utility programs on your hard disk.

When you create an emergency disk during installation of PC Tools for Windows, Build Emergency Disk copies certain DOS data recovery and disk analysis utility programs from the DOS Utility Disk to your emergency disk as well as to the \DOSUTILS subdirectory of your PC Tools for Windows directory.

If you have moved the DOS utility programs to another disk, specify the full path name.

To skip this step, choose Cancel.
DOS utility programs will not be copied to a new emergency disk. If you are updating an emergency disk that already contains DOS utility programs, however, the utility programs already on the disk are not deleted.

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See Also

Enter Command Line Options for Build Emergency Disk


Cannot Save Partition File Error
Cannot Save Partition File

Build Emergency Disk cannot save information needed to restore partitions on your disk. This is an unusual problem. Here is a list of three possible causes:

1.	Your disk partitions do not conform to DOS standards. For example, an OS/2 Dual Boot or Boot Manager partition or a partition with 32K clusters is not a DOS standard partition. Information needed to restore such partitions cannot be saved by Build Emergency Disk. The only way to fix this problem is to make all partitions DOS-standard.

2.	Build Emergency Disk cannot save the CMOS information that specifies the drive types, system time and date, and other startup information, which is part of the process of saving partition information. Although Build Emergency Disk cannot save partition information, you can add it manually by entering the following command at the DOS prompt:
MIRROR/PARTN/NOCMOS
Partition information is saved, but CMOS information is not.

3.	The TEMP environment variable set in your AUTOEXEC.BAT must point to a directory that exists. If your AUTOEXEC.BAT file sets a TEMP directory, make sure that the directory actually exists. If your AUTOEXEC.BAT does not set a TEMP directory, you do not need to add one.

If you are creating an emergency disk during the Install program, choosing Cancel returns you to the next Install step, which is the Scheduler setup. Select Previous in the Scheduler setup dialog box to return to Build Emergency Disk.


Insert Disk Message Box
Insert Disk

Insert a disk into your A drive or default boot drive.

Use the highest capacity disk for the drive to copy all of the emergency utility programs and information.

Make sure that the specified disk capacity is correct, especially if you are using a lower capacity disk in the drive. For example, do not try to format a 360K disk as a 1.2M disk.

To use a different capacity disk, choose Change Size. The alternate disk capacity for the floppy drive is selected. If you select the lower capacity, some emergency disk files will not be copied.

3.5-inch disk drives can format either a 1.44M or a 720K floppy disk. If you have a 3.5-inch drive that can format a 2.88 MB disk, Create Emergency Disk detects this capacity and lets you specify it. 5.25-inch disk drives can format either a 1.2M or a 360K floppy disk.

After you have specified the correct disk capacity, choose OK.

Note

If your default boot drive is not A, exit from Build Emergency Disk. Then start it again by using the Run command from the File Manager File menu or the Run File Accessory so that you can add the /DEST command-line option that specifies the correct boot drive.

If you are creating an emergency disk during the Install program, choosing Cancel returns you to the next Install step, which is the Scheduler setup. Select Previous in the Scheduler setup dialog box to return to Build Emergency Disk.

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See Also

Command Line Options


Disk Not Empty Message Box
Disk Not Empty

The disk you have inserted contains files.

Build Emergency Disk formats the emergency disk by default in order to make sure that the disk is absolutely clean and contains the correct current system files.

All files contained on the disk will be erased when you format it.

To retrieve files from the disk first, choose Cancel. Then copy the files to another disk and start Build Emergency Disk again.

If you are creating an emergency disk during the Install program, choosing Cancel returns you to the next Install step, which is the Scheduler setup. Select Previous in the Scheduler setup dialog box to return to Build Emergency Disk.


Insufficient Disk Space: Suggestion Options
Insufficient Disk Space: Suggested Options

A disk with the capacity specified in the Settings dialog box cannot hold all of the files selected.

This warning message box lists the names of files you can deselect and still have a useful emergency disk.

To deselect the files automatically and continue, choose OK.

To exit from the warning box and adjust the list of files selected yourself, choose Cancel. Then choose Settings from the main window and deselect the suggested files, or others. Make sure that the basic files are still included.

If you are creating an emergency disk during the Install program, choosing Cancel returns you to the next Install step, which is the Scheduler setup. Select Previous in the Scheduler setup dialog box to return to Build Emergency Disk.

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See Also

Emergency Disk Files


Insufficient Disk Space

The disk cannot hold all of the selected or updated files. The dialog box tells you how many files will not be contained on the disk. It does not name the files.

You usually see this message if you have selected a lower disk capacity for your emergency disk.

To continue with Update or Create and omit the files Build Emergency Disk has deselected automatically, choose OK.

To remove some files from your emergency disk and update the existing emergency disk, choose Cancel and deselect some items shown in the Files to Include list box in the Settings dialog box. Then choose Update again.

If you deselect items manually, make sure that the basic files are still included.

If you are creating an emergency disk during the Install program, choosing Cancel returns you to the next Install step, which is the Scheduler setup. Select Previous in the Scheduler setup dialog box to return to Build Emergency Disk.

________

See Also

Emergency Disk Files


Emergency Disk Is Not Bootable
Disk Not Bootable

The disk in your default boot drive does not contain system files, so it cannot be used to boot your system.

You have two choices:

Select Format Disk First from the Settings dialog box before you choose Create from the Build Emergency Disk window.

Exit from Build Emergency Disk and use the File Manager Make System Disk command, or the DOS SYS command, to copy system files to the disk.

Note

It is possible to create an emergency disk without system files, but you will need another disk to boot your system in an emergency. If you must use a disk with a small capacity, it is better to have an emergency disk with system and other basic startup files, and a second disk with additional utilities.


Disk Not an Emergency Disk
Not an Emergency Disk

The disk in your default boot drive is not an emergency disk. The volume label is not correct.

If you want to use this disk for an emergency disk, choose Create instead of Update.

All files currently on the disk will be erased when you format the disk for use as an emergency disk.


Disk Full

The emergency disk is full and cannot contain basic copies of your AUTOEXEC.BAT or CONFIG.SYS files, which are larger than expected.

Choose Settings and deselect a file from the list displayed. Then you can create an emergency disk that contains the basic startup files for your system.


Can't Update, Disk Full

Because new versions of drivers or other programs are larger than the previous versions, your emergency disk cannot be updated to contain the new versions.

To have Build Emergency Disk decide which programs are essential for your emergency disk, choose Create and make an entirely new emergency disk.


Operating System Changed

Your operating system has changed since you created the emergency disk in your default boot drive.

To make sure that all emergency disk files are compatible with the changed operating system, you should create a new emergency disk.


System Files Not Copied
Disk Cannot Be Made Bootable

One or more of the system files was not copied to your emergency disk.

This happens only when the system files cannot be found or have been damaged so that they are unrecognizable.

The only command interpreter recognized by Build Emergency Disk is COMMAND.COM. When you make an emergency disk, COMMAND.COM must be in the root directory of your hard boot disk.


File Not Copied

The named file cannot be copied to your emergency disk.

If you are running DR DOS make sure that there is a formatted disk in the drive and that the drive is locked. Then choose Yes to try to copy the file again.

If you are not running DR DOS, or if there is a formatted disk in the drive, the file might be corrupted. Choose Cancel to return to the Build Emergency Disk main window, then verify that the file is not damaged.

To continue creating an emergency disk without a copy of the named file, choose No.


Unrecognizable Disk or Drive Not Responding

Build Emergency Disk cannot tell what kind of disk is in the floppy drive.

This might happen for two reasons:

The disk has a capacity greater than 2.88M. You can use only a disk with one of the capacities shown in the Media list box in the Settings dialog box.

You are performing a backup. Backup shuts out other programs' access to floppy drives while it backs up your files, even if you are backing up to a tape or other drive.


Command Line Options for Build Emergency Disk
Command-Line Options

Click here [image] to print this help page.

Use command-line options to change Build Emergency Disk defaults for the boot disk, network directory, and other source directories.

To change Build Emergency Disk defaults, start Build Emergency Disk from the Run file accessory  or the Run dialog box on the File Manager's File menu, and enter the appropriate command-line options in the Command Line box.

Option	Description

/dest=<destination>	Specify the drive where the emergency disk should be made. This is almost always your default floppy boot drive. If you make a universal emergency disk on a network drive, note that the partition table, CMOS, and other machine-specific information will not necessarily be correct for other machines. To specify B: as your default boot drive, enter
/dest=b:

/net=<net directory>	Specify the directory where you keep network files. If you keep network files in a directory called NOVELL, enter
/net=C:\NOVELL

/novirus	Specify /novirus if you do not want Build Emergency Disk to scan memory for viruses.

/boot_dev=<boot device>
Specify the drive where boot information is found. C: is the default. If you are running Stacker or other drive compression software, refer to your user's manual for information about the drive where DOS boot information is stored on your machine. If the drive is D:,enter
/boot_dev=D:


File Accessory

PC Tools for Windows includes varied selection of single-purpose file and disk management applications, such as Run, Encrypt, Decrypt, Compress, Expand, Format Disk, and Sync Directories.

These applications are called File Accessories. They are almost exactly like the standard File Manager File and Disk menu dialog boxes, except that they are minimized on the desktop for instant use outside of the File Manager.

Within the File Manager, you can select File Accessory style dialog boxes by holding down the Shift key while you select a File or Disk menu command. You can then use the dialog box like a mini application.