Background

Bootable CDs are created using the so-called 'El Torito' specification. This is an extension of the ISO 9660 standard which controls the structure of Data CDs: A bootable CD consists of a boot partition and an optional ISO track. The format sees a boot section that contains the information needed to start the CD and a boot catalog.

Such a CD can only be made from an existing bootable partition. The entire partition is copied to the CD so the CD must be smaller than 650 MB (or 700 MB).

There are three basic types of Boot CDs: Floppy Emulation, Harddisk Emulation and No Emulation.


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