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SpeedKit
from
HyperWare
HyperKey
HyperScreen
HyperDisk
Program and Document Copyright 1987-1992 by Roger Cross All Rights Reserved
Table of Contents
HyperWare License Agreement 5
Product Return Policy 5
Limited Warranty 6
Trademark Information 6
Introduction 7
HyperKey, version 4.16 7
HyperScreen, version 2.30 7
HyperDisk, version 4.51 9
Ordering Information 11
Upgrade Policy 11
Technical Support 11
Part 1: Installation 12
HyperKey 13
HyperScreen 14
HyperDisk 15
HyperDisk Notes 18
Notes for Windows Users 18
Intel Inboard 386 Note 18
Part 2: SpeedKit Options 19
All Product Options 19
Hotkey Control 19
XS SHADOW RAM LOADER 20
XF:file EXECUTE COMMAND FILE 20
KW KEY WAIT TIME 20
OR OVERRIDE REPORT 21
OX DISABLE REPORT 21
OK OVERRIDE DISPLAY METHOD 21
OK:nn OVERRIDE COLORS/ATTRIBUTES 21
OKC:nn OVERRIDE COLORS ONLY 22
OKM:nn OVERRIDE ATTRIBUTES ONLY 22
HyperKey Options 23
D:nn TYPEMATIC DELAY 23
R:nn TYPEMATIC PERIOD 23
P:nn TYPEMATIC PITCH 23
S:nn TYPEMATIC SPAN 23
H:nn SPAN HOLDOFF 23
B EXTENDED BUFFERING 24
B:nn EXTENDED BUFFER SIZE 24
I KEYBOARD LOCK INDICATORS 24
A ACTIVE 24
C CLICK ON MAKE 24
C:nn CLICK PITCH 24
CR CLICK ON REPEATS 25
L:nn CLICK PERIOD 25
T TOUCH SHIFTING 25
U UNINSTALL 25
HyperScreen Options 26
A GLOBAL HyperScreen ENABLE 26
F ENABLE FAST BIOS 26
B ENABLE BLANKER 26
B:nn SET BLANKING TIME 26
K ANY KEY DEBLANKING 26
K:nn HOTKEY TAP COUNT 26
K:s HOTKEY SELECTION 27
U UNINSTALL 27
Table of Contents
HyperDisk Common Options 28
H HARD DRIVES ONLY 28
F FLOPPY DRIVE CACHING 28
E ENABLE/UPDATE HYPERDISK 28
D DISABLE HYPERDISK 28
V VERIFY READ 28
N NO VERIFY 28
C:nn[:nn] CACHE SIZE 29
CW:nn WINDOWS CACHE SIZE 29
CB:nn ALTERNATE WINDOWS SIZING 29
CP:nn PERCENT FREE MEMORY 29
W WRITE THROUGH HARD 30
Q WRITE THROUGH FLOPPY 30
S STAGED WRITE HARD 31
A STAGED WRITE FLOPPY 33
HyperDisk Other Options 33
T:nn TIMER DELAY 33
K HOTKEY ENABLE 33
K:aclr HOTKEY SHIFT STATES 33
M:nn MEDIA CHECK RATE 33
Z:nn SECTORS per BUFFER 33
XC:nn RESIZE CACHE BUFFER 34
XD:nn DELETE CACHE BUFFERS 34
XA:nn ADD CACHE BUFFERS 34
XU UNINSTALL CACHE 35
I:nn FLUSH INDICATOR 35
P:nn FLUSH INDICATOR PERIOD 35
R RESET HyperDisk HIT 35
OT OVERRIDE TONE 35
VF VERIFY FLOPPY WRITE OPERATION 35
VH VERIFY HARD WRITE OPERATION 36
VI QEMM Stealth SUPPORT 36
XB:nn BACKGROUND UPDATE TIME 36
XI ENABLE ADVANCED UPDATE 36
XIH ENABLE ADVANCED HARD UPDATE 36
XIF ENABLE ADVANCED FLOPPY UPDATE 36
XP:nn BACKGROUND UPDATE PERCENT 36
XSL SPLIT SHADOW RAM LOADING 37
XW CHECK REDUNDANT WRITE 37
XWH CHECK REDUNDANT HARD WRITE 37
XWF CHECK REDUNDANT FLOPPY WRITE 37
OD DMA BOUNDARY TEST OVERRIDE 37
HyperDisk Hotkey Controls 37
ABORT INSTALLATION 38
WARM-BOOT 38
DISABLE HYPERDISK 39
ENABLE / UPDATE HYPERDISK 39
MANUAL DISKETTE CHANGE 39
STAGED WRITE HARD DISK 39
STAGED WRITE FLOPPY DISKETTE 39
WRITE THROUGH HARD DISK 40
WRITE THROUGH FLOPPY DISKETTE 40
FORCE UPDATE BEFORE PROGRAM LOADS 40
RESUME STANDARD UPDATE 40
Table of Contents
HyperDisk Technical Options 40
U EXPANDED MEMORY BUFFERING 40
UI EMS FAR CALL FOR DESQVIEW 41
EH:n:... ENABLE SPECIFIC HARD DRIVES 41
EF:n:... ENABLE SPECIFIC FLOPPY DRIVES 41
DH:n:... DISABLE SPECIFIC HARD DRIVES 41
DF:n:... DISABLE SPECIFIC FLOPPY DRIVES 41
KD UPDATE BUFFER ON DISK RESET 41
KT DISABLE FLOPPY CHANGE TONE 41
OH:nn HOTKEY VECTOR METHOD 42
OB:nn BYPASS SECTOR SIZE 42
OC MEDIA CHANGE SIGNAL 42
Y DIAGNOSTIC DUMP 42
YD DISPLAY SYSTEM ACCESS COUNTS 42
NR NO READ AHEAD 42
G:n ADVANCED A20 GATE TYPE 43
OG OVERRIDE A20 GATE EXIT 44
XM XMS MEMORY ALLOCATION MODE 44
XML XMS MEMORY BLOCK LOCKING 44
XT, XTR, XTP XMS Y TRANSFER MODE 44
Part 3: HyperDisk Notes 45
Extended Model HYPERDKX.EXE 45
HyperDisk Limitations 45
Caches Explained 46
Disk Controller Caches 46
Other Caching Systems 47
Borland's Reflex Package 47
Hard Disk Integration Packages 48
Part 4: Error Messages 49
Part 5: Other Installations 51
Testing Near Compatibles 51
Manual Installation 52
Changing Parameters 54
Part 6: Programs Tested 55
HyperWare License Agreement
This software is protected by both United States copyright law and
international treaty provisions. Therefore, you must treat this software
just like a book, with the following single exception. HyperWare authorizes
you to make archival copies of the software for the sole purpose of backing
up our software and protecting your investment from loss. By saying, just
like a book, HyperWare means that this software may be used by any number
of people and may be freely moved from one computer location to another, so
long as there is no possibility of it being used at one location while it
is being used at another. In the same manner as a book can't be read by two
different people in two different places at the same time, neither can this
software be used by two different people in two different places at the
same time.
You may not make copies of the software documentation or disk, except as
described above. You may not distribute, rent, sublicense, or lease the
software or the documentation. You may not alter, modify, or adapt the
software or documentation, including but not limited to translating,
decompiling, reverse assembling, or creating derivative works. You may not
use the software in a network, timesharing, multiple CPU, or multi-user
environment unless each user is licensed by HyperWare.
Product Return Policy
You are able to return any HyperWare product as long as the seal of the
distribution envelope has not been broken and the product in every way is
in a resaleable condition. Resaleable means the same condition you would
want to receive product if you just bought it new. Call our Customer
Service Department for a Return Merchandise Authorization number prior to
shipping the merchandise to us, otherwise you cannot receive any refund.
Merchandise which you attempt to return with the envelope seal not intact
or if the diskette inside has been copied will not receive a refund.
Limited Warranty
In the event of notification of defects in material or workmanship of the
diskette media or manual, within the warranty period of 45 days from the
date of the purchase of the license fee, HyperWare will, at its option,
replace the diskette or manual, or refund the license fee. If you need to
report a defect, call the HyperWare Customer Service Department. The remedy
for breach of this warranty shall be limited to replacement or refund and
shall not encompass any other damages, including but not limited to loss of
profit, and special, incidental, consequential, or other similar claims.
HyperWare specifically disclaims all other warranties, expressed or
implied, including but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability
and fitness for a particular purpose with respect to defects in the
diskette and documentation, and the program license granted herein in
particular, and without limiting operation of the program license with
respect to any particular application, use, or purpose. In no event shall
HyperWare be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damage,
including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other
damages. This statement shall be construed, interpreted, and governed by
the laws of the State of Tennessee.
Trademark Information
HyperWare, HyperKey, HyperScreen, Touch Shifting,
and SpeedKit are trademarks of Roger Cross.
MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
Microsoft Windows is copyrighted by Microsoft Corporation.
Qualitas and 386MAX are trademarks of Qualitas, Inc.
SpeedStor is a trademark of Storage Dimensions.
Disk Manager is a trademark of Ontrack Computer Systems, Inc.
Other programs and/or equipment mentioned herein are trademarks or
registered trademarks of their respective publishers and or manufacturers.
Introduction
HyperKey, version 4.16
Your PC has a Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) that normally controls your
keyboard functions. The BIOS does very little to provide support for many
windowing and scrolling type applications common in today's PC systems.
Both the Delay to Repeat (Typematic Delay) and the Period of Repeat
(Typematic Rate) are slow and cumbersome. Although the PC BIOS provides a
Type Ahead feature, it is a scant 15 characters. The BIOS' type ahead
buffering can be both an advantage and a disadvantage. If you are waiting
for a slow program to request more input, you may enter it before you are
prompted, saving time when the program needs your input. However, when you
are scrolling or repeating some keystroke, the BIOS type ahead causes you
to overshoot your target and then beeps incessantly as your application
complains that you have exceeded its limits.
HyperKey addresses all these problems. You may set the Typematic Delay and
Typematic Period to any values. Type Ahead buffering provides 128
keystrokes and does not fill with repeated keys as the PC BIOS does. The
Typematic Period is paced to match your application's needs and will never
overshoot or get ahead of your application. In summary, HyperKey allows
your PC Keyboard to excel in speed and performance.
HyperKey is a powerful keyboard enhancement package that allows each user
to customize completely all keyboard functions including the type-ahead
buffer size, key repeat rate, length of delay before a key begins
repeating, keyboard clicking sounds, and Touch Shifting for one-finger
typing.
HyperScreen, version 2.30
HyperScreen is a video enhancement tool that gives you the most power and
versatility from your existing video hardware. With state-of-the-art
software, it provides screen blanking and video BIOS speedup.
The screen blanking function shuts off your video display after a preset
time to prevent a persistent image from forming on the display's phosphors.
Phosphors are the light emitting substances inside the video display's
faceplate that make the electronic image visible. If a fixed image is
displayed continuously for a long time, the excited phosphors deteriorate
producing a burned screen. Monochrome displays are most often affected by
burning. Color displays do not commonly form burned images visible to the
eye, but there is some loss of brightness and contrast.
The blanking function also provides a manual feature that allows you to
blank quickly any information currently displayed on the screen. This
feature protects sensitive data from exposure to unexpected visitors. By
specifying parameters, you may choose which key activates this feature and
the number of times it must be pressed.
The FAST BIOS feature increases the speed of your display by replacing
inefficient portions of video BIOS code. This option speeds all mode
displays either in DOS or any -based programs, but it does not speed up
graphics displays or direct display access applications. These functions
are based on the individual software packages rather than the BIOS code on
the video card.
HyperScreen may be used with any of the following displays or combination
of display systems:
IBM Monochrome Display Adapter (MDA)
IBM Color Graphics Adapter (CGA)
IBM Enhanced Color Graphics Adapter (EGA)
IBM Video Graphic Array (VGA)
Hercules Graphics Adapter (HGA)
Hercules Graphics Plus (HGA+)
Hercules InColor Card (HCG)
Any display system compatible with these standards.
HyperScreen accelerates video output in all modes to the fastest
display possible for your applications. It also includes a versatile screen
blanker that supports all and graphic modes.
HyperDisk, version 4.51
Welcome to the ultimate disk performance utility for your personal computer
system. Disk caching has been used for years in the computer industry to
improve disk performance in many mainframe computer systems and is now
available for your personal computer.
What is Disk Caching? Caching is simply keeping often-read items readily
accessible in memory. Why is a disk not readily accessible? It is a matter
of relative comparison: disks are very fast compared to file cabinets, but
your computer's internal Random Access Memory (RAM) is far faster than disk
memory.
How can a small amount of RAM in a PC improve disk performance? Some of
your computer's RAM can be used to store the data you use most often. This
is known as buffering. What happens when the buffer is full? A cache
maintains a history of data usage. When space is needed to store new data,
the oldest data in the buffer is replaced. You never run out of space,
because it is automatically reused to hold your most recent requests.
Why does replacing the oldest data with new data improve performance?
Because in many cases data is re-used frequently. For example, consider the
usage of items in your kitchen. Do you have some favorite items used more
often than others? If your kitchen is like most, you have some items used
every day, others less frequently, and some only a few times each year. You
probably store the frequently used items in the most accessible places.
This is the way caching works.
How is HyperDisk different from a RAM Disk? HyperDisk is similar to a RAM
disk in that both programs transfer data to and from RAM. A RAM disk user
must first copy all the needed files to the RAM disk and remember to copy
them back to the hard disk after processing has finished. The entire file
must be placed in RAM, even if only part of the file is active. If you find
you need additional files, processing is interrupted again, while you copy
the necessary files to the RAM disk. If the RAM disk becomes full, you must
decide which files to copy back to your hard disk, and then delete them
from the RAM disk. If you need more files for a given task than the RAM
disk can hold, you cannot use the RAM disk. If a power failure occurs or
your computer crashes, all your work in the RAM disk must be done again.
And if you forget to copy the data back to your disk or diskette, all your
efforts are again wasted. HyperDisk eliminates all these shortcomings.
When your application issues a disk read operation, HyperDisk intercepts
the request, copies the data from the disk to its buffer memory, and then
passes the data on to the requesting application. All subsequent requests
for the same data are copied by HyperDisk from its buffer memory to the
requesting application.
When your application issues a disk write operation, HyperDisk compares the
new data to the data already in the cache memory. If it is the same data,
the disk update is bypassed, and valuable time is saved. HyperDisk copies
only active data (data you are actually using) to the buffer, thus
providing much more efficient use of the valuable RAM in your machine.
Optionally, HyperDisk can delay immediate updating of the disks and
diskettes to provide much greater disk and diskette efficiency. Delaying or
staging the update allows HyperDisk to optimize the process by sorting data
for the most efficient updating. In this way, HyperDisk minimizes the
number of disk rotations and head movements required to update the disk.
HyperDisk prolongs the life of your drive by reducing the amount of access
and eliminating redundant access to the drive.
Additionally, for AT, PS/2, 386, 486, and some XT class computers, updates
are performed in the background asynchronously (Advanced Update Mode),
providing your application with even more computing power for faster
execution. No longer must you wait while the data is being written to the
disk and diskette drives.
HyperDisk is fully automatic. If the cache memory is full when any
application issues a new disk request, HyperDisk will make space available
to hold this new data. The least recently used data (oldest data) is
eliminated from the cache, and free memory is then used for the new data.
HyperDisk is continually updating your disk with changes you have made. The
updating is done in the background at times when your computer is idle, to
avoid interrupting your processing. HyperDisk automatically writes all new
data to disk, even if you issue a warm-reboot via the [Ctrl][Alt][Delete]
key sequence, so you cannot lose your important updates. No user
intervention is necessary. When you change diskettes, HyperDisk
automatically updates the cache for the new diskette and beeps to let you
know it recognizes the new diskette.
With HyperDisk, hard disk system performance will generally increase 300%
to 1000%, while simultaneously prolonging the lifetime of your drives by
reducing the wear and tear caused by frequent access. HyperDisk will
improve the performance of any PC, XT or AT based system. New computers
based on the 80386 and 80486 microprocessors will be incomparable in
performance.
HyperDisk is the finest disk caching utility available. It increases your
computer disk drive's performance using advanced features including:
support for Conventional, Extended, and Expanded Memory usage;
interrupt-driven I/O for both read and write caching; support for PC, XT,
AT, 80386, and 80486 type computers; and compatability with all versions of
DOS from 2.xx through 5.xx. It also features advanced options such as
loading all overhead memory into Shadow RAM or upper memory blocks (UMB).
Conventional RAM requirements vary from 0Kb to 35Kb, depending on the model
and size of cache selected, your DOS version, and the available memory of
your PC system.
Ordering Information
Call your local computer store or order directly from:
HyperWare, 185 Berry Street, Suite 3502, San Francisco, CA 94107 USA
PHONE: (415) 882-1740
FAX: (415) 882-1733
BBS: (415) 882-1735
MasterCard, VISA, and COD cashier's check orders accepted.
Each SpeedKit product is meant to be installed as a set-it-and-forget-it
utility. The benefit of the programs will be readily apparent in your day
to day improvement of total system performance. We have taken every step to
ensure compatibility and reliability of our product. However, it is
impossible to test every combination of hardware and software. For this
reason, our technical support department is standing by ready to assist
you, at no charge, with any questions, comments, or installation problems.
Upgrade Policy
All HyperWare products may be upgraded from HyperWare's BBS free of charge
for a period of one year from the date of purchase of the license.
Thereafter, an annual subscription fee entitles you to an unlimited number
of upgrades from the BBS during the following 12 months at no additional
charge. At any time, a new manual and program diskette may be obtained for
a minimal cost. Prices and terms are subject to change without notice.
Please call before ordering or subscribing to obtain current information.
Technical Support
You may call for technical support for this product
Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m., Pacific Time. If we are unable
to assist you immediately, please be prepared to leave a name and number
where you can be reached. Before calling, please be sure to have read the
sections of this manual pertaining to your question. We'll also need to
know the version and serial numbers of the product about which you are
calling.
Part 1: Installation
To install SpeedKit, you will need:
1) One of the following computer types: IBM PC, XT, AT, Portable, PS/2
etc.; Compaq Portable, DeskPro, DeskPro II, etc.; or any other 100%
IBM-compatible. If you have a near-compatible, you may be able to use
SpeedKit, but you should follow the more cautious installation procedure
outlined in Part 5.
2) Microsoft's MS-DOS operating system versions 2.x through 5.x; 100%
compatible operating systems, such as Digital Research's DR-DOS, are also
acceptable.
Backup Your System
It is a good idea to backup your hard disk before installing any new
program. This is especially true if you have a particularly complex or
non-standard system.
NEVER install SpeedKit while operating under one of the DOS enhancement or
extender software packages, such as Microsoft Windows, QuarterDeck's
DesqView, Double DOS, PCMOS, etc. HyperDisk is compatible with these
systems, but must be installed before these systems are executed. SpeedKit
operates by intercepting a variety of system interrupts (8, 9, 10, 13, 15,
19, 21, and 28) and redirecting their actions accordingly. DOS enhancement
packages, such as those listed above, often change the system interrupts on
a per task basis and create a situation in which SpeedKit cannot maintain a
coherent image of the system's disk and diskette devices.
You must exit from all such DOS enhancement products before executing
SpeedKit's install program.
The installion procedure will execute a batch file, which calls various
installation programs for each of the components of SpeedKit. During
installation, you may selectively install each of the various parts of
SpeedKit; no part is dependent upon another to properly execute. To install
SpeedKit on your hard disk, place a backup of the SpeedKit floppy in Drive
A: Type the following when you have exited from all DOS enhancers and the
DOS prompt is displayed:
A:INSTALL[ENTER]
Note: [ENTER] means that you press the Enter key.
HyperKey
1. First you will have an opportunity to read the on-line manual for
HyperKey. You may browse through it with the cursor keys, use the
convenient index feature <F2>, or look up any keyword by searching forward
<F5> or backward <F6>.
2. Next, you will be asked if you want to install HyperKey. If you have a
complete system backup, enter Y. During installation, as you are prompted
for a response, enter only the first letter of your choice.
3. You will be asked whether you want to install HyperKey
as a device driver or as a TSR. We recommend the device driver method
for all the SpeedKit components, which will use less Conventional
memory. (If you have DOS version 2.xx, you must use the TSR version.)
4. Enter the letter of the disk drive where you plan to keep the HyperKey
files. This will typically be Drive C:, your boot drive, but your
configuration may differ.
5. You may now specify any HyperKey options. With no parameters set, the
following conditions apply:
Delay before a key begins to repeat approx. 1/3 sec. Repeat delay between
repeated keys 3/100 sec. Type ahead buffering up to 128 characters NumLock,
CapsLock, ScrollLock, Insert unchanged Keyboard clicking sounds disabled
One-finger Touch Shifting disabled
If you are uncertain of how you wish to set the options, try using HyperKey
with no parameters at the start. Later, as you understand more of how
HyperKey makes entering data easier, you can add options simply by
executing this install batch file again.
Please read Part 2, SpeedKit Options before selecting the parameters for
each of the SpeedKit products.
Microsoft Windows: When Microsoft Windows is active, keystrokes cannot be
intercepted by a device driver such as HyperKey. Therefore, HyperKey is
inoperative while using the Windows environment.
HyperScreen
Next, you may install HyperScreen. The series of questions is much the same
as before with HyperKey; your answers also should be much the same. When
installing HyperScreen with no parameters, these conditions apply:
Fast BIOS for display enabled
Screen blanker enabled Blank screen after no keyboard activity for 10
minutes
Restore a blank display by striking anykey
Force screen blanking by tapping Control key Blanking key tap count 3 taps
Please read Part 2, SpeedKit Options before selecting the parameters for
each of the SpeedKit products.
HyperDisk
If you have Golden Bow's VFEATURE Deluxe, do NOT use HyperDisk. VFEATURE is
a non-compatible INT13h device driver.
First, you need to determine which HyperDisk model to install. This depends
upon the memory available in your system and the type of microprocessor you
have.
HYPER286.EXE:
The Advanced 286 Mode uses proprietary Extended memory management for RAM
transfers. This model provides the fastest possible transfers but still
allows other programs to interrupt when it is needed. If you have an
80286-based computer with Extended memory, try this model first. If you
experience compatibility problems, use the HYPERDKX.EXE, the Extended
model.
HYPER386.EXE:
The Advanced 386 Mode is the same as the Advanced 286 model, but optimized
for 80386-486 machines. If you have an 80386- or 80486-based computer, use
this model first. If you experience compatibility problems, use
HYPERDKX.EXE, the Extended model.
HYPERDKX.EXE:
The Extended Model uses the memory above 1 megabyte as cache memory.
Normally, you should use either the Advanced 286 or 386 Mode models.
However, if your system uses one of the 80386-based EMS emulators such as
Qualitas' 386^Max, QuarterDeck's QEMM, Compaq's EMM, etc., you should use
this model. The 286 and 386 models are compatible with these products, but
most of the advanced mode support is not permitted while operating under
these EMS emulators. Therefore, you may save a small amount of Conventional
memory by using the smaller code size provided by the Extended model.
(Technical note: This model supports two transfer protocols, XMS and INT
15h-87h. XMS is the default mode.)
HYPERDKE.EXE:
The Expanded Model uses bank-switched memory like that provided by the
Intel Above Board (LIM EMS), AST Research's EEMM products, and their 100%
compatibles. You can finally put this memory in your computer to work,
speeding up all your programs all the time, instead of having only a few
special applications customized to use LIM EMS. You can install up to 8
megabytes of Expanded memory for LIM EMS 3.2 and up to 32 megabytes for LIM
EMS 4.0 and EEMM 3.2.
HYPERDKC.EXE:
The Conventional Model uses the memory between 0 and 640KB. This is also
the memory used by DOS and your programs. If you do not have Extended or
Expanded memory, use this model. The best compromise (with the Conventional
model only) is achieved with a cache size between 128K to about 256K. The
default size is 128K.
HYPERDK.EXE:
(for batch files) The purpose of this file is to change options for a model
of HyperDisk already installed on your computer. Include this program name
in any batch file rather than the above program names. For example, if you
start your computer with HyperDisk enabled, but at some point you want to
disable the cache, you can do so in a batch file by adding the command:
hyperdk D ; The D disables the cache,
and is explained below.
HYPERSTB.EXE:
(for manual installations) This program allows you to install and later
uninstall HyperDisk easily and without conflict with other resident
programs. Install HYPERSTB.EXE in either your CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT
file (normally in the same place as you would place the HyperDisk install
statement). Later, either near the end of the AUTOEXEC.BAT or from the
command line, you may install HyperDisk. HYPERSTB's function is to reserve
the resources needed for HyperDisk, preventing conflicts with other
resident programs installed later. HYPERSTB only requires approximately 400
bytes! Example:
device=c:\hyperstb.exe
No parameters are needed!
HyperDisk Installation:
1. As before with HyperKey and HyperScreen, you first have an opporturnity
to view the on-line manual.
2. The installer will display some information about testing the various
HyperDisk models with your system, and give you an opportunity to do
some testing or backup your hard disks before continuing with the
installation.
3. You will then be asked to select a HyperDisk model to install on your
system.
4. Select installation as a device driver (recommended) or as a TSR (if
your system requires it).
5. Indicate which disk drive you would like to use for installing
HyperDisk.
6. Enter the amount of memory to use for the disk cache. The amount you
enter corresponds to 1,024 byte (1K) increments. For example, 2048 will
create a 2-megabyte cache size. If the size of the cache you enter is
not available on your computer, all available memory will be used. The
default size is recommended for first-time users. Press [ENTER] to
select the default response.
7. Windows users may set a smaller cache size while Windows is enabled. The
purpose for this is to make available more Extended memory for Windows,
yet still put that memory to use with HyperDisk when your system is not
using Windows. If you do not use Windows, simply press [ENTER] when
prompted for a Window's cache size.
8. You may next specify any HyperDisk options. Please refer to Part 2,
SpeedKit Options, for a detailed explanation. Generally, for first-time
users, no extra parameters are necessary. However, to improve your
performance, you are encouraged to read about the various options and
discover which will likely fine-tune your system. With no parameters
set, the following conditions apply:
Cache which drives all, hard and floppy
Verify disk writes disabled
Cache size All but Conventional all available memory
Cache size Conventional model 128K
Write through enabled
Staged write disabled
Hotkey control enabled
We recommend enabling both HyperDisk's STAGED WRITE functions, but not
until you have read all the pertinent documentation in Part 2 of this
manual.
9. After exiting the HyperDisk installer, use a editor to edit your
CONFIG.SYS file and set BUFFERS=10. While have more than ten DOS buffers
will not cause any problems, they become redundant with a disk cache.
10. HyperDisk's VERIFY function is much faster than DOS. If you have
enabled HyperDisk's VERIFY, use an editor to edit your AUTOEXEC.BAT file
and set VERIFY=OFF.
11. Reboot your computer to complete the installation of SpeedKit.
HyperDisk Notes
Automatic Installation Abort
HyperDisk automatically prevents conflicting configurations by detecting
SMARTDrive or PC-Kwik and aborting installation.
Copy Protection
Some products that use copy-protected media may require that the caching
function be disabled during the media verification period. Press
[ALT][CTRL]D to disable HyperDisk, and [ALT][CTRL][E to enable it.
Notes for Windows Users
If you selected a reduced HyperDisk cache size while using Windows, you
must start Windows by typing WIN /3 or WIN /S. Try each one to discover
which works best with your system. Without one of these switches, your
Windows operating mode may be incorrect. Specifying 386ENH as your default
Win3 mode will not by itself enable the cache reduction.
Loading HyperDisk high in Chips and Technologies based machines and Windows
3.0: If you are loading HyperDisk into Chips & Technologies Shadow RAM,
add:
EMMEXCLUDE=E400-EFFF
to the SYSTEM.INI file under the [386Enh] section.
CAUTION: Windows Enhanced mode provides time-sliced multitasking. If you
use staged write caching, be careful with soft reboots when under Windows3!
Doing so will restart your machine immediately without informing HyperDisk
of the impending reboot, and could thus cause loss of data not yet written
from the cache to the disk. Always exit Windows or wait until the disk
updates are complete before you reboot your system!
NEVER reboot your PC with [CTRL][ALT][DELETE] while in Windows. Exit
Windows first, then warm-boot if you wish.
Intel Inboard 386 Note
If you have an Intel Inboard 386, change the order of the device drives in
your CONFIG.SYS file, as follows:
device\sys\invoc.sys {Intel Inboard Driver}
device\sys\speed.sys {Intel Inboard Driver}
device\sys\hyperkey.exe D:250 R:25
Part 2: SpeedKit Options
The following technical information is provided for users to customize
SpeedKit to their own system requirements. We strongly recommend that you
read this section before specifying any installation options. Although most
users readily install and use SpeedKit with no options at all, your
system's performance may be optimized by specifying various parameters. You
will want to be aware of how the selection of different options may affect
your system's operation.
All Product Options
The parameter options listed in this section may be used with HyperKey,
HyperScreen and HyperDisk.
Hotkey Control
[CTRL][LEFTSHIFT][ALT]
When booting your computer, but before any SpeedKit device drivers load,
you may suspend the installation by holding down [CTRL][LEFTSHIFT][ALT].
You will be prompted to choose whether to continue or abort installation of
the next SpeedKit product.
Device Driver or Command Line Parameters:
Each product provides many parameters to customize its operation to your
specific environment. The defaults for each parameter are listed after
their description, if applicable. Any or all of the parameters may be
specified during the original startup from the CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT
file. Any option may be changed after installation by executing the program
together with the new parameter value from the DOS command line. Any
parameters which are not respecified will remain unchanged. All parameters
are case insensitive, except when noted differently. Lowercase :nn with a
parameter means to substitute any number for :nn. When you use more than
one parameter, separate each one with a blank space.
When prompted in the installation programs for additional parameters,
simply enter the parameters separated by spaces, and press [ENTER] to
complete the line. There is no need to enter the DOS path or product name.
Sample Device Driver Parameter Specifications
The following examples illustrate the use of device driver parameter
specifications in the CONFIG.SYS file. This example assumes you are
installing the SpeedKit products manually, and not with the installer. The
example shown is for HyperKey:
device=hyperkey.exe D:250 R:25 B:-
With this set of parameters, the following conditions apply: The delay to
repeat time is 250 milliseconds, the minimum repeat delay is 25
milliseconds, and no Type Ahead buffering is provided.
Sample Terminate, Stay Resident Parameter Specifications
The following example illustrates the use of TSR parameter specifications
in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file, or, from the DOS command line:
C:\>hyperkey D:300 R:35 B:-
With this set of parameters, the following conditions apply: The delay to
repeat time is 300 milliseconds, or 3/10 of a second. The minimum repeat
delay is 35 milliseconds (35/1000 of a second). No Type Ahead buffering is
provided.
Options for All Products
XS
SHADOW RAM LOADER
Loads program in Shadow RAM memory. If you have a Chips and Technologies
NEAT 210 or 300 Series Chip Set based computer, or use an XMS type product
that supports Upper Memory Blocks (UMBs) such as 386Max 4.30+, the SpeedKit
program will load in this special memory using none of the lower 640K of
conventional memory. Note for Chips & Technologies computers: Load high
occurs in the E000:0000-FFFF memory area; therefore, this area must not be
used by other programs, adapters, ROMS, or EMS memory banks. Automatically
inactive if loaded high with an external loader, such as DeviceHigh,
LOADhi, LOADhigh, etc.
XF:file
EXECUTE COMMAND FILE
Directs the program to execute the commands contained in the designated
:file where file is a standard DOS path and file name. You can use this
function to store common procedures or personalized options. Create a file
that contains the command line and parameters desired for a specific user
or application. The command file may contain multiple lines, and comments
may be delimited by a semicolon. Example for HyperDisk:
C:\>>hyperdkc XF:C:\anyfile.ext
Example of anyfile.ext format:
EH:0 ; comment: enable only first hard drive
OT OC ; comment: disable tone and change line
XB:9 ; comment: update disk every 1/2 second
Windows 3 users may use the parameter XF:CON to be prompted for console
input/output. Use this option for Windows 3 PIF default command line
parameters.
KW
KEY WAIT TIME
Selects wait for key after No Parameter status panel. KW or KW:+ enables a
pause after the status panel. KW:- disables the wait for a key.
Alternately, you may select a time delay by specifing KW:nn, where :nn is
the number of seconds to wait before continuing automatically. [Not valid
for HyperScreen.] Default is to wait for a keystroke if no parameters are
specified.
OR
OVERRIDE REPORT
Allows you to disable the output report that is normally generated whenever
you execute a SpeedKit product from the command line. This option is useful
if you are running from batch files and do not want the report to fill the
screen. Specifying OR:- will disable the installation report delay, but the
report itself will still be displayed.
OX
DISABLE REPORT
Display unless OR OVERRIDE REPORT is applied. OX or OX:+ disables report
panel; OX:- restores report panel display. OR:- may be used to override the
OX setting. [Not valid for HyperScreen.] Default is report diaplayed.
Display Options
The following options are for changing the display and colors of various
reports and messages. Normally, they do not require any changes, so
first-time installers should feel free to proceed to HyperKey Options.
OK
OVERRIDE DISPLAY METHOD
Allows you to select the display method. SpeedKit products normally display
data directly via the Video BIOS. OK or OK:+ forces I/O directly to the
Video BIOS, while OK:- forces DOS I/O. Alternatively, the standard output
device may be redirected to any device or file. Default is direct to Video
BIOS.
In the following example, HyperDisk will display the report via DOS
Standard Output device:
C:\>hyperdk OK:-
In the following example, output from HyperKey is redirected to CON
(console) device:
C:\>hyperkey >>CON
OK:nn
OVERRIDE COLORS/ATTRIBUTES
Allows you to select the Colors/Attributes for the current display. Color
displays provide 16 foreground () colors to be applied on either 8 (CGA) or
16 (EGA/VGA) background colors. Monochrome displays provide a variety of
display attributes. Some allow two or more intensities, underlining,
blinking, etc. For CGA displays, there are 120 useful combinations; EGA/VGA
displays, 240. Monochrome displays vary and are generally less than CGA.
Value :nn may be entered in either decimal or hexadecimal formats. Decimal
example with HyperDisk:
C:\>hyperdk OK:30
Hexadecimal example with HyperScreen:
C:\>hyperscr OK:X1E
Both examples select yellow on a blue background. Alternatively, you may
select the colors manually by specifying the following (example with
HyperKey):
C:\>hyperkey OK:0
OKC:nn
OVERRIDE COLORS ONLY
Same as OK:nn, except only Color Display attributes are affected. Useful
for systems with both monochrome and color displays.
OKM:nn
OVERRIDE ATTRIBUTES ONLY
Same as OK:nn, except only Monochrome Display attributes are affected.
HyperKey Options
D:nn
TYPEMATIC DELAY
Sets the delay time before a key repeats itself, starting from when you
hold down the key, until repetition begins. Recommended starting value of
350; decrease it as you become accustomed to a more responsive keyboard.
Units are in milliseconds (1/1000 of a second). Default is 300.
R:nn
TYPEMATIC PERIOD
Sets the minimum time between repeats of a key after the initial Typematic
Delay. Smaller values repeat keys faster, larger values repeat more slowly.
Start with a value of 30. Units in milliseconds. Default is 30.
P:nn
TYPEMATIC PITCH
Allows you to decrease the TYPEMATIC PERIOD automatically after each
repeated key. The value :nn is subtracted from the repeat period after each
repeated key, causing repeats to become faster and faster the longer you
hold down the key. Units are in microseconds (1/1,000,000 of a second).
Default is 500.
S:nn
TYPEMATIC SPAN
Sets the number of repeat characters to be affected by the TYPEMATIC PITCH
control. For example, if you select a TYPEMATIC PITCH of 500 and a
TYPEMATIC SPAN of 10, each of the first 10 repeated keys will repeat faster
than the previous one by 500 microseconds (1/2 millisecond), then remain
constant for all keys thereafter. Default is 0 (disabled).
H:nn
SPAN HOLDOFF
Allows you to delay the initial effects of the TYPEMATIC SPAN function. The
repeat period will remain constant for :nn characters before the SPAN
functions begin to decrease the period (increase the rate of repeats). For
example, if you have set the SPAN to 30 and the PITCH to 500, and now you
want the first 5 characters to repeat without increasing the rate: Set the
SPAN HOLDOFF to 5. Default is zero.
B
EXTENDED BUFFERING
Enables HyperKey's Type Ahead buffer. B or B:+ to enable; B:- to disable.
Note: If after installing other enhancement products, you get two or more
keys delivered for each key you strike, disable this option. Default is
enabled.
B:nn
EXTENDED BUFFER SIZE
During installation, the size of the extended keystroke may be specified.
Values for :nn may range from 16 to 4096. Two bytes of memory are required
for each keystroke. Default is 128.
I
KEYBOARD LOCK INDICATORS
Changes the Keyboard Lock Indicators, such as CapsLock and NumLock. Use the
first letter of the key indicator name; UPPER-CASE sets the key active,
lower-case clears the indicator. Indicators are: CAPSLOCK, NUMLOCK,
SCROLL-LOCK and INSERTSTATE. Example:
C:\>hyperkey -ICNSI ; sets all indicators active
C:\>hyperkey -ICn ; sets CAPSLOCK, clears NUMLOCK.
Some computers do not accept indicator changes by device drivers, therefore
you may need to execute HyperKey during AUTOEXEC.BAT initialization to
change the indicators after booting the machine. Default is no changes to
key indicator states.
A
ACTIVE
Enables all HyperKey functions. A or A:+ to enable; A:- to disable. If you
discover one of your programs is incomputable with HyperKey, you may
disable it during that program's use. Default is active.
C
CLICK ON MAKE
Issues a click when a new key is struck. Enter C or C:+ to enable CLICKS;
C:- to disable. Default is disabled.
C:nn
CLICK PITCH
Sets the Pitch of the Click.<+> This function is machine-speed dependent.
Experiment to create the sound you find most pleasing. Default is 100.
CR
CLICK ON REPEATS
Issues a CLICK on all keys, new and repeated. CR or CR:+ to enable; C:-to
disable. Default is disabled.
L:nn
CLICK PERIOD
Sets length of time the CLICK sounds. This parameter is also machine-speed
dependent. Experiment to find a pleasing value. Default is 32.
T
TOUCH SHIFTING
Sets TOUCH SHIFTING mode active. Allows you to enter a shifted key
combination (one which requires you to hold down two or more keys at a
time) by pressing only one keystroke at a time. For example, to enter
Ctrl][F1, simply press the Ctrl key and release, then press the F1 key
and release. TOUCH SHIFTING is very useful for 101 and 102 key Keyboards. T
or T:+ to enable; T:- to disable. Default is disabled.
U
UNINSTALL
Uninstalls the TSR type model, if it was previously installed. If HyperKey
can be removed from memory, all memory used will be released. You cannot
uninstall the device driver version. If it cannot uninstall, you will
receive a message that the uninstall failed. You might consider disabling
all functions instead. For example:
C:\>hyperkey A:- ; disables HyperKey
HyperScreen Options
In order to make the option explanations more understandable, we have taken
the liberty of inventing a word: deblanking. It is defined as the
reappearance of the display on your monitor after the screen becomes blank.
A
GLOBAL HyperScreen ENABLE
A or A:+ enables all HyperScreen functions; A:- disables. Default is
enabled.
F
ENABLE FAST BIOS
F or F:+ enables the fast BIOS routines for speeding up all mode
operations; F:- disables. Default is enabled.
B
ENABLE BLANKER
B or B:+ enables the screen blanking function, B:- disables. Default is
enabled.
B:nn
SET BLANKING TIME
Sets the inactivity timer where :nn is the number of minutes that the
keyboard has not been used. After :nn minutes expire without a keystroke,
HyperScreen will blank the screen. B:0 disables the timer. Default is 10
minutes.
K
ANY KEY DEBLANKING
After HyperScreen blanks the display, you may strike any key to restore the
display. With some sofware, e.g., Microsoft Windows, only the shift and
lock keys will restore the display. However, you may specify that only the
hotkey selected (described below) may deblank the display by specifying
K:-. Default is K:+, any key deblanking.
K:nn
HOTKEY TAP COUNT
Where :nn is the number of successive times the hotkey must be pressed
(tapped) to manually blank or deblank the screen. The timing of the taps is
important; they should be spaced no more than about 1/2 second apart.
Normally, this is easy to do. If ANY-KEY deblanking is active, only one tap
will deblank the screen. Default is 3 taps.
K:s
HOTKEY SELECTION
You may select any of the hotkeys listed below. Substitute for :s your
desired hotkey. For example, K:a selects the Alt key as your manual screen
blanking and deblanking HOTKEY.
L Left Shift R Right Shift
C Control A Alt
S Scroll Lock N Num Lock
P Caps Lock
Default is Control.
U
UNINSTALL
Uninstalls the TSR type model, if it was previously installed. If
HyperScreen can be removed from memory, all memory used will be released.
You cannot uninstall the device driver version. If it cannot uninstall, you
will receive a message that the uninstall failed. You might consider
disabling all functions instead. For example:
C:\>hyperscr A:- ; disables HyperScreen
HyperDisk Common Options
Following is a list of HyperDisk options, listed with the most commonly
used options first.
H
HARD DRIVES ONLY
Cache only hard (fixed media) drives.
F
FLOPPY DRIVE CACHING
Cache all drive types. Default setting.
E
ENABLE/UPDATE HYPERDISK
Enables caching of the selected drive types. If caching is already enabled,
any modified data will be written to update the disk/diskette. Default
setting.
D
DISABLE HYPERDISK
Disables caching of all drive types. You may enable caching later via
hotkey or the command line.
V
VERIFY READ
Verifies the disk and/or diskette after each disk and/or diskette write.
This replaces the DOS Verify command. DOS Verify is not recommended while
HyperDisk's VERIFY is enabled.
N
NO VERIFY
Does not verify the disk and/or diskette after each write. If HyperDisk's
VERIFY is disabled, use DOS' verify=on. Default setting.
C:nn[:nn]
CACHE SIZE
Sets size of memory (in Kbytes) to initially install for use by the
HyperDisk cache. For example, a value of 2048 for :nn means 2 megabytes.
The cache size may be varied after installation using the XC, XD, or XA
options, but the size cannot become larger than the value set with the C:nn
option upon initial installation. The second [:nn] is used to set the cache
size while Windows is active, and may be added instead of the CW:nn, CB:nn,
or CP:nn parameters described below. Example: C:2048:1024 sets a 2MB cache
size when not using Windows, and 1MB whenever Windows is active. Default
value for the 286 Advanced, 386 Advanced, Extended and Expanded models is
all the remaining memory. Default value for the Conventional model is 128K.
CW:nn
WINDOWS CACHE SIZE
Sets size of cache memory (in Kbytes) while Windows is active. For example,
a value of 1024 means 1 megabyte.
CB:nn
ALTERNATE WINDOWS 3.0+ SIZING METHOD
CB:nnn sets the minimum Base Free Memory for use with Windows. Default is
512K bytes.
CP:nn
PERCENT FREE MEMORY
Set the percentage of free memory to be used by HyperDisk while Windows is
active. Default is 35%.
Windows example
Assume all of the following: Your machine has 6098K of Extended memory.
HyperDisk under DOS uses 4096K (C:4096). When Windows starts up, HyperDisk
frees the 4096K and requests the total free memory size, now 6098K.
HyperDisk then subtracts the Base Free memory size (default of 512K, set
using the CB:nn parameter) for a result of 5585K and takes 35% to obtain
1954K as the new HyperDisk cache size. The actual cache memory will be
rounded down to the nearest whole-number multiple of cache buffers.
W
WRITE THROUGH HARD
Writes all data through to the hard disk immediately, rather than wait for
the TIMER DELAY or BACKGROUND UPDATE. HyperDisk performance will be
somewhat less than with STAGED WRITE enabled, since HyperDisk must write
data to the disk immediately instead of waiting until the system is idle or
the cache is full. Default setting.
Q
WRITE THROUGH FLOPPY
Same as above, for floppy drives. Default setting.
S
STAGED WRITE HARD
Delays writing hard drive data changes until the computer is idle, then
writes all changes to disk.
Special Note for Staged Write Users
With HyperDisk's Staged Write enabled, you should always press CTRL-ALT-E
before either powering off your computer or pressing the reset button, if
one is provided. This will insure that HyperDisk has copied all data to
your disk. HyperDisk will beep once to inform you the cache is making any
needed disk updates. If any updates are pending, they will be copied to
disk immediately. After your disk access light goes out, feel free to power
off.
When HyperDisk accepts data to be written to the disk, it stores that data
in a buffer. Later, when the system is idle (no disk, keyboard, or mouse
activity), the modified data is written to the disk. This feature increases
your computer's performance, since disks are updated only when your
computer is not being used by you for other tasks. For removable media such
as floppy disks, you should wait until the diskette has completely updated
before removing it. If you remove the diskette before the update has
completed, HyperDisk will interrupt your current foreground process, beep
three times, and indicate that an error has occurred. Simply replace the
diskette in the drive and press R for retry.
WARNING: STAGED WRITE IS NOT FOR EVERYONE.
NEVER power off or hit the Reset Switch without first disabling HyperDisk!
If your computer is operated under any of the following conditions do NOT
use the STAGED WRITE feature:
1. Do NOT activate STAGED WRITE if the computer user is not familiar with
the HyperDisk STAGED WRITE feature. An example is if the computer is
shared by several people who expect standard system behavior. With
STAGED WRITE enabled, your disks will not be updated immediately, and an
unfamiliar user may become confused. After all users are aware of STAGED
WRITE and the changed behavior of the computer, STAGED WRITE may be
selected.
2. Do NOT use if the computer crashes frequently due to poor software
and/or hardware.
3. Do NOT use if the power system fails frequently and unpredictably. For
example, bad weather or an overloaded power network may cause
intermittent power failures. Most users in this category should purchase
an Uninterruptable Power System (UPS).
4. Do NOT use if new software is being tested or developed that may crash
the system.
5. Do NOT use if you use a software package that does not support the
warm-boot [CTRL][ALT][DELETE] function correctly. Qualitas' 386Max
version 4.04 and earlier, and several other public domain programs fail
this test. Additionally, if you use any software to reboot your PC
automatically, be sure to disable HyperDisk before executing the reboot
program. See Part 5 for testing procedures.
The STAGED WRITE feature may be enabled or disabled easily with the
keyboard HOTKEY commands. HyperDisk has separate controls for hard and
floppy drives. When in doubt, use the WRITE THROUGH modes.
A
STAGED WRITE FLOPPY
Same as above, for floppy drives.
HyperDisk Other Options
These options are not normally changed when installing HyperDisk for the
first time.
T:nn
TIMER DELAY
When using STAGED WRITE, this parameter specifies the computer idle time
before writing the modified HyperDisk cache data to disk. You may specify a
value of zero (0) for a one-half second delay. Units :nn are in seconds.
Default is 1 second.
K
HOTKEY ENABLE
Enables or disables the use of HyperDisk's Hotkeys. K or K:+ enables the
Hotkey functions. K:- disables the hotkeys. Default is enabled.
K:aclr
HOTKEY SHIFT STATES
Allows you to alter HyperDisk's Hotkey shift states. Normally, the Alt and
Ctrl keys must be depressed before you select a hotkey letter. However, any
combination of ALT, CTRL, LEFTSHIFT and RIGHTSHIFT may be used. Specify
only the first letter of the shift key name. For example, to select a CTRL
and the LEFTSHIFT keys, specify K:cl Default is [CTRL][ALT].
M:nn
MEDIA CHECK RATE
Specifies the time period for floppy diskette media verification. Removable
media devices (floppies) are checked periodically to confirm that the media
in the drive still matches the media image in the cache. Units are in
seconds. Default is 3 seconds.
Z:nn
SECTORS per BUFFER
Specifies the number of sectors per cache buffer. A track is mapped to one
or more buffers. This value is auto-selected by default. Z:0 specifies
full- track caching. You may respecify this parameter after installation,
but for the extended memory models, you cannot increase the sectors per
buffer beyond that specified at installation. If you wish to experiment,
install with full track buffering. Generally the auto-selected value will
provide the best overall performance.
XC:nn
RESIZE CACHE BUFFER
Resizes the cache buffers to :nnK bytes. You cannot specify more cache
memory than was originally installed. XC without a numeric parameter will
restore the cache to its start-up value.
XD:nn
DELETE CACHE BUFFERS
Deletes :nnK of memory from the current cache buffer. Use this parameter in
conjunction with XA or XC to adjust the cache buffer size for the best
utilization of your system memory.
Note for the Conventional model: To obtain the best configuration of your
system memory allocation map, install with the XD parameter selected. Also,
specify the largest cache size (C:nn) you will desire at any time. For
example, in your CONFIG.SYS file, add:
DEVICE=hyperdkc.exe C:128 XD S A V
After the system has booted and all your device drivers and TSRs are
installed, include in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
hyperdkc XC
This procedure allows you to install HyperDisk before any other TSRs, such
as FASTOPEN. XD without a parameter will allocate no memory to the cache
buffers.
XA:nn
ADD CACHE BUFFERS
Adds :nnK of memory to the current cache buffer. You cannot specify more
memory than was originally installed. Use XA in conjunction with XD:nn to
adjust the cache buffer size for the best utilization of your system
memory.
XU
UNINSTALL CACHE
Attempts to uninstall HyperDisk from memory. After writing any pending
updates to the disk, HyperDisk will release the cache buffers, restore the
system interrupt vectors as they were before HyperDisk was installed, and
release the memory used by the program code and tables. If you load into
memory other device drivers and/or TSRs that use the same vectors as
HyperDisk, the uninstall operation will fail. Only the cache buffers will
be released, and the cache will be disabled.
For best results, install HYPERSTB.EXE in the CONFIG.SYS file, and load
your HyperDisk model in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
I:nn
FLUSH INDICATOR
Allows you to select a beep indicator tone whenever HyperDisk is updating
the modified data to disk. This is useful if you have a system that does
not have a drive indicator light. Experiment with tone frequencies by
specifying :nn in Hz. Also see the P:nn parameter, below. Default is
disabled, I:0.
P:nn
FLUSH INDICATOR PERIOD
Allows you to specify how frequently the FLUSH INDICATOR should sound.
Specify :nn in seconds. Example: P:5 will beep every 5 seconds during the
update flush operation.
R
RESET HyperDisk HIT
Resets the HyperDisk Cache Hit percentage after the report is displayed.
OT
OVERRIDE TONE
Disables the acknowledgment tone. OT or OT:+ disables the tone; OT:-
restores the tone. Default is tone enabled.
VF
VERIFY FLOPPY WRITE OPERATION
VF or VF:+ enable verify operations for diskettes only. VF:- disables the
verify after write operation. V, V:+ and V:- affect both drive types.
Default is disabled.
VH
VERIFY HARD WRITE OPERATION
VH or VH:+ enable hard disk verify operations. VH:- disables the verify
after write operation. V, V:+ and V:- affect both drive types. Default is
disabled.
VI
QEMM Stealth SUPPORT
VI or VI:+ Enables virtual interrupts; VI:- disables virtual interrupts.
Default is enabled.
XB:nn
BACKGROUND UPDATE TIME
Specifies an upper limit on the age of the oldest modified buffer. After
:nn system timer ticks (55 milliseconds per tick), the oldest modified
buffer is updated to disk. The background update functions are most useful
in systems that are seldom idle, such as network servers. Default is
disabled (XB:0).
XI
ENABLE ADVANCED UPDATE
For AT, PS/2, and some XT class computers. Enables asynchronous update of
the disk and diskette modifications. XI or XI:+ enables function; XI:-
disables. Default is enabled.
XIH
ENABLE ADVANCED HARD DISK UPDATE
Same as above XI, except affects hard disk drives only.
XIF
ENABLE ADVANCED FLOPPY UPDATE
Same as above XI, except affects diskette drives only.
XP:nn
BACKGROUND UPDATE PERCENT
Specifies an upper limit on the percentage of modified buffers before
updating the disk and diskette on every access. The oldest data (LRU data)
will be updated on each cache access until the modified buffer percentage
falls below :nn. Default is 75%
XSL
SPLIT SHADOW RAM LOADING
Load High memory load. Loads code and data tables high and leave I/O
transfer buffer in low memory. If you have trouble loading HyperDisk high,
try this option. Automatically inactive if loaded high with an external
loader, such as DeviceHigh, LOADhi, LOADhigh, etc.
XW
CHECK REDUNDANT WRITE
Checks for redundant disk/diskette write operation. This function compares
the write data to the current image held in cache memory. If they are
identical, the update operation is not performed. Only diskette drives that
support media change signaling may benefit from this option (720K, 1.2M,
1.44M, etc.). XW or XW:+ enables redundancy checking; XW:- disables. Note:
HYPERDKX Extended Model does not support this function. Default is enabled.
XWH
CHECK REDUNDANT HARD WRITE
Same function as XW, except affects hard disk drives only.
XWF
CHECK REDUNDANT FLOPPY WRITE
Same function as XW, except affects diskette drives only.
OD
DMA BOUNDARY TEST OVERRIDE
Disables DMA boundary testing.
Technical Options:
Additional options that relate to more system specific settings may be
selected. These options are listed below under the section, HyperDisk
Technical Options.
HyperDisk Hotkey Controls
Press the various hotkey combinations listed to execute the following
HyperDisk functions.
ABORT INSTALLATION
[CTRL][LEFTSHIFT][ALT]
When booting your computer, but before HyperDisk loads, you may suspend the
installation by holding down CTRL][LEFTSHIFT][ALT. You will be
prompted to choose whether to continue or abort installation.
WARM-BOOT
[CTRL][ALT][DELETE]
Warm-restart of the computer system. HyperDisk first writes any modified
data to disk. If the disk requires updating, you will hear two tones, and
HyperDisk will begin writing to your disk. After the updates are complete,
press [CTRL][ALT][DELETE] again, and the system will warm-restart.
If you have other resident programs (TSRs) that also monitor
[CTRL][ALT][DELETE], they may restart the computer without allowing
HyperDisk to update your disk. If so, first disable caching via
[CTRL][ALT]D and then warm-restart the computer.
If you are unsure of the behavior of other resident programs, you may test
your system by copying files to a test floppy diskette. First, set
HyperDisk to STAGED WRITE using the [CTRL][ALT]A sequence. Insert a newly
formatted disk in Drive A: and copy a large number of files to it using:
COPY *.* A:
When your screen indicates that the copying is finished (or fails due to
insufficient disk space), immediately issue the warm restart command,
[CTRL][ALT][DELETE]. If you hear two tones, and your system begins to write
to the floppy, you are safe and may issue warm-restarts without fear of
losing any data.
If your system immediately restarts, you will have lost data being copied
to the A: drive. Your disk integrity will be in question while using the
other TSRs together with HyperDisk STAGED WRITES, and issuing the
[CTRL][ALT][DELETE] restart sequence.
Possible remedies are to:
(1) remove the other offending resident program (TSR);
(2) always disable HyperDisk before you warm-restart; or
(3) use the WRITE THROUGH mode feature in your installation of HyperDisk,
which is the default setting and requires no extra parameters.
For the following hotkey commands, the speaker will beep once to
acknowledge completion of the command. If the caching process is disabled
by the hotkeys, the speaker will beep again.
In other words, if the command is accepted and you hear:
One beep caching is enabled;
Two beeps caching is disabled.
DISABLE HYPERDISK
[CTRL][ALT]D
Disables the caching process. Your computer operates as if HyperDisk were
not present. It may be appropriate to use this command prior to loading a
program from a copy-protected disk. However, several copy protected
programs have been tested, and no problems are known.
NOTE: Always disable HyperDisk when you execute disk diagnostics or other
system tests, or, execute any program that directly accesses the disk
and/or diskette adapter hardware.
ENABLE / UPDATE HYPERDISK
[CTRL][ALT]E
Enables the caching process. If HyperDisk is disabled, this command will
enable caching. If caching is already enabled, any modified data will be
written to the disk/diskette.
MANUAL DISKETTE CHANGE
[CTRL][ALT]C
Changes diskette media indication. If two diskettes have identical file
allocation tables, HyperDisk cannot detect that the diskette changed. Use
this command to force HyperDisk to recognize the new diskette.
STAGED WRITE HARD DISK
[CTRL][ALT]S
Enables the STAGED WRITE HARD drive feature. WARNING: See the STAGED
WRITE explanation before activating this option.
STAGED WRITE FLOPPY DISKETTE
[CTRL][ALT]A
Enables the STAGED WRITE FLOPPY drive feature. WARNING: See the STAGED
WRITE explanation before activating this option.
WRITE THROUGH HARD DISK
[CTRL][ALT]W
Enables the WRITE THROUGH on HARD DRIVE feature.
NOTE: Always select WRITE THROUGH on HARD DRIVE when you:
(1) Test or install new programs;
(2) Debug programs of uncertain integrity; or
(3) Perform any operation that may crash your computer.
WRITE THROUGH FLOPPY DISKETTE
[CTRL][ALT]Q
Enables the WRITE THROUGH on FLOPPY DRIVE feature. See the note above for
WRITE THROUGH on HARD DRIVE.
FORCE UPDATE BEFORE PROGRAM LOADS
[CTRL][ALT]F
Updates all changes to disk/diskette before executing the next program load
request. Provided for development and testing systems.
RESUME STANDARD UPDATE
[CTRL][ALT]R
Resume normal update conditions. Provided for development and testing
systems.
HyperDisk Technical Options
Normally, inexperienced users should not alter the settings described
below. Setting an option incorrectly may result in corrupting your data
files. In any case, a total system backup is recommended before adjusting
these parameters.
U
EXPANDED MEMORY BUFFERING
If you are using an EMS Emulator that does not support Direct Memory Access
(DMA) to the EMS Memory Page Frame, or you are using a product that
accesses the EMS memory asynchronously (some networking products, print
spoolers, etc.), do not change the default configuration.
However, if you are sure that no other products access EMS asynchronously
and do not wish to use the Advance Update mode (XI), you can save some
conventional memory (normally 8.5K) by deselecting this option U:-. Default
is enabled; set at initial installation only.
UI
EMS FAR CALL FOR DESQVIEW
UI or UI:+ forces EMS far call to use interrupt 67h, which works better
when using DesqView with your system. To restore the original far call
method, specify UI:- Default is disabled.
EH:n:...
ENABLE SPECIFIC HARD DRIVES
Allows you to enable only specified hard drives. :n refers to the physical
drive number starting with 0. You may specify as many drives as needed,
each delimited by a colon.
EF:n:...
ENABLE SPECIFIC FLOPPY DRIVES
Same as above, for floppy drives.
DH:n:...
DISABLE SPECIFIC HARD DRIVES
Allows you to disable specified hard drives. :n refers to the physical
drive number starting with 0. You may specify as many drives as needed,
each delimited by a colon.
DF:n:...
DISABLE SPECIFIC FLOPPY DRIVES
Same as above, for floppy drives.
KD
UPDATE MODIFIED BUFFER ON DOS DISK RESET
KD or KD:+ will not update modified buffers when a DOS disk reset, INT 21h,
0Dh is called; KD:- enables update. Default is update disabled.
KT
DISABLE FLOPPY CHANGE TONE
KT or KT:+ disables the tone sounded when a floppy disk media change is
detected; KT:- enables the tone. Default is tone enabled.
OH:nn
HOTKEY VECTOR METHOD
Provides direct control of the Hotkey Vector method. If your machine is an
AT type machine, you may select either interrupt 09h or 15h. Interrupt 15h
is compatible with foreign keyboard support. If your application has
conflicting key assignments, you may disable HyperDisk hotkeys by selecting
K:-.
OB:nn
BYPASS SECTOR SIZE
Allows you to fine tune performance when using a small (32K) to medium
(384K) cache size. Normally, this value is disabled by HyperDisk. Specify
:nn in sectors, ranging from 0 to 128. This restricts the maximum sized
block to be stored in the cache. For example, if you set OB:10, all
transfer requests greater than 10 sectors will be passed on to the system
BIOS and will not be stored in the cache. This option is useful if you are
moving a large amount of data through a small cache, which would
immediately be flooded with new data before the previous data could be
reused. Setting OB:0 will disable this option. Default is disabled.
OC
MEDIA CHANGE SIGNAL
Allows you to disable the diskette drive media change signal test. All
diskette drives, other than 160/320/360K types, support a media change
detection function. Basically, a signal from the drive indicates that the
media latch has been opened or the diskette has been removed from the
drive. By default, HyperDisk uses this signal to detect when a diskette has
been changed. Use this option if you suspect that your diskette drive has
an unreliable media change signal. OC or OC:+ will disable Change Media
signal testing; OC:- enables it. Default is enabled.
Y
DIAGNOSTIC DUMP
Creates a diagnostic file on the current disk and directory of the resident
HyperDisk program memory. The function aids in problem determination.
YD
DISPLAY SYSTEM ACCESS COUNTS
Total system read/write request, saved accesses (cached sectors) and disk
accesses are displayed in a diagnostic report.
NR
NO READ AHEAD
Disables read-ahead operations. Improves error handling for some
controllers which timeout when reading over bad sectors. Useful for
debugging. Default is Read-Ahead.
Advanced Models Only: HYPER286.EXE or HYPER386.EXE
The following parameters are only available on 80286/80386/80486- based
machines using the Advanced 286/386 Extended Memory Models of HyperDisk.
G:n
ADVANCED A20 GATE TYPE
Installation only. In order for HyperDisk to access extended memory in the
most effective way, a system address control signal, the A20 Gate, must be
controlled. The IBM AT used the 8042 keyboard processor for this task, but
this method proved to be interminably slow. Consequently, several computer
manufacturers (including IBM when they introduced the PS/2 line) developed
other methods to control the A20 Gate signal. Normally, HyperDisk will
automatically search your system to determine the A20 Gate control method.
If for some reason HyperDisk cannot recognize the system, you may use this
parameter to tell HyperDisk what type of computer you have. Specifying G:0
will disable the search and use the system BIOS transfer routines.
Normally, these values are auto-selected by searching the machine for
identifying features. If the identity is unclear, a system hang may result.
If you encounter such problems, first try method G:2 (FastA20). If this
method fails, use G:0, or switch to the Extended model HYPERDKX.EXE. The
following table of values is applicable:
0 None, use BIOS
1 Standard AT-8042 method
2 Fast A20-8042, usable on most machines
3 PS/2 series
4 Dell 300 series, and others
5 Chips and Technologies Neat (212) Chip Set
6 QuadramXT
7 Inboard 386/PC
8 AT Micro-Channel Model 6
9 HP Vectra
Methods are searched automatically from high (9) to low (0). See the
READTHIS file for any additions.
OG
OVERRIDE A20 GATE EXIT (only for systems 2 and 9, above)
Specifies that HyperDisk should only open the A20 Gate when it is being
used. OG:+ selects open A20 on demand, close on exit; OG:- selects open on
demand, leave open. If your application Wraps 1 Megabyte you should select
OG:+. This parameter is used with CP/M applications. Default is to leave
A20 Gate open.
XM
XMS MEMORY ALLOCATION MODE
Requests HyperDisk to use the Extended Memory Manager for allocating
extended memory buffers. If your system uses HIMEM.SYS (an XMS of
Lotus-Intel-Microsoft-AST), HyperDisk automatically allocates and
deallocates memory using XMS.
XML
XMS MEMORY BLOCK LOCKING
XML or XML:+ locks XMS block; XML:- unlocks XMS memory block. Some XMS
providers and/or applications alter HyperDisk's XMS memory block if it is
unlocked. DR-DOS 6.0's EMM386 and an early Lotus 123R3 release revealed
this problem. Locking the block prevents these bugs in other software from
destroying the cache memory block. Default is lock XMS blocks.
XT, XTR, XTP
XMS MEMORY TRANSFER MODE
Requests HyperDisk to use the Extended Memory Manager (XMS) allocation and
memory transfer method. See the XM parameter, above. Recommended for AT&T
PCs. XT selects XMS transfer mode in both Real and Protected mode. XTR
Selects XMS transfer mode in Real mode. XTP Selects XMS transfer mode in
Protected mode. Examples:
hyperdk XTR:- XTP:+ ; can be used to avoid Microsoft HIMEM.SYS problems
Windows 3.0 enhanced mode no DOS use, install:
hyperdkx XT:+
Windows 3.0 real/enhanced or DOS use, install:
hyper386 XTR:- XTP:+
386Max all extended models:
hyperdkx XT:- or hyper386 XT:-
Part 3: HyperDisk Notes
Extended Model HYPERDKX.EXE
Extended memory is only available in 80286 (IBM-AT), 80386 and 80486
computers. This memory is above 1 megabyte and is normally not accessible
from MS-DOS Real Mode applications. HyperDisk uses special BIOS functions
(INT 15h, Extended Memory Block Move) to access this memory.
If your system uses QEMM, 386^Max, EMM386, HIMEM.SYS, et al, the following
two warnings do not apply. If you are not using one of the better-known
extended memory managers, the extended memory BIOS functions have some side
effects that should be considered:
1. Interrupts may be lost. Interrupt processing is suspended while the
Extended memory is being accessed. High speed communications programs
are the most likely to encounter problems. Should you require both
caching and high speed interrupt processing simultaneously, switch to
the Advanced 286/386 model, the Expanded model, or the Conventional
model.
2. Pfix and Pfix-Plus (possibly others) may hang when using INT 15h
Extended Memory Block Move functions with the Intel Inboard 386/AT. This
problem is related to the PC-AT ROM BIOS. Test your system carefully.
Intel's Inboard 386 Utility Software Version 1.2 corrects this problem.
Disable caching via CTRL-ALT-D while these products are being used.
HyperDisk Limitations
HyperDisk supports disk and diskette drives accessed by BIOS INT 13h
services. Up to 20 drives may be cached, 10 hard disks and 10 floppies. To
be cached, disk and diskette media must be formatted as 512 bytes per
sector with 8 to 63 sectors per track.
HyperDisk supports hard drives with up to 256 heads and 1024 cylinders
maximum, or, 64 heads maximum and 4,096 cylinders, accessible with special
software such as SpeedStor, Disk Manager, or AMI/OMTI BIOS compatible
controllers.
Supported floppy diskette systems include: 5.25-inch single- and
double-sided, double- and high-density (8, 9 and 15 sectors per track);
3.5-inch drives single and double sided; double- and high-density formats
(9 and 18 sectors per track).
HyperDisk supports partitioned hard disk systems (multiple logical drives
per physical drive) and should be installed AFTER the device driver
provided by the disk supplier. PC-DOS Versions 3.30 and greater directly
support multiple logical drives. No additional device drivers are required.
If a diskette is removed from a drive and placed in another computer where
it is changed slightly, but no change occurs in the File Allocation Table,
and then returned to the first PC, HyperDisk may not detect the media
change and fail to update the buffers to reflect the new changes.
Therefore, if you remove, alter, and replace a diskette, take notice if
HyperDisk issues a media change tone. If no tone is heard, issue the manual
change via the hotkey sequence CTRL][ALT][C. See Page<L> <$R[P#,Manual
Change]32>, HyperDisk Hotkey Controls, Manual Diskette Change.
Caches Explained
In recent years, the technology of caching has become a common buzzword in
the PC industry. The origins of caching techniques are ancient. However,
old or new, caching has always done the same thing: It keeps often-used
items readily accessible. Surprisingly, the science of caching is quite
recent, with most of the fundamental work dating in the 1960's. The Belady
replacement algorithm, published in 1967, provides the baseline by which
all caching techniques may be measured and compared. This algorithm, known
as The Greatest Forward Distance, is not realizable due to its non-causal
nature it requires perfect knowledge of the future! Consequently, the
Belady algorithm may only be applied to systems that have already completed
operations or are perfectly cyclic in behavior, which is not very useful in
a PC application environment. Once a realizable algorithm is implemented,
Belady's algorithm may be applied to the request list or reference string
history to assess how close to optimum the test algorithm performs. It is
this comparison on which the fundamental science of caching rests.
Many caching algorithms have been published and compared to Belady's
baseline performance. Leading are the Least Frequently Used (LFU)
algorithms, followed closely by the Least Recently Used (LRU) algorithms.
Differences in performance are less than 8% on the average. However, LFU
algorithms are more complex to implement, and most systems yield better
performance using LRU, since executing complex algorithms requires time and
space. Common algorithms for CPU instruction caches are: Direct, Two-Way
Associative, and Four-Way Associative. Programming systems that support
overlay loading commonly use Least Recently Loaded (LRL). For more
information on caching in computing systems, see the journals of the
Association for Computer Machinery or The Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers.
HyperDisk uses a modified LRU algorithm, which is simple and executes fast.
Simply stated, when new data needs to be copied to the cache buffer and no
space is available, the Least Recently Used data is removed, and the new
data is moved to this space. Weak points in LRU performance appear when
data is retrieved from the disk in such a fashion that the data is replaced
after only being used once. This type of behavior, which sometimes occurs
in disk caching, is termed over-commitment or thrashing. To avoid
over-commitment, HyperDisk uses a proprietary combination of linear and
random access predictors to identify the onset of the condition.
Disk Controller Caches
Many manufacturers now offer disk controllers that feature onboard caching
functions. These controllers generally provide excellent performance.
However, due to cost and space limitations, most controllers provide only a
small buffer to hold the buffered data, typically less than 512K bytes. In
addition, access to the controller buffer is slower than normal system RAM
memory. If your system is a 386 or 486 32-bit system, the I/O-channel speed
is very slow when compared to system RAM. Another limitation is that the
buffer memory on the controller is dedicated to the caching function and
cannot be used in any other way.
For maximum system performance when using a caching disk controller, we
recommend a modest buffer size on the controller (16K to 128K bytes).
Install HyperDisk as you would with a normal controller, using either
extended or expanded memory. The combination of HyperDisk and a caching
controller will provide unbeatable performance.
Other Caching Systems
Caching techniques were invented long before the use of personal computers.
Mainframe computer systems have been implementing caching techniques for
some time, and now caching is used in the PC marketplace. There are many
types of caches, all unique and different. Memory caches usually allow the
use of slower memory chips on new high speed machines. Many 386 and 486
machines on the market today implement a memory cache design. They place a
small amount of high speed memory in the system (usually 64K of static
RAM), and then use that to cache up to 16 megabytes of slower dynamic RAM
chips. This allows the machine to use the full speed of the processor but
maintain a very economic memory system.
CPU caches are implemented to allow the stacking of instructions waiting
for the processor, thus increasing the computing speed of the system.
Print spoolers are another type of cache. In a print spooler, you are using
memory or disk to cache the information being sent to the printer, freeing
the machine to continue with other work.
None of these types of caches is the same as disk caching. Often people
assume that if they have one type of cache in a system, they don't need any
other. In fact, the best system performance is obtained by having a cache
built into every area of the machine, maximizing its performance.
Borland's Reflex Package
Reflex provides an asynchronous update mode for disk and diskettes. You
must disable this function via the command line switch -a before operating
it with HyperDisk. Due to special considerations necessary for DesqView
operation, Reflex and HyperDisk are incompatible if the Asynchronous option
of Reflex is selected.
Hard Disk Integration Packages
Everex EverDisk:
Hyperdisk has no known operating problems in this environment.
OnTrack Disk Manager and Storage Dimensions SpeedStor:
Currently Hyperdisk directly supports Disk Manager versions 3.10 to 4.30
and SpeedStor versions 5.14 to 6.1. If you have prior versions installed
with DOS 2.0 to DOS 3.2, you should have no problems, but for DOS 3.30+
systems you must have one of the above specified versions if your hard
drive geometry does not match your system's pre-configured ROM types
(commonly referred to as the CMOS Drive type). Specifically, the number of
heads and the number of sectors per track must be the same as the CMOS
type. The actual number of cylinders does not matter. If you have a
non-standard disk configuration for which HyperDisk cannot determine the
method of integration, the STAGED WRITE functions will be disabled for that
drive. Note: Commonly, a non-standard disk will have a very small C:
partition (5 megabytes).
Stacker and SuperStor:
No special action is required to support compressed disk volumes using
these packages. HyperDisk may be loaded either before or after these
drivers. You do not need to exclude any logical volumes from being cached.
Part 4: Error Messages
Already Installed!
SpeedKit product has already been installed. The program type and version
of the resident program is displayed, followed by the error message.
Invalid Parameter: UNKNOWN
An invalid command line parameter was specified. Verify your command line
parameters against the definitions in Part 2. Inserting a delimiter
(/,:,-, etc.) between parameters will insure that only the invalid
character is chopped; other valid parameters will be installed.
Incorrect DOS Version
SpeedKit requires DOS version 2.0 or later. SpeedKit product was not
loaded.
HyperDisk Error Messages
Extended Memory not Supported (INT 15h)
HyperDisk could not find the Extended Memory BIOS software (INT 15h).
Your computer does not support INT 15h extended memory functions. You
should use either the Expanded model or the Conventional model instead.
No Extended Available
HyperDisk could not find any free memory in the Extended memory manager.
You should free some Extended memory from other uses, or, try the
Expanded model or the Conventional model.
Insufficient Extended Memory
HyperDisk could not find enough free memory in the Extended memory
manager. A minimum of 128K bytes is required to use HyperDisk.
Expanded Memory Manager not Found
HyperDisk could not find the EMS memory manager software. Either you
omitted the EMS device driver statement in your CONFIG.SYS file, or you
placed the HyperDisk device driver statement before the EMS device driver
statement in your CONFIG.SYS file.
No Expanded Memory Available
HyperDisk could not find any memory in the EMS memory manager.
Insufficient Expanded Memory
HyperDisk could not find enough free memory in the EMS memory manager. A
minimum of 128K bytes is required to use HyperDisk.
Insufficient Conventional Memory
HyperDisk could not find enough free memory in the DOS memory manager.
HyperDisk requires a least 400K bytes free before installation begins. A
minimum of 144K bytes is required by HyperDisk when installing with a
128K cache size (the default size).
HyperDisk Error RShft: Retry=LShft Skip=Ctrl Abort=Alt?
This message supports responses by both keystrokes and Shift State
Hotkeys. Shift state hotkeys allow entry of commands even when the
foreground application has taken normal keyboard control (i.e. Microsoft
Windows 3, SmartCom, et al.). The error message is proceeded by three
beeps:
You can enter:
R or Right-ShiftLeft-Shift for RETRY
S or Right-ShiftCtrl for SKIP
A or Right-ShiftAlt for ABORT
If no response is entered within four seconds, a RETRY is automatically
entered for you. See the following error message for the meanings of
Retry, Skip and Abort.
Error [drive]#:n: - []: Retry, Skip or Abort
An error was detected during a disk write operation. The error code will
be either an Extended, EMS or BIOS error.
Retry: r will retry the same disk request.
Skip: s will skip this disk write and continue with the next write.
Abort: a will remove the active drive data from the HyperDisk buffers
without updating the disk. Warning: This response should be used only
for floppies you are going to discard due to defective and unacceptable
media. This response is not the same as multiple Skips.
If the error code is ABxx then xx is the EMS error code in hexadecimal
(see your EMS manual error definitions). For an EMS error (ABxx), the
EMS software has been corrupted and the Retry option will most likely
continue to fail.
If the error code is EDxx then xx is the extended memory error code in
hexadecimal (see the IBM-AT Technical Reference [1502243] BIOS Listing,
Section: BIOS 1, Error Code Definitions). For an Extended memory error,
the memory has been corrupted and the Retry option will most likely
continue to fail.
If the error is a disk BIOS error on a diskette drive, the error
condition usually indicates that the diskette latch is open. If this is
the case, replace the diskette and/or close the diskette latch before
giving the r response.
Part 5: Other Installations
Testing Near Compatibles
1. Make a complete backup of your hard disk, if you have one.
2. Put a copy of Hyper???.exe (where ??? is the model to test) on a newly
formatted diskette.
3. If testing the EMS (Hyperdke.exe) version, make sure the EMS Driver
supplied with the EMS board has been installed. See the EMS user
installation guide supplied with your EMS product.
4. With a copy of the SpeedKit floppy in Drive A:, enter the file name of
the product under test at the DOS prompt. No parameters are needed at
this time.
5. Try DOS operations (DIR, COPY) on the floppy diskette first, followed by
the hard disk. If HyperKey and HyperScreen function well with your
applications, you may continue using them.
6. If you have an EMS emulator program that allows extended memory to be
used as expanded memory, and HyperDisk fails to operate (i.e., disk or
diskette is not cached; system crashes or hangs), try the HyperDisk /U
option. Normally this will work for any EMS emulation method.
If your near compatible requires that either a device driver or TSR be
installed to emulate IBM BIOS functions, specify HyperKey immediately
after the BIOS Emulator.
7. If testing HyperDisk, enable STAGED FLOPPY WRITE by pressing
[CTRL][ALT]A and modify the floppy diskette as follows:
A:\copy A:*.* A:test
8. Immediately type DIR[ENTER] to display the diskette directory. If after
the directory is displayed and the drive continues to update, the STAGED
WRITE feature is functioning.
9. Next, test the reboot control by repeating Step 7, followed momentarily
by a warm-boot, [CTRL][ALT][DELETE]. You should hear two tones
indicating the cache is shutdown, and the diskette should continue to
update. However, if the system immediately begins rebooting, you will
not be able to use STAGED WRITE reliably. Some EMS emulators currently
fail this test. Additionally, if you use any program to reboot your PC
other than the warm-boot keys, disable HyperDisk BEFORE executing the
reboot program.
10.When the diskette drive becomes inactive, remove the diskette from the
drive and again issue the warm-boot key sequence [CTRL][ALT][DELETE].
The computer should immediately begin the reboot sequence.
11.After the computer has rebooted, replace the test diskette and run:
CHKDSK A:[ENTER]
to be sure the diskette has been updated correctly.
12.If no problems were encountered, see Part 1 and follow the standard
instructions.
If after you have installed any SpeedKit product, (specified in either the
CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT files) and you discover some problems, you can
reboot the computer and abort the installation by holding down the
[CTRL][LEFTSHIFT][ALT] keys. For most systems, you must wait to depress
these keys until the system has finished initializing the keyboard, but
before the system begins reading the operating system device drivers from
the disk (or diskette). Generally, you can depress the shift keys when the
disk or diskette (lights) becomes active.
Manual Installation
Copy all the EXE files from the diskette to your hard disk. You may place
the files in the root directory or in any subdirectory.
Each SpeedKit product may be installed as a DOS Device Driver or as a
Terminate and Stay Resident (TSR) program. Most commonly, they are
installed as device drivers, but for some near compatibles it may be
necessary to install them after some other TSR that makes your system
keyboard IBM compatible. If you choose the device driver method, you must
include the installation specification in your CONFIG.SYS file. Use a
editor to update the CONFIG.SYS file on your boot drive root directory.
The device driver definition is normally installed immediately after an
extended or expanded memory manager, but before any other device driver
definition. Install them in this order: HyperKey, HyperScreen, and finally
HyperDisk. If you placed the SpeedKit files in a subdirectory, you should
specify a fully qualified path in the DEVICE = statement.
If you choose the TSR method, you also may run Hyper???.exe at the DOS
Command prompt. Alternatively, you may place the Hyper???.exe specification
in your AUTOEXEC.BAT system file on your boot directory.
Check to make sure that no other disk caching software is installed.
HyperDisk works fine with hardware cache controllers, but it may conflict
with other software caches. Below is a list of the most popular software
caching products and the associated program names which might be called
from either AUTOEXEC.BAT or CONFIG.SYS:
Super PC Kwik: SUPERPCK, PCKWIK.SYS
Flash: FLASH
Speed Cache: SCPLUS, SC
Vcache: CACHE, CACHE-AT, CACHE-EM, VKETTE
SmartDrive: SMARTDRV.SYS, SMARTDRV.EXE
PC Cache: PCACHE
FAST! FAST???.EXE
NetWare Cache: NLCACHE
Lantastic: LANCACHE
If any of these programs are installed, you must remove them before
attempting to install HyperDisk. Running two or more caching programs
simultaneously may result in the loss or damage to your data and program
files.
Choose whether to install HyperDisk as a device driver or as a TSR. We
recommend a device driver unless you wish to uninstall HyperDisk later in
your session. If uninstalling is required, use the TSR method.
As a device driver, HyperDisk should be installed after any special disk
device drivers, such as:
Disk Manager: DMDRVR.BIN
SpeedStor: HARDRIVE.SYS or SSTOR.SYS
DOS: DRIVER.SYS
WARNING: If you have Golden Bow's VFEATURE Deluxe, do NOT use HyperDisk.
VFEATURE is a non-compatible INT13h device driver.
The following example of lines in the CONFIG.SYS file installs HyperKey
with a Typematic Delay of 180 milliseconds, a repeat rate of 18
milliseconds, and disables the installation report; installs HyperScreen
with a blanking and deblanking hotkey of Left-Shift; and installs the
Expanded memory model of HyperDisk with a 512K EMS cache, STAGED WRITE
enabled for the hard drives only, and VERIFY enabled for all disk writes.
Each product is installed as a device driver and the files are placed on
the C: drive, TOOLS subdirectory:
device=EMS40.SYS { ems driver }
device=C:\tools\hyperkey.exe /R:18 /D:180 /OR
device=C:\tools\hyperscr.exe /K:l /K:-
device=C:\tools\hyperdke.exe /C:512 /S /Q /V
If you are installing as a TSR, all SpeedKit products should be placed at
the beginning of the AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
C:\tools\hyperkey.exe /R:18 /D:180 /OR
C:\tools\hyperscr.exe /K:l /K:-
C:\tools\hyperdke.exe /C:512 /S /Q /V
Reboot your machine, and SpeedKit will be installed, ready to use.
Install HIMEM.SYS (or QEMM 5.10) before HyperDisk. Install HyperDisk before
Windows.
HYPERDKX should be used with QEMM 5.11
Changing Parameters
After installing any SpeedKit product, you may alter the operating
parameters by running the product name at the DOS prompt. Only the
parameters you give on the command line will be changed. For example,
assume that you installed HyperKey using the device driver method and
specified a Typematic Period of 25 milliseconds. Later you decide the
repeat rate could be a little faster. Simply enter at the DOS prompt:
C:\hyperkey R:18 [ENTER]
HyperKey will now deliver repeat keys every 18 milliseconds.
Part 6: Programs Tested
The following programs have been tested and/or used extensively with
SpeedKit. Except where noted, no problems have been reported:
Autodesk Inc. AutoCAD Version 2.5,2.62, Rel. 9, Rel. 10
Borland International SideKick 1.0; SideKick+ 1.0; SuperKey 1.16A B:-
option should be set Turbo Pascal 3.01; SideKick-Plus 1.00
Fifth Generation Systems, Inc. FastBack Version 5.13, PLUS+
IBM Corporation PC-DOS 2.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.0 PCWatch Version 1.0 Most
development products
Intel Corporation LIM EMS Memory Manager Versions 3.2, 3.5,4.0 EMS IEMM386
Version 3.20.001 Most UDI type Development products
Lotus Development Corp. 123 Versions 1, 1A, 2, 2.01, 3.0, 3.1 Symphony
Version 1.0
MicroPro International Corporation WordStar 3.30 and others WordStar 2000
Microsoft Corporation MS-DOS Versions 2.0, 2.1, 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.0,
5.0; Expanded Memory Manager 386 3.20.001; Windows Environment; Most
development products
Peter Norton Computing Inc. Norton Utilities 3.00, 4.5, 5.0, 6.0; Advanced
Norton Commander 1.01, 2.0, 3.0
Phoenix Technologies LTD. Most development products
Quarterdeck Office Systems DESQ-View Version 1.3, 2.2 QEMM 4.0, 4.11, 5.0,
5.11, 6.0
SoftLogic Solutions, Inc. Disk Optimizer Version 2.01
MetaWare, Inc. Most products
Phar Lap Software, Inc. DOS Extender and most development products