home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- THE FREEDOS BETA 9 ("Methusalem") DISTRIBUTION
-
- INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
-
- Based on INSTALL.TXT by Jim Hall 18 March 2001
-
- Updated by Jeremy Davis <jeremyd@computer.org>
- 20 July 2003
-
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- 1. WHAT TO GET:
-
- The Beta9 distribution is being made available in two "flavors":
-
- (1) The Mini distribution will contain all the software that you need
- to reproduce the functionality of MS-DOS. This will consist only
- of an install boot floppy and the Base install disk. Download
- the Mini distribution if you only want to install a very basic
- DOS system, and nothing else.
-
- (2) The Full distribution will contain everything from the Mini, but
- also will include GUIs, compilers, assemblers, utilities, etc.
- Download the Full distribution if you want to have it all!
-
- Note: Mini and Full use the same installation boot disk (image).
-
- If you want to install the Mini distribution, you need to download
- these files:
-
- FDB9_144.DSK
- BASE1.ZIP
-
- If you want to install the Full distribution, you will need to
- download BASE1.ZIP, FDB9_144.DSK (ie same as Mini), plus the extra
- disk sets you want (EDIT, UTIL, ...).
-
- You will also need a program to write the floppy image to diskette
- (unless you get FDB9_144.EXE, which can write itself to a 1.44MB floppy)
- such as RAWRITE.EXE; which should be available from the same
- location as this distribution. There are many alternatives to
- rawrite, have a look at http://www.fdos.org/ripcord/rawrite/readme.html
- for several examples. Once you have written the image to floppy you
- no longer need RAWRITE (or similar) unless you intend to write other
- floppy images to diskette.
-
- If you do not already have a copy of UNZIP, you will need to download
- that as well. Yes, you need UNZIP to extract the install disks.
-
-
- 2. BEFORE YOU INSTALL:
-
- 2.1 STEP 1 - THE INSTALL DISKS (* see the variation, at the end)
-
- Once you have downloaded all the files you need, you must do a little
- "prep" work before you can install FreeDOS. The install disks
- (BASE1.ZIP, etc.) are actually zipped up, so that you only need to
- download the one file, rather than a whole bunch. So before you can
- install from the BASE1.ZIP install disk, you first need to unzip it.
-
- Format a 1.44MB floppy, then unzip the BASE1.ZIP file to that
- floppy. Do this:
-
- UNZIP BASE1.ZIP -d A:
-
- Yes, the lowercase "-d" is important. Unzip is case sensitive.
-
- Now everything that you need on the Base1 install floppy is on that
- floppy disk. If you look on the Base1 install floppy, you'll notice
- many smaller .zip files, each with a corresponding .lsm file. You'll
- also see a BASE.1 and BASE.END file. This is normal. You didn't do
- anything wrong.
-
- If you are installing the Mini distribution, then you are done with
- the install disks. If you are installing the Full distribution, then
- you need to repeat the above steps for the other install disks that
- you downloaded.
-
-
- 2.2 STEP 2 - THE INSTALL BOOT FLOPPY IMAGE
-
- The Beta9 distribution uses an install boot floppy that you use to
- (surprise!) boot your computer to install FreeDOS. The boot floppy
- needs to be written to a pre-formatted 1.44MB floppy disk. I'm sure
- other boot floppy images for 360k and 720k will soon be made
- available, but I have a 1.44MB disk drive, so that's what you get.
-
- We need to use a program called RAWRITE to write these images to a
- floppy. You downloaded this program, above.
-
- To create the boot floppy for the Mini or Full distribution:
-
- (1) Run RAWRITE
-
- (2) Read the FDB9_144.DSK image file
-
- (3) Write to the A: drive
-
-
- If you are using UNIX, you may instead use the "dd" program to write
- the disk images. Load a formatted 1.44MB floppy in your drive, then
- type the following while logged in as "root":
-
- ddáif=FDB9_144.DSK of=/dev/fd0ábs=512ácount=2880
-
- (Depending on your current OS, you may instead use other alternate
- programs such as RawWriteWin under Microsoft(R)Windows, or OSPlus
- DiskImager under DOS.)
-
- Previously there were two boot disk images, the inquisitive DOS user
- may have noticed that the contents of both were essentially the same;
- thus they are now combined into a single disk image with a runtime
- choice as to install the FULL or MINI distribution.
-
-
- 3. TO INSTALL FROM FLOPPY DISK:
-
- Now you are ready to install the FreeDOS distribution on your
- computer. If you have made all your floppies correctly, then you
- reboot your computer using the install boot floppy that you made from
- FDB9_144.DSK.
-
- When your computer boots up (may take a minute or two, depending on
- the speed of your PC) you will be taken through the setup process.
- Note: For many cases the boot disk will prompt you for all necessary
- information and perform the required steps, however, some may need
- to manually do the steps as outlined below.
-
- At this point, you have the opportunity to run FDISK to create a
- DOS partition IF YOU DON'T ALREADY HAVE ONE. To run FDISK, just type:
-
- FDISK
-
- Then follow the on-screen prompts to create a new partition and mark
- it as the active primary partition. After you run FDISK, you will
- need to reboot. Just boot off the install boot floppy again.
-
- IF YOU CREATED A NEW PARTITION for FreeDOS, you'll also need to
- format the partition before you can use it. To do that, just type:
-
- FORMAT C:
-
- Don't forget to make the C: drive bootable with FreeDOS. Just type:
-
- SYS C:
-
- After that, run the install program:
-
- INSTALL
-
- When the install program asks where you will install from (where the
- install files are located) enter:
-
- A:\
-
- The install program will then ask you where to install FreeDOS. Most
- people will use C:\DOS or C:\FDOS.
-
- Install will also prompt you to determine which optional components
- to install. Once install has finished the startup files (text files that
- can be modified by running EDIT [filename] will be created.
- These are c:\config.sys and c:\autoexec.bat
- The following things are done:
- *setup basic menu
- *install some basic drivers (mouse, cdrom if wanted)
- *setup the PATH variable, so you don't need to provide the complete name
- of a program if you want to run it.
-
- Also some other things are done. We try to provide the text interface
- ("shell") in your local language.
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- Congratulations - you have now installed FreeDOS!
-
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- OPTIONAL: TO INSTALL FROM THE HARD DISK
-
- I won't spend too much time on this, as I expect most people will opt
- to install from floppy disk. However, it is possible to install from
- your hard disk. If you are installing everything, and you already
- have a copy of DOS on your computer, then this is probably the option
- you want.
-
- The only difference between installing from floppy disk and
- installing from the hard disk is when you create the install
- floppies. When you installed from floppy disks, you needed to unzip
- each install floppy onto a separate 1.44MB floppy disk.
-
- But to install from the hard disk, you just unzip each install floppy
- INTO A SINGLE DIRECTORY ON YOUR HARD DISK. For example, you might do
- this:
-
- UNZIP BASE1.ZIP -d C:\FDBETA9
-
- For the Mini distribution, that's all you need to do. If you want to
- install the Full distribution, you will also need to unzip all the
- other install disks like LANG1.ZIP, EDIT1.ZIP, and UTIL1.ZIP, etc.
- That's it. When the install program asks you where to install from,
- say C:\FDBETA9 (you can delete the C:\FDBETA8 directory after you are
- done installing FreeDOS.)
-
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
-