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Text File | 1995-10-16 | 21.2 KB | 454 lines

╔═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ SETTINGS.W95 - A guide to getting the most performance from Windows 95! ║ ╚══════════════════════════╤═══════════════╤══════════════════════════════╝ │ Revision 2.01 │ ╘═══════════════╛ Copyright (c) 1995 by Tony Harrison. All rights reserved. (Revised 10-17-95) Hello, and welcome to Windows 95! ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── These are the Settings I use to run 3 dial-in lines and one local node under Microsoft Windows 95 (Also referred to as Win95). I have posted comments throughout this file to help you along the way. Extensive testing has been done with these settings on my system as well as a number of others to ensure you get the most performance out of Win95. Let me know if these settings help you! These settings have been proven to work well under Win95 Build 950 (The Win95 Release Version). The first thing you will need to get is the current version of BNU, David Nugent's DOS FOSSIL driver. The current version of this program is 1.70. (BNU170.ZIP) You will see BNU referenced throughout this text. BNU is a NECESSITY if you want to run any kind of DOS-Based BBS under Windows 95. The built-in serial communications for DOS software in Windows 95 is not suitable for a multi-line DOS BBS environment, and I do not recommend using it. Only use it if a program cannot utilize a FOSSIL driver. Windows time-slicing is quite good, therefore I am not recommending any program for timeslice conversion at this time. Please stay tuned, as this may change in itme. ╔═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ Please note that if you choose to use these settings for Win95, you are ║ ║ STRONGLY urged to use these settings for ALL of your Win95 DOS sessions.║ ║ Doing this will assure you are getting the most performance possible ║ ║ under Windows 95. ║ ╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ Also note that even though this text file contains items that will likely generate a considerable performance boost for your system, I do not recommend any settings that would put the stability of your Win95 system at risk. I do not use any undocumented commands, and none of my modifications pose any risk to system stability whatsoever. You can be assured that testing these settings will pose no threat to Win95's stability. Extensive testing has been done to assure stability, no matter what type of DOS-Based BBS software you run. First off, here's a look at what you'll need in your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT in order to get your BBS running in to shape: ┌──────────────┐ │ CONFIG.SYS - │ └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── FILES=200 NOTES: Win95 uses a LOT of file handles. So does Wildcat. Set this number high. 200 is an excellent choice. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── LASTDRIVE=Z NOTES: Tells DOS the ast drive letter available for use. Leave it at Z. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── SHELL=C:\COMMAND.COM C:\ /P /E:2048 NOTES: VERY IMPORTANT! This sets the command interpreter to use as well as the environment size. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\ANSI.SYS Loads the ANSI driver so you can view callers in doors. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── That's it for the CONFIG.SYS - 4 lines! Now for the AUTOEXEC.BAT: ┌────────────────┐ │ AUTOEXEC.BAT - │ └────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── @ECHO OFF Turns off the echoing of commands to the screen as they load. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\DOSKEY /INSERT NOTES: Loads DOSKEY command macro editor. This particular command tells doskey to turn on the Insert key so that when you recall commands at the DOS prompt using the Up/Dn arrow keys, it will automatically insert your new modifications instead of overwriting. If you would rather it default to overwriting, remove the /INSERT parameter. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── PROMPT $P$G Sets what the prompt should look like. This will produce the C:\> prompt. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── SET PATH=C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND;C:\DOS;C:\;C:\WC40 The Paths that Windows will search for programs. You can place any directory you want in your path. Make sure your main BBS directory (In this case C:\WC40) is in the path. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── SET DIRCMD=/O/P This will sort the directory listings and place them in alphabetical order, directories first. The /P pauses the list after each screenful of info. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── SET COMSPEC=C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND.COM Sets the path to the command interpreter for programs that need it. Windows 95 LIKES to REM this out during the upgrade process. Make SURE you remove the REM after upgrading. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── C:\BNU\BNU /P3 /L:0=57600 /L:1=57600 /L:2=57600 /F /Z0 /M- /T:3072 /R:3072 /O This is the recommended command-line that I use to load BNU 1.70 with. Refer to your BNU documentation for an explanation of all of the switches. NOTE: BNU 1.70 is limited to 4 ports running at one time, and 4 ports is the maximum # I recommend under Win95. The DOS subsystem will begin to choke (i.e. sloooowwww) when you run more than 4 DOS Communications programs at the same time. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── SET WCNODEID=10 NOTES: This is a very useful feature for Wildcat Sysop's, and can probably be modified for other BBS platforms as well. This basically acts as a "failsafe" so that no matter what DOS session you open, you will always have a BBS node ID set for programs/utilities that need one. (Such as PostMaster, wcPRO, etc.). You can set this for any node that your BBS software will allow, but it is a good idea to use a node ID that is NOT already being used. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── SET WCHOME=C:\WC40 NOTES: This variable is specific to Wildcat systems and tells programs that look for this variable where your Wildcat home directory is located. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Now, it's time to make some necessary changes to your modem profiles and COM ports that Win95 uses. First, let's take care of the COM ports: ──────────┐ Step 1 - │ ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Click on "My Computer", then click "Control Panel", then open the "System" icon. When "System Properties" appears, click on the "Device Manager" tab. You will now see a list of all of your hardware. ──────────┐ Step 2 - │ ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Go down to the "Ports (COM and LPT)", and click on the "+" sign to the left of it. You will now see a list of all of your COM and LPT ports. The LPT ports no NOT need to be modified, so ignore them. The COM ports however, do. Please make the following changes to all of your COM ports: ──────────┐ Step 2a - │ ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Click on your first COM port (usually Communications Port 1), now click on the "port settings" tab. Set "Baudrate" to 57600. Leave the Data bits, stop bit, and parity selections at their defaults of "8, None, 1". Set your "Flow control" to "Hardware". Click on OK to save those changes. Leave all other selections at their default values. ──────────┐ Step 3 - │ ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Repeat the process for ALL of your COM ports. ╔══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ TIP: Win95 provides an excellent utility to view which IRQ's are ║ ║ currently being used. To view them, click on the "Computer" icon ║ ║ under system properties --> device manager. ║ ╚══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Next, it's time to make changes to our modem profiles. Exit back out to the contol panel, and click on "Modems". You will see the "Modems properties" page. Make the following changes to each of your modems: Set the Baudrate to 57600. Repeat this for each modem you have set-up under Win95. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── What follows are the settings for your Win95 DOS Sessions. These are accessed by right-clicking on the icon that is set up to load your BBS nodes, and then selecting "properties". If you have multiple nodes, you will need to modify the properties for each of your sessions: ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Tab 1 - General: │ ─────────────────┘ Tab 1 Gives information about the program itself. No modification needs to be done to this page. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Tab 2 - Program: │ ─────────────────┘ To the Right of the icon, there is a space to enter in the name that you want displyed on the title bar when this session is running. An example for node 1 would be your BBS name and node number (Shadowgate Node 1). Cmd Line.....: C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND.COM You'll always want to start your BBS using a batch file, so instead of placing the program .EXE in this line, place the path and filename of the command processor you wish to use for this session. It defaults to the Windows 95 DOS Mode command interpreter, which should be left alone unless you are using a third party program such as 4DOS. Working......: C:\BBS Provides a space for you to type the name of the folder that this program will load files from, and where it will save files. If necessary, include the drive letter. This is also where items such as temporary files are created for this program. You can use any directory that you wish, however it is a good idea to use the same directory for all of your DOS sessions, to make cleanup easier if need be. Batch File...: C:\BBS\NODE1.BAT This is where you will place the path and filename of the batch file that you are using to start each of the BBS nodes with. Shortcut Key: None Provides a space for you to define a keyboard shortcut to start or switch to this program from Windows. Shortcut keys must include CTRL and/or ALT and another key (for example, CTRL+Y). You cannot use ESC, ENTER, TAB, SPACEBAR, PRINT SCREEN, or BACKSPACE. No other program can use this key combination. If the shortcut key conflicts with an access key in a Windows-based program, the access key will not work. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Tab 3 - Font: │ ──────────────┘ This is where you specify what font you would like to use when displaying this session in a window, either by starting it windowed, or by using ALT-ENTER. The 8x12 bitmap font is what I use, however the choice is up to you. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Tab 4 - Memory: │ ────────────────┘ Set Conventional, EMS, XMS, and MS-DOS protected mode all to "Auto". Set Initial Environment to 1024. Place a check in the box "Uses HMA" under "Extended" (XMS) Memory. Do NOT place a check in the "Protected" Box. Having "Protected" checked only seems to slow the session down, and does not seem to provide any greater level of protection than when it is turned on. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Tab 5 - Screen: │ ────────────────┘ Usage - This is the setting for how you want this program loaded. Choose full-screen or window. Initial size should be set at "Default". Window and Preformance - Display toolbar, restore settings on startup, fast ROM emulation, and dynamic memory allocation should all be checked. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Tab 6 - Misc: │ ──────────────┘ Allow screen saver, QuickEdit, Exclusive Mode, Always Suspend, and warn if still active should NOT be checked. Idle Sensitivity - Set it to Low. Move the slider as far to the left as you can. Fast pasting - should be checked. All of the Windows Shortcut keys should be checked. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── That's it! All of the DOS settings are taken care of. ╒═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ │ IMPORTANT: If you are running Wildcat! 4.x under Win95, you will need to │ │ make a change to your modem's MDM file that Wildcat! uses. You will need │ │ to set the transmit AND receive FIFO levels to 14 each. This will allow │ │ WC! to run as efficiently as possible. If you are running other DOS BBS │ │ software, and you also have the ability to modify a setting similar to │ │ this, please do so. The HIGHER the number, the better in most cases. │ │ ╘═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╛ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Specific to users of Wildcat/DOS 4.10 and higher, and users of the Wildcat 4.x MultiLine Platinum ONLY - You'll need to make some added changes to your modem's MDM file. You'll need to change the type of serial port to "FOSSIL". This will allow you to take full advantage of the BNU FOSSIL driver I mentioned earlier. This will result in a dramatic performance increase for your BBS sessions. You'll notice that changing the serial port to "FOSSIL" disables the COM port IRQ and base address. (BNU "knows" this already). ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── NOTICE IF YOU ARE USING THE FOSSIL SETTING - *VERY IMPORANT* - You will need to make these two additional changes to all of your modem's MDM files: Determine Ringing Using ....... "Ring Result" Determine Baud Rate using ..... "Result Code 2" If you do NOT make these changes... Wildcat wil not answer the modem. ALSO - If you intend to use the BNU FOSSIL driver, AND you have anything other than the standard COM1 and COM2, you MUST use the BNUPORT utility provided with BNU170.ZIP in order to use non-standard port configurations. What follows is an explanation of what BNUPORT actually is, and what you need to do to get it to work for your system: BNUPORT allows changing port assignments used by the BNU communications driver. BNUPORT directly READS and PATCHES the existing driver file "BNU.COM" to the use specific interrupt and IO port base addresses that you want to use for up to 16 port configurations. Simply change to the directory that BNU.COM is located in on your system and type BNUPORT on the command-line to bring up the BNUPORT configuration screen. Now follow the next set of instructions VERY closely, as you will be patching your modifications into BNU.COM directly. If you make an error after you have patched BNU.COM, you will need to re-install it. BNUPORT searches the current directory for BNU.COM and once BNU.COM is found, BNUPORT presents a screen which you will use to change communcations parameters for your non-standard ports. BNU can use any combination of port and IRQ addresses. Internally, it has a table of 16 "slots", which represent logical port numbers, numbered 0 through 15, which normally correspond with COM1 through COM4 on the PC and 12 others (COM5-COM16 for example). These 16 slots are alternative configurations - it does not represent how many ports BNU can support concurrently. BNU 1.70 only supports 4 ports in use at the same time (this was changed in beta releases to allow support of up to 8). The port configuration is maintained by the BNUPORT utility, provided with BNU 1.70. The standard configuration that is pre-configured in BNU.COM contains a setup for the standard DOS serial ports, COM1 through COM4. The only "mysterious" part of BNU port is the meaning of "IRQ Vector" and "IRQ Mask". Both are linked to the IRQ number, as is shown in the following table: IRQ Mask Vector Usually used for... --- ---- ------ --------------------------------------------------- 00 01 08 System timer 01 02 09 Keyboard 02 04 0A AT=cascade, EGA/VGA, Network adaptors 03 08 0B COM2 & COM4 04 10 0C COM1 & COM3 05 20 0D unused (LPT2, SCSI 8-bit, tape) 06 40 0E Floppy drive controller 07 80 0F unused (LPT1, SCSI 9-bit, tape) 08 01 70 RTC Clock 09 02 71 Redirected IRQ2 10 04 72 unused 11 08 73 unused 12 10 74 unused 13 20 75 unused 14 40 76 Hard disk controller 15 80 77 unused Just substitute the Mask and Vector values for the IRQs that you want to use, in the 'slots' for the particular Port# in BNUPORT, enter in the proper base address you wish to use (03F8, 02F8, etc.) and BNUPORT will patch your BNU.COM automatically. Also, If you are using IRQ 0 through 7, use 0020 as the "8259 Port". If using IRQ 8 through 15, use 00A0. You'll notice the first four ports (00-03) are configured for you. You can leave the Address and Mask columns at the far right of the screen at their defaults of 0000 and 00 respectively. You're all set! ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── 32-bit Digiboard support is not yet available for Windows 95, however you can use your DOS DIGI drivers for your Digiboard under Win95 with no problems. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Additional Notes: More new tips and tricks become available all the time. I update this file on a regular basis to reflect new changes. Also, PLEASE keep this in mind: When you make a change to any DOS setting, make the appropriate canges to ALL of your DOS sessions. While this is time-consuming, it will result in a far-more stable and higher performance system. Please take the time to have all of your settings for all of your DOS sessions reflect what I have listed. ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── DISCLAIMER - I CAN'T BE RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT YOU DO WITH YOUR SYSTEM OR YOUR CONFIG.SYS FILE BASED UPON WHAT YOU MAY LEARN FROM THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS FILE. EVERY EFFORT HAS BEEN MADE TO MAKE THIS FILE AS ACCURATE AS POSSIBLE, BUT NO WARRANTY IS EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED. THE INFORMATION IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS. USE IT AT YOUR OWN RISK. The opinions and suggestions in this document are my own, and not necessarily those of Mustang Software, Inc. ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── If you have any other questions, please let me know! I'll help if I can. If these settings do help you, let me know! Comments are always appreciated, positive or negative. If you notice anything I may have left out, or something you would like to see added to SETTINGS, please let me know! PLEASE NOTE: - I will be moving to California around the end of November. Because of this, some of the addresses to reach me below may be temporarily ort permanently disabled. To assure that I will receive your mail, your best bet is to E-Mail me at tony.harrison@mustang.com, or my writing a message to me on MSI's HQ BBS (805) 873-2400. I can be reached at: - FIDO - 1:2210/9639 - DOWN as of November 15th. - Internet - sysop@shadow.org - DOWN as of November 15th until further notice. ALTERNATE - tony.harrison@mustang.com - MSI HQ BBS (805) 873-2400 - Any conference - The Microsoft Network - THarrison - Shadowgate BBS - 815-622-9639 - DOWN as of November 1st until further notice. Good Luck! Tony Harrison, Sysop Shadowgate BBS