Cream of the Crop 1/Cream of the Crop 1.iso/DESQVIEW/QW12INST.ARJ/286.TEC

Text File | 1991-05-20 | 17KB | 324 lines

ID:D2 DESQview on 8088, 8086, and 80286 Processors
Quarterdeck Technical Note #195
by Michael Bolton

Q.  On which processors will DESQview multitask?
Q.  How will DESQview use the memory on my system?

Many users ask if DESQview can multitask on a 286 machine.  The fact is,
DESQview can multitask on ANY processor in the Intel 8086 family, or its
compatibles.  This includes the 8088, the 8086, the NEC V20 and V30, the
80286, the 80386 (in both the SX and DX flavors), and the i486 and
i486SX.  DESQview 386 is simply DESQview and Quarterdeck ExPANded Memory
Manager (QEMM-386) in the same box.  On a 386 machine, QEMM-386's memory
management makes DESQview's job easier, but the DESQview half of
DESQview 386 is EXACTLY THE SAME as the stand-alone version of DESQview;
not one byte of code is different.

On 286 or lesser processors, DESQview's ability to multitask is limited
only by the amount of conventional and exPANded memory available, and by
certain hardware considerations.  This White Paper will outline how
DESQview uses and manages memory, will detail some of the constraints
involved with the 286 and lesser processors, and will explain why the
386 architecture is so important in terms of memory management and
multitasking.  Please note that the 386SX, the 386DX, the i486, and the
i486SX can all be considered as essentially the same chip for the
purposes of this discussion; all have the same memory management
features.

DESQview uses memory in the following ways:

Conventional Memory
===================

DESQview will run, and multitask programs, in available conventional
memory.  Regrettably, DOS, device drivers, memory resident programs, and
the like all use conventional memory.  When DESQview is loaded, it too
will use conventional memory if there is no extra memory available.  On
a typical system with all of the above loaded, the largest memory
available for multitasking will be the amount of memory remaining --
generally about 400K.  As many programs as can fit in this memory will
run concurrently (that is, they will truly multitask), but in this day
of ever-larger applications, it is impossible for multiple large
programs to fit into this space.  When DESQview no longer has room in
memory for the next application to be loaded, the program used least
recently is swapped out, either to exPANded memory, to a virtual disk
(if the virtual disk's drive letter is specified in the appropriate
place in DESQview's Setup), or to a hard disk.  Although the program
will stop running while it is swapped out, when you switch back to it,
it will pick up where it left off.  In this context, DESQview performs
as a task-switcher.

This, combined with DESQview's other features, is more desirable for
most users than having to save the work in progress, exit the first
program, and reload the next.  Nevertheless, it is clearly more
desirable still to allow programs to continue running, even when they
are in background.  To do this with multiple large programs, DESQview
uses exPANded memory.


ExPANded Memory
===============

If exPANded memory is available, DESQview will use it for multitasking.
Not just any exPANded memory will do.  DESQview needs EEMS or EMS 4.0
exPANded memory hardware for multitasking; this is because software
emulation of exPANded memory (on a 286 or lesser processor) cannot
provide the memory management which is needed for real multitasking.
Software CAN be used to activate the dramatically improved memory
management features built right into the 386 chip, but extra hardware is
needed for the 80286 and its predecessors.

If you have EMS (only one E) 3.2 exPANded memory hardware on your
system, DESQview can use it to STORE program code and data, but not to
RUN programs.  This is much faster than swapping programs to disk and
makes DESQview a very fast and powerful task-switcher.  Again, though,
programs which are swapped to exPANded memory will stop running.

Owners of EEMS (two Es) or EMS 4.0 hardware are in a much better
position for multitasking, since this type of hardware is capable of
mapping conventional memory (of which more later, in the section titled
"Backfilling"). Note that any of the following provides exPANded memory
suitable for multitasking on a 286:

1) an EEMS or EMS 4.0 board that is able to (and set up to) provide
   memory to conventional memory addresses and make that memory mappable
   -- this will also work on an 8088 or 8086 processor; or,

2) a 286 memory management unit, such as the All ChargeCard or the SOTA Pop
   Card.

3) an 80386, 80386SX, or i486 upgrade with an appropriate memory manager
   such as QEMM-386.

Note also that each of the above items involves some sort of hardware
add-on to an 8088, 8086, or 80286.

The following DO NOT provide memory suitable for multitasking on
a 286 or less:

1) an EMS 4.0 emulator; that is, a software driver that turns exTENded
   memory into simulated exPANded memory; or,

2) an EMS 4.0 board that only provides software support for EMS 4.0, and
   which does not allow memory on the board to be mapped to addresses
   below 640K; or,

3) an EMS 3.2 board, whether it has an EMS 4.0 software driver or not; or,

4) a board that provides only exTENded memory; or,

5) the exTENded memory on a 286 motherboard.


ExTENded Memory
===============

DOS's addressing limit is 1 megabyte (MB), from 0KB to 1024KB.  Of
this, the lower 640K of addresses are used for conventional memory; the
upper 384K of address are reserved for various system resources.  On a
typical 286, there is no usable memory connected to these higher
addresses between 640K and 1024K, except for BIOS ROMs, display
adapters, video cards, and the like.  Most addresses in this region have
no memory attached to them at all.  Confusion often stems from the fact
that many 286s come with 384K of exTENded memory.  EXTENDED
MEMORY IS ADDRESSED AFTER THE 640K TO 1024K REGION, ABOVE 1024K --
outside of DOS's address space entirely.  Consequently, this memory is
invisible to most DOS programs, except those in a special class called
DOS-exTENded applications.  Disk caches, RAM disks, print spoolers, and
the like can store data in exTENded memory, and DOS-exTENded
applications can run their code in exTENded memory, but exTENded memory
is not usable for running regular DOS programs.

Once again, on the 386 chip, the situation is very different.  Under the
control of a 386 memory manager such as QEMM-386, and a multitasking
program like DESQview, exTENded memory can be converted to exPANded
memory, and can therefore be made useful for running and multitasking
regular DOS applications.  This is due once again to the hardware built
into the 386 chip; the 286 lacks these features, and needs extra
hardware to provide them.  THIS, AND NOT SPEED, IS THE CRUCIAL
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE 286 AND 386 ARCHITECTURE.

With Quarterdeck's exTENded memory driver, QEXT.SYS, DESQview can load
nearly 64K of itself into the first 64K of exTENded memory, thanks to an
idiosyncracy of the 286 processor.  The net effect of this is to reduce
DESQview's conventional memory overhead by nearly 64K.


Backfilling
===========

When a program accesses a piece of memory, say at address 6000:0000
(henceforth, simply 6000), memory on the motherboard at address 6000 is
made available to the program.  If, on the other hand, there is NO
MEMORY on the motherboard at this address, the request goes out to
boards in the expansion slots, and the exPANded memory board has the
opportunity to supply the memory for that address from its pool of
exPANded memory.  Therefore, if you want an exPANded memory board,
rather than motherboard memory, to provide memory to conventional memory
addresses, it becomes necessary to first disable motherboard memory.  If
the exPANded memory board is under the control of a powerful program
like DESQview, the board can then be instructed to supply DIFFERENT
portions of exPANded memory to the processor at different times.
Supplying memory from an exPANded memory board to replace disabled
motherboard memory is called "backfilling" -- because memory is replaced
from the top of conventional memory (usually 640K) to some lower
address.

When a program starts under DESQview's control on a system backfilled
with exPANded memory, DESQview runs that program in conventional memory
-- conventional memory supplied not by the motherboard, but by the
exPANded memory board.  When a second program is opened, DESQview looks
at how much memory that program needs.  If the program cannot fit in
conventional memory along with the first program, DESQview tells the EMS
board two things.  First, it tells the EMS board to allocate an amount
of exPANded memory equivalent to the size of the program.  Then it maps
that chunk of exPANded memory into DOS's address space, and the program
runs in that exPANded memory.  The program which was previously running
stays in its memory space on the exPANded memory card -- it just is not
visible to DOS.  The new program runs in a different memory space on the
card, and IS visible to DOS, because DESQview and the EMS board tell DOS
that.  Only one program appears to be below 640K at a time; DESQview
manages which one.

Since the EMS board is supplying memory to addresses below 640K, the
program running in exPANded memory is unaware of any of this, and runs
as if it were in conventional memory.  Then, after a suitable amount of
time, DESQview stops the second program, and the EMS board then is
requested to map the memory allocated to the first program back into
conventional memory addresses.  This process repeats, allowing both
programs a portion of the processor's time.  If this seems clumsy and
inefficient, remember that all this is happening at processor speed, and
is therefore almost impossible for the user to notice.  When a third
program is started, DESQview tells the exPANded memory board to allocate
another chunk of exPANded memory, and each of the three programs gets a
slice of time to do its work.

Note that this process will only work if there is no conventional memory
on the motherboard to intercept the various calls for address (in our
example) 6000. If there IS memory on the motherboard at that address,
the exPANded memory board will never receive the call, and DESQview
won't be able to run programs in exPANded memory.  Therefore, it is best
to be able to deactivate as much conventional memory as possible.
Disabling memory is done by setting switches or jumpers on the
motherboard, and/or by running your computer's setup program; the manual
for your system should tell you how this is done.  Almost all
motherboards will allow you to disable 128K of memory, and many will
permit disabling conventional memory down to 256K.  In this instance,
the EMS board will supply memory to addresses from 256K to 640K, for a
total of 384K.  Here DESQview will allow the first program opened to be
as large as available conventional memory (minus the overhead discussed
above), and each subsequent program can be as large as 384K in size.

On some motherboards, you are permitted to disable conventional memory
right down to 0K; this is relatively rare, but makes life very
comfortable for DESQview.  In this scenario, DESQview can multitask
multiple programs which are as large as available conventional memory --
which is the ideal.  Another compelling feature of 80386SX, 80386, and
i486 processors is that they can act as if they have their memory
disabled down to 0K without actually disabling any memory--and this is
one of the main reasons that the 386 architecture is so popular for
multitasking.

Note also that on 286s that are using a memory management unit (the All
Chargecard or the SOTA Pop Card, as mentioned above), the effect is the
same as being able to disable conventional memory to 0K.

If the "Largest Available exPANded Memory" field in DESQview's Memory
Status program is "0" (or 0K) immediately after you start DESQview, then
you either do NOT have the right kind of exPANded memory board or you
have not set it up to provide exPANded memory to conventional memory
addresses below 640K.  Again, refer to the documentation for your
computer and for your exPANded memory board.


Display
=======

There are more than just memory constraints involved in multitasking
on a 286 or less.  Programs can display their information in two ways:
they can ask DOS or the system's BIOS (Basic Input-Output Services) to
do it for them, or they can write directly to the screen hardware.  The
former type of program is called "well-behaved" in DESQview parlance.
Programs which write text directly to screen without going through DOS
or the BIOS, and all programs which display graphics, are called
(predictably) "misbehaved" because such programs, running in background,
will overwrite information in the foreground window.  There is a third
type of program, called "DESQview/TopView-aware."  This sort of program
will automatically write to the alternate video buffer if it detects
that it is running under DESQview or TopView; otherwise, it will write
directly to screen -- the best of both worlds.

In some cases, misbehaved programs can be configured through their own
setup routines to write through DOS or the BIOS, in which case DESQview
can redirect screen writes to an area of memory which DESQview sets up
called the alternate video buffer.  DESQview has also, for several
years, included loaders for some of the most popular misbehaved
programs; these loaders trap output from misbehaved programs and direct
it to the alternate video buffer.

On a 286 or less, if your program cannot be configured to be
well-behaved, and if there is no DESQview loader for it, its output will
"bleed through" to the foreground screen unless you stop it from running
in background.

On a 386 processor, regardless of a program's behavior, DESQview 386
can "virtualize" the screen.  Virtualization causes a program which
writes directly to screen to write elsewhere, with the
practical upshot that it can be run in background or in a small
window.  See VIRTUAL.TEC and DIRECTLY.TEC, two other Quarterdeck White
Papers, for more information on this.  Note that this feature is not
available on a system running anything less than a 386SX processor,
nor is it available without DESQview 386 (that is, DESQview and
QEMM-386 on the same system).


More Information
================

The manual for Quarterdeck's Manifest program is an excellent
introduction to memory management -- Manifest's purpose is to show you
how the memory on your machine is configured, how to best take
advantage of what you have, and how to improve it.  Manifest is included
with every copy of QRAM and QEMM-386 (and thus it's included with every
copy of DESQview 386 as well), and is available separately if you wish;
all of these packages are available at your favourite dealer. Many of
the other Quarterdeck White Papers contain information related to the
topics discussed here; one of the White Papers, BOOKS.TEC, contains a
good list of books on various topics related to memory management and
multitasking.


Summing Up
==========

Regardless of the processor, DESQview will multitask as many programs as
will fit in conventional and EMS 4 or EEMS exPANded memory.  Even on an 8088
with 640K of memory, this power is not to be underestimated; for example,
there are several excellent communications programs on the market that will
run under DESQview in very little memory, allowing you to download in
background and use a text editor at the same time.  DESQview also provides
macro and dialer facilities, and powerful Mark and Transfer features which
allow you to move information easily from one window to another.  The
DESQview Companions, our suite of desktop accessories, can all fit into
less than 200K of memory simultaneously.

DESQview is a very powerful multitasker, and will provide excellent
performance on 80286 and 8086/8088 machines IF YOU CONSIDER THE
LIMITATIONS OF THESE PROCESSORS.  If you provide DESQview with EMS 3.2
exPANded memory, it will work faster;  if you put EMS 4.0 or EEMS
memory on the system, and disable as much motherboard memory as
possible, DESQview will perform better still.

Nothing compares to a 386, however.  It's much faster; when QEMM-386 is
in the system, it requires no special hardware to provide exPANded
memory; and it has virtualization and protection features which keep
multiple programs out of each other's hair.  On the other hand, if you
own DESQview, you already own half of DESQview 386, and all you'll
require when you upgrade your hardware is the other half -- Quarterdeck
ExPANded Memory Manager 386 (QEMM-386)!  Get started now, and get a
taste for multitasking!

            Copyright (C) 1991 by Quarterdeck Office Systems
                 * * *   E N D   O F   F I L E    * * *