DOS Networking & Virtual PC

[Stoic Joker]

Greetings

I am trying to get a copy of DOS v6.21 running in Virtual PC 2007 on the network (...Because I'm an id***, if you must ask).

...Any how...

I can not get this thing to work no matter what I try. I have the DOS MSClient installed and have fed it the driver for the DEC/Intel 21140 NIC but it keeps throwing errors on load, instead of loading.

One would thing, being that there is only one hardware combination possible in Virtual PC, that this would be (simple) throughly documented somewhere ... but it ain't.

I have Googled my a** off to no avail.

Suggestions?

[ZaForD]

Hi Stoic Joker,

They used to be a DOS addon to VPC, which was dropped when M$ took over and stopped surporting DOS, Win3.1 and Win95.

If you can find an old Connectix version and extract the DOS addons, it may fix your problems.

ZaForD

[Stoic Joker]

Hi Stoic Joker,

They used to be a DOS addon to VPC, which was dropped when M$ took over and stopped surporting DOS, Win3.1 and Win95.

If you can find an old Connectix version and extract the DOS addons, it may fix your problems.

ZaForD

Actually it's still there, or they put it back in VPC2007; vmadd386.sys, idle.com, fshare.exe, etc. all there. idle.com is manditory to keep the DOS VM for clocking the CPU wide open.

The main problem I was having was with the syntax of the protocol.ini (and etc.)files, which I finally did get right. I've got DOS v6.22 logged into a share on an NT4 box now!

Note: I had to upgrade to v6.22 because the himem.sys in v6.21 is poo.

Here is the contents on the relevant system files:

Protocol.ini

[network.setup]
version=0x3110
transport=ms$tcpip,MS$TCPIP
transport=ms$ndishlp.MS$NDISHLP
lana0=DC21X4,1,ms$tcpip
lana1=DC21X4,1,ms$ndishlp
netcard=DC21X4,1,DC21X4,1

[PROTMAN]
DriverName=PROTMAN$
PRIORITY=ms$ndishlp

[MS$NDISHLP]
DriverName=ndishlp$
BINDINGS=DC21X4

[MS$TCPIP]
NBSessions=6
DisableDHCP=0
DriverName=TCPIP$
BINDINGS=DC21X4
LANABASE=0

[DC21X4]
drivername=DC21X4$
ConnectionType=AutoSense

System.ini

[network]
sizworkbuf=1498
filesharing=no
printsharing=no
autologon=yes
computername=DOS622
lanroot=C:\DOS\NETWORK
username=Administrator
workgroup=WORKGROUP
reconnect=yes
dospophotkey=N
lmlogon=0
logondomain=WORKGROUP
preferredredir=full
autostart=full
maxconnections=8

[network drivers]
netcard=DC21X4.dos
transport=tcpdrv.dos,nemm.dos
devdir=C:\DOS\NETWORK
LoadRMDrivers=yes

[386enh]
TimerCriticalSection=5000
UniqueDosPSP=TRUE
PSPIncrement=2

[Password Lists]
*Shares=C:\DOS\NETWORK\Shares.PWL
ADMINISTRATOR=C:\DOS\NETWORK\ADMINIST.PWL

Config.sys

DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS
DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE NOEMS
BUFFERS=25,0
FILES=40
DOS=HIGH,UMB
LASTDRIVE=Z
FCBS=4,0
rem DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE RAM I=B100-B7FF I=C600-C7FF I=CC00-CFFF I=E600-EFFF FRAME=D000
DEVICE=C:\DOS\NETWORK\IFSHLP.SYS
rem DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\VMADD386.SYS
rem DOS=HIGH

REM ========  IDE BUS CD-ROM Install Modification - Begin ========
rem DEVICE=C:\DOS\CDROM.SYS /D:ATAPI_CD
REM ========  IDE BUS CD-ROM Install Modification - End ==========

AutoExec.bat

LH /L:0 C:\DOS\SMARTDRV.EXE /X
@ECHO OFF
PROMPT $p$g
PATH C:\DOS\NETWORK;C:\DOS
SET TEMP=C:\DOS

REM ========  IDE BUS CD-ROM Install Modification - Begin ========
rem C:\DOS\MSCDEX /V /D:ATAPI_CD /M:10
REM ========  IDE BUS CD-ROM Install Modification - End ========

LH /L:1,640 C:\DOS\Idle.com
LH /L:0;1,1728;2,28224 /S C:\DOS\NETWORK\net initialize
C:\DOS\NETWORK\netbind.com
CLS
LH /L:0;1,736 /S C:\DOS\NETWORK\umb.com
LH /L:2,77024 C:\DOS\NETWORK\tcptsr.exe
LH /L:0 C:\DOS\NETWORK\tinyrfc.exe
C:\DOS\NETWORK\nmtsr.exe
C:\DOS\NETWORK\emsbfr.exe
LH /L:0;2,304 /S C:\DOS\NETWORK\net start

[ZaForD]

Hi Stoic Joker,

I'm glad you got it sorted.

I tried installing Win3.11 on VPC some time back, hence the tracking down the old Connectix DOS addtions. I had it running fine with a load of old floppy based apps I found in the basement.

But I never could get the network or Internet to work, and I don't know much about DOS/3.11.

Would the system files you posted work on any VPC network or are they specific to your setup.

I can feel another trip to the basement coming on.

[Stoic Joker]

Now I wasn't trying to start anything...

Yes those files will work on any Virtual PC (Which is why I posted them) as the hardware is always emulated the same.

Things to keep in mind:

Get v3 of the DC21X4 driver from Intel's site.

DOS v6.21 will work, but only if you use v6.22's HiMem.sys (else you get Error 8: Not Enough Memory...)

MS-Client v3.0 for DOS is still available from MS.

Be sure to install Idle.com from the VPC DOS Addons or the VM will run your CPU wide open!

Good Luck! ...It only took me 3 days to figure this &%^* thing out

Edited August 21, 2007 by Stoic Joker

[ZaForD]

After reading through the Technet page on 'MS-Client v3.0 for DOS' I'm not sure I want to start anything either.

Even reading it a second time didn't help.

Still, the best way to learn about these things is to play with them.

I dug out those floppies this evening and it seems I have DOS 6.22.

So things are starting off the right way at least.

[DL.]

The old, real DOS. Those were the days, hmm... (getting nostalgic)

What are those numbers after LH /L: in autoexec.bat, something memory related?

[Stoic Joker]

After reading through the Technet page on 'MS-Client v3.0 for DOS' I'm not sure I want to start anything either.

Even reading it a second time didn't help.

Still, the best way to learn about these things is to play with them.

I dug out those floppies this evening and it seems I have DOS 6.22.

So things are starting off the right way at least.

I added the server service to it this evening, so now I can browse the DOS 6.22 "box" from Win98/WinNT via Network Neighborhood.

Let me know if you get stuck ... the complete VM is only 9MB zipped

@DL. *Shrug* MemMaker.exe did it.

[ZaForD]

I'm gonna have a go at this over the weekend, as I've never really used DOS before. Other than the odd simple batch file, so I could be gone a long time.

Let me know if you get stuck ...

Becareful dude, I may come back on Monday with a million questions.

I think one of the problems I may have, is I won't know what I'm trying to do.

But thats never stopped me trying things before.

@DL.

From what I've read so far, LH = load drivers or TSR's into the higher or expanded memory.

So maybe the numbers reprecent specific places or a specific order in the memory.

[DL.]

@ZaForD: Yeah, LH means "Load High" but those numbers made me curious since I haven't seen them like that before (and I've used Memmaker with DOS 6.20).

[vbdasc]

I added the server service to it this evening, so now I can browse the DOS 6.22 "box" from Win98/WinNT via Network Neighborhood.

Now this is something! You can browse the DOS VM from outside? How exactly can it be done? Please!

Edited October 17, 2007 by vbdasc