Subj : Installing OS/2
To   : Stewart Arnett
From : Herbert Rosenau
Date : Fri Jul 04 2003 11:28 pm

Am 30.06.03 19:21 schrieb Stewart Arnett

SA> Hello Robert.

SA> 02 Jun 03 10:09, you wrote to All:

RE>>  * Original message posted in area OS/2 Discussion  * Cross
RE>> posted to area OS/2 BBSing                         OS/2 Hardware
RE>> OS/2 Hardware Discussion (Gated)

RE>> I'm in the process of trying to install OS/2 Warp 4 on a PIII. I
RE>> have all original software from my days in Team OS/2 and there
RE>> is no way I can get the install to format the HD to HPFS (or FAT
RE>> for that matter). The HD size that it gives me is not the same
RE>> as I have partioned it using the FDISK from my windows disk. It
RE>> has been a LONG time since I ran Warp and eventually would like
RE>> to have another BBS running again. (Used to run Bob's Bored/2 in
RE>> Toronto) Can anyone please help me get over this hurdle? My
RE>> email address is [email protected].

SA> Hard disk size is the problem here.

No and yes.

SA> Make a partition of less than
SA> 2.4 gb and leave the rest of the disk as free space. Install OS2
SA> on the partition and get it running, then, use OS2 to partition
SA> the rest of the disk into 2.4 gb partitions and format them as
SA> HPFS with OS2. I only use the first C: partition for the OS2
SA> itself, the BBS is on D: mail on E: and files on the rest of the
SA> partitions. This is on a Compaq deskpro 4000 (P1 166 machine)
SA> with a 20gb drive and a stock standard (no updates) OS2 warp4
SA> installation.

With any OS/2 version prior to WARP4.51 (that includes WARP4.50) there are some
limitations:

- the installation partiton must be completely inside the 1024 zylinder limt.
As none of this versions supports the BIOS extension that makes it possible to
boot from a partiton above that limit.

The size of a data partiton is anyway only kimited by the file system on it:
- FAT16 2 GB
- HPFS 64GB
- HPFS386 84 MB.

With WARP4.51 and newer (that includes eCS) there are news:
1. A bootable partiton can be anywhere on the disk
2. the 1024 zylinder limit is fallen completely - when the BIOS
  is new enough to handle the new extension
3. HPFS can be spanned over more than one volume
  but for that you have to reformat it thereafter
4. the new filesystem JFS allows a volume size up to 2 TB
  int can be spanned over multiple partitons on multiple
  drive
  it uses a much bigger cache (default: 10% of RAM)
  it can hold files bigger than 2GB (but not all applications may be able to
handle such big files.

Even as there was never a limit for the size of bootable partion (except the
1024 zyliner limit and the limit a specific filesystem may have) it ould be
always a good idea to hold the size of the system partiton so small as
possible.

That means:
WARP older als 4.50: up to 0.5 GB
newer as 4.5: up to 1 GB.

And beside the system partiton one or more partitons to hold data and
applications.


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