Subj : Installing OS/2
To   : Herbert Rosenau
From : Stewart Arnett
Date : Sun Jul 06 2003 12:35 am

Hello Herbert.

04 Jul 03 22:28, you wrote to me:

HR> Am 30.06.03 19:21 schrieb Stewart Arnett

SA>> Hello Robert.

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


SA>> Hard disk size is the problem here.

HR> 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.

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

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

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

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

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

HR> That means:
HR> WARP older als 4.50: up to 0.5 GB

C: partition 2Gb D: - E: - F: partitions set to 2.33Gb = 10Gb one hard disk.
OS 2 Warp 4, no fixpacks off the first series CD, proof that it works is the
fact I am writing this on the machine and this message is posted from the
Rockbbs.

The reason I use it this way is simply because it works, it sits here for
months doing it's thing and I only empty the trash every so often.

The real fun was setting it up on an old 486 that wouldn't see the hard disk,
that was on an HP Vectra 66, you tell me how I made that work ;)

HR> newer as 4.5: up to 1 GB.

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


HR> -+- Sqed/32 1.15/development  702:
HR>  + Origin: Recht haben ist gut, Recht bekommen ist besser!
HR> (2:2476/493)

Cheers,

Stewart

--- GoldED/2 3.0.1
* Origin: The RockBBS Auckland NZ 64-9-5799600 (3:772/100)