This series of articles is not about recommending specific
hardware and/or software. It's about information.
I think we all know that pressing <ALT><F1>
when the white rectangle appears at bootup will bring us to a "Recovery"
menu. From there you can select to boot to a command prompt, or to reset video to
Standard VGA.
But how many of you know that you can modify that menu, and add a Custom CONFIG.SYS
file to it?
This is a little-known but (fortunately) well documented feature that could come
in real handy, especially if you use a Laptop computer with a Docking Station or
Network. You can use the default CONFIG.SYS file to boot the system normally
(whatever your most-used configuration is) and use the Custom CONFIG.SYS
file to boot it when you need a different configuration (such as using the Laptop
in a Docking Station, or using the Laptop without the LAN configuration). The possibilities
are only limited to whatever you need to do.
For the purposes of this article, we'll use, as an example, a Laptop that is
to be used both Stand-alone and connected to a LAN, with different CONFIG.SYS
files for each use. The "normal" CONFIG.SYS file will be for use in Stand-alone
mode, while we'll use CONFIG.L for use when attached to the LAN.
This file is the Bottom of the ALT-F1 Recovery Menu. It is also Write-Protected,
so you'll have to change the attribute before you can edit it. From an OS/2 Command
Prompt, type:
ATTRIB -R C:\OS2\BOOT\ALTF1BOT.SCR <enter>
If you boot from a drive other than C:, substitute the drive letter in the command.
Now, using whatever text editor you like (E.EXE works just fine), Edit the file
ALTF1BOT.SCR and add a line that gives you a description of CONFIG.L
that you'll recognize at boot. Add 3 spaces (press the spacebar 3 times) at the
beginning of the line, so it will line-up with the choices already present (in the
ALTF1MID.SCR file).
Example:
L) CONFIG.L Loads LAN drivers when chosen.
Save the file and exit the editor.
Step 3
Edit the CONFIG.SYS and CONFIG.L files.
Let's assume that the original CONFIG.SYS file always booted with the
LAN drivers. Now, we need to have it boot WITHOUT the LAN drivers. Edit the CONFIG.SYS
file and REM out the lines that load your LAN drivers. On my system, this would
be:
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMCOM\PROTOCOL\LANPDD.OS2
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMCOM\PROTOCOL\LANVDD.OS2
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMCOM\LANMSGDD.OS2 /I:C:\IBMCOM /S
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMCOM\PROTMAN.OS2 /I:C:\IBMCOM
REM CALL=C:\IBMCOM\PROTOCOL\NETBIND.EXE
REM RUN=C:\IBMCOM\LANMSGEX.EXE
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMCOM\PROTOCOL\NETBEUI.OS2
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMLAN\NETPROG\RDRHELP.200
REM IFS=C:\IBMLAN\NETPROG\NETWKSTA.200 /I:C:\IBMLAN /N
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMCOM\PROTOCOL\NETBIOS.OS2
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMCOM\MACS\EXP16.OS2
REM SET I18NDIR=C:\IBMI18N
REM RUN=C:\IBMLAN\NETPROG\LSDAEMON.EXE
REM DEVICE=C:\IBMLAN\NETPROG\VNETAPI.OS2
REM RUN=C:\IBMLAN\NETPROG\VNRMINIT.EXE
REM SET NWDBPATH=C:\IBMLAN\NETPROG
Save this file as CONFIG.SYS and exit the editor.
This, of course, is optional. If you choose not to do this, you can always press
<ALT><F1> when the White Rectangle appears
to get to the menu.
RMB click anywhere on the desktop, and when the menu pops up, select PROPERTIES.
Click on the ARCHIVES tab, and select:
Display Recovery Choices at Each System Startup.
That's all there is to it. You now have 2 different boot configurations, and
a method to choose which one you want to use at each startup. NOTE: If you install
a new application that modifies your CONFIG.SYS file, you'll need to manually
edit the other CONFIG file to match, or else the app will only work when
you boot to the configuration in use when you installed it.
NOW .... here's where it can get interesting. Say you want to install some applications
that you would use ONLY when connected to the LAN. Besides modifying the CONFIG.SYS
file (or in this case, the CONFIG.L file), you also change the User INI file
(OS2.INI) to update the desktop and WPS. But you don't need this application when
not connected to the LAN, and you don't want it to appear on the Desktop when you
boot the Stand-alone configuration.
In CONFIG.SYS (or in this case, CONFIG.L) there is an Environment
Variable that is set at boot.
SET USER_INI=C:\OS2\OS2.INI
Copy the OS2.INI file to, say, OS2L.INI (L for LAN) and edit the
CONFIG.L Environment Variable to reflect the other copy of the INI file.
SET USER_INI=C:\OS2\OS2L.INI
Now, when you boot to the LAN configuration, you are not only using a different
CONFIG file, but a different INI file as well. Any changes made to either
of these files will only be evident when booting this configuration. Booting the
standard (default) configuration will not reflect any changes made while in the
other configuration. You can also change the Environment Variable for the System
INI (OS2SYS.INI) file as well.
Other possible uses for this is BETA testing applications. Use another copy of
CONFIG.SYS (such as CONFIG.B (for BETA) and OS2B.INI and OS2SYSB.INI)
and you'll not have to worry about corrupting your INI Files because you used a
BETA copy of an application that has a serious bug in it.
Should you choose to boot a configuration that, basically, starts from scratch,
without destroying your current setup, you can copy the file CONFIG.X to,
say, CONFIG.B (CONFIG.X is the config.sys file your system
uses when you choose "F2 - Go to command line, (no files replaced, use original
CONFIG.SYS)" from the Recovery Menu). This file is Write Protected,
so, after you make the copy, you'll have to run:
ATTRIB -R C:\OS2\BOOT\CONFIG.B
Then, create new INI files using the built-in utility MAKEINI.
MAKEINI OS2B.INI INI.RC
MAKEINI OS2SYSB.INI OS2SYS.RC
Then, edit the CONFIG.B file and replace the values for the Environment
Variables:
SET USER_INI=C:\OS2\BOOT\OS2B.INI
SET SYSTEM_INI=C:\OS2\BOOT\OS2SYSB.INI
SET RUNWORKPLACE=C:\OS2\PMSHELL.EXE
This will give you a config.sys file equivalent to the settings and configuration
you had when you first installed Warp, as well as the original OS2.INI and
OS2SYS.INI files. You can, in effect, start up a configuration of Warp that
is as it was when you first installed it.
You can even choose a configuration that allows your Warp system to appear like
an OS/2 2.0 Desktop, an OS/2 1.3 Desktop or a Windows 3.x Desktop by creating unique
INI files using the MAKEINI utility and editing the CONFIG.n file to reflect
the changes you wish to use in the Environment Variables.
CAUTION:
There is no guarantee that using this configuration will prevent damage to your
file system if you are using a misbehaving BETA application. It will prevent corruption
in your default INI files, but the only SAFE way to test BETA products is by actually
booting a totally different Warp system using Boot Manager (or another Boot Utility),
thus isolating the 2 Operating System partitions.
Information and Instructions in this article were found in the OS/2 Warp 4 Online
Documentation, in the printed book "OS/2 Warp Unleashed, Deluxe Edition"
and "The Warp Databook (at http://www.millennium-technology.com/)
Even though OS/2 Warp Unleashed was written for Warp 3, it is still one of the best
3rd party Printed books available for Warp systems. And the Warp Databook is constantly
updated to reflect changes, upgrades and enhancements to the Warp Operating System,
making it an excellent source of up-to-date information on OS/2 Warp.