Date:	Mon, 10 Aug 1998 12:48:11 +1200 (NZST)
From:	Eric Gillespie <viking AT flying-brick DOT caverock DOT net DOT nz>
To:	Greg Baker <chimera AT kiwi DOT net>
cc:	"Mark F. Warchol" <mwarchol AT flash DOT net>, OpenDOS AT delorie DOT com
Subject:	Re: Help needed with invalaid partition table
In-Reply-To:	<Pine.LNX.4.02.9808091049450.147-100000@CyberDre4ms.kiwi.net>
Message-ID:	<Pine.LNX.3.96.980810120615.503A-100000@brick>
MIME-Version:	1.0

Mark Warchol wrote:
::    Regarding my problem installing a new master hard-drive another list
::indicated to me that (dos)-Drdos wouldn't accept a drive as master larger
::than #512-M and that dos in general has this problem/limitation, and that it
::wouldn't make a difference if I partation the drive smaller because the
::entire drive wuld be seen beforehand as the nonpartationed size.

Greg Baker wrote:
::Hi Mark,
::
::I'm not an expert on this, but from my experience that is very relative
::advice.

I would have to agree - this advice isn't really correct *in my opinion*.
I reckon that it is hogwash unless someone explains themselves better...

::At the moment, against my better judgement, I have Mac95 installed on
::what was the OpenDOS partition, and I have no problems there.

Mac95?  Is this a joke? Have Apple Computing decided to really compete
against Billy boy?

::Somewhere in the middle, I upgraded my motherboard, so that might have
::helped Mac95 understand about the 3.2 gig (beacuse, Mac95 isn't supposed
::to handle greater than 512mb without the overlay software as far as I
::know (somebody correct me if I'm wrong) ).

Probably - someone else mentioned about LBA mode having an effect.

::  I think it depends on your BIOS whether or not the OS will have a
::problem with the harddrive partitions.

Not totally - didn't you say that Linux had no problems? Mind you, Linux
uses the BIOS for booting up from, and replaces the BIOS with the kernel
module once the kernel is booted up. 

But I Digress.  

LILO (at the moment)  *has* to use the BIOS to pick up relevant sectors
(limiting max sectors to 1024 cyls or 508 Meg) and *thats* why the root or
boot partition has to be below that limit - yep, that is the only reason!
Ditto any of the other non-floppy ways of booting (loadlin et al)
Otherwise the root partition could be as large as we'd like it...3.2 gig
of root partition 8-)

Dos uses BIOS throughout for its drive access - so the same limitations
apply here.  However, Windows95 has its own handler, thats why it can
handle large drives (FAT32 etc) 

Ahh well, this is turning in to a good discussion, isn't it?
(And yes, excuse my Linux bias)

 /|   _,.:*^*:.,   |\  Cheers from the Viking family, including Marmalade 
| |_/'  viking@ `\_| | Running Linux and OpenDOS in Christchurch!
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 \_.caverock.net.nz_/  then where did Man's morals come from?

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