DOS ain't dead

How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? (Users)

posted by mvojvodic, 16.08.2012, 20:24
(edited by mvojvodic on 16.08.2012, 22:07)

> No simple generic answer, unfortunately.

There is simple generic answer.

Get HD-COPY 2.5E, it is freeware. It has simple TUI interface and
it works in real DOS and all Windows versions (I did not test it
under Windows 8).
It makes standard raw diskette image files (hex EB at offset 0)
compatible with many floppy utilities.
I use it for more than ten years.

Raw diskette image info from my MultiArc plugin INI
for Total Commander (using UNDDI 1.04 MultiArc release):

ID=EB
IDPos=0
Extension=bif,flp,ima,img,vcp,vfd
; All raw diskette images have ID=EB at IDPos 0, except
; HD-COPY 2.x compressed IMG images which have it at IDPos=187
; (187 dec=BB hex)
; HD-COPY 2.x by Oliver Fromme makes compressed IMG images
; by default. To make uncompressed IMG images one has to use
; command line switch /I- or use this switch in HD-COPY.CFG
; to make that option permanent (the letter I must be uppercase).
;
; RAWRITE and other DOS and Linux raw floppy image utilities
; always produce uncompressed IMG images.
;
; The following images are identical by contents:
; RAWRITE and HD-COPY uncompressed IMG
; WinImage, UltraISO, and PowerISO uncompressed IMA
; Virtual PC VFD
; VMWare FLP
; MagicISO BIF

Notes: RAWRITE does not make ISO images, diskettes are not CDs.
You can write floppy image to a diskette of different size if
image contents can fit. I even copied 1.44 MB image (first 62 tracks,
the rest was empty) to 1.2 MB 5" diskette. The diskette written
had 1.44 MB geometry, but that is not a problem for any new
BIOS version after 1996, older BIOSes cannot handle such
diskettes (for older BIOS you need FDREAD TSR also).

Do not use VGA-COPY 6.25. It is freeware, has nice GUI interface,
works in DOS (and Windows except Vista and 7), and it can work
with very unusual exotic formats, but it cannot copy boot records
without special boot record file VGACOPY.BIN (which you have to make
by yourself). Its VCP image is not RAWRITE compatible.

You can download HD-COPY 2.5E at
https://rapidshare.com/files/4090226846/HDCP25E.RAR

I edited HD-COPY.CFG so it will always make uncompressed images
compatible with RAWRITE.

Of course, diskette images can be stored on CD like any other file
and HD-COPY can use them directly from CD. I am a little bit
paranoid, so I use DVD-RAM or M-Disk for important data.

Maybe this will help you.

P.S.
Rugxulo, do not delete or edit this message (as you did with other
one) because HD-COPY is really freeware (but it can be found on
VetusWare).

Complete thread:

• How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? - CluelessInSeattl, 16.08.2012, 03:45 (Users)
  • How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? - Laaca, 16.08.2012, 07:26
    • How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? - Rugxulo, 16.08.2012, 08:33
    • How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? - bretjohn, 16.08.2012, 17:18
      • How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? - mvojvodic, 16.08.2012, 20:24
        • How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? - Arjay, 01.09.2012, 23:51
  • How to back-up MS-DOS 6.21 Installation Diskettes? - rr, 16.08.2012, 22:28