DOS ain't dead

How to put COMMENTS in MS-DOS CONFIG.SYS? (Users)

posted by Rugxulo , Usono, 28.02.2013, 19:58

> I'm trying to debug a complicated COW (can-of-worms) consisting of
> multi-level nesting of batch files and text editor macros.
>
> In the course of trying to isolate the bug that caused my COW to crash,
> I've been editing the AUTOEXEC.BAT file, and then rebooting. Each time I
> do this I have to wait while HIMEM.SYS runs a memory test.

You can disable that so it doesn't run at every boot, e.g. "/TESTMEM:OFF".

> I'd like to edit my CONFIG.SYS file so that it has two HIMEM.SYS lines and
> then REM one of them out, depending on whether or not I want the memory
> test at boot up.

I doubt you'd ever want it. It's unlikely to ever catch anything (IMHO). But if really desired, a menu with multiple options is better than manually editing comments (but more work, initially).

> Checking around, I seem to have found that the comment marker for DOS 6.21
> is the semi-colon [;]. Is that right?

Depends on what the shell supports. You're using MS-DOS 6.21's COMMAND.COM, right? I think all DOS clones and compatibles support "REM", not sure if others are universal or not (e.g. semicolon may work in DR-DOS, not sure about elsewhere).

A list of FreeDOS kernel CONFIG.SYS options is here, though it's probably not too useful for MS-DOS use, as they aren't 100% the same (some minor improvements, I think).

> This suggests to me that there might be a way to substitute the colon [:]
> character for the semi-colon in my CONFIG.SYS file.
>
> Is that right? If so, then I'd be grateful if someone could tell me how to
> accomplish that.
>
> Is there any reason why I shouldn't try using the colon character as a
> comment marker in CONFIG.SYS files?

No idea, sounds not worth the pain of worrying about it. Try and see if curious, but I'd just play it safe and use "REM", honestly. Or setup multi-boot menu. But really, I don't think you need the HIMEM memory test at bootup.

Complete thread:

• How to put COMMENTS in MS-DOS CONFIG.SYS? - CluelessInSeattl, 28.02.2013, 17:04 (Users)
  • How to put COMMENTS in MS-DOS CONFIG.SYS? - Rugxulo, 28.02.2013, 19:58
    • How to put COMMENTS in MS-DOS CONFIG.SYS? - CluelessInSeattl, 28.02.2013, 21:36