Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!orion.cf.uci.edu!mrichey
From: mrichey@orion.cf.uci.edu (Mike Richey)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: problem with Novell ELS II...
Keywords: shell problems(command.com & net3.com)
Message-ID: <2674@orion.cf.uci.edu>
Date: 10 Sep 89 22:28:39 GMT
References: <836@xroads.UUCP>
Reply-To: mrichey@orion.cf.uci.edu (Mike Richey)
Organization: University of California, Irvine
Lines: 57

In article <836@xroads.UUCP> firewind@xroads.UUCP (Tom Parker) writes:
>
>I was following the comments on the problem with ELS II and running dos
>programs.  Whenever a dos program was exited, command.com couldn't be found
>and the workstation shell would crash.  Does anybody know what causes this? 
>I set up a search path for command.com and all sorts of stuff with no result.
Okay, I know this sounds really dumb, but this has worked fro me and many
others, here goes:

In the autoexec.bat file of the network boot disk, don't set the 
DOS prompt command, (Many people set it to   PROMPT $P$G )
Don't set it in the System Login Script, because it will be executed
when someone logs in on the File Server Work Station. If you wish to
set the prompt at the FS/WS, either key it in by hand, or set up
a batch file with the prompt command in it (I call mine prmpt.bat)
and DON'T make any reference to it in the autoexec.bat file on the 
server boot diskette.

The other item is to not set the comspec to a netware device. Leave
the COMSPEC as    COMSPEC=A:\COMMAND.COM. If you don't have the boot disk
in the server floppy, DOS will ask you to insert it. This is a heck of
a lot better than rebooting the fileserver without downing it first.

Does Novell know of the problem? Yes, they've known of it since the
earliest day of Non dedicated Netware (2.0a) like since 1987. They
keep improving the situation, but have not seemed to get it right yet.
Be glad tou're not running ELS I.




> 
>I was able to figure out a work around...  If you load another copy of
>command.com as mentioned by someone earlier it works.  Basically I would load
>a copy right after loading the netware shell.  If I did it before logging in,
>all the search paths would be screwed up.  If I did it after, all the search
>paths would be fine, and if used with the /p parameter, it wouldn't have to
>be loaded for that session.  Anybody really know how this is all working?  Is
>it safe?

Yes, it's safe, just slow.
> 
>I was also wondering if anyone was interested in starting an echo devoted to
>Novell networks.  If you're interested, I can be contacted at 1:114/54.

I would be interested in participating, but I don't have a BBS running, and
unfortunaetly, Networks are not in the genera interest of PC BBSs.

Good Luck.

Michael S. Richey
Network and TeleCommunications Services
University of California, Irvine
342 Computer Science
Irvine, CA  92717
Voice:  (714) 856-8374
InterNet:  mrichey@orion.cf.uci.edu      BitNet:  MRichey@UCI