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From: vojta@powdermilk.berkeley.edu (Paul Vojta)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware
Subject: Re: 3.5" drive in a PC?
Message-ID: <1990Oct22.200931.3933@agate.berkeley.edu>
Date: 22 Oct 90 20:09:31 GMT
References: <40931@eerie.acsu.Buffalo.EDU> <7074.2722cd8f@vax1.tcd.ie>
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In article <7074.2722cd8f@vax1.tcd.ie> jagrogan@vax1.tcd.ie writes:
>In article <40931@eerie.acsu.Buffalo.EDU>, trljim@ubvmsa.cc.buffalo.edu (James Sonnenmeier) writes:
>> I wonder if anyone can answer a question.  I have a 720K 3.5" drive I want
>> to install in an origional PC. It had two 5.25" drives so I simply replaced
>> one with the 3.5" drive ( I assumed then the mother board switches were set
>> already for 2 drives etc ... ) but the machine thinks the 720K drive is
>> still a 360K drive! ... Like I said this is an origional PC ( circa 1983)
>> if I replace the disk controller with a more modern piece will that let me
>> use the drive as 720K??  ( It can *read* a 720K disk but cannot format a
>> new disk ... that is it thinks its 360K)
>> 
>> 
>> Anyone have any ideas??  Thanks
>I had a similar problem with a clone that I bought. Although it was a new
>machine (1988), the 3.5" drive could read 720K but not format.
>I got around this by installing it as an external drive (d:) in the
>config.sys. I could then use drive d: as a 720K drive, and drive b: as
>a 360K drive, although they were the same physical drive.
>If this doesn't work then you'll probably have to replace the controller
>card.

Nothing so drastic is necessary.  I use SDF.ZIP (available via anonymous ftp
from wsmr-simtel20.army.mil, file pd1:<msdos.dskutl>sdf2.zip) to format the
disks.  I can even still use DOS 2.1.

--Paul Vojta, vojta@math.berkeley.edu