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From: lbr@holos0.uucp (Len Reed)
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.misc
Subject: Re: Boot of A:, switch to C:?
Message-ID: <1990Dec2.200956.19163@holos0.uucp>
Date: 2 Dec 90 20:09:56 GMT
References: <2757419a-72comp.os.msdos.misc@vpnet.chi.il.us>
Organization: Holos Software, Inc., Atlanta, GA
Lines: 31

In article <2757419a-72comp.os.msdos.misc@vpnet.chi.il.us> ron@vpnet.chi.il.us (Ron Winograd) writes:
= I have a 386, running both MS-DOS 4.01 and UNIX System V.
=My question: I have the active hd partition on unix, because that
=is the only way I know how to start it. This means that if I want MS-DOS,
=I have to boot off a floppy. However, if I do, then I have to keep it in
=everytime I exit a program, like Word, or Delux Paint etc.. because it
=needs command.com.

You need to set the environment variable that tells the system where
the command interpreter is.  The cleanest way to do this it to
put a config.sys file on your boot floppy.  In that file put the following
line:

SHELL=C:\COMMAND.COM

Make sure that your A:autoexec.bat file doesn't set COMSPEC, or if it does,
make sure the drive is specified:

set COMSPEC=C:\COMMAND.COM

I can't count the number of times I've seen variations on this problem;
invariably, COMSPEC is set to "\COMMAND.COM" with no drive given.

You probably have no A:\config.sys or it doesn't have a SHELL line.  In
either case the boot procedure implicitly sets COMSPEC to d:\COMMAND.COM,
where d: is the boot drive.  In your case that's A:.
-- 
Len Reed
Holos Software, Inc.
Voice: (404) 496-1358
UUCP: ...!gatech!holos0!lbr