Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!dalcs!lane
From: lane@dalcs.UUCP (John Wright/Dr. Pat Lane)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: Need info - Using large capacity hard disk w/MS-DOS
Message-ID: <2789@dalcs.UUCP>
Date: 20 Feb 88 14:45:51 GMT
References: <5561@sgistl.SGI.COM> <4583@ecsvax.UUCP> <3093@cup.portal.com>
Reply-To: lane@dalcs.UUCP (John Wright/Dr. Pat Lane)
Organization: Math, Stats & CS, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada
Lines: 39

From lane Sat Feb 20 12:17:21 GMT 1988
>In article <3093@cup.portal.com>, truett@cup.portal.com writes:
> With regard to DOS being able to handle multiple partitions on a hard disk:
> 4) It is possible, using third-party software, to create DOS readable
>    partitions which are larger than 32 MB. Programs that do this include
>    VFeature, Speedstor, and Disk Mechanic.  I believe the Mace Utilities can
>    also do this.

Add to this list Disk Manager from OnTrack Systems (don't have the address
handy but can supply it).  It has all the bells and whistles mentioned for
the other programs.  Unless I've missed something in the versions of Mace
that I've seen, it does *not* have this capability.

It is also worth mentioning that most *XT* hard disk controllers have a low-
level format program as part of their ROM BIOS routines and that some of 
those (notably, the Western Digital WX2) allow the hard disk to be partitioned
at the controller level.  After formatting the disk xou are asked if you want
to "virtually configure" the drive.  You can then give a list of numbers of
cylindars which will be used to make partitions that will appear as separate
disks to MS-DOS.  

With AT controllers, there appears to be no ROM software on the controller
because it's all built into the machine's BIOS ROM (right???).  I guess for
low level formatting your stuck with either the IBM Diagnostics pgm (which
I don't think does "virtual" configuring) or the third-party pgms.

If I'm wrong about that please correct me... It's been a few weeks since I 
looked into the problem for myself and my memory deteriorates *very* quickly 
:-(,:-).

Hope this helps.

Cheers,
John Wright,
-- 
John Wright      //////////////////      Phone:  902-424-3805  or  902-424-6527
Post: c/o Dr Pat Lane, Biology Dept, Dalhousie U, Halifax N.S., CANADA  B3H-4H8 
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