MrEWhite wrote:

I am looking for a way to install MS-DOS 6.22 to a blank hard-drive. What would I need to buy to achieve this (All I see on eBay are upgrades.)

That's a fairy open question. Disk images are readily available for the full set, but all you actually need to install dos is a suitable boot disk with few files to prepare the drive then transfer the system files over. Then customise it to suit your tastes.

I suppose if you want to be strictly legal, then you'd need to get an earlier version of MS-DOS and one of the upgrade editions. Note that any version of MS-DOS from 6.0 to 6.21 can be updated to 6.22 with a free, legal download from Microsoft.

You may want to consider using FreeDOS instead, or alternatively DR-DOS/OpenDOS. It doesn't seem like anyone has been able to confirm the existence of a program that specifically requires MS-DOS 6.22 and that won't work with FreeDOS.

The DOS 6.22 upgrade can be used for a clean install.

You just got to partition and format the drive beforehand 😀

I've got MS-DOS 6.22 upgrade when I had my Technet subscription. I've put it on a CD for fast DOS 6.22 installation. Takes less than a minute and it has my boot menu with memory options, CD-ROM and mouse as well. So I'm up and running in zero time 😀

philscomputerlab wrote:

The DOS 6.22 upgrade can be used for a clean install.

You just got to partition and format the drive beforehand 😀

I've got MS-DOS 6.22 upgrade when I had my Technet subscription. I've put it on a CD for fast DOS 6.22 installation. Takes less than a minute and it has my boot menu with memory options, CD-ROM and mouse as well. So I'm up and running in zero time 😀

Alright, sounds good. I also might buy Windows 3.1.

So this will work, correct? http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Factory-Sealed-Mi … =item33a75cdde8

MrEWhite wrote:

So this will work, correct? http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Factory-Sealed-Mi … =item33a75cdde8

Yes. All it does is check if there is any MS-DOS on the machine beforehand.

philscomputerlab wrote:

MrEWhite wrote:

So this will work, correct? http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Factory-Sealed-Mi … =item33a75cdde8

Yes. All it does is check if there is any MS-DOS on the machine beforehand.

I do not have any other DOS versions. Will it still work?

Just sys c: the drive from a boot disk. You might be able to get hold of a dos/win3x or dos/wfw3.11 OEM bunble reasonably cheap.

I have the 5-1/4" diskettes of full 6.22 plus the fat manual that came with it. I would definitely like to make backups of the original floppies. But I don't recall if it was as easy as copying them, back then or if they had some sort of protection? Also, I need to get a 5-1/4" drive, again.

There's archives all over the interweb and they're not terribly hard to find.

Caluser2000 wrote:

Just sys c: the drive from a boot disk.

But will any boot disk work? Even one from Win9x? What about FreeDOS?

IIRC the upgrade disks just check to see it the drive is bootable. Needs to be fat16 for obvious reasons.

SETUP /F from the MS Dos 6.22 Upgrade package can create a suitable boot disk which could come in handy https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/120768

Also you should be able to boot off of the 6.22 upgrade disk1.

Then on the first screen press F3, answer the prompts to exit the setup.

You will dump you to an A:> prompt.

Use fdisk to create a primary partition on the first drive.

Then format it using format c: Now use sys c: to make it bootable.

Reboot.

Install 6.22 as you normally would.

So to answer the Ops question like Phil has. There is nothing extra to buy.

Logistics wrote:

I have the 5-1/4" diskettes of full 6.22 plus the fat manual that came with it. I would definitely like to make backups of the original floppies. But I don't recall if it was as easy as copying them, back then or if they had some sort of protection? Also, I need to get a 5-1/4" drive, again.

The only copy protection is the disk label. Now don't ask me what it was was, but that's easy enough to check 😊

I have copies of the DOS 6.22 installation disks on my USB stick for the GOTEK floppy emulator for example.

The Technet edition of DOS 6.22 has the usual floppy images, but also, and this is very cool, a version that runs off a folder. This is what I have on a Boot CD for rapid installation. After you've done the upgrade you need to run DELOLDOS or something like that, and it get's rid of a folder meant for rolling back or something like that.

You can also skip creating a recovery disk by running SETUP/G or something like that. Just run SETUP/? for a full list of command line options.

A good source for boot floppies is bootdisk.com

Jorpho wrote:

You may want to consider using FreeDOS instead, or alternatively DR-DOS/OpenDOS. It doesn't seem like anyone has been able to confirm the existence of a program that specifically requires MS-DOS 6.22 and that won't work with FreeDOS.

I was a big DrDos fan, liking a lot of it's features and did find it slow for carrying out some tasks compared to MS Dos, as well had some issues with a few programs. I certainly prefer it over freedos for older kit.

If the OP wants to give OpenDos(DrDos 7.0x) a shot here's a link to get it http://ftp.uni-bayreuth.de/pc/caldera/

I run FreeDOS 1.1 on my rig. I've run into a FEW apps that don't like it's EMS/XMS drivers (I use JEMM386+HIMEMX+UMBPCI), but you can always run MS HIMEM.SYS/EMM386.EXE if you need to. I have a boot menu setup to pick which memory managers to load.

I've found it to be very compatible over all. And I run a lot of formerly-high-end workstation software on my DOS machine, not just some simple side-scrollers. Plus DOSBox will generally do a very good job running the few things that FreeDOS won't.

Honestly can't fathom why you'd need to *buy* old-stock MS DOS on floppies in 2015...

You don't need to buy it but some folk like to have a boxed set of software sitting along side their older systems. And it still does what it was designed to do. The disks will most likely work fine as well, if testing the various bundles from pre used to completely sealed bundles I've tested over the last 2 decades is anything to go by. Hell, my original DrDos 6 and Windows 3.1 disks are still perfectly useable. Disks from late the '90s are a different matter but the software is archived on the internet.

To me personally, feel free to correct me, I get the impression Freedos is also more targeted at 386s up whereas "lagacy" dos ie, MS Dos 6.x down, Dr Dos and PC Dos 7 down will work right down to XT based systems without compiling. Yeah there's older kernal ports of FreeDos for XT class systems but why bother when there perfectly good legacy Dos variants that fit quite nicely? I'm sure I'm not the only one who shares this opinion.

In a nut shell it comes down to personnel preference.

Cudos to the FreeDos Devs for sticking with it but it's not the "complete solution" to be used on ALL dos systems by any stretch of the imagination. My 286 for example. I tried Freedos on it and the amount of free conventional memory after a clean boot was way down compared to DR and MS Dos. Link to suitable FreeDos 1.0 disk images for those who want to give it a shot http://jorisvr.nl/freedos.html

It's nice to have options.

Speaking of options there's also the China Dos Unions so called "hack" MS Dos 7.1 but that's purely 386 up, PTS Dos(286 up) and PTS Dos 32(386 up) If you want to get exotic with multi-user Dos(something the FreeDos project has discussed I believe) with Fat-32 support on 386 up systems there's IMS's Real/32 ver7.92 or up with built in zip drive and ls-120 drive support.

It has the option of installing in single user mode as well.

MS-DOS 6.22 probably isn't the best choice for the oldest systems either.

Agreed, but the point I'm trying to make is it will be better than Freedos as it stands on older set ups. I personally prefer to use MS Dos 5a on my current 286 system. Used DrDos 6 on my original 286/16 because of it's intergration with GeoWorks Pro. It was previously was running a boot legged copy of Compaq MS Dos 3.31 I got from work.

MS Dos 6.22 certanly is a better fit if you want the run Windows 3.1/3.11 in 386 enhanced mode or Wfw 3.11, as I do on my 386DX25, than FreeDos. I may be wrong but I don't think the devs have figured a way around that yet so there's a couple of example of something not functioning. That obviously includes software that requires either of those two products.

PCDos 7 frees up more free conventional memory on an XT class systems than Dos 5 does.

DrDos 7(and possibly 6) can access 1.44 floppy drives on XT class systems using just a common 16 bit multi i/o card with fdd controller(the IDE portion is obviously ignored) without the need for a TSR such like the 2M which is used on Anonymous Cowards V'er XT system https://sites.google.com/site/misterzeropage/

I'd forgotten StickByDos and I had done a bit of unscientific testing of a few FreeDos images earlier in the year in this thread Re: Best OS for a 286?&

Until recently you could download 6.22 Upgrade from Microsoft. It was called MSDos6UP.exe or something similar. These didn't boot though
(I'm not home so cant check but it would be easy to find)

Just to be absolutely clear, you can install Upgrade on a freshly formatted disk, Setup will complete fine but the system wont boot.
Ideally you want to
1. "format c: /s" from a dos 6.22 boot disk (I also use the ones from bootdisk.com)
2. Run Setup from the floppy, This will find the boot files on the HDD which satisfies the upgrade check
3. Install Drivers

Doing this means the system will boot ok

If you want the complete package there was also a Dos Supplemental disk, Not much if not using networking though.
I would probably recommend "finding" a copy of Win3x before spending money and see if you think its worth it. Its nice to have but you'll be doing 99% of everything in dos anyway.