I think you're supposed to press CTRL-ALT-DEL to flush the SMARTDRV cache before cutting the power. Is this what you mean?

When using smartdrive, always load it with the /X parameter. FAT is a very weak filesystem and can't really take interruption while writing, so you don't want write cache.

Apart from that, you don't shut down a DOS/Win3.x machine. Just turn it off when you're done. If you have virtual memory enabled in Win3.x, exit Windows first.

Thanks, I was wondering the same thing.

Errius wrote:

I think you're supposed to press CTRL-ALT-DEL to flush the SMARTDRV cache before cutting the power. Is this what you mean?

Well, My IBM PS/1 has a proprietary power switch and power supply.
In Win3x the power switch does not work.
So I can exit to IBM DOS menu and then select to go to DOS command line.
But in the command line the power button still does not work.
So what I am doing is at DOS command line I perform a “Control-alt-Delete”
To reboot the computer and at this point the power button works again so I can power off the computer.
I don’t think there is anything wrong with the power switch or power supply.
I just think this is the way this IBM PS/1 Is engineered.

Maybe there is a bios setting I need to look at ?

I like to yank the plug from the wall while Windows is busy doing something important with the file system. Screw soft power off, this is how real men shut down their computers.

derSammler wrote:

When using smartdrive, always load it with the /X parameter. FAT is a very weak filesystem and can't really take interruption while writing, so you don't want write cache.

Apart from that, you don't shut down a DOS/Win3.x machine. Just turn it off when you're done. If you have virtual memory enabled in Win3.x, exit Windows first.

So to setup smartdrive.exe you just enter it into autoexec.bat with /X parameter ?

Yes that's right. Put it in your AUTOEXEC.BAT.

It make sense since nobody is using their retro computers to write large amounts of data to disk.

Never had a 386 or 486 that didn't switch off when the systems power button is pressed and that includes PS/1s in the 30 years I've used them.

Errius wrote:

I think you're supposed to press CTRL-ALT-DEL to flush the SMARTDRV cache before cutting the power. Is this what you mean?

No you don't have to do that. At the Dos prompt just wait about 5 seconds after drive activity is stopped and turn it off using the systems power button. Nothing magical about it at all. On more sophisticated OSs such as OS/2/*nix, hell even Win9x, it told you when to turn off your system or your system is halted ready for power off.

I exit to DOS, do a CLS, and flip the switch.

If the machine has an MFM/RLL/ESDI hard drive, I run PARK.COM first.

That's it.

I never disabled the write cache. It hurts performance. I used a simple batch file called "FLUSH.BAT" and put it in C:\DOS that contained:

SMARTDRV /C

This flushed the cache to disk. I simply typed FLUSH before switching the computer off.

I believe PARKing the drive is only needed if the computer is going to be physically moved.

Errius wrote:

I believe PARKing the drive is only needed if the computer is going to be physically moved.

No.
Early drives should always be parked to avoid the heads landing on the usable areas of the platters.
Later drives (pretty much IDE onwards) auto-park when powered off.

realnc wrote:

I never disabled the write cache. It hurts performance. I used a simple batch file called "FLUSH.BAT" and put it in C:\DOS that contained:

SMARTDRV /C

This flushed the cache to disk. I simply typed FLUSH before switching the computer off.

This is correct

maxtherabbit wrote:

realnc wrote:

I never disabled the write cache. It hurts performance. I used a simple batch file called "FLUSH.BAT" and put it in C:\DOS that contained:

SMARTDRV /C

This flushed the cache to disk. I simply typed FLUSH before switching the computer off.

This is correct

That is ONE way not the ONLY way of shutting down a 386/486. The user may be using another hdd cache, no cache or any number of other configurations such as networking, TSRs etc needed to be shut down to power down.

Yeah, My 486 IBM PS/1 has a feature called "Rapid resume" it is like "Hibernation mode" for the Win-3.1 on 486 computer. If you have this feature turned on then I assume you are never suppose to
turn off the computer. You are suppose to let this feature manage the computer and it will go into Hibernation on it's own after 15 minutes.

If you turn this feature off then the computer works like a normal 486 and you can turn the computer off with just the Power button.

So you obviously disable the feature. After all you only play games on it as stated by your previous posts. So no precious data will be destroyed. Have you considered this quick resume feature may be the cause of your systems boot loop?

Caluser2000 wrote:

That is ONE way not the ONLY way of shutting down a 386/486. The user may be using another hdd cache, no cache or any number of other configurations such as networking, TSRs etc needed to be shut down to power down.

Yes, I was only agreeing with that being the correct way to flush the SMARTDRV cache. Obviously that wouldn't apply if the user is not using SMARTDRV

Thought it was time to recap.

486

386