VOGONS


First post, by dflorey

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This might come across as a strange request as I was unable to locate any posts asking the same thing...

I'm looking for recommendations of a DOS utility that can create a new blank hard disk image (like a VHD under Windows), allowing me to specify the location and the size. Then a TSR or driver that I can bang into config.sys or autoexec.bat where I specify the location of the image to mount and the drive letter I would like to assign. The image mounts, its read/write and treated like any other DOS FAT16 hard disk. I can format it, store files, unmount it, remount it, etc.

So far I've not found anything that works.

Thanks

Reply 1 of 6, by Babasha

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DBLSPACE or DRVSPACE in MSDOS/WIN9X DOS
STACKER
U can turn of compression and use them

Need help? Begin with photo and model of your hardware 😉

Reply 2 of 6, by wierd_w

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That's just for compressed volume files, which are not (quite) the same thing.

OP is looking for flat image support.

They might *try* Turboimage.

Reply 3 of 6, by dflorey

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Babasha wrote on Today, 07:34:

DBLSPACE or DRVSPACE in MSDOS/WIN9X DOS
STACKER
U can turn of compression and use them

I had actually considered something like this if no better option was available…

Reply 4 of 6, by dflorey

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wierd_w wrote on Today, 08:26:

That's just for compressed volume files, which are not (quite) the same thing.

OP is looking for flat image support.

They might *try* Turboimage.

Having never used TurboImage, quick Google suggests the image is mounted into RAM as it’s designed for floppy disk images?? Or is Google wrong again?

Reply 5 of 6, by wierd_w

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That's correct. It's about the closest I know of to doing what you want.

DOS was never really an environment where "Huge amounts of mass storage" was ever really a thing, that you could just have gigabytes worth of single files to use like disk drives.
(2gb limit for FAT16 for DOS6.22, etc. 4GB limit for single files, on FAT32. Et al)

Even with using a CFV from drvspace/stacker, there is a 1gb limitation, with further limitation that it must reside on a FAT16 (or FAT12, if floppy) volume.

Reply 6 of 6, by dflorey

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wierd_w wrote on Today, 12:32:
That's correct. It's about the closest I know of to doing what you want. […]
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That's correct. It's about the closest I know of to doing what you want.

DOS was never really an environment where "Huge amounts of mass storage" was ever really a thing, that you could just have gigabytes worth of single files to use like disk drives.
(2gb limit for FAT16 for DOS6.22, etc. 4GB limit for single files, on FAT32. Et al)

Even with using a CFV from drvspace/stacker, there is a 1gb limitation, with further limitation that it must reside on a FAT16 (or FAT12, if floppy) volume.

Yep, totally understand. Aim was for these disk images to range from say 200MB to a max of about 2GB anyway.

Cheers!