OK wrong forum I know but there are a lot of knowledgeable people on this forum :)
I need some software that will run under DOS 6.22 that will allow me to copy files to a CD/DVD-ROM Drive. This is on a legacy CNC machine - I'm replacing a dying Viglen PC where the only exchangeable media is 4.5" Floppy for a Compac DC7600 SFF PC that I have which also has CD/DVD read / write drive that would be very handy for data exchange.
NB this is running genuine DOS 6.22 NOT a DOS window under Windoze !
Your best bet might be to install a network card, SCSI or failing that parallel port or serial port data xfer software. I used to have a DOS based CD writer that was SCSI based and drivers that might work with modern kit are still around. Mine has long since worn out. Panasonic did some exotic SCSI PD drives that were not CDs but were writeable. They might be your best bet on that vintage of kit if you can find one.
formatting link
Follow the links and pray. How much are you prepared to pay for legacy kit that might solve this problem? It will be rare and expensive.
DOSREF on Simtel if it is still there might contain some pointers too.
Getting it to work today even if you find all the bits will be a PITA.
I would be seriouldsly tempted to fit an ethernet card to that DOS6 machine.
formatting link
is some basic software you can use to talk TCP
Of you have a serial port on the machine, then its possible that some fule transfer over serial software might work, too
Alternatively I'd be tempted to run iup a basic LINUX machine and remove the the hard drive from the PC and install it in the LINIUC machine top retroeve the data.
If the data only exists on a 4.5" floppy, then you are probably shafted as it would probably me the only example of a 4.5" dloppy in the world
OIf its on a 3.5" floppy use linux on an old machine that can boot from DVD and also run a floppy as well
YOu will not find a DVD unit that works with DOS - Dos predates the DVD by years. Ditto USB
Yes 3.5" Floppy - 4.5" angle grinders on the mind :)
I've already got drivers loaded at boot in autoexec / config.sys letting me read CD / DVD's into the DC7600 but cannot go the other way to save files generated on the CNC lathe.
I suppose some sort of dual boot approach might be a goer - can one dual boot DOS 6.22 and say Windoze 7 Pro so win7 can see the DOS files ?
Boot a live CD disk and use that to copy the files. Maybe put a USB card in and use a flash drive rather than a CD. You can get bootable CDs for linux or windows that will probably work.
The easiest way to go would be to pull out the hard disk drive and attach it to the SFF PC via an IDE to USB adapter (dongle with its own
12v/5v PSU brick or else utilise a long since retired USB IDE HDD enclosure, also with its own PSU - there may well be a few of the latter gathering dust somewhere about the premises).
I rather doubt the drive will be so ancient as to need a two cable Shugart connection or the even rarer single cable ESDI connection and SCSI seems a less likely alternative to the 40 wire ATA (IDE) interface (do-able but a damn sight more expensive than IDE) so the chance of the drive being an IDE type for which you can still get hold of IDE to USB adapters with relative ease is pretty high.
Obviously, you need to verify which interface is used by the internal drive before embarking on a "Beg, borrow or steal" odyssey for an IDE to USB adapter of one sort or another. You can post more details, if the internal HDD *isn't* the more usual IDE type, for further suggestions and guidance.
It's a SATA drive in the DC7600 but continuously pulling it out is not an option - the PC will be buried in the bowels of the machine. It has numerous USB connections and a 10/100 network port but it was previously running Win
7 pro and has been 'down graded' to DOS 6.22 to replace the original Viglen that is on its last legs. The various ports are there - the issue is driving them under DOS !
Why don't you run win98 then? There's plenty of relevant software for it. I t needs a lot of 3rd party patches installing, including one to run with >5
00M RAM, one to access >128G HDD, sane usb support etc. If you can run your app under a dos box wile running 98, all your options are open.... so I su spect you can't.
If it's for factory production, I can quite see why you wouldn't want 98. 9
All you need then is the legacy driver for the 10/100 network port. Find a suitable SCSI card and driver and you have another way out. Or if you must a dual boot scenario.
Win 98, especially SE2 is far, far more reliable that Win 95. I would lose count of how many crashes and reboots I would need for Win 95 during the working day.
Sorry, I missed the significance of your "NB" statement, thinking you were still referring to the old Viglen rather than the new SFF Compaq PC.
Incidentally, you missed the significance that I was referring to the old Viglen's HDD. I wasn't suggesting you remove the drive from the newer machine. However, all that aside, I think, as others have suggested, that a null modem cable be used to link the *both* MSDOS 6.22 machines and install a small serial file transfer program on each machine. There are several to choose from (interlink, laplink and fastlyinx to name but three).
I did a search expecting to find plenty of freeware versions but I mostly landed up on sites offering much later versions that weren't free or shareware. The I added "abandonware" to my search phrase which led me to sites requiring registration just to download my chosen "Abandonware" but I did land up on one that didn't insist on registration of any sort so was able to download a tiny programme called "interlink" as a 35KB zip file containing 55KB's worth in four files just to test the download and take a peek at the files.
Whilst there, a utility called "Miracle-driver" caught my attention since it was described as:-
"Miracle-driver from Japan does the unthinkable, allows USB peripherals to be accessed from the DOS command line. 32 KB"
The download is a 32KB zip file containing 3 .sys files named di1000dd.sys, usbaspi.sys and usbcd.sys. Maybe this will support flash thumb drives although it looks more like driver support for USB CDROM and CD writer drives to me. Anyhow, you're welcome to the link to this site's downloads page.
Do you think you could run this in a VM? You might try Disk2VHD, which would at least give you a copy of the whole thing to play with. The VHD can then be opened in something like 7zip, and individual files transferred, if you don't want to try to boot it up in a VM.
Yes it might also need an old copy of zip to enable disc spanning of the files between floppies. I'm sure many also have floppies that work, most still do if given a little tlc. Other thoughts, has it got a serial port? Then it could be possible to shove a serial card in another machine to enable the two to talk over a null modem cable.
I have already backed up the original Viglen PC that runs DOS 6.2 using MSBACKUP (13 Floppies) and restored them to the replacement Compac DC7600 by loading the 6.2 version of MSBACKUP onto the DC7600 (as the 6.2 and 6.22 versions aren't compatible !!!!) The DC7600 is up and running, I've put drivers in the autoexec & config.sys to allow me to READ CDs -
The issue is I want to be able to WRITE CDs on the DC7600 when it's been embedded into the CNC Lathe to replace the Viglen - this is to be able to transfer files easily in the future for both backup reasons, and also to transfer part programs that have been created on the lathe.
Johnny - B -Good thanks for that link as the USB ports would be handy also :)
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