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if I were to make a bootable cd that if I were to format my drive, what would be the files I would need on the CD so it boots to dos prompt so I can install Dos or windows?

allow booting from it? You'd need IO.SYS, MSDOS.SYS, and COMMAND.COM. However, it's not a matter of just copying those files to the CD. Generally, the boot sector of the "boot disk" has to be set up to make it bootable. I'm not sure how that translates to CDs, however. But I think the overall concept is the same. There has to be something on that CD that triggers the "bootstrap program." (And your bios settings have to be set up to allow booting from the CD.)

I think that's what you'd have to do. Anybody else have a clue on making a cd bootable?

list of stuff. One item was a link to

http://www.nu2.nu/bootcd/

I didn't try anything out or even read anything in detail, but it looked to be worthwhile.

Quote:if I were to make a bootable cd that if I were to format my drive, what would be the files I would need on the CD so it boots to dos prompt so I can install Dos or windows?

Well, assuming you can't just boot from your DOS/Windows CD - if you have one - SystemRescueCD is an excellent live CD that includes virtually everything you'd need to prepare your system for a fresh install. Just burn it and boot it and you're good to go.

And why can't you boot from your DOS/Windows CD?

He might have something like the Windows 2000 upgrade CD. That thing only allows itself to be installed through Windows, but that'd be of little hassle, as you could make the boot floppies from the CD.

Personally i get a boot floppy image, and use Nero Burning Rom to make the CD.

I find this site useful for getting disk images when necessary

http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm

If you get one of the ones under Non-Windows Based Image Files W/ImageApp

It will be an image file that most CD burners will accept for booting.

Posted: Thu May 18, 2006 11:46 am

Last Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2003 4:25 am

OP Posted: Mon Feb 17, 2003 11:56 pm

Necromancy! :mrgreen:

Man, I thought for a minute R@dioman came back. But it's just stylin digging up an old thread...

Quote:He might have something like the Windows 2000 upgrade CD. That thing only allows itself to be installed through Windows, but that'd be of little hassle, as you could make the boot floppies from the CD.

I thought upgrading was the only option with those (I had Win98U, there was no option for a fresh install), so formatting his harddrive would be disastrous in that case. I assumed a full install CD.