Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.csd.uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!attcan!ncrcan!ziebmef!stephen From: stephen@ziebmef.uucp (Stephen M. Dunn) Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc Subject: Re: What files MUST be in the root directory? Summary: parameters on COMMAND.COM Message-ID: <1989Aug18.154103.9626@ziebmef.uucp> Date: 18 Aug 89 19:41:01 GMT References: <189@nisca.ircc.ohio-state.edu> <16741@ut-emx.UUCP> <2120@infmx.UUCP> Reply-To: stephen@ziebmef.UUCP (Stephen M. Dunn) Distribution: usa Organization: Ziebmef Public Access Unix, Toronto, Ontario Lines: 29 In article <2120@infmx.UUCP> aland@infmx.UUCP (alan denney) writes: $In article <16741@ut-emx.UUCP> nather@ut-emx.UUCP (Ed Nather) writes: [...] $|shell=c:\systm\command.com c:\systm /P /E:32 $Where is that second parameter (c:\systm) documented? It sure isn't $in the PC-DOS 3.3 manual (see pp. 4-42) does it apply to earlier $versions of DOS only? Is it undocumented? Is it necessary? Yeah, DOS 3.30 doesn't document such a feature; in fact, it tells you specifically that if your shell (be it command.com or otherwise) isn't called COMMAND.COM and isn't in the root directory of your boot disk, you have to set up the COMSPEC variable yourself. Of course, if this is in fact an undocumented feature, it wouldn't be the first time. As far as I know, DOS 3.00 was the first one to allow you to specify the SHELL= line; PC-DOS 3.00's manual says you should put SHELL=[d:][\path\]COMMAND.COM and mentions nothing at all about parameters (in fact, COMMAND isn't even listed in the section dealing with commands!) I don't have access to any manuals for DOS 3.10 or 3.20; DOS 3.30 says COMMAND has only three possible parameters (/C, /E and /P), and I don't have any 4.00 manuals (and I'm not about to play around formatting diskettes /s under each version of DOS and playing with the SHELL= line!) -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ! Stephen M. Dunn stephen@ziebmef.UUCP ! DISCLAIMER: Who'd ever ! !---------------------------------------------------! claim such dumb ideas? ! ! I have become comfortably numb ... ! I sure as heck wouldn't !