Setup Requires Unusually Large Amount of Disk Space

• Microsoft Windows 95

SYMPTOMS

Installing Windows 95 on a compressed hard disk may require an unusually large amount of disk space. Instead of the 40-90 MB that Setup usually requires, it may require up to 256 MB of free space.

CAUSE

This behavior can occur if the compressed hard disk has an estimated compression ratio (ECR) that is much higher than the actual compression ratio (ACR). Setup calculates the free disk space manually and converts its result to match the amount needed given the current ECR.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, use either or both of the following methods:

• Free the amount of hard disk space Setup requests.
• Change the ECR to match the ACR. For MS-DOS 6.0 and 6.2, use MS-DOS DoubleSpace (Dblspace.exe). For MS-DOS 6.22, use MS-DOS DriveSpace (Drvspace.exe).

MORE INFORMATION

Windows 95 Setup does not use the free space information provided by DoubleSpace or DriveSpace. Instead, it determines the actual amount of free space on the hard disk and then applies a calculated compression ratio to the Windows 95 files. The amount of hard disk space requested is the amount actually required adjusted to match the ECR.