Windows NT 3.5 SETUP.TXT File

 Last reviewed: May 9, 1996
Article ID: Q126009
The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 3.5
  • Microsoft Windows NT Server version 3.5

SUMMARY

This article contains the complete text of the Windows NT 3.5 SETUP.TXT file.

MORE INFORMATION

PRE-INSTALLATION NOTES FOR MICROSOFT WINDOWS NT VERSION 3.5

Install Windows NT from CD-ROM or floppy disks as described in Chapter 1 of the Installation Guide. This file contains additional information you may need prior to installing Windows NT on some hardware configurations

CONTENTS=========================================

Additional Installation Information Installing over the Network Without Floppy Disks Boot Floppy Disks Creating Backup Disks Upgrading Windows NT 3.1 to 

   Windows NT Server 3.5
Upgrading When Third-Party System 
   Software is Present
Running Windows NT 3.5 on PCI Bus Systems Update Required when Retaining Windows NT 3.1 Installation Directory Installing to Mirrored Partitions Selecting Keyboard Layout NextStep Changes to Partition Tables Disk Fragmentation Can Prevent Installation MS-DOS Undelete Sentry Blocks Using MS-DOS Based Disk Utilities Interrupt Conflicts ROM Shadowing on Multiprocessor Systems CD-ROM Installations Require Local CD-ROM Drive SCSI Devices Must Be On for Setup Disconnect UPS Serial Connections ACER AcerFrame 3000 MP Digital Alpha AXP Firmware Must Be Upgraded Gateway Nomad and TI Travelmate Notebooks IBM Personal System/2 IBM ThinkPad Intel EtherExpress 16 LAN Adapter Toshiba T4400SX Monochrome Caching Disk Controllers and Drives Installing Windows NT on an ESDI 
   Disk Drive with More Than 1024 Cylinders

Additional Installation Information

For general hardware information, see Chapter 2, "Troubleshooting," in the Installation Guide. This chapter contains general troubleshooting information about interrupt conflicts, unsupported peripherals, network adapter cards, SCSI drives, and video display adapters.

See the Windows NT Hardware Compatibility List to determine which hardware components have been tested by Microsoft for compatibility with Windows NT.

After you install Windows NT, read the following three text files:

README.WRI contains general information about Windows NT, including information on specific hardware and software.

PRINTER.WRI contains information about specific printer problems or components.

NETWORK.WRI contains information about networks, including information on network adapter cards and network interoperability.

Installing over the Network Without Floppy Disks If you are upgrading or installing Windows NT from a share on your network, you can start WINNT.EXE or WINNT32.EXE with the /b switch and you will not need to use floppy disks during the process. You must have 4 MB of free hard disk space in addition to the minimum required for Windows NT files.

To use this switch, the device your computer boots from must also be supported by Windows NT without requiring drivers from the equipment manufacturer. Most boot devices are supported by Windows NT without needing additional drivers.

Microsoft suggests that when the Setup program offers to create boot floppies you accept the offer because these floppies are required when using the Repair disk to repair a Windows NT installation.

Boot Floppy Disks

The boot floppy disks supplied with the CD-ROM version are identical to those used for a floppy disk installation of Windows NT.

Creating Backup Disks

If you are a registered user and are having difficulty in creating a backup copy of the installation disks, contact your local subsidiary or Inside Sales regarding fulfillment disks.

Disks formatted with DMF (Setup Disk 4 and beyond) can not be copied to a standard high density 3.5" disk using the MS-DOS DISKCOPY or Windows COPY command.

Because DMF is a new format, many existing disk utilities such as Norton Disk Doctor, Central Point s PC Tools, and Microsoft s ScanDisk do not recognize DMF and may try to write over the file on the installation disks. Therefore, you should NOT attempt to use disk utilities to diagnose DMF- formatted disks.

Upgrading Windows NT 3.1 to Windows NT Server 3.5

You can upgrade Windows NT 3.1 systems to Windows NT 3.5 Server.

You cannot upgrade the computer to be a primary or backup domain controller. You can only upgrade the computer to be a server that does not participate in validating users.

Upgrading When Third-Party System Software is Present If you are using third-party system software that installs its own services, such as network redirectors, contact the software vendor to determine if any of these services should be disabled before upgrading.

Running Windows NT 3.5 on PCI Bus Systems

To run Windows NT on a PCI bus system, it may be necessary to enable the interrupts either via the CMOS screen or by switching jumpers on the motherboard. Refer to system documentation to find out how to enable interrupts for your system.

Update Required when Retaining Windows NT 3.1

Caution: If you are installing Windows NT 3.5 and also keeping a copy of Windows NT 3.1 on the same computer, you must run UDPATE.EXE if you want to prevent damage to FAT partitions and to ensure that any version of Windows NT 3.1 installed on your computer can still access files on your NTFS partitions. If you do not run UPDATE.EXE, then after Setup is complete, the files on NTFS partitions cannot be seen by Windows NT 3.1. Also, using long filenames on FAT partitions might render those partitions inaccessible from within Windows NT 3.1.

You do not need to run UPDATE.EXE if you are upgrading or reinstalling this new version and do not want to keep the older version of Windows NT on your computer.

To update your Windows NT 3.1 system with UPDATE.EXE

  1. Before running the Windows NT 3.5 Setup program, switch to the \FS31UPD\system_type directory on the Windows NT 3.5 CD-ROM. For example, you might switch to E:\FS31UPD\I386 for x86-based systems. - Or - For x86-based computers only, insert the Microsoft Windows NT 3.1 Update Disk in drive A and make that the active drive.

  2. Run UPDATE.EXE.

Follow the directions on the screen to complete the update.

Installation Directory

You should not install Windows NT 3.5 in the directory that contains Windows NT 3.1 unless you are upgrading. That is, Windows NT Setup might indicate that it has found a version of Windows NT on C:\WINNT, for example, and offer to upgrade the old installation. If you answer No to upgrading, then do not select this same directory (C:\WINNT) for installing version 3.5.

Installing to Mirrored Partitions

Setup cannot write to partitions that are part of a fault-tolerant configuration. Therefore, it is necessary to break the mirror of a fault-tolerant set before installing to or upgrading an existing installation on that partition. Additionally, Setup must be able to write to the system partition, so it is necessary to break the mirror of system partitions that are configured as fault- tolerant sets.

Since Setup treats fault-tolerant sets as though they have no free space, you will receive a "not enough space" error if you attempt an installation on a fault-tolerant partition. If you encounter such a message, and you are sure that you have enough space, check to see if your system partition and/or installation partition are fault- tolerant sets. If either or both partitions are mirrored, then break the mirror(s), and attempt the installation again.

Selecting Keyboard Layout

Be sure that usernames and passwords that are set for all users on a system are available on the default keyboard layout chosen for that system at setup time because there is no way to change keyboards at the logon screen.

If you have selected a keyboard that does not include characters used in your username and password, and if you have the screen saver on with the lock option, then if you leave the system idle and the lock option is activated, you have no way of inputting your username and password without knowing the ALT+NUMPAD codes for the characters making it up.

NextStep Changes to Partition Tables

NextStep makes unconventional changes to partition tables. These changes can distort measurement of the amount of space remaining on a drive. If more space is reported than is actually available, installation can fail because of the lack of space on the drive.

Disk Fragmentation Can Prevent Installation

If your disk is too fragmented, there may not be enough room for Windows NT Setup to create essential system files. If this occurs, Setup will not be able to convert a volume at the conclusion of installation. Before trying to convert the volume again, either delete some files, or back up and reformat the drive.

MS-DOS Undelete Sentry Blocks

Windows NT cannot recognize free space that was created on a FAT partition using the undelete sentry feature in MS-DOS version 6.2. With the sentry method, MS-DOS reserves part of the hard drive to remember deleted files, then compensates during MS-DOS queries about free space. Because Windows NT doesn t understand sentry, it reports the space on the FAT partition as used.

Using MS-DOS Based Disk Utilities The new long filename format introduced in Windows NT 3.5 uses file elements on FAT partitions differently than MS-DOS. Using MS-DOS-based disk utilities on FAT partitions used by Windows NT 3.5 can cause files to be deleted or long filenames to be lost. Microsoft recommends that you run only disk utilities specifically designed for Windows NT 3.5 or, when running MS-DOS, the chkdsk or scandisk utilities.

To prevent the Windows NT 3.5 FAT file system from using long names, you must set to 1 the following Registry entry:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet 

  \Control\FileSystem\Win31FileSystem
After changing the entry, you must restart your computer for the change to take effect.

Caution: PCTools diskfix utility is known to delete all files on the FAT partition. If you use MS-DOS-based disk utilities on a FAT disk partition used by Windows NT 3.5, the utility may cause the loss of long filenames or delete files on the FAT partition unless this Registry entry is set to 1. You should back up the FAT partition before running any disk utility other than chkdsk.

Interrupt Conflicts

A common problem in a computer with several supported devices is conflicting interrupts, I/O ports, or memory usage. Where possible, we have identified such cases in this document. However, if one of the supported devices does not seem to work, it may be due to the particular hardware configuration. For more specific information, see your hardware manual or contact your system manufacturer.

ROM Shadowing on Multiprocessor Systems

If you encounter persistent installation problems on multiprocessor systems, try installing with ROM shadowing disabled.

CD-ROM Installations Require Local CD-ROM Drive

Installation from CD-ROM requires a supported SCSI CD-ROM drive physically attached to your computer.

SCSI Devices Must Be On for Setup

You should ensure all SCSI devices are on prior to installing or upgrading Windows NT version 3.5.

Disconnect UPS Serial Connections

UPS serial-monitoring cable connections should be disconnected during Setup. Windows NT attempts to automatically detect devices connected to serial ports, which could cause problems with UPS equipment connected to a serial port.

ACER AcerFrame 3000 MP

Before installing Windows NT, disable shadow RAM Video BIOS.

Digital Alpha AXP Firmware Must Be Upgraded

Before installing Microsoft Windows NT Workstation or Windows NT Server 3.5 on an Alpha AXP system, you must upgrade your system's firmware to the latest version.

Read the README.TXT file provided in the following locations to understand the firmware revisions needed for your specific Alpha AXP system. This document also provides specific instructions for obtaining and applying the firmware update.

The README.TXT file is available in the following locations:

* On CompuServe, in the DEC4WNT forum in the 

   Library Section [4], Hardware Support.
* Via FTP on GATEKEEPER.DEC.COM. Once connected 
   to the gatekeeper, the README.TXT file can be
   found in /private/fwaxp.
If you are still unsure about your particular upgrade requirements, call the Digital Equipment Corporation technical support line at 1-800-354-9000 for further assistance.

Gateway Nomad and TI Travelmate Notebooks

To successfully install Windows NT on these machines, you must choose "Custom Setup." If you encounter problems running setup while scanning for SCSI Adapters, you can skip SCSI detection to solve the problem.

To properly use the floppy drive with Windows NT, configure the system using its setup utility. Set the Advanced Operating System option to Auto. When power management drivers for these machines are available from Texas Instruments, using the Auto option will not be necessary.

IBM Personal System/2

On some IBM PS/2 systems only planar memory is recognized when booting from the Windows NT CD-ROM boot disk or Disk #1 of the floppy disk installation set. This is a memory card problem. You may encounter this problem if your system contains a card with the following part numbers:

FRU-88F0075 Option 87F9856 or 87F9860

Newer model cards are available that correct this problem. Part numbers for the newer cards are:

FRU-87F9916 or 34F2825 Option 34F3077 or 34F3011

Using Kingston expansion memory can also correct this problem.

It is recommended that before you install Windows NT, you update your system configuration using the PS/2 Reference Diskette version 1.21 or later.

IBM ThinkPad

The IBM ThinkPad 700c and 720c portables require an ABIOS patch to install and run Windows NT. Copy the following files from the ThinkPad Reference Diskette onto C:\ 
     ABIOS.SYS
     SF*.BIO

Intel EtherExpress 16 LAN Adapter

In some cases, selecting "early" in the I/O Channel Ready box can stop the network adapter card from functioning correctly and may require reconfiguring with the Intel SoftSet utility. If you are unsure whether your system can take advantage of this network setting, consult your hardware vendor.

Toshiba T4400SX Monochrome

The Toshiba T4400SX display is not supported when an external monitor is connected.

Caching Disk Controllers and Drives

Windows NT supports caching disk controllers and drives only if one of the following is true:

* The controller has a driver that specifically 

   supports caching (several of these exist: DPT
   and IBM SCSI Caching Adapter).
* Write-through is active (i.e. write caching is 
   disabled) by setting it either manually or by
   default when the computer starts.
* The entire cache option is off, by setting it 
   either manually or by default when the computer
   starts.
Using a caching controller or drive in other situations risks loss of data if the computer is rebooted or a power failure occurs before the cache has flushed itself. You can minimize risk by waiting at least 1 minute (less if you know the maximum time the cache waits before flushing itself) after all system activity stops before rebooting. The disk activity light is a good indicator of how write caching is being done on your system. This applies to the initial Windows NT installation as well as shutdown. Note that unexpected power failure at any time can potentially corrupt data on the disk, possibly to the extent that the disk becomes unreadable. Making the delay time that write data is cached before being flushed to disk as small as possible reduces this risk.

Certain applications are data-sensitive and require that write-through is active. Examples of this are SQL Server-based applications and NTFS partitions.

Installing Windows NT on an ESDI

Disk Drive with More Than 1024 Cylinders

In some cases, on disk drives with more than 1024 cylinders, Windows NT installation proceeds normally until the first boot from the hard drive where Windows NT is installed. The Windows NT Boot Loader will load various files and then produce a Fatal System Error: 0x0000006b with the message that Phase 1 Process Initialization failed. Following this message will be some type of hexadecimal dump, and the system will be locked up. If you experience this difficulty, the following information can help.

Microsoft has tested the ESDI controllers listed in README.WRI using a hard drive with a capacity exceeding 516 MB (MB=1,048,576 bytes) formatted. The MS-DOS limit of 1024 cylinders creates a situation where special BIOS mapping on the controller is used to change the geometry of the drive. ESDI drives are capable of being prepared with various values of sectors per track (spt) such as 53 or 63 spt geometry during a low- level format, as shown in the following example:

1024 cylinders x 15 heads x 53 spt x 512 bytes per sector = 398 MB formatted capacity

- Or -

1024 cylinders x 15 heads x 63 spt x 512 bytes per sector = 472 MB formatted capacity

Thus, using 63 spt will yield 74 MB more space. Windows NT is perfectly compatible with either geometry and, depending on the drive or controller, can access the remaining cylinders beyond 1024. This space can be partitioned and formatted but not accessed by MS-DOS. However, some controllers can successfully remap the remaining cylinders beyond 1024 so that either MS-DOS or Windows NT can use the entire capacity. For example:

1632 cylinders x 15 heads x 53 spt x 512 bytes per sector = 634 MB formatted capacity

KBCategory: kbref kbsetup
KBSubcategory: ntsetup
Additional reference words: 3.50 prodnt

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Last reviewed: May 9, 1996
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