File Copy Phase

After you identify and confirm the components to install, Windows 95 Setup begins copying files from the Windows 95 installation disks, compact disc, or network server (whichever was specified). If you selected the option to create a startup disk, this disk is created before the files are copied.

After the necessary files are copied to the computer, Windows 95 Setup prompts you to remove any disks in floppy disk drives and restart the computer to proceed with the final phase of Setup. The following topics describe what happens during the file copy phase.

Creating the Startup Disk

A startup disk is a bootable floppy disk contains utilities that you can use to troubleshoot a malfunctioning system. The startup disk loads the operating system and presents an MS-DOS command line. It is strongly recommended that you create a startup disk for every computer you install Windows 95 on. You can create a Windows 95 startup disk during the file copy phase of Windows 95 Setup, or you can create or update a disk after Windows 95 has been installed by using the Add/Remove Programs option in Control Panel. For information about using the startup disk, see Chapter 35, "General Troubleshooting."

In general, the startup disk does not provide the following:

Real-mode support for disk-management software such as ATDOSXL.SYS or Stacker® 4.0
Access to the network
Access to CD-ROM drives
Access to compressed drives from other vendors

To create a startup disk, Windows 95 formats the floppy disk in drive A, and then copies files to the disk in drive A. The files that are copied are described in the following table.

Filename	Description
attrib.exe	File attribute utility
command.com	Core operating system file
drvspace.bin	Disk compression utility
ebd.sys	Utility for the startup disk
edit.com	Text editor
fdisk.exe	Disk partition utility
format.com	Disk format utility
io.sys	Core operating system file
msdos.sys	Core operating system file
regedit.exe	Real-mode Registry Editor
scandisk.exe	Disk status and repair utility
scandisk.ini	Disk status utility configuration file
sys.com	System transfer utility

For recovery purposes, you might want to copy the following files into a subdirectory on the startup disk: SYSTEM.DAT, CONFIG.SYS, AUTOEXEC.BAT, WIN.INI, and SYSTEM.INI, plus any CD-ROM or other device drivers. (If you do not place these files into a subdirectory, you'll have to rename them to prevent problems with the startup disk.)

Creating Directories and Copying Files

Windows 95 Setup creates a list of files to copy, depending on the components selected during the information gathering phase. Then various Setup DLLs run to install the network and other components. These DLLs determine exactly which files should be copied from the installation source and which additional directories should be created.

Creating Registry Entries

The Setup DLLs for installing various system components also create appropriate entries in the Registry and change INI file settings as required. (The Registry is created during the hardware detection phase.)

The SYSTEM.1ST file in the root directory is a copy of the Registry created when Setup is complete. To restore a damaged Registry, you can change the file attributes on this file and copy it to SYSTEM.DAT.