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I am trying to find out what DOS version is installed in an old computer I want to restore. It's a Laser 286S with Geoworks. Since that was my first MS-DOS system, I am quite fond of it and would like to get it up and running. I am trying to resore the boot sector on the original drive but need to know what DOS version is installed. It doesn't boot so I can't run VER but I can boot off a diskette and see the file size and date. ( command.com 37,557 12-19-88 )
From the date, likely IBM or M$-DOS 4.01 or thereabouts.
M$-DOS used the core files MSDOS.SYS & IO.SYS, IBM used IBMDOS.COM & IBMBIO.COM
Typically M$-DOS files bore a timestamp indicating version number
If you get people asking the wrong questions, you don't have to worry about the answers
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.. or possibly Digital Research - DrDOS 4.41 (December '88)
If you get people asking the wrong questions, you don't have to worry about the answers
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If your system can boot from a floppy, try Navratil Software's [free!] System Info utility (NSSI). It will give you a whole lot of info about your PC along with information about your DOS version.
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As jboy stated;
"Typically M$-DOS files bore a timestamp indicating version number"
If it's MS-DOS, a time stamp of 6:20 PM is MS-DOS 6.2.
A time stamp of 6:22 PM is MS-DOS 6.22 and so on.
It's a good day when you learn something
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Yeah - I don't know if that was always the case, but certainly true in later versions.
The December date really seems to indicate DR DOS - other versions released in '88 were earlier in the year. Mick has a timeline
As suggested by fred, open up one of the core files (like command.com) with a viewer (such as the excellent LIST) and scan for version info
#4 - - if the machine won't boot from the hard drive, all that's likely to be reported is the version of DOS on the boot floppy (which is not that helpful)
If you get people asking the wrong questions, you don't have to worry about the answers
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Using the date and time stamp is a maybe. I have some DOS and Windows install files from MSDN CD's that have different dates.
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All it takes is a glance, but sure, no guarantee. The convention is not universal, and filedates may be changed.
Looking inside would show for certain
Be nice to hear back from the OP at some point....
If you get people asking the wrong questions, you don't have to worry about the answers
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I like jboy's signature line: "If you get people asking the wrong questions..". In this case, Mr F's objective is not the one in the subject line but rather "What DOS version is installed?". Due to the uncertainty in the time/date stamp approach, wouldn't you agree that a system information program like NSSI or Snooper is a better approach? (Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying the discussion on time/date stamps). Also, Mr F, we haven't heard from you in a while..
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Hardware/system analyzers (as I presume this 'Snooper' etc is) will only return the version of the current (running) OS by querying the system - which in this case will give you the version on the bootdisk. That will be already known, and not what is being sought.
What - do you think these analyzers contain a ginormous database of each and every OS?
Unrealistic
Look inside the bootfiles, as has been repeatedly suggested
If you get people asking the wrong questions, you don't have to worry about the answers
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You are quite right, jboy. Doubting Thomas that I am, I had to run a few tests to confirm. These system info programs will report the OS and DOS version correctly only if run after the OS is loaded. So, Mr F, disregard my suggestion.
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That's just how they work - and how you would expect them to.
Most *will* examine the system and determine the installed Windows version from DOS, but I 'd be hard pressed to imagine one that could check and come up with an installed but inactive (or broken) DOS OS.
Still - scientific method - now you've made the determination yourself.
I did check out that NSSI - thanks, it does seem pretty good
If you get people asking the wrong questions, you don't have to worry about the answers
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Bears a strong resemblance to the old (DOS) SYSTINFO program I have on a floppy.
It's a good day when you learn something
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From M$-DOS 4.01:
COMMAND COM 37557 04-07-89 12:00a
Same size, but different date. Maybe you've got M$-DOS 4.00? Or an earlier minor revision of 4.01?Try running the COMMAND.COM - if you're lucky it might load and tell you what version it is. (Or it might just moan, "Incorrent DOS version"!)
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Just a thought exercise: what would happen if you made a boot diskette with any version of DOS, replaced the bootfiles MSDOS.SYS, IO.SYS and COMMAND.COM (I don't know which of these contains the version info) from the non-booting C drive, and then restarted with the modified diskette. Would the version displayed after "Starting MS DOS..." be what Mr F is looking for?
Happy New Year to all!
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What you are proposing is to create a bootdisk "by hand" - kind of roundabout and not that likely to work (although 'possible', depending). The physical placement of IO.SYS on the diskette is important, especially so with earlier versions, where both IO.SYS and MSDOS.SYS also had to be contiguous
As well, at least two of those files will be protected by their attributes.
Ok - look - any form of DOS which supports the 'ver' command (or its equivalent) will have that info IN PLAIN TEXT contained in command.com
Inventiveness is fine, but there is no reason to continue to overlook the simple solution (and there is no guarantee that it's Micro$oft DOS either)
If you get people asking the wrong questions, you don't have to worry about the answers
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Notepad shows version in plain text in COMMAND.COM for both DOS ver 3.2 and 6.22. Don't know if DR-DOS's command.com has similar plain text version info, but perhaps a moot issue as OP said that his Laser 286S had MS-DOS.
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I tried the many good suggestions but apart from go into the files with a HEX viewer, nothing worked. I finally created boot disk from MS-DOS 3.3 to MS-DOS 5.0 and booted off them and ran GWBASIC on the HD, all said "incorrect DOS version" except MS-DOS 4.01 so I finally SYS with that boot disk and got the system to boot off the HD. The system prob. had MS-DOS 4.00 because of the different time stamp. But there must be a simple way of determining versions, maybe a list of file size of command.com or something like that since every once in a while I get an older system and don't want to go peering thru assembly lang to try to spot a text entry.
The good news is that I saw PC-GEOS up and running after over 10 years. It still is an impressive GUI considering that it predates Windows 3.11 and 95.
Now I need a Dallas RTC and Battery chip because this one's used up it's juice.
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Just to satisfy my curiosity, transfer command.com to a PC that has Notepad, do a search for 4 and see if you find a text string with the version number. Good to hear you got your Laser box running again!
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 DOS & USB 1.1 & 2...
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Accessing the hard disk
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