Here is my situation. I've installed Win98 and then W2K on two different partitions to make a dual boot computer. Well, I'm taking a class in which I need to study DOS. I got a small hard drive and installed it on my PC. When I tried to install DOS (6.22), it wanted to delete the files on my main hard drive and install DOS. What I did was disconnect my main hard drive and install DOS on my secondary hard drive. DOS worked fine. When I hooked both hard drives back up, now I can't get to DOS. Is there a way to get W2K to recognize the DOS operating system so I can make a triple boot?

Microsoft does let you boot two different DOS based windows or DOS and Win95/98. Its because the BOOTSECT.DOS required to boot them is different for each of those OSs. Probably the easiest way to do what you want is to change the BOOT SEQUENCE in your BIOS. 1st HDD for W98/W2k, 2nd HDD for DOS. A third party boot loaders may do it, but I've not got the experience with them. I'm sure someone will come along and let you know about them (and where to get them). You could also just do a search of the forum for those postings.

Gator : To let recognize W2K DOS is not possible ( Bill killed DOS when XP was introduced remember) What you can do is look for a Boot Manager eXtended Operating System Loader (or XOSL) is an example or Ranish partition Manager (both free) But : be warned : the order in which the OS-es have to be placed can be such that you maybe better re-install (in the good order the OS-es) that can be a timeconsuming and difficult task and Boot managing is certainly NOT as easy as you (maybe) hoped for Good Luck Theo

Sorry about my fat fingering - That should have been MICROSOFT DOESN'T LET...

If you installed dos on the second hardrive then just simply enter your bios and tell it to boot from IDE1 first instead of IDE0. Do this only when you want to boot into DOS, afterwards be sure to change it back to IDE0 ot get to Win98/2k

A couple of options... If you were to start afresh... then you would configure (the first - in case you decided to have two...) HD to have smallish (say 100Meg) fat16 C: system (active Primary) partition; DOS would go in this partition. It could be upto say 500Meg. to allow you some 'space' for DOS apps etc.? The remainder of the drive would be an Extended partition, subdivided into several logical-drives; at least three to allow each OS in its own partition/'drive' and a common/shared data 'drive' - which could be fat16 (2gig limit) or fat32 (greater than 2Gig limit). You could have more 'data' drives if you wished. Since you would probably want DOS to access common data too(?) you would also need a fat16 data area as DOS can only see fat16; this area could be the first 'drive' in the Extended area, or later - I'd put it first in the Extended, then '98, then a fat32 data area, then W2K. You 'can' put the data area after '98 and W2K if you wish; but many pundits/gurus advise having it in between them. Once you have installed DOS, you would install W2K, make the ERD for W2K; then install '98. Both '98 and W2K will install their respective boot/start-up files into C: - alongside DOS; but each OS will install its system files (the OS itself) into whichever logical-drive you point it to. W2K will provide the required boot-manager to allow all OS to be available for choice at boot time; and naturally allows both DOS and '98 to exist on the same system... http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q157992 - is the M$ KB for an NT, '98, DOS triple boot. From it you will see that DOS goes in first, then NT... (as I indicate above), then '98. Q217210 is the M$ KB that covers a multi-boot for XP, W2K, '9x, NT, DOS - but unfortunately just now it seems to be 'unavailable'. The reason for W2K/NT going in 'after' DOS, but 'before' '98 is to install a boot-manger (part of NT/W2K(NT5); once this is present '98 can co-exist with DOS in a multi-boot... The M$ KB NT version above could maybe act a guide to setting it up for W2K - pending the other article being available? Even if DOS were not to be included C: system as fat16 is still the better route to go, with each OS in its own logical-drive. (fat32 for C: is not really advisable for smaller partitions, they are better as fat16.) If you're not able/willing to start over, then I guess it's an add-in boot-manager util. PM7x has Boot-magic; and 2 'freebies' http://www.osloader.com; http://www.xosl.org If you opt for one these - read the manual/instructions first; they all have their respective foibles... ************* IF your current C: partition was fat16, then you could add DOS to it. (but) First you would make the ERD for present W2K/'98 system, then install DOS; then run W2K setup\repair routine to restore/rewrite the W2K mbr - which DOS woould overwrite during its installation. But since you almost certainly have C: = fat32, this option is not open to you. So I guess you back to either of the above routines. If you don't want to share data between DOS and the W2K/'98 system then you could install removable drive trays; W2K/'98 HD in one tray, DOS HD in another. Insert whichever tray you want to use... Note: if you went this route, you 'could' have a fixed Second(ary) HD for common data - available to either tray/HD Primary??? It would have to be fat16 in some part to allow DOS to access it; but other areas could be fat32/ntfs5 - with the usual awareness of '98 and ntfs5. In some ways the removable trays may an easier option; the add-in boot-manager utils may be slightly more involved? (DOS has to be installed in the 'Active Primary' - whichever drive (HD-1 or HD-2) it is... When HD-2 is 'Active/Master' then you can boot to it; when HD-1 is active/Master you cannot access DOS on HD-2 - unless you use one of the add-in utils alluded to above.)

Thanks trvlr for the link to Q157992. It almost makes it sound as if you could multi boot Win95 and Win98. Learning is such great fun.