I need to create a backup system for a program currently running on a 386 with Windows 3.1 and whatever version of DOS came with Win 3.1. The program of interest runs in DOS after exiting Windows.

The desktop computer made available for this purpose has over 2 GB of hard drive space and a Pentium II processor. It currently has Win XP loaded on it but seldom manages to boot into that OS without hanging. There is also a set of Win 3.1 floppies.

My questions:
1 - Is it possible to load and run DOS/Win 3.1 on a Pentium II?

2 - If the processor isn't a problem, am I correct in thinking that I will have to partition the hard drive into chunks smaller than 2 GB in order to load DOS/Win 3.1?

3 - If the program is run in DOS after exiting Win 3.1 is it actually necessary to have Windows the computer? (Possibly a question for the DOS forum)

[1] yes
[2] yes. I would partition and format with the DOS you plan to run. 6.22 is my choice.
[3] no

If at first you don't succeed, you're about average.

M2

1 - Is it possible to load and run DOS/Win 3.1 on a Pentium II?

Yes, of course it is

2... I will have to partition the hard drive into chunks smaller than 2 GB in order to load DOS/Win 3.1?

'Maybe' - - DOS622 is limited to FAT16, which maxes out around 2Gb - Win31 doesn't really care (it's the DOS that matters). If you decide to use a DOS that works with FAT32 (like the one in Windows 98) then you'd require 'the patch' (3xstart)

3 If the program is run in DOS after exiting Win 3.1 is it actually necessary to have Windows the computer?

Huh? (Windows the computer??) I'll take a stab, but.. English our words do good in

DOS is a standalone OS, once you exit Win, you are left at the command prompt and may pursue whatever other DOS tasks you like. Actually, Win9x can work that way too

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:-) I apologize for the typo/missing word.

Thank you for your answers -- my fears of wiping the harddrive only to have the desired OS fail to run are gone. This was a concern because I will be instructing someone else and not actually be at the computer myself.

Plans are to make and format one FAT16 partition of under 2GB, and then load DOS and the Win 3.1 OS it came with on that partition.

Is there any reason I shouldn't leave the rest of the hard drive unpartitioned and unformatted? The users would not utilize other partitions or OSs, and it would require more steps.

For sure, if it's just the DOS application you're interested in, Win31 is unnecessary (but perhaps handy to have). The actual OS is, in fact, DOS - Win31 is just a GUI (a pretty application)

As long as DOS is installed on the primary, active partition (C:) then the rest of the drive won't matter, although you could create more than one FAT16 partition - those would also be accessible to DOS.

If you use M$-DOS622, FAT16 will be pretty much your only choice anyways.

By default, that DOS will only 'see' 64Mb of RAM, and will need to be configured for memory management, but the Win31 installation would set some of that up itself. That's plenty of memory, but there is a way to see the full amount, if required

If the machine was hanging under WinXP, there may be some underlying hardware issue - hard to say - and perhaps not an issue for DOS/Win31

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Win31 as a GUI makes so much more sense than thinking of it as an OS on top of an OS. Thank you for pointing that out!

I assume that if DOS doesn't 'see' all of the RAM then it won't utilize it. Only seeing 64Mb probably will not be a problem in this case. Out of curiousity, does it require a software patch or editing a file/setting on the computer to show DOS actual available RAM? (Feel free to reward my curiousity with directions to a reading or homework assignment)

I thought that it was hanging while loading WinXP because of insufficient resources, be it RAM or processor. Not knowing how to diagnose or fix most hardware issues I wasn't looking for them. However, I won't be surprised if the 386 they are currently using outlasts this back up system...

Well, XP/2K can be a tad fussier about hardware & RAM quality - or so I've heard - DOS is considerably less demanding

Yah - 64Mb is buckets of RAM for DOS or Win3x, but there is a small driver that may allow systems with more to utilize it under DOS - it's included with the freeware RAMDISK program ( from Franck Uberto)

DOS is mainly concerned with the first Mb of RAM - actually, only 640K (conventional memory) but various applications can make use of the extended memory beyond that.

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>>>However, I won't be surprised if the 386 they are currently using outlasts this back up system...<<<

Most 386's die because of leaking batteries, cannibalism of parts or other neglect. Most modern systems die from weak components, overclocking, or user interference. My, what progress we have made...