Less Conventional Memory Available in European OSR2 (170456)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2
  • Microsoft Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2.1
This article was previously published under Q170456

SYMPTOMS

In some localized non-English versions of Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2 and 2.1 (OSR2), there may be less conventional memory available to MS-DOS-based programs.

In these versions, the MEM /C command may show Himem.sys occupying approximately 44K of conventional memory. In the English version of OSR2, the MEM /C command shows Himem.sys occupying approximately 1K of conventional memory.

This issue is known to affect the following language versions of OSR2: Brazilian, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, and Spanish.

CAUSE

The increased conventional memory used by Himem.sys occurs because Io.sys occupies more memory in the high memory area (HMA), forcing Himem.sys to be relocated in conventional memory.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2 and 2.1. An update to address this problem is now available, but should be applied only to computers experiencing this specific problem. Unless you are severely impacted by this specific problem, Microsoft does not recommend implementing this update at this time. Contact the vendor of your OEM version of Windows 95 for additional information about the availability of this update, or obtain the update from the Microsoft Download Center, as described below.

This issue is resolved by the following updated files for OSR2: 
   Brazilian:  Winboot.sys dated 12/31/96 (214,836 bytes)
   Danish:     Winboot.sys dated 01/09/97 (214,836 bytes)
   Dutch:      Winboot.sys dated 01/06/97 (214,836 bytes)
   French:     Winboot.sys dated 12/31/96 (214,836 bytes)
   German:     Winboot.sys dated 01/06/97 (214,836 bytes)
   Italian:    Winboot.sys dated 12/31/96 (214,836 bytes)
   Norwegian:  Winboot.sys dated 12/31/96 (214,836 bytes)
   Portuguese: Winboot.sys dated 02/17/97 (214,836 bytes)
   Spanish:    Winboot.sys dated 12/31/96 (214,836 bytes)
To install this update, follow these steps:
  1. Download the appropriate Iosys<xxx>.exe file from the Microsoft Download Center to an empty folder. 
          Language version   Download this file
      -------------------------------------
      Brazilian          Iosysbrz.exe
      Danish             Iosysdan.exe
      Dutch              Iosysdut.exe
      Finnish            Iosysfin.exe
      French             Iosysfrn.exe
      German             Iosysger.exe
      Italian            Iosysitn.exe
      Norwegian          Iosysnor.exe
      Portugese          Iosyspor.exe
      Spanish            Iosysspa.exe
  2. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, double-click the file you downloaded in step 1.
  3. Follow the instructions on the screen.
The following files are available for download from the Microsoft Download Center:

Download Iosysbrz.exe now

Download Iosysdan.exe now

Download Iosysdut.exe now

Download Iosysfrn.exe now

Download Iosysger.exe now

Download Iosysitn.exe now

Download Iosysnor.exe now

Download Iosyspor.exe now

Download Iosysspa.exe now

For additional information about how to download Microsoft Support files, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

119591 How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services

Microsoft scanned this file for viruses. Microsoft used the most current virus-detection software that was available on the date that the file was posted. The file is stored on security-enhanced servers that help to prevent any unauthorized changes to the file.

MORE INFORMATION

This symptom occurs whether the computer boots from the hard disk or from an Emergency Recovery Disk.

To resolve this issue on computers that already have the affected versions of OSR2 installed, run the appropriate Iosys<xxx>.exe file to update your OSR2 installation. This will check that your computer is running OSR2 and replace the Io.sys file on the boot drive.

To update an existing OSR2 Emergency Recovery Disk (ERD), use the SYS A: (or SYS B: as appropriate) command at a command prompt or in the Run dialog box. Make sure that the ERD is not write protected. Note that there is a fix available for Microsoft Windows 98 as well, for the following languages:

Finnish, Polish, and Brazilian/Portugese

For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

197030 Less Conventional Memory in European Versions of Windows 98

Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:8/5/2004
Keywords:kbdownload kbDiskMemory kbfile kbgraphxlinkcritical KB170456
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