What Is a Clean Boot for Windows 3.0? (80448)

SUMMARY

A "clean boot" is used for testing purposes and may reveal possible conflicts between Windows and terminate-and-stay-resident (TSR) programs or device drivers. There are different types of clean boot configurations listed below, depending on the MS-DOS version being used, and whether Windows has been installed.

NOTE: This article explains how to clean boot your system up to the point when you start Windows. To start Windows without loading any third-party programs, you must clear the StartUp group, clear the LOAD= and RUN= entries in the WIN.INI file, and ensure the SHELL= entry in the SYSTEM.INI file is loading PROGMAN.EXE. Also, make sure the SYSTEM.INI file does not include third-party virtual device drivers (VxDs) or other third-party Windows components.

MORE INFORMATION

To make changes to the CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT files, use a text editor such as the Notepad application packaged with Windows.

If you have used third-party software to partition the hard drive (for example, using Disk Manager) or to compress the hard drive (for example, using Stacker), make sure that the appropriate device driver is installed in the CONFIG.SYS file. Also, make sure that any necessary hardware (for example, a hard card) device drivers are in the CONFIG.SYS file.

Be sure to create backups of the AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files before making any changes.

ALWAYS make sure that a system disk is available before making any changes to the CONFIG.SYS file. Refer to your MS-DOS manual for instructions on making a system disk.

Pre-Installation

CONFIG.SYS                      AUTOEXEC.BAT
----------                      ------------

BUFFERS=20                      PROMPT $P$G
FILES=30
<third-party disk partitioner>
<third-party disk compressor>

MS-DOS Versions Earlier Than 5.0

CONFIG.SYS                      AUTOEXEC.BAT
----------                      ------------

DEVICE=C:\HIMEM.SYS             PROMPT $P$G
FILES=60                        PATH C:\WINDOWS;C:\DOS;C:\ 
BUFFERS=20                      SET TEMP=C:\WINDOWS\TEMP
<third-party disk partitioner>
<third-party disk compressor>

MS-DOS 5.0

CONFIG.SYS                      AUTOEXEC.BAT
----------                      ------------

DEVICE=C:\DOS\SETVER.EXE        PROMPT $P$G
DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS         PATH C:\WINDOWS;C:\DOS;C:\ 
FILES=60                        SET TEMP=C:\WINDOWS\TEMP
BUFFERS=20
<third-party disk partitioner>
<third-party disk compressor>
SHELL=C:\DOS\COMMAND.COM C:\DOS\ /P /E:512

If the purpose of a device driver or command is unknown, DO NOT remove it. Most device drivers and commands will display a message describing their purpose when they are initialized.

A clean boot DOES NOT include:

DOS=HIGH,UMB
EMM386.EXE
INSTALL=SHARE.EXE
INSTALL=FASTOPEN.EXE
Third-party memory managers
RAM disk devices
JOIN, GRAPHICS, PRINT, SUBST, APPEND
MODE for printer redirection
multiple path statements
MS-DOS-level mouse drivers
Third-party disk caches
Various third-party TSRs
LOGIMENU, CLICK
Virus checkers
Drivers for scanners/fax
Drivers for CD ROM/network
Tape backup spoolers/redirectors/buffers
Data acquisition units
Keyboard accelerators/buffers