Windows 1.0 installation floppy images fail to boot

[ETHANWEEGEE]

Hello. I wanted to install Windows 1.0 in a Virtual Box. However when I boot from the floppy drive (D1_Setup.img), it says;

Non-System disk or disk error
Replace and strike any key when ready

On floppy drive 1 it just finds no boot medium (1 is the Secondary Floppy drive).
I have tried multiple versions of the floppy disks with no luck. There are 7 disks, 6 in one of the installers, but none will boot.
This may be a file error, but probably is an error with how VirtualBox tells the Virtual Machine. I don't know for sure, but I need a fix.

[BillG]

I never used Windows 1.0, but I would not expect it to install from the floppies. The early versions of Windows ran on top of DOS. They were not standalone operating systems. I think Win95 was the first to install alone.

[mpack]

I think you have a typo there Bill. I expect you meant to say "I would not expect it to boot from the floppies". Obviously nearly all software was installed from floppies back in the day, but as you say you needed to have a working DOS install first.

[dlharper]

Note that Windows 1 runs much better on some versions of DOS than others. I have had no problems using it on MS-DOS 3 (any of the sub-versions) or MS-DOS 5, but for me it plays up with DOS 2, 4 or 6.

The one thing you will need, though, is a suitable mouse driver. (The one supplied with Windows 1 assumes a Serial or Bus mouse, and will not use PS/2. These earlier versions are not emulated in VirtualBox.) Your best bet is to copy the MOUSE.DRV file from a copy of Windows 2 over the file of the same name on the Windows 1 Setup disk.

[Rootman]

Yes, you are right, the Windows 1.0 did NOT boot from floppies to install. You installed it TO an already running instance of MS-DOS. Windows 1.0 was simply a choice to run as many people jumped back out of Windows to DOS to do some stuff. It was more of an APPLICATION than an OS.