[Solved] Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

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JasonDivot
Posts: 6
Joined: 19. Oct 2019, 21:42

[Solved] Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by JasonDivot »

Yes, new to Virtual Box. I've been round and round with this one for awhile.
I have DOS 6.22 installed and working, and am attempting to access a DVD with Windows 98 versions.
I have tried:
  • physical access: everything looks great, I have CD/DVD checked for an IDE Secondary Master, then Passthrough checked, verified Host G: (physical drive letter). START: successful DOS 6.22 startup, however all other drive letters above C: produce Invalid drive specification.
  • virtual access: everything looks great, I have CD/DVD un-checked for an IDE Secondary Master, verified virtual host (Win98SE.ISO on host), however I have had no success actually assigning a drive letter to the ISO, ie how do I mount the thing with a drive letter?
I'll bet both are insipidly simple.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Last edited by socratis on 20. Oct 2019, 23:27, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Marked as [Solved].
scottgus1
Site Moderator
Posts: 20965
Joined: 30. Dec 2009, 20:14
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Windows, Linux

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by scottgus1 »

DOS had to have special drivers and autoexec.bat and/or config.sys settings to recognize the PC's CD drive. Google for how you'd do this on a real DOS PC and that's how you'd do it in a Virtualbox DOS guest.
JasonDivot
Posts: 6
Joined: 19. Oct 2019, 21:42

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by JasonDivot »

That's right! Ding ding. Wading in retro waters can be really interesting.
JasonDivot
Posts: 6
Joined: 19. Oct 2019, 21:42

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by JasonDivot »

...thanks, scottgus1!
JasonDivot
Posts: 6
Joined: 19. Oct 2019, 21:42

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by JasonDivot »

So, it looks like the next part is figuring out what kind of M*.SYS driver file is required for the CONFIG.SYS entry. Oh boy. Any ideas?

I'll also keep studying on this end. Thanks!
JasonDivot
Posts: 6
Joined: 19. Oct 2019, 21:42

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by JasonDivot »

Update: I found, on AllBootDisks www+allbootdisks+com/download/98+html, ready-made DOS floppy images (IMG files).

For now, I'm starting up DOS using the virtual floppy, which sets up a DOS that recognizes the physical dvd drive.
socratis
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Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by socratis »

JasonDivot wrote:figuring out what kind of M*.SYS driver file is required for the CONFIG.SYS entry
Take a look at MS-DOS with a Web Browser, it includes the proper procedure...

Moving this to "Other Guests" from "Windows Hosts", the problem isn't with your host...
Do NOT send me Personal Messages (PMs) for troubleshooting, they are simply deleted.
Do NOT reply with the "QUOTE" button, please use the "POST REPLY", at the bottom of the form.
If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
JasonDivot
Posts: 6
Joined: 19. Oct 2019, 21:42

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by JasonDivot »

Thank you! Between allbootdisks, your reference link and moving a few things from a Windows 98 boot disk image and editing the autoexec.bat and config.sys did the trick.
I installed DOS 6 via floppy images, then edited the files.
I then used access to the physical DVD drive to install Windows 98 SE from an old MSDN release.

CONFIG.SYS
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\setver.exe
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS
DEVICE=OAKCDROM.SYS /D:MSCD001
DOS=HIGH.UMB
LASTDRIVE=Z
AUTOEXEC.BAT
@ECHO OFF
PROMPT $p$g
PATH C:\DOS
LH C:\DOS\MSCDEX.EXE /D:MSCD001
Windows 98 SE installation re-wrote the AUTOEXEC.BAT a few times, and the last line ends up being:
rem - By Windows Setup - LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\MCSDEX.EXE /D:MSCD001
The OAKCDROM.SYS file is on the Windows 98 SE boot floppy image obtained at allbootdisks.
socratis
Site Moderator
Posts: 27330
Joined: 22. Oct 2010, 11:03
Primary OS: Mac OS X other
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Win(*>98), Linux*, OSX>10.5
Location: Greece

Re: Virtual DOS 6.22 CD DVD "Invalid drive specification"

Post by socratis »

Glad you got it going. Marking as [Solved].
Do NOT send me Personal Messages (PMs) for troubleshooting, they are simply deleted.
Do NOT reply with the "QUOTE" button, please use the "POST REPLY", at the bottom of the form.
If you obfuscate any information requested, I will obfuscate my response. These are virtual UUIDs, not real ones.
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