NetWare Workstations and MS-DOS 6.20
Microsoft have just released MS-DOS 6.20. Version 6.20 contains a number
of new utilities (such as SCANDISK to test/repair hard disk errors), added
reliability/security for DBLSPACE and SMARTDRV, modified MOVE, COPY, and XCOPY commands
that ask for confirmation prior to over-writing existing files, and a number of other new
features.
This new version reports itself as being MS-DOS Version 6.20 when
interrogated by other software. This will cause a number of problems when in a NetWare
environment, but only if the workstation is using NETX shells - VLM shells are unaffected.
The latest release of NETX.EXE, version 3.32, works OK with MS-DOS 3.00
through to 6.00, and so users with MS-DOS 6.00 could load this version without the need
for SETVER. If however this version is loaded under MS-DOS 6.20, one of two things will
happen.....
If the user has SETVER loaded, NETX will load, but will report version
5.00, which in turn could cause problems with incorrect versions of DOS utilities if the
user is mapped to DOS on the server.
If the user does NOT have SETVER loaded, NETX will not load, as it will
only recognise versions of DOS between 3.00 and 6.00.
In order for NETX.EXE Ver 3.32 to load correctly under MS-DOS 6.20, you
will need to do the following....
- Change to the directory where SETVER.EXE is located (usually C:\DOS)
- Enter the following commands....
SETVER NETX.COM
/D
SETVER NETX.EXE /D
SETVER NETX.EXE 6.00
- Put DEVICE=C:\DOS\SETVER.EXE in CONFIG.SYS
- If the DOS utilities are kept on the server, copy the DOS 6.20 versions
to the server.
- If the DOS utilities are kept on the server, ensure that ALL MS-DOS 6.00
users are upgraded to MS-DOS 6.20, and that steps 1 to 3 above are carried out on all the
relevant machines.
If you have an earlier release of NETX, the latest version can be
downloaded from File Area 37 of Apricot Insight BBS.
Novell are aware of this problem, and a new NETX will be released by
them in the next couple of weeks. As soon as we have it, we will issue another IPB with
the relevant details.
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