(4.4) Starting OS/2 Warp from Diskette (and CHKDSK)

How do I access HPFS partitions on my hard drive without booting from the hard drive? I'm getting error messages now -- how do I "repair" my hard disk?

With IBM OS/2 Warp, insert the Installation Diskette, Shutdown (if necessary), and reboot. When prompted insert Diskette 1 and press ENTER. When prompted, press the F3 key. You will be given an OS/2 Warp command line prompt. From there you can make necessary changes to your hard disk -- an OS/2 Warp character mode text editor called TEDIT is provided on the OS/2 Warp Installation Diskette for such changes. (Make sure you backup CONFIG.SYS before making any changes so that you can easily revert to the old version should things go wrong.)

You may use this diskette boot method to run CHKDSK on your FAT or HPFS volumes. After you reach the command line, insert Diskette 2. Do not log to another drive. Type CHKDSK X: /F to repair most kinds of damage to your hard disk, replacing X with the appropriate drive letter. OS/2 Warp CHKDSK will also mark your hard disk as accessible, if possible, should OS/2 Warp "lock it out" for some reason. It will also allow Workplace Shell drive objects to open properly if they are not functioning correctly. Repeat for each drive letter you wish to check and/or correct.

"Errors" may be reported by CHKDSK if OS/2 Warp was booted from the hard disk. These "errors" are normal. Since the hard drive is in use by OS/2 Warp itself (and files are open) CHKDSK is unable to accurately report errors.

The best way to avoid the need to perform CHKDSK is to always select Shutdown before turning off your PC. Click on the Workplace Shell desktop background using mouse button two to bring up the appropriate menu. Also, avoid manipulating OS/2-related files when using native DOS. Finally, enable autochecking for all your hard disk volumes. For HPFS volumes use the /AUTOCHECK parameter in the IFS=...HPFS line in your CONFIG.SYS. For FAT volumes use the AC parameter in the DISKCACHE line of your CONFIG.SYS. See the online Command Reference for details.

The Create Utility Diskettes program, located in the OS/2 Warp System Setup folder, is designed to create a set of three diskettes which can be used to get to an OS/2 Warp command line prompt (and to provide the essential utilities often used when booting OS/2 Warp from diskette, including FDISK and TEDIT). If for some reason you cannot boot OS/2 Warp from the hard disk, these diskettes are handy for conducting emergency repairs.

Related information:

(1.5) High Performance File System
(3.2) Shareware and Freeware Sources
(4.3) Hard Disk Partitioning

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