Command: config.sys / fdconfig.sys

 FreeDOS reads the CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS file at startup to
 configure the DOS system. It is read before the AUTOEXEC.BAT /
 FDAUTO.BAT file is run.
 FreeDOS first tries to use FDCONFIG.SYS first (and ignores CONFIG.SYS).
 If FDCONFIG.SYS does not exist, FreeDOS will use CONFIG.SYS instead.
 CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS are text files. They can be created
 or edited with a text editor such as EDIT or EDLIN.
 CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS must ALWAYS be in the root directory
 of the boot media.

Syntax:

 - none -

Options:

 - none -

Comments:

 When booting DOS, you will find it only supports a subset
 of the devices available on many computers. To support
 additional devices and advanced features, device specific
 driver and memory resident software must be loaded. This
 allows the kernel to be easily extended to support hardware
 not presently available and take better advantage of installed
 hardware without wasting resources on computers lacking it.
 This software is generally loaded during the kernel initialization
 phase, with details describing what to load expressed in the
 file CONFIG.SYS. The FreeDOS kernel will first look for a
 file named FDCONFIG.SYS, should it exist, it will be used
 instead of CONFIG.SYS; this allows the FreeDOS kernel to coexist
 and be configured differently than another DOS kernel. There are
 additional options available to adjust other aspects of the kernel's
 behaviour.
 There is a special set of commands for use in the CONFIG.SYS /
 FDCONFIG.SYS file, see the links below.
 DOS prompt and BATCH FILE commands generally cannot be used in
 CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS. See also the MENU command.
 If you press "F5" while booting up the system, CONFIG.SYS /
 FDCONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT commands are ignored.
 This is helpful if you have a driver installed which crashes
 while booting up the system. With this option you can repair
 a system by removing the crashing driver / command from
 CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT.
 If you press "F8" while booting up the system, each command in
 CONFIG.SYS / FDCONFIG.SYS and in AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT has to be
 confirmed with "yes" or "no". This is helpful if you want to
 find out which driver crashes.

Examples:

Simple example for german settings (Load FreeDOS with JEMM386,

(no EMX, max RAM free, modified from FreeDOS 1.3 live HD):

 SET DOSDIR=C:\FREEDOS
 COUNTRY=049,858,C:\FREEDOS\BIN\country.sys (german setting)
 LASTDRIVE=W
 BUFFERS=20
 FILES=40
 DOS=HIGH
 DOS=UMB
 DOSDATA=UMB
 DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\himemx.exe
 DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\jemm386.exe NOEMS X=TEST I=TEST I=B000-B7FF
 NOVME NOINVLPG
 SHELLHIGH= C:\FREEDOS\BIN\command.com C:\FREEDOS\BIN /E:1024
 /P=C:\FDAUTO.BAT

Same example for german settings with a menu:

 !SET DOSDIR=C:\FREEDOS
 !COUNTRY=049,858,C:\FREEDOS\BIN\country.sys (german setting)
 !LASTDRIVE=W
 !BUFFERS=20
 !FILES=40
 !MENUCOLOR=7,0
 MENUDEFAULT=1,5
 MENU 1 - Load FreeDOS with JEMM386 (no EMS, max RAM free)
 MENU 2 - Load FreeDOS with JEMM386 (Expanded Memory)
 MENU 3 - Load FreeDOS low with some drivers (Safe Mode)
 MENU 4 - Load FreeDOS without drivers (Emergency Mode)
 12?DOS=HIGH
 12?DOS=UMB
 12?DOSDATA=UMB
 123?DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\himemx.exe
 1?DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\jemm386.exe NOEMS X=TEST I=TEST I=B000-B7FF
 NOVME NOINVLPG
 2?DEVICE=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\jemm386.exe X=TEST I=TEST I=B000-B7FF NOVME
 NOINVLPG
 34?SHELL=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\command.com C:\FREEDOS\BIN /E:1024
 /P=C:\FDAUTO.BAT
 12?SHELLHIGH=C:\FREEDOS\BIN\command.com C:\FREEDOS\BIN /E:1024
 /P=C:\FDAUTO.BAT
 Note:
 SHELL / SHELLHIGH indicates the shell to use; often used to alter
 COMMAND.COM's behavior. It is command.com that processes AUTOEXEC.BAT /
 FDAUTO.BAT; by using the SHELL option you have to choose which
 XY.BAT / AUTOEXEC.BAT / FDAUTO.BAT you want to use.
 /pre>
See also:
 ; (semicolon) ! (exclamation) ? (question) autoexec.bat break
 buffers buffershigh country device devicehigh
 dos dosdata echo eecho fcbs
 fdauto.bat fdconfig.sys files fileshigh idlehalt
 install installhigh keybuf lastdrive lastdrivehigh
 menu menucolor menudefault numlock rem
 screen set shell shellhigh stacks
 stackshigh switchar switches version


 Copyright © 2003 Robert Platt, updated 2008 and 2022 by W. Spiegl.
 This file is derived from the FreeDOS Spec Command HOWTO.
 See the file H2Cpying for copying conditions.