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MS-DOS 6.2 Partitioning Questions and Answers

Article ID: 105074 - View products that this article applies to.

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SUMMARY

Q. How can I repartition my hard disk into one large partition?

A. Changing your hard disk from multiple partitions to a single partition involves backing up your program and data files, repartitioning your hard disk, and then restoring your program and data files. For specific instructions, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
106423
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/106423/EN-US/ )
Repartitioning Your Hard Disk to Upgrade to 6.0 or 6.2
Q. I have a hard disk with more than 1024 cylinders. Is there a way to access and use the entire hard disk?

A. MS-DOS 6.2 uses the hardware BIOS to read and write to the hard disk drive. Due to the limitations of the standard ROM BIOS, MS- DOS accesses only the first 1024 cylinders of a physical hard disk. If you have repartitioned and formatted your hard disk after upgrading to MS-DOS 6.2 and the disk has less space available, consult your hardware manual or contact your hardware manufacturer for more information.
Q. When I run the Fdisk program, it does not recognize all the disk space on my hard disk. What is causing this problem?

A. Fdisk relies on the BIOS to report the hard disk size. If Fdisk incorrectly reports that your hard disk is smaller than it actually is, either your BIOS is set for the wrong drive type (that is, it is set incorrectly or it does not support your specific drive's dimensions), or your drive has more than 1024 cylinders.

Contact your hardware manufacturer to determine if your BIOS is set correctly. If it is not, correcting the setting should allow Fdisk to recognize the entire hard disk. If your BIOS does not support your drive type and your hard disk doesn't exceed 1024 cylinders, you may need to order a new BIOS from your hardware manufacturer.

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Article ID: 105074 - Last Review: November 18, 1999 - Revision: 1.0

APPLIES TO

Microsoft MS-DOS 6.2 Standard Edition
Microsoft MS-DOS 6.22 Standard Edition

kbinfo KB105074

Retired KB Content Disclaimer

This article was written about products for which Microsoft no longer offers support. Therefore, this article is offered "as is" and will no longer be updated.