ATAPI CD-ROM driver

[Nancy P.]

Hi everybody,
I have a question that I can't figure out for the life of me... I am soooo new to the IT world. I am getting some of it, but some words bug me. Maybe you can help me understand this one...
What is the name of the most common generic DOS ATAPI CD-ROM driver?


Thanks!

Nancy :o)

[John Prophet]

mscdex??

microsoft cd extension

http://www.computerhope.com/mscdex.htm

I was going to go with ATAPI.SYS.

You should be able to find one on a 9X bootdisk.

Bootdisk.com if you don't have one handy.

[Nancy P.]

I thought that the answer might be MSCDEX, but I don't get this driver thing to begin with... maybe you can help me to understand this in some kind of layman's terms. I realize that a CD-ROM won't work without a "driver" to help install it... am I right? Well then, how is this MSCDEX a driver? My book shows an EXE after it, so I understand that this makes it an executable. Does this mean that the MSCDEX is the "executable" item that makes the CD-ROM work?

Please don't laugh... I can't believe I am still attempting to stay in college for my associate's in Computer Systems Management. Some weeks it really clicks and other weeks I just want to bang my head against the wall!

I just read something from the website that I got from John... could the answer be MSCD0001?

Thank you for your help.

Nancy

[John Prophet]

ahhh...actually maybe mscdex is NOT the actual driver.....mscdex is a program that gives the driver its letter etc...they call it a "redirector"....what it does is REFER to a driver

so what you have to do is in your autoexec.bat file you put the mscdex line and have it refer to a device driver

then in your config.sys file you list the actual device driver and give it a name...the name must match the name listed in the mscdex line of the autoexec.bat file

------

for instance...I have a boot floppy I made...it uses a different program instead of mscdex...called "shsucdx"....but it works the same way....and I use a cd driver called "vide-cdd.sys"


so what I have to do..is in the autoexec.bat file I have to put the shsucdx and have it refer to the name that I give to the actual "vide-cdd.sys" driver.

so my autoexec.bat file looks like this


---------------------------------
@echo off
shsucdx /d:vide,t
ctmouse
doskey
set path=a:\;t:\

restore.bat

--------------------


so ignoring the other bits..you see I have my "shsucdx" referring to the D: drive and the name of the driver is "vide" (the "T" is just some kind of "switch" for some function which I have long forgotten)



so im my config.sys file I would have to have a line referring to my "vide-cdd.sys" and naming it "vide" so that it will match the name in the autoexec.bat

so my config.sys looks like this


-------

device=himem.sys
device=vide-cdd.sys /d:vide

---------


I just picked the name "vide"...I could have used anything..for instance "banana" as long as it was in both the autoexec and config.sys files.

----

also of course I have to have the ACTUAL vide-cdd.sys driver itself on the floppy.....cuz the entries in config.sys etc just REFER TO the driver...so the actual driver has to be there also.

also of course the actual shsucdx.exe has to be on the floppy also

-----

so using my examples you would just rename my shsucdx to "mscdex" and my "vide-cdd.sys" to whatever the name of the usual microsoft file is.....probably atapi.sys

----so the mscdex is not the actual driver..it is an executable that refers to the driver named in the config.sys file...the mscdex gives the driveletter etc

JP

ps..one of the first things I did when learning comps and studying for A+ was to try to take a w95 boot floppy...which has no cdrom capability and change it to give a dos cdrom driver...using mscdex and atapi.sys and the proper entries in the autoexec.bat and config.sys file. It was a GREAT learning experience...especially considering the A+ book I had, by Mike meyers, had th einstructions for doing so ALLLLL screwed up, lol...so I had to figure it out myself, lol..which is the best way to learn

[John Prophet]

MSCD0001 is just the default name they use....it corresponds to the "vide" in my example..but as I say it could be anything you want as long as it matches in both the autoexec and config.sys

their actual driver in that webpage is called "BTCCDROM.SYS " (notice the "sys" on the end)

so then on their boot floppy they would also need the actual mscdex.exe and the BTCCDROM.SYS files that the autoexec and config.sys refer to

JP

[Nancy P.]

Hi again John,
I don't know if I will ever understand all of this stuff! I am not sure I have what it takes to be a computer geek! *smile* Anyway, I am taking "Concepts of PC Hardware" class right now and we are using Mike Meyers recent A+ book that is Windows XP compatible. Five more weeks to go!
I do appreciate your help.

Nancy

[John Prophet]

ok...I went into control panel and made a regular factory win98se boot floppy....it uses

oakcdrom.sys as the actual driver

I remember now,lol



anyway..do some google searches for "oakcdrom.sys" and also mscdex.exe" and you'll find plenty of links

Quote-----

----> I don't know if I will ever understand all of this stuff! I am not sure I have what it takes to be a computer geek!


Sure you will! besides, you have found the BEST place online to come and ask questions!!

JP

[Nancy P.]

Hey Rick,
I checked out the website you recommended. Thank you for your help as well. I do appreciate it.

Nancy