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PDT 3200 Technical Reference Guide
Safe Boot
During the DOS boot sequence, control is passed sequentially to the CONFIG.SYS Þles on
drives A, B, and C. A similar process is followed for the AUTOEXEC.BAT Þles on each
drive. (See Chapter 1 for more information.) It is possible for a driver or application load-
ing from the CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT Þle on drive C to hang the system. A cold
or warm boot of the unit will not directly correct the problem, because the troublesome
program will be started again as part of the boot sequence.
A method is required by which the CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT Þle on drive C and
the loading of the CFGDEV.SYS and DECODE.SYS drivers can be taken out of the normal
boot sequence. This can be accomplished with the DOS Ctrl-C, F5, and F8 escape
sequences.
The PDT 3200 provides an alternative method that is less accessible to the end user. To by-
pass the CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT Þles on drive C, reboot the unit (with either a
cold or warm boot), and when the message ÒWaitÉÓ appears on the display, immediately
press the ESC and DEL keys at the same time. This causes alternative CONFIG.SYS and
AUTOEXEC.BAT processing to take place on drives A and B without chaining into the
Þles on drive C. The unit indicates safe-boot mode by emitting a low tone followed by a
higher-pitched tone. The ßash drive (drive C) and the RAM drive (drive D) will be pre-
served, and the boot sequence will place the unit at the C:\> prompt.
Note:
If you do not hear the two tones indicating the safe-boot
sequence, you probably did not press the ESC and DEL
keys quickly enough. Reboot the PDT 3200 and press the
two keys simultaneously as soon as you see the ÒWait...Ó
message on the display.
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