ATAPI CDROM trouble on 286

[Half-Saint]

Anyone remember my problems with getting a CD-ROM working on a 386?

Well, history repeats itself!!!!!11one

I hooked up two known working drives (not at the same time) and got the same problems with both.

Configuration
1) HDD primary
2) CD-ROM secondary

OAKCDROM.SYS installs fine, I can access the drive D: and list the files. The problem pops-up when I want to install software. Here's an example from Larry Collector's Edition (original CD, error free):

 

[Plasma]

Do any other CDs work or do you have the same problem with all of them? Is your CD-ROM hooked up to a sound card or a multi-function I/O card?

What I would try:

1. Remove all other hardware except your IDE controller(s)
2. Disable all disk caches
3. If MSCDEX is using /E, remove that switch

 

[Half-Saint]

It's connected to the IDE controller (hence my statement that HDD is primary and CDROM is secondary).

BIOS here is very limited, no option to disable disk cache. I just disabled SMARTDRV. MSCDEX is run with no extra switches.

 

[Stone]

Quite often these atapi CDs run better as master and not so reliably as slave as you have it setup. If you don't have two IDE channels to set it up like this try booting from a floppy and set the CD as master.

 

[Half-Saint]

Well, imagine this! Someone suggested I should use VIDE-CDD.SYS and to my delight it worked!