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Xt 286

Um, I haven't been following this too closely, but did you try to run PCDOS_330.EXE from a command prompt after you formatted the floppy (so that PCDOS_330 would actually place a bootable image on the floppy)? Just copying the file to the floppy won't do it.
 
lunchmeat said:
Okay, I now have a correctly formatted floppy (I used Format A: /T:80 /N:9) with pcdos330_720k.exe on it. I booted the computer with it in the drive and nothing special happened. No DOS. :( What'd I do wrong this time? Ha-ha...
Click to expand...

You ran the pcdos330-720k.exe program and didn't just copy it to the floppy?

edit: Dang Chuck, I'm still not a gunfighter <g>
 
Okay, I did execute the file and it made a image boot disk. It still does nothing. What should I do now?
 
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And if you can boot the other system with the disk that you just made, swap the 3.5" floppy from that system into the XT 286 and see if it will boot from it. Could be the floppy drive in the XT 286 is dirty.
 
What happens if you type SYSTEM in IBM BASIC? Nevermind, I RTFM and SYSTEM command doesn't seem to be supported in CASSETTE BASIC. In IBM BASIC DISK/ADVANCED/COMPILER, it returns to DOS.
 
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I've been away for a little while.

The IBM 5162 (A.K.A. "IBM XT Model 286" or "XT/286") is essentially a faster version of the IBM 5170 (IBM AT) with an extra hard drive entry in the CMOS/SETUP.
Consequently, a lot (not all) of what applies to the IBM 5170 also applies to the IBM 5162.

The following is for the 5170 but should also apply to the 5162:


OPTION 1 - BOOT FROM A 720K DISKETTE AND THEN RUN GSETUP

At http://www.minuszerodegrees.net/5170/setup/5170_gsetup_720.htm is a procedure that covers:
1. On a 'modern' computer, create a 720k sized DOS 3.3 boot diskette, containing GSETUP; then
2. On the 5170/5162, boot from that diskette; then
3. Use GSETUP to configure the 5170/5162's CMOS/SETUP.


OPTION 2 - CMOS/SETUP CONFIGURATION VIA BASIC

Configuration of the 5162/5170 CMOS/SETUP can be done by typing certain commands into BASIC.
The procedure for the 5170 is at http://www.minuszerodegrees.net/5170/setup/5170_basic.htm
NOTE: To best compensate for the fact that you are running this on a 5162 rather than a 5170, select "Third: 11/15/85" for the BIOS option in GSETUP_BASIC.EXE


Of course, as mentioned earlier, the battery in the 5162 is probably 'dead', which means that any CMOS/SETUP configuration done now will be lost when the 5162 is powered off.
 
modem7 said:
Of course, as mentioned earlier, the battery in the 5162 is probably 'dead', which means that any CMOS/SETUP configuration done now will be lost when the 5162 is powered off.
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And I think it uses a different battery connector than the 5170.
 
I had to do Basic. I think I may need to replace the floppy drive; that's okay; I have a few lying around that should work. What is my display type? I have a Princeton Graphic Systems HX-12+.
 
lunchmeat said:
I had to do Basic. I think I may need to replace the floppy drive; that's okay; I have a few lying around that should work. What is my display type? I have a Princeton Graphic Systems HX-12+.
Click to expand...

What is your video card the display is connected to?
 
Okay. I am bringing back this thread. I got a tad frustrated with that thing, and stopped trying to mess with it. I found the time over break to drag it out and play around with it again. After a lot of thinking, this was the result:

DSC00379.jpg

I finally got it to boot to a floppy! It was the 720 kb DOS 3.30 AT boot disk that someone earlier in this thread told me to use. I ordered a new floppy drive for it so I won't have to make it look like that all the time.

Now I have a new problem. My C: drive is apparently dead. The light turns on, and it seems like it is even spinning, but it does not boot to DOS, so it must not be working right.

I have another hard drive. It is called a Plus Hardcard 40. My dad apparently got that hoping to recover his C: drive so many years ago. Could I install DOS to it and use it as my C: drive?

Any Ideas on how to recover the C: drive? My dad says he has some cool games on it, like Wolfenstein 3d and maybe even some office suites (lotus 123?). It would be awesome to try to get those back.
 
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lunchmeat said:
Now I have a new problem. My C: drive is apparently dead. The light turns on, and it seems like it is even spinning, but it does not boot to DOS, so it must not be working right.
Click to expand...
Looking back, I can see that you managed to configure the machine's CMOS SETUP (via BASIC). During that procedure, you would have specified the hard drive 'type number', which for the XT/286 is a number between 1 and 24. If that number was not set correctly, then the XT/286 is not going to boot from your DOS-already-installed hard drive. Reading back, I can see that you established that your hard drive type number is 2. Are you confident that that is the correct number, and that it has been configured in the CMOS SETUP ?

Incorrect number is just one possibility of many. But it is best to eliminate that possible cause before others.

Also, make sure that your hard drive controller and drive are configured per the diagram [here]. That diagram is for a 5170, but it also applies to the XT/286 (IBM 5162).
 
The C: drive is connected like the diagram shows. However, I never configured the machine's BIOS in BASIC because I never got a Lithium battery that would work to keep the BIOS options set. I did not want to type a bunch of lines of BASIC just to turn it off and not have it work.

So, it is essential to have the battery, because it won't have the capabilities to run from the hard drive, right?

Anybody know where I can get a hold of a cheap BR-P2 lithium battery?
 
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