DOS-programs: whether they are needed and how to run them in modern versions of Windows

Operating systems MS-DOS, used to work at the dawn of the development of computer technology, are now hopelessly outdated. The most recent Windows modifications do not support MS-DOS, but earlier operating systems of this family had such support, and even to some extent relied on it. At least the bootloader worked in DOS mode. And, as it turns out, debiting DOS programs is still too early. Therefore, it is worth considering separately for what purposes they can be used, and which applications still do not lose their relevance.

How appropriate is it to use DOS programs in the latest Windows environment?

In general, many users mistakenly believe that there is no point in using programs and utilities designed exclusively for use in the environment of DOS systems. This, of course, can be argued. Any fan of earlier versions of Windows or outdated retro games will find a ton of pros. In addition, some MS-DOS programs very often turn out to be more effective in comparison with updated environments when it comes to managing outdated computer hardware, which is not only not supported by the latest operating systems, but is often not even recognized, not to mention Ensuring the installation of a fully functional driver or performing other actions.

Command Line Confusion

Quite often, users refer to the DOS-programs the so-called command console, the use of which is provided in absolutely all known versions of Windows.





Command line in Windows 10




Yes, indeed, in the latest modifications it works in a DOS-like mode, which only resembles the MS-DOS environment in appearance of the console window, but it relates to the operating system itself only because it usually uses the very same commands that were used on legacy systems. But, if you try to run the latest command applets in old OSs using the DOS-based command line for this, nothing will work. The system will simply give an error that their execution is not supported. The simplest example is the DISKPART toolkit, which can be used to create logical partitions or perform other actions with any type of storage media directly from under Windows.

Compatibility issues

Today, most DOS programs, which at one time were popular among a huge number of users, cannot be launched in any of the latest systems. For this, even the use of compatibility mode is not provided.

The first DOS version of Quake shooter




So, for example, admirers of the first versions of Quake, Doom, Duke Nukem 3D and similar games that originally worked on the basis of MS-DOS will not be able to recall their youth and go through the whole gameplay again. And this is not a matter of applying some system tools to outdated equipment. So what tools can be used to run the necessary programs? We’ll talk about this a bit later, but for now let's see which of the applications do not lose their relevance today.





The most famous and necessary applications

If we talk about system tools, and not about entertainment, all kinds of file managers immediately come to mind. The two most popular are Norton Commander and Volkov Commander.

Norton Commander File Manager




The second applet is a variation of the first, but do not forget that it was on the basis of these two applications that such popular programs as FAR Manager, as well as Total Commander and Windows Commander, which were already equipped with a graphical interface similar to the Windows environment, were created at one time. work without obligatory input of commands (for example, to quickly create a text file, the edit command was previously used, invoking the built-in editor, and for some other actions, function keys and their combinations were used). Among other things, it became possible to use a mouse.

Another indispensable utility can be called Partition Magic. Usually, when creating a boot disk, DOS programs were often built directly into the shell, which allowed you to manage partitions or use some additional features related to managing hard disks when booting from such media. And of course, this is not the only case with such utilities.

Using DOS emulators in Windows 7

Thus, the problem of running DOS applications has become very relevant. In principle, today it is quite simple to launch any of the previously known DOS-programs in the environment of the latest modifications of Windows. To do this, you just need to install the appropriate emulator. One of the most famous is the DOSBox app. True, just installing it is not enough. Upon completion of the installation, you will need to complete the setup. First of all, in the Prog directory where the Prog.exe executable file is located, you need to create a text file with such contents.

Creating a DOSBox Configuration File




You need to save the file in CONF format with the name Prog, setting the extension yourself. To start the main application, you need to create a BAT file of the following content.

Creating a DOSBox Launch BAT File




Instead of the path to the executable file shown in the image, you need to register the one that corresponds to the location of the installed shell, and also do not forget about the location of the configuration file.

DOSBox emulator window




If everything is done correctly, after starting the created object, an emulator window will appear.

Briefly about creating applications for MS-DOS

As for the creation of DOS-programs, it makes absolutely no sense to give absolutely all theoretical information. At least, to create the simplest applets of a systemic nature, even minimal knowledge can be applied on processing the contents of BAT and CMD file formats. But for programming more complex schemes, of course, you will need to study all the intricacies of the system or even study the literature on some programming languages. You can start with the primitive Basic, which in Soviet times was part of the school course in computer science, and then go on to study more complex languages ​​like Assembler or Fortran. By the way, many computer viruses are still created in Assembler.




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