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Date Last Update: 03/16/98

 

dotlrg.gif (1062 bytes) xcopy-ing Windows 95

In my profession, I have stumbled across the need to xcopy a Windows 95 drive onto another hard drive, but Windows 95 has too many hidden files to do this. I called Microsoft's Technical Support to find out the trick, and the person I talked to said that there was no way to xcopy a Windows 95 drive, all you could do is re-install it on the new drive. This has been proven to be an untrue statement by the fine folks at Microsoft, so here's how to xcopy a Windows 95 drive:

 

  1. Make sure you have a Windows 95 boot disk with the following files:
  2. Install the new hard drive as a single drive first.
  3. Boot off the Windows 95 boot disk.
  4. Type "fdisk" and set up the new hard drive.
  5. Reboot off the same Windows 95 boot disk.
  6. Type "format c:" (but do not include the "/s" command).
  7. Reboot one more time off the same Windows 95 bootdisk.
  8. Make sure you can access "C:" and there are no files shown.
  9. Set up your new hard drive as a slave to your old hard drive.
  10. Boot Windows 95 like you always would.
  11. Make sure there is a "D:" present.
  12. Go to Control Panel and double-click on System.
  13. Go to Performance and click on Virtual Memory.
  14. Disable Virtual Memory (if you have more than 8MB of RAM, if you don't skip this step)
  15. Close Control Panel and reboot the computer.
  16. When you see "Starting Windows 95..." hit F8.
  17. Choose Safe Mode.
  18. Once you are running in Safe Mode, click on Start and go to Run.
  19. Type "xcopy32 c:\*.* d:\ /h /e /c /k /y"
  20. When the xcopy is finshed, click Start and go to Run again.
  21. Type "sys d:"
  22. Shut down the computer.
  23. Make the slave drive a single drive again.
  24. Boot off the same old Windows 95 boot disk.
  25. Type "sys c:"
  26. Remove the disk and attempt to boot off the hard drive.

Assuming everything worked correctly, the hard drive should boot perfectly. If you wish to keep your old hard drive, you may want to set the single drive to a master, and set your old hard drive as the slave.

If you have to use a drive overlay to access the new hard drive (i.e.- your BIOS doesn't support larger than 540MB), then you may have to take a different route.

 

  1. Install the new hard drive as a single drive first.
  2. Boot off the Windows 95 boot disk.
  3. Run the setup utility on the Drive Overlay program disk.
  4. Remove the disk and boot off the hard drive.
  5. Install Windows 95, and choose Compact Installation.
  6. After Windows 95 is set up and works, shut down the computer.
  7. Set the new hard drive as the master drive.
  8. Set the old hard drive as the slave drive.
  9. Boot the computer and when you see "Starting Windows 95..." hit F8.
  10. Choose Safe Mode.
  11. Once you are running in Safe Mode, Click on Start & go to Run.
  12. Type "xcopy32 d:\*.* c:\ /h /e /c /k /y"
  13. When the xcopy is finshed, reboot the computer.
  14. When you see "Starting Windows 95..." hit F8.
  15. Choose "Command Prompt Only"
  16. Type these steps religiously.
    1. c:
    2. cd\ windows
    3. attrib -h -s -r user.da?
    4. attrib -h -s -r system.da?
    5. del *.da?
    6. d:
    7. cd\ windows
    8. attrib -h -s -r user.da?
    9. attrib -h -s -r system.da?
    10. copy *.da? c:\windows
    11. c:
    12. attrib +h +s +r user.da?
    13. attrib +h +s +r system.da?
  17. Reboot the computer.

All that did was copy the registry which the xcopy didn't copy since the files where in use at the time of the xcopy. The registry consists of the following files.

 

Be sure to check that everything seemed to xcopy fine and then shut down and remove the slave drive and set the master to single and try again. If everything works, great! If not, I'm sorry, it has worked for me.

If you're wanting to know ALL the xcopy32 switches, here they are:

 


XCOPY source [destination] [/A | /M] [/D[:date]] [/P] [/S [/E]] [/W]
                           [/C] [/I] [/Q] [/F] [/L] [/H] [/R] [/T] [/U]
                           [/K] [/N]

 source       Specifies the file(s) to copy.
 destination  Specifies the location and/or name of new files.
 /A           Copies files with the archive attribute set,
              doesn't change the attribute.
 /M           Copies files with the archive attribute set,
              turns off the archive attribute.
 /D:date      Copies files changed on or after the specified date.
              If no date is given, copies only those files whose
              source time is newer than the destination time.
 /P           Prompts you before creating each destination file.
 /S           Copies directories and subdirectories except empty ones.
 /E           Copies directories and subdirectories, including empty ones.
              Same as /S /E. May be used to modify /T.
 /W           Prompts you to press a key before copying.
 /C           Continues copying even if errors occur.
 /I           If destination does not exist and copying more than one file,
              assumes that destination must be a directory.
 /Q           Does not display file names while copying.
 /F           Displays full source and destination file names while copying.
 /L           Displays files that would be copied.
 /H           Copies hidden and system files also.
 /R           Overwrites read-only files.
 /T           Creates directory structure, but does not copy files. Does not
              include empty directories or subdirectories. /T /E includes
              empty directories and subdirectories.
 /U           Updates the files that already exist in destination.
 /K           Copies attributes. Normal Xcopy will reset read-only attributes.
 /Y           Overwrites existing files without prompting.
 /-Y          Prompts you before overwriting existing files.
 /N           Copy using the generated short names.