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-
- Maximizer
- Memory Manager
-
-
-
-
-
- Installation and Operation
- Manual
-
- Revision 3.00
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- SoftNet Communication, Inc.
- 580 Fifth Ave., Suite 3000
- New York, NY 10036
- Tel (212) 302-7060
- Fax (212) 302-0242
-
-
- COPYRIGHT NOTICE
-
- Copyright (C), 1989-91 by SoftNet Communication, Inc. All Rights
- Reserved Worldwide. No part of this document may be reproduced,
- transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or
- translated into language(s), in any form or by any means,
- electronic, mechanical, magnetic, optical, chemical, manual, or
- otherwise, without expressed written permission of SoftNet
- Communication, Inc.
-
-
-
- TRADEMARKS
-
- Maximizer is a trademark of SoftNet Communication, Inc.
- IBM is a trademark of International Business Machines.
- MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft.
- Novell is a trademark Novell, Inc.
- Neat is a trademark of Chips & Technology Corp.
- ChipSet is a trademark of Chips & Technology Corp.
-
-
-
-
- DISCLAIMER
-
- SoftNet Communication, Inc. makes no representations or
- warranties with respect to contents hereof and disclaims any
- implied warranties of merchantibility or fitness for any
- particular purpose or use. SoftNet Communication, Inc. reserves
- the right to revise this publication without obligation to notify
- any persons or organization of such revision or changes.
-
-
- Table of Contents
-
-
- INTRODUCTION
-
- What is Maximizer? 3
- How Maximizer Works 4
- System Requirements 6
- Memory Requirements 7
- Technical Support 7
-
-
- INSTALLATION
-
- Installing Maximizer Software 8
- Identify Vacant Memory Locations 10
- Examine System Configuration 14
- Initializing Maximizer Memory 17
- Loading Disk Buffers 28
- Loading Device Drivers 30
- Loading TSR Programs 33
- Display Memory Map 37
- Disconnecting Upper Memory Blocks 40
-
-
-
- What is Maximizer TM?
-
- Maximizer is a complete memory manager program for your IBMTM or
- IBM compatible compatible computer system. Regardless of the
- type of computer you have, if your are experiencing memory
- problems the odds are that Maximizer has a solution for you.
- Maximizer technology works on the concept of utilizing the
- unused, and otherwise wasted, memory above the 640K more commonly
- known as "Upper Memory Blocks". Maximizer is designed to run as a
- software only (no hardware needed) on IBM/AT compatible systems
- equipped with an 80386/80386sx/80486 processor chips. These
- processors are capable of virtual memory techniques which allow
- the use of extended memory in the MS-DOS region. Maximizer will
- use some of the extended memory to fill the vacant Upper Memory
- Blocks and use them. Maximizer can also be used to cache or
- shadow your ROMs (i.e. Bios, Video ...etc) and control the
- allocation of XMS memory for your programs. Maximizer also works
- as software only on IBM/AT compatible systems equipped with the
- Neat 286 or Neat 386 ChipSet from Chips & Technology Corp.
- Maximizer will use the shadow RAM feature of the Neat ChipSet to
- add Upper Memory Blocks to the MS-DOS. If your computer system is
- not one of the above (i.e. 8088 or 80286 without Neat ChipSet)
- the you must use either the Max-8 or Max-16 Memory Adapters, with
- their own memory on board, to provide Upper Memory Blocks for
- your system.
-
- How It Works
-
- The MS-DOS operating system is based on the 8086/8088 processors
- which can address a maximum of one mega bytes of system memory
- organized as sixteen Segments of 64K bytes each (see figure 1).
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- Figure 1 - MSDOS System Memory Map
-
-
- Maximizer can increase the available MS-DOS Program Memory by
- utilizing locations reserved for the optional video display
- systems. For example, if your video display is a Monochrome or
- Hercules, there is an unused 64K memory block in the video
- memory area which can be added to the MS-DOS Program Memory
- giving your system an additional 64K bytes. A computer system
- with a CGA video adapter can use Maximizer to increase the MS-DOS
- Program Memory by 96K for a total of 736K bytes. Figure 2 shows
- how a typical computer can use available video memory to increase
- MS-DOS Program Memory.
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- Figure 2 - How Maximizer Works
-
-
- Maximizer can also save precious MS-DOS Program Memory by using
- the memory locations reserved for System ROM Expansion. If
- unused, this Upper Memory region can form additional blocks of
- memory of up to 256K Bytes. Although these Upper Memory Blocks
- are non-contiguous to the MS-DOS Program Memory, they can be
- used to load TSR programs, Device Drivers and Disk Buffers,
- which normally reside below 640K (see Figure 2). Maximizer can
- utilize memory blocks as small as 4K bytes and therefore can
- share a segment with others that may be using only a part of the
- segment. For example, a typical ArcNet network adapter card
- uses 200 bytes beginning at address D000. Maximizer can utilize
- the balance of Segment D starting at next 4K address which is
- D100. Unlike Expanded (EMS) or Extended memory, Maximizer uses
- the Conventional memory locations of MS-DOS that are "Vacant" and
- are usable by virtually any program. Maximizer can even be used
- in conjunction with Expanded or Extended memory. Some
- applications (i.e. FoxBase+, MenuWorks Advanced, PC-Xview) can
- also recognize and use the Upper Memory Blocks within their
- application. Maximizer has been tested with many Network
- operating systems including: Novell, 3-Com, ViaNet, Banyan,
- TOPS, PowerLAN, Network-OS, 10Net and AT&T StarLAN.
-
-
- System Requirement
-
- Maximizer works as software only with all IBM/AT compatible
- systems with 80386/80386sx/80486 processors or 80286 computers
- using the Neat ChipSet from Chips & Technology Corp. If your
- computer system is not one of the above (i.e. 8088 or 80286
- without Neat ChipSet) then you must use either the Max-8 or
- Max-16 Memory Adapters with their own memory on board to provide
- Conventional and Upper Memory. Maximizer software requires MS-DOS
- 3.1 or higher.
-
- Memory Requirement
-
- If Maximizer is being used as a software only then you must have
- at least 384K bytes of extended memory. With the Neat ChipSet
- Maximizer will use the Shadow RAM area between 640K and 1 Meg (no
- extended memory needed).
-
-
-
- Warning:
- On the Neat 286 and Neat 386sx computers equipped with one Mega
- byte of main memory, the 384K of shadow RAM can be relocated and
- used as Expanded or Extended memory. Maximizer program will reset
- the relocation bit which disables your Expanded or Extended
- memory feature. You must reset this bit in the CMOS memory also.
- If you computer uses the Neat 386 or if you have more than one
- Mega byte of main memory this problem does not affect your
- environment.
-
-
- Technical Support
-
- SoftNet offers free technical support to registered users of
- Maximizer Memory Manager. Before contacting our technical
- personnel please take the time to read this manual. This may
- save you and us a considerable amount of time. If you have to
- contact us it would be advisable to have access to the computer
- in question during your call. You may call or Fax your
- questions addressed to our technical staff at the following
- numbers:
- (212) 302-7060 Tel.
- (212) 302-0242 Fax.
- 10 AM to 4:30 PM
-
-
- INSTALLATION
-
- Maximizer software is automatically installed on your computer
- using the INSTALL.EXE program supplied on the distribution disk.
- This program will display the copyright notice and ask for your
- name and the destination path. Your name will be embedded in the
- MAXIMIZE.COM program as the registered owner of this program. To
- invoke INSTALL place the distribution disk in a floppy drive.
- Logon to that drive and type install:
-
- A:\>INSTALL <CR>
-
- Follow the instructions on the screen. The INSTALL program will
- display the license agreement message and will ask you for your
- name and a sub-directory for the Maximizer program files.
- After MAXIMIZE has been properly registered INSTALL will type the
- README.MAX file to your screen or you may exit by pressing ESC.
- Online help is available at any prompt by pressing the F1 key.
-
- Warning:
- Tampering with the program files (i.e. altering copyrights and/or
- serial numbers) will make the program in-operable.
-
-
- If you have an 80386/80486 computer then re-boot your computer
- system after INSTALL has been completed. The INSTALL program
- will modify your config.sys file to include a XMS memory driver.
- Maximizer will not operate without this driver.
-
-
-
- MAXIMIZE program can be run from its menu or from the MS-DOS
- command line. The menu system provides online help to facilitate
- the installation and testing. Once you have established the
- proper configuration for your computer, use the command line
- option in your autoexec.bat file to automatically setup your
- environment on startup. To run the MAXIMIZE program in the menu
- mode just run the program from the MS-DOS prompt:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE <CR>
-
- The Maximizer Main Menu will display along with a list of
- available options:
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- Each option has a short and a long help. The short help is
- always dispalyed when using the menu and the long help can be
- invoked by entering a "?" in place of command line arguments.
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (TEST Option)
- Identify Vacant Memory Locations
-
- Before any conventional and/or Upper Memory Blocks can be
- initialized you must test the system memory and identify the
- unused memory locations. This information is then used to select
- the proper command line for the ADD utility which initializes
- these memory locations. The TEST option of the MAXIMIZE program
- examines the system memory and reports the found memory
- locations. The system memory may be any number of the following:
-
- RAM (DOS)
- Video (type) - Available
- Video (type) - In Use
- ROM
- RAM
- Shadow RAM
- Available
-
-
- To invoke TEST, use the "T" option from the menu or enter the
- following command line:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE TEST <CR>
-
-
- The TEST option will first display a warning message and them
- will proceed to examine your system memory. Notice that the TEST
- option is usefull both before and after installing the Maximizer.
- You will use the TEST option before installation to identify
- vacant and unused locations and after installation to verify
- proper installation of Maximizer. The following is a sample TEST
- result, before installation, from a 80386 computer with a
- monochrome video adapter and a RLL disk controller:
-
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- For the above example the available locations are from A000-B000,
- C000-C800 and CC00-F800. There is a 16K ROM at C800-CC00 which
- belongs to the RLL disk controller. We also have an NE-1000
- Network Controller which uses DMA channels and therefore does not
- use any Upper Memory. Upon further examination we also found
- that there is another "improper" ROM at F000-F800 which is an
- extension to system Bios ROM. The reason for it not showing up
- under TEST is because it does not conform to the proper IBM
- Expansion ROM format. The TEST results are not always conclusive
- as is the case of our example where there is an "improper" ROM
- installed. The TEST option should be used in conjunction with
- other sources to determine the vacant memory locations. The
- TEST result also shows the presence of Neat ChipSet in this
- computer. Further information about the Neat ChipSet is
- displayed at the bottom which relates to the shadow RAM areas and
- their status. We have the option of using either the Neat
- ChipSet or the 80386 processor to add both conventional and
- Upper Memory Blocks. In this example we used the 80386 option in
- order to cache the RLL disk controller ROM for increased
- performance. The following is the TEST result, after
- installation of Maximizer, using the information we obtained
- above:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
-
- Notice that our RAM (DOS) was increased by 64K bytes. The
- Available Range A000-B000 was added as MS-DOS Program Memory
- because the Monochrome video does not use that range. The ROM at
- C800-CC00 has become Shadow RAM because it was cached (replaced
- with RAM) by Maximizer. This will increase the performance of
- the disk controller becasue ROM always has many wait-states (as
- much as 6 cycles) where RAM usually has none. Other memory ranges
- where added as Upper Memory Blocks (C000-C800 & CC00-F000) and
- they now show up as RAM where before they were listed as
- Available. Notice that F000-F800 range is still Available since
- we had concluded that it contains an "improper" ROM and we
- intentionally avoided that range . Also note that we could have
- cached the two System ROMs also except that our examination
- showed that they are already being cached by the Neat ChipSet.
- This shows the level of flexibility you have with memory
- allocation under Maximizer.
-
-
- Notice :
- Some adapter cards have HIDDEN memory (i.e. IBM Token Ring
- Network Adapter) which can not be identified by the TEST option.
- These adapters enable their memory only when they are needed.
- You must consult your technical manuals to identify the used
- memory locations in addition to the TEST results.
-
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (SYSTEM Option)
- Display System Configuration
-
- The SYSTEM option displays how your computer system is
- configured. It may be used to confirm proper installation of the
- Maximizer or to troubleshoot problems encountered during
- installation or use. The information displayed includes:
-
- Type of processor installed (and mode for 80286, 80386 and 80486)
- Whether a coprocessor is installed
- Model specific information (model bytes, BIOS revision, features)
- System extensions (Extended BIOS Data, Virtual DMA)
- Video adapter information
- Available memory (System, Extended, Expanded and XMS)
-
- To invoke SYSTEM, use the "S" option from the menu or enter the
- following command line:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE SYSTEM <CR>
-
-
- The following is a sample SYSTEM result, before installation,
- from a 80386 computer with two Mega bytes of memory and a
- monochrome video adapter:
-
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- The SYSTEM data above confirms that we have installed a XMS
- driver in this computer. The 1024K extended memory was converted
- to XMS memory of which a 64K page is used as HMA. The balance
- of 960K is usable by any program capable of using XMS memory.
- In fact, Maximizer is one such program which uses XMS memory .
- Since we are planning to use the 80386 processor with the
- Maximizer it is important to note that enough XMS memory exists
- to accomodate the necessary memory allocations. Also notice that
- the processor is now in Real mode since Maximizer (or any other
- protected mode program) is not installed. It is important to
- mention that only one protected mode program may be run at any
- one time. If a protected mode program was running at this time
- we would be unable to install the Maximizer.
-
-
-
- The following is the SYSTEM configuration data after Maximizer
- was installed as per above mentioned example:
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- Notice that the XMS memory was reduced from 960K down to 677K
- bytes which is what was used by the Maximizer to pagein the
- requested blocks of memory. The balance is now available for
- other programs using XMS memory. Also notice that the processor
- is now running is protected mode and Virtual DMA is active.
- This means that Maximizer has been successfully installed and is
- now in control of the 80386 processor in Protected Mode.
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (ADD Option)
- Initializing Maximizer Memory
-
- After TEST and SYSTEM options are used to identify vacant memory
- blocks the next step is to Initialize these memory blocks for
- use with MS-DOS. The initialization process is done by the ADD
- option. This step is perhaps the most crucial and where most
- users encounter difficulty. There are four types of Maximizer
- systems and the Maximize program works the same way on all of
- them execpt for the ADD function. Each of the four types has
- its own charateristics and capabilities that may or may not be
- present in the others. Please use the table below to determine
- characteristics of each type of Maximizer: {GRAPHIC}
-
-
-
- The ADD utility has many opcodes which are entered on the command
- line. Each opcode has a default value which will be assumed if
- ommited. Please remember that all opcodes are not available on
- some computers or Maximizer types. Opcodes may appear in any
- order on the command line. Maximize program will sort them in
- the proper order. Available opcodes are:
-
- Video This opcode determines how much contiguous memory is
- added to your MS-DOS Program Memory. By indicating your video
- type Maximizer will know if there are any unused video memory
- locations and will proceed to test and initialize them.
-
- Valid Options:
- MDA, HERCULES, CGA, EGA, VGA, 8514A
-
- Default:
- VGA
-
- Type This opcode identifies which type of Maximizer you are
- using. Although in most cases the default condition is the best
- choice it may be necessary to override the default by using the
- appropriate opcode.
-
- Valid Options:
- MAX8, MAX16, MAX386, MAXNEAT
-
- Default:
- Determined by Maximize program in the following order:
- MAXNEAT, MAX386, MAX16, MAX8
-
-
-
- RAM= This opcode specifies one or more Upper Memory Blocks to
- be initialized. These blocks are specified by their hexadecimal
- paragraph notations. Multiple blocks are delimited by a comma
- without any spaces.
-
- Syntax:
- RAM=range1[,range2][,range3] ......
- The range(s) are in Hexadecimal format.
-
- Example:
- RAM=C800-D000,D400-E000
-
- Default:
- None
-
-
- ROM= This opcode specifies one or more ROMs to be replaced
- with RAM (caching or shadowing). The ROM addresses are specified
- by their hexadecimal paragraph notations. Multiple blocks are
- delimited by a comma without any spaces.
-
- Syntax:
- ROM=range1[,range2][,range3] ......
- The range(s) are in Hexadecimal format.
-
- Example:
- ROM=C000-C600,F800-0000
-
- Default:
- None
-
- Special Notes:
- This opcode is only available on 80386/80386sx/80486 computers.
- If you are caching the System Bios ROM the proper range is
- specified as F800-0000 instead of F800-FFFF.
-
-
-
- DMA= This opcode specifies maximum Virtual DMA buffer size
- supported (12 to 128 KBytes). The DMA buffers work the same way
- as DOS Buffers do but only effect devices that use DMA channels.
-
- Syntax:
- DMA=xxx
- Where xxx is the buffer size in KBytes. This number is decimal format.
-
- Example:
- DMA=64
-
- Default:
- DMA=12
-
- Special Notes:
-
- This argument is only available on 80386/80386sx/80486 computers.
-
-
- You may run the ADD option from the MS-DOS command line or from
- the menu. Maximize program verifies all opcodes entered and if
- it encounters a syntax error it responds by pointing to the first
- error with a brief description of the error. For example, if you
- enter a command line which has an error in the RAM= opcode:
-
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE ADD VGA RM=D000-F000 <CR>
-
-
- Maximize program will respond with the following:
-
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- The up-arrow indicates exactly where the problem occured and the
- "Invalid Opcode" phrase undeneath indicates that the Maximizer
- did not recognize the opcode which in this case was simply
- mis-spelled.
-
-
- Notice :
- You may enter opcodes in any order. The Maximize program will
- sort any verify all opcodes before executing. The same syntax
- check is also performed when in menu mode. For example, the
- following is the Maximizer response when an invalid decimal range
- was specified for the DMA= opcode:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- Again the up-arrow indicates exactly where the problem occured
- and the "Invalid Decimal number" phrase undeneath provides
- adequate hints for users to quickly isolate and correct the
- problem. In this case the letter "K" was inserted by mistake.
- The correct opcode would be DMA=64.
-
-
-
- Now lets continue with our previous example for which we obtained
- the TEST results. Since the computer in question has both the
- Neat ChipSet and an 80386sx processor the "MAXNEAT" opcode
- becomes the default condition since it has higher priority over
- "MAX386". Therefore, command line must include the keyword
- "MAX386" to override the default condition. To perform ADD from
- the Maximizer menu select the "A" option and enter the proper
- opcodes. The following shows how Maximizer will respond:
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- Notice that our opcode list exceeded the available line length
- and the balance was on the second line. It is permissable to
- exceed the 80 column limit of the video display and wrap the
- balance of the opcodes on the second line.
-
-
-
- Same command may be executed from the MS-DOS command prompt , or
- from within autoexec.bat file as follows:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE ADD MDA MAX386 RAM=C000-C800,CC00-F000 ROM=C800-CC00 <CR>
-
-
- Which will result in the following from Maximizer:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- The ADD utility will start initializing conventional memory from
- the top of MS-DOS Program Memory, currently at A000 (640K), and
- test the newly added memory to B000 (704K) which is the maximum
- for an MDA system. This memory is added to MS-DOS Program
- Memory. A chkdsk will actually show that there is 720K bytes of
- total memory.
-
-
-
- Next, the Upper Memory range(s) will be initialized as specified
- on the ADD command line by the RAM= opcode. In this example,
- there are two ranges specified which are B800-C800 and
- CC00-F000. And finally the requested ROM range is replaced with
- RAM as indicated by the ROM=C800-CC00 opcode. The caching
- process copies the specified range(s) into RAM and write-protects
- the RAM so that it acts like a ROM except the code executes much
- faster.
-
- Notice :
- If ANY errors are encountered the entire ADD process is aborted
- and NONE of the requested Upper Memory or Conventional Memory
- blocks are initialized.
-
-
- Since in this example we are using the 80386 processor for memory
- allocation, our XMS memory will be reduced by the sum of the
- memory ranges that were paged plus some overhead (about 40K) for
- the Maximizer program code itself.
-
-
- Notice :
- The Upper Memory range(s) must start on 4K or 16K boundaries
- depending on Maximizer type of Maximizer system is being used.
- For Example, with an ArcNet card that uses only 200 bytes at
- address D000 (D000-D080) the next usable 4K boundary is at D100
- and the next 16K boundary is at D400. Similarly, you may not
- cache a ROM which has addresses that do not fall on the 4K
- boundaries or else un-predictable results will occur.
-
-
-
- There are several ways to double check and see if the ADD option
- has been installed properly. You can use either the TEST, SYSTEM
- or MAP option. At this stage we recommand the TEST option to
- verify proper installation. Using the TEST option we can see if
- the desired memory blocks are now filled with RAM instead of
- Available. Below is the TEST result right after we performed the
- ADD:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- The previously Available Range A000-B000 was added as MS-DOS
- Program Memory so that the top of our RAM (DOS) is at B000
- instead of A000. The ROM at C800-CC00 has become Shadow RAM
- because it was cached (replaced with RAM) by Maximizer. Other
- memory ranges where added as Upper Memory Blocks (C000-C800 &
- CC00-F000) and they now show up as RAM where before they were
- listed as Available. At this point the MS-DOS Program Memory
- has been increased by 64K bytes and this extra memory is
- available to all programs. The ROM caching is also completed and
- its effect is immediately observed. Also note that all ADD
- opcodes are optional and they operate independently. For example
- it if permissable to just use the unused video memory and nothing
- else:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE ADD MDA <CR>
-
- is a perfectly valid and often used option. In this case the
- user has decided that a 64K byte increase to MS-DOS Program
- Memory is all he wants. However, to use the Upper Memory Blocks
- you will need to use the BUFFERS, DEVICE and LOAD options. These
- functions will utlize the Upper Memory Blocks to run Buffers,
- Device Drivers and TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) programs.
-
-
- Notice :
- Maximizer does not modify the MS-DOS System Files or the CMOS
- Memory Configuration. The resident portion of the Maximize
- program is only about 400 bytes which remains in the Program
- Memory below 640K. Maximizer statements must be lexecuted
- everytime MS-DOS is loaded. To remove Maximizer TSR from the
- system memory you must re-boot MS-DOS.
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (BUFFERS Option)
- Loading Disk Buffers
-
- The BUFFERS option of Maximize program is used to load MS-DOS
- Disk Buffers in Upper Memory Blocks. This option, as with any of
- the Maximizer options, is used after boot time and can be run
- directly from your autoexec.bat file. The BUFFERS option is
- currently available on MS-DOS 3.xx only. To use this option,
- first reduce the number of buffers in the config.sys files to a
- minimum (i.e. buffers = 1).
-
-
- Notice : If no buffers statement appears in the config.sys file
- MS-DOS will assign a minimum number by itself (usually between
- 8-15).
-
-
- To invoke BUFFERS use the "B" option from the menu or from the
- command line enter the following:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE BUFFERS nn
-
- Where nn is the number of Disk Buffers you want to add. If you
- do not enter any arguments then BUFFERS will simply display the
- total number of Disk Buffers in your system. For example, in our
- example we need a total of 30 Disk Buffers in the system. Our
- config.sys file has buffers=1 and we entered the following in our
- autoexec.bat file:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE BUFFERS 29
-
- Which resulted in the following from the Maximize program:
-
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- The total buffers in the system is now 30 with only one buffer
- located below 640K and the balance in Upper Memory Blocks. Each
- buffer can save a minimum of 528 bytes and as much as 4K bytes
- depending on the sector size.
-
-
- Notice :
- You must execute the ADD option before you can use
- BUFFERS, DEVICE or LOAD options. You may use the BUFFERS option
- at any time after ADD. It is not necessary for BUFFERS to be
- executed before any DEVICE or LOAD although it is a good idea. To
- remove the added Disk Buffers from your system you must re-boot
- your computer.
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (DEVICE Option)
- Loading Device Drivers
-
- The DEVICE option of Maximize program is used to load MS-DOS
- Device Drivers in Upper Memory Blocks. This option, as with any
- of the Maximizer options, is used after boot time and can be run
- directly from your autoexec.bat file. To use this option, first
- remove the Device Drivers to be loaded in Upper Memory Blocks
- from the config.sys file. To invoke DEVICE, use the "D" option
- from the menu or from the command line enter the following:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE DEVICE pathname [arguments]
-
-
- Where pathname is replaced with the filename of the Device Driver
- to load in Upper Memory Blocks. If the Device Driver requires
- command line arguments they should be entered after pathname. If
- the file is not in the current directory or in the PATH
- environment variable, the full path must be specified. The
- DEVICE option can be used as many times as needed until there is
- no Upper Memory Blocks left. DEVICE can not load multiple Device
- Drivers on a single command line. Example:
-
- MAXIMIZE DEVICE ANSI.SYS
- MAXIMIZE DEVICE VDISK.SYS 200 /E
-
-
- Notice :
- The DEVICE utility will use the PATH environment variable to
- search for the Device Driver. The full pathname need not be
- specified if the file is in your PATH.
-
-
-
- The following shows how a Device Driver was loaded from the
- Maximize menu:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- In loading this Device Driver we had to enter the full pathname
- because the sub-directory was not included in our PATH
- environment. To verify that the Device Driver was loaded
- properly use the MAP option from the menu to display the system
- memory map. The following example shows how DEVICE was used to
- load a Device Driver from the command prompt:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE DEVICE ANSI.SYS <CR>
-
- Produced the following from Maximizer:
-
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- The message "Device Driver loaded successfully" is an indication
- that Maximizer was able to execute the Device Driver in Upper
- Memory Blocks. If Maximizer encounters an error in loading this
- Device Driver it will respond with an error message and will
- abort the load process.
-
-
-
-
- Notice :
- You must execute the ADD option before you can use BUFFERS,
- DEVICE or LOAD options. You may use the DEVICE option at any
- time after ADD and in any sequence. Device Drivers do not have
- any unload feature. To remove the Device Drivers from your
- system you must re-boot your computer.
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (LOAD Option)
- Loading TSR Programs
-
- The LOAD option of Maximize program is used to load TSR programs
- (Terminate and Stay Resident) in Upper Memory Blocks. Most
- network shells, like IPX.COM and NET3.COM are TSR programs. This
- option, as with any of the Maximizer options, is used after boot
- time and can be run directly from your autoexec.bat file. To use
- this option, first remove the TSRs to load in Upper Memroy
- Blocks from the autoexec.bat file. To invoke LOAD, use the "L"
- option from the menu or from the command line enter the
- following:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE LOAD pathname [arguments]
-
-
- Where pathname is replaced with the filename of the TSR program
- to load in Upper Memory Blocks. If the pathname does not
- contain an extent, LOAD first attempts to find a COM file. If
- unable to locate a COM file a search is performed for an EXE
- file. If the TSR requires command line arguments they should be
- entered after pathname. Example:
-
- MAXIMIZE LOAD CARDFILE PHONE
-
- The LOAD option can be used as many times as needed until there
- is no Upper Memory Blocks left. LOAD can not load multiple TSRs
- on a single command line. Example:
-
- MAXIMIZE LOAD IPX
- MAXIMIZE LOAD NET3
-
-
- Loads the Novell TSR shells in Upper Memory Blocks.
-
-
-
-
- Notice :
- The LOAD utility will use the PATH environment variable to
- search for the filename. The full pathname need not be specidied
- if the file is in your PATH. If no extent is specified, LOAD
- first attempts to locate a COM file. If unable to locate a COM
- file, a search is then performed for an EXE file.
-
-
- In the example below a mouse driver TSR was loaded directly from
- Maximizer menu:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
-
- Notice that we did not need to specify any path or extent (.COM)
- for the file. The file was already in our PATH environment. In
- the following example a special test TSR program, named TEST.COM,
- was loaded from the MS-DOS command prompt:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE LOAD TEST This is a test <CR>
-
-
- This program will display whatever is typed as arguments for the
- program:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
- Notice again that we omitted the extent since LOAD automatically
- assumes a .COM or .EXE extent for the named file. This program
- was in our current directory (C:\MAX) and therefore the full
- pathname was not needed.
-
-
-
- All MS-DOS programs, including TSRs, need a contiguous amount
- of free memory in order to execute. The memory size requirement
- varies but at a minimum it must be equal or greater than the file
- size. Many TSRs actually expand in size when executed. Since
- all MS-DOS programs must run in one contiguous memory block there
- must be adequate free memory (Upper Memory or Program Memory)
- provided before loading. Some TSRs require more memory to load
- but their TSR size is actually smaller than the file size. One
- such program is the Microsoft Mouse driver installed as an
- example case previously. If you are experiencing such memory
- usage problems try juggling the sequence. Maximizer options
- (BUFFERS, DEVICE and LOAD) can be used in any sequence. You may
- find that loading BUFFERS last might save the day.
-
-
- Notice :
- You must execute the ADD option before you can use BUFFERS,
- DEVICE or LOAD options. You may use the LOAD option at any time
- after ADD and in any sequence. If the TSR program has an unload
- feature simply use the same command syntax as though the program
- was not loaded in Upper Memory Blocks. Otherwise to remove the
- TSR program from memory you must re-boot your computer.
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (MAP Option)
- Display Memory Map
-
- The MAP option of the Maximize program displays how the entire
- one Mega byte of MS-DOS memory is allocated. This option is used
- frequently both before and after installtion of Maximizer. When
- used before Maximizer has been installed the MAP option will only
- display the TSR programs as well as free memory blocks. The
- Device Drivers and Disk Buffers are shown as one lump sum under
- the config.sys file and are not displayed seperately. However,
- once Maximizer has been installed the Device Drivers loaded with
- the DEVICE option will be displayed seperately along with all TSR
- programs.
-
-
- Notice :
- Some TSR programs release their environment to save memory. MAP
- option may not be able to display their names or command lines.
- In most cases the name is displayed as [Unknown] when such a TSR
- program is encountered.
-
- To invoke MAP, use the "M" option from the menu or enter the
- following from command line:
-
- C:\MAX>MAXIMIZE MAP <CR>
-
- For example, the following is a sample output from the MAP which
- was run on a Neat 386 computer with a Hercules video adapter:
-
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- PSP is the Program Segment Prefix or where the program starts in
- memory. Blocks indicates number of Memory Control Blocks (MCB)
- used by the program. The size and the name of the program is
- displayed next along with the command line that was executed. In
- the above example the ADD line shows the unused MDA video memory
- and two Upper Memory Blocks were initialized (C000 thru C800 and
- CC00 thru F000). Since the video adapter was a MDA system the
- total Program Memory was increased to 720K bytes at the start.
- The available Program Memory is at PSP = 0FBB and is 657392 bytes
- long. A chkdsk will actually show this many bytes is available.
-
-
-
- The Upper Memory Blocks start at C000 and they contain a number
- of Device Drivers and TSR programs. In the above example,
- SMARTDRV.SYS and ANSI.SYS are two device drivers loaded with the
- DEVICE option. The [UNKNOWN] is the Microsoft Mouse TSR program
- which has released part of its environment. Other TSR programs
- are also loaded in Upper Memory and the largest available Upper
- Memory block is at PSP=E32D and is 52512 bytes long. We can
- still load other TSRs or Device Drivers in that unused Upper
- Memory. The 29 Buffers loaded in Upper Memory are at PSP=C000 but
- do not any environment to display under MAP. The only way to
- know whether Buffers are loaded in Upper Memory is to look for
- its TSR below 640K. If both the ADD and BUFFERS are executed
- from the menu at the same time then they will have only one TSR
- instead of two.
-
-
- MAXIMIZE.COM (SEVER Option)
- Disconnecting Upper Memory Blocks
-
- This option was created for some application programs which fail
- to execute properly when Maximizer is installed. MS-DOS
- maintains a linked list of Memory Contro Blocks (MCBs) to manage
- the allocation and release of system memory. When the ADD option
- of MAXIMIZE program is executed, the Upper Memory Blocks (UMBs)
- are chained on the linked list to the MCBs. Some software
- programs are smart enough to recognize and use the newly found
- UMBs. Some other ill-behaved applications do not know how to
- handle this additional memory and fail to execute properly. This
- option allows the link between the MCBs and the UMBs to be
- severed, which will allow such programs to operate. However,
- while the link is severed, the Maximizer options can not be
- executed. The already loaded Device Drivers, Buffers and TSRs
- will operate as normal. For example, the folowing shows how the
- link was severed using the menu option:
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
-
-
- When SEVER is invoke from the menu it displays the current status
- of the link between UMBs and MCBs. In this example the link is
- "Connected" which is default case. To sever the link press the
- letter "D" or to reconnect the link press "C". Same command can
- be issued from the command prompt:
-
- C:\MAX\MAXIMIZE C D <CR>
-
- As mentioned before, while the link is disconnected none of the
- Maximizer options will operate. For example, the following is
- the MAP result when the link is severed:
-
- {GRAPHIC}
-
- The Upper Memory Blocks are not displayed because the link is
- severed and MAP can not find the UMBs. Similarly BUFFERS, DEVICE
- and LOAD will not operate unitil the link is re-established.
-