System for automatically partitioning and formatting a primary hard disk for installing software in which selection of extended partition size is not related to size of hard disk

• US 6,138,179 A
• Filed: 10/01/1997
• Issued: 10/24/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Round Rock Research LLC
• Original Assignee: Micro Electronics Incorporated
• Inventors: Chrabaszcz, Michael, daSilva, Luis
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wang, Albert
• Application Number:
  US08/941,955
• Time in Patent Office: 1,119 Days
• Field of Search: 713/1, 713/2, 711/173, 395/712, 717/11, 710/10
• US Class Current: 710/10
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0626 Reducing size or complexity of storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0644 Management of space entities, e.g. partitions, extents, pools
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0676 Magnetic disk device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4406 Loading of operating system

Abstract

A system of automatically configuring and formatting a computer system and installing a prespecified software program in the computer system, which includes: a first partitioning module which automatically creates an active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system; a selection module which automatically selects a size value for an extended DOS partition; a second partitioning module which automatically creates the extended DOS partition, wherein the size of the extended DOS partition equals the selected size value; a formatting module which automatically formats each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition; and an install module which automatically executes a DOS batch file in order to install said prespecified application program.

Claims

1. A system for automatically configuring and formatting a computer system and installing a prespecified software program in the computer system, comprising:

a first partitioning module which automatically creates an active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

a selection module which automatically selects, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for an extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to said hard disk drive;

a second partitioning module which automatically creates the extended DOS partition, wherein the size of the extended DOS partition equals the selected size value; and

a formatting module which automatically formats each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition.

2. A system for automatically configuring and formatting a computer system and installing a prespecified software program in the computer system, comprising:

a first partitioning module which automatically creates an active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

a selection module which automatically selects, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for an extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive;

a second partitioning module which automatically creates the extended DOS partition, wherein the size of the extended DOS partition equals the selected size value;

a formatting module which automatically formats each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition; and

a prompt module which prompts a system operator to indicate whether the computer system is a single disk drive system or a dual disk drive system.

3. The system of claim 2 further comprising a reboot module which automatically reboots the computer system.

4. The system of claim 2 further comprising a CONFIG.SYS startup file and an AUTOEXEC.BAT startup file, wherein the CONFIG.SYS and the AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files are customized for installing the prespecified software application program.

5. The system of claim 4 further comprising:

a driver module which automatically copies a specified driver to the primary active DOS partition;

a startup file module which automatically copies the customized CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files to the primary active DOS partition; and

an OS module which automatically copies an operating system program to the primary active DOS partition.

6. The system of claim 5 further comprising an install module which automatically executes a DOS batch file in order to install said prespecified application program.

7. The system of claim 2 further comprising:

a first decision module which determines whether a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated by the system operator;

wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the first partitioning module automatically partitions a secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary active DOS partition which matches the primary active DOS partition of the primary hard disk drive; and

wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the second partitioning module automatically partitions the secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary extended DOS partition which matches the primary extended DOS partition of the primary hard disk drive.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the formatting module automatically formats the secondary active DOS partition and the secondary extended DOS partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each secondary partition.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising a copy module, wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the first copy module automatically copies information from the primary active DOS partition to the secondary active DOS partition.

10. The system of claim 7 wherein:

the first partitioning module comprises;

a first write module which writes information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS; and

a second write module which writes information from the Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS; and

the second partitioning module comprises;

a third write module which writes information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a third low level call to BIOS; and

a fourth write module which writes information from the Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a fourth low level call to BIOS.

11. The system of claim 2 wherein:

the first partitioning module comprises;

a first write module which writes information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS; and

the second partitioning module comprises; and

a second write module which writes information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS.

12. A system for automatically configuring and formatting a computer system and installing a prespecified software program in the computer system, comprising:

a first partitioning module which automatically creates an active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

a selection module which automatically selects, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for an extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to said hard disk drive;

a second partitioning module which automatically creates the extended DOS partition, wherein the size of the extended DOS partition equals the selected size value; and

a formatting module which automatically formats each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

wherein the selection module comprises;

a first decision module which determines a size of a random access memory of the computer system; and

a comparison module which compares the size to a reference value, wherein if the size is greater than the reference value, the size value for the primary extended DOS partition is set to a first value, and if the size is less than the reference value, the size value is set to a second value.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the first value is two gigabytes and the second value is one gigabyte.

14. A system for automatically configuring and formatting a computer system and installing a prespecified program, comprising:

a first memory device which is inserted into a first reading device of the computer system; and

a software program stored on a first memory device, wherein the software program comprises;

an operating system program;

a first partitioning module which automatically creates a primary active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

a selection module which automatically selects, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for an extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive for a primary extended DOS partition;

a second partitioning module which automatically creates the primary extended DOS partition, wherein the size of the primary extended DOS partition equals the selected size value;

a reboot module which automatically reboots the computer system;

a format module which automatically formats the primary active and extended DOS partitions so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

a driver module which automatically copies a specified driver to the primary active DOS partition;

a startup module which automatically copies customized CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files from a first memory device to the primary active DOS partition;

a second memory device which is inserted into a second reading device of the computer system, wherein the second memory device contains the prespecified program;

an install module which executes a DOS batch file in order to load said prespecified program from the second memory device into the computer system;

a prompt module which queries a system operator as to whether the computer system is a single hard disk drive system or a dual hard disk drive system;

a decision module which determines whether a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated by the system operator;

wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the first partitioning module automatically partitions a secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary active DOS partition which matches the primary active DOS partition of the primary hard disk drive; and

wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the second partitioning module automatically partitions the secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary extended DOS partition which matches the primary extended DOS partition of the primary hard disk drive.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the format module automatically formats the secondary active DOS partition and the secondary extended DOS partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each secondary partition.

16. The system of claim 15 further comprising a mirror module, wherein, if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, the mirror module automatically copies information from the primary active DOS partition to the secondary active DOS partition.

17. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the first partitioning module comprises;

a first write module which writes information from a Boot Record file contained on a first memory device to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS; and

a second write module which writes information from the Boot Record file contained on the first memory device to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS; and

the second partitioning module comprises;

a third write module which writes information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the first memory device to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a third low level call to BIOS; and

a fourth write module which writes information from the Extended Boot Record file contained on the first memory device to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a fourth low level call to BIOS.

18. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the first partitioning module comprises;

a first write module which writes information from a Boot Record file contained on a first memory device to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS; and

the second partitioning module comprises;

a second write module which writes information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the first memory device to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS.

19. A system for automatically configuring and formatting a computer system for installation of a prespecified application program in the computer system, comprising:

means for automatically creating a primary active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

means for automatically selecting, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for a primary extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive;

means for automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive, wherein the size of the primary extended DOS partition equals the selected size value;

means for automatically formatting each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

means for prompting a system operator to indicate whether the computer system is a single disk drive system or a dual disk drive system.

20. The system of claim 19 further comprising means for automatically rebooting the computer system.

21. The system of claim 19 further comprising means for executing an operating system program stored on a first memory device.

22. The system of claim 21 further comprising means for executing a CONFIG.SYS startup file and an AUTOEXEC.BAT startup file stored on the first memory device, wherein the CONFIG.SYS and the AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files are customized for installing the prespecified software application program.

23. The system of claim 22 further comprising:

means for automatically copying a specified driver to the primary active DOS partition;

means for automatically copying the customized CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files to the primary active DOS partition; and

means for automatically copying the operating system program to the primary active DOS partition.

24. The system of claim 23 further comprising means for installing said prespecified application program in said computer system.

25. The system of claim 19 further comprising:

means for determining whether a dual hard disk drive system has been selected by the system operator;

means for automatically partitioning a secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary active DOS partition which matches the primary active DOS partition created for the primary hard disk drive; and

means for automatically partitioning the secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary extended DOS partition which matches the primary extended DOS partition created for the primary hard disk drive.

26. The system of claim 25 further comprising means for automatically formatting the secondary active DOS partition and the secondary extended DOS partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each secondary partition.

27. The system of claim 26 further comprising means for automatically copying information from the primary active DOS partition to the secondary active DOS partition, if a dual hard disk drive system has been selected.

28. The system of claim 25 wherein:

the means for automatically creating the primary active DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS;

the means for automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS; and

the means for automatically creating the secondary active DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from the Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a third low level call to BIOS; and

the means for automatically creating the secondary extended DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from the Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a fourth low level call to BIOS.

29. The system of claim 19 wherein:

the means for automatically creating an active DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS; and

the means for automatically creating an extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS.

30. A system for automatically configuring and formatting a computer system for installation of a prespecified application program in the computer system, comprising:

means for automatically creating a primary active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

means for automatically selecting, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for a primary extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to said hard disk drive for a primary extended DOS partition;

means for automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive, wherein the size of the primary extended DOS partition equals the selected size value; and

means for automatically formatting each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

means for automatically selecting a size value based on a detected computer system parameter for the primary extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive, said selecting means comprising;

means for determining a size of a random access memory of the computer system;

means for comparing the size to a reference value; and

means for setting the size value of the extended DOS partition, wherein if the size is greater than the reference value, the size value for the primary extended DOS partition is set to a first value, and if the size is less than the reference value, the size value is set to a second value.

31. The system of claim 30 wherein the first value is two gigabytes and the second value is one gigabyte.

32. A system for automatically configuring and formatting a computer system and installing a prespecified program, comprising:

means for inserting a first memory device into a first reading device of the computer system;

means for supplying power to the computer system;

means for executing an operating system program in the computer system, wherein the operating system program is stored on the first memory device;

means for automatically creating a primary active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

means for automatically selecting, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for a primary extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive;

means for automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition, wherein the size of the primary extended DOS partition equals the selected size value;

means for automatically rebooting the computer system for a first time by making a first low level call to BIOS;

means for automatically formatting the primary active and extended DOS partitions so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

means for automatically copying a specified driver to the primary active DOS partition;

means for automatically copying customized CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files from the first memory device to the primary active DOS partition;

means for removing the first memory device from the first reading device;

means for automatically rebooting the computer system for a second time by making a second low level call to BIOS;

means for inserting a second memory device into a second reading device of the computer system, wherein the second memory device contains the prespecified program;

means for automatically executing a DOS batch file in order to install said prespecified program;

means for prompting a system operator as to whether the computer system is a single hard disk drive system or a dual hard disk drive system;

means for determining whether a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated by a system operator;

means for automatically partitioning a secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary active DOS partition which matches the primary active DOS partition created for the primary hard disk drive; and

means for automatically partitioning the secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary extended DOS partition which matches the primary extended DOS partition created for the primary hard disk drive.

33. The system of claim 32 further comprising means for automatically formatting the secondary active DOS partition and the secondary extended DOS partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each secondary partition.

34. The system of claim 33 further comprising means for automatically copying information from the primary active DOS partition to the secondary active DOS partition.

35. The system of claim 32 wherein:

the means for automatically creating the primary active DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS;

the means for automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS; and

the means for automatically creating the secondary active DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from the Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a third low level call to BIOS; and

the means for automatically creating the secondary extended DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises means for writing information from the Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a fourth low level call to BIOS.

36. A program storage device which stores instructions that when executed by a computer system performs a method of automatically configuring and formatting the computer system for installation of a prespecified application program in the computer system, wherein the method comprises:

automatically creating a primary active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

automatically selecting, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for a primary extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive;

automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive, wherein the size of the primary extended DOS partition equals the selected size value;

automatically formatting each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

automatically rebooting the computer system, after the act of automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition.

37. The device of claim 36 wherein the method further comprises executing an operating system software program stored on a first memory device.

38. The device of claim 37 wherein the method further comprises executing a CONFIG.SYS startup file and an AUTOEXEC.BAT startup file stored on a first memory device, wherein the CONFIG.SYS and the AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files are customized for installing the prespecified software application program.

39. The device of claim 38 wherein the method further comprises:

automatically copying a specified CD driver to the primary active DOS partition;

automatically copying the customized CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files to the primary active DOS partition; and

automatically rebooting the computer system.

40. The device of claim 39 wherein the method further comprises automatically executing a DOS batch file in order to install said prespecified application program.

41. The device of claim 36 wherein:

the act of automatically creating an active DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises writing information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS; and

the act of automatically creating an extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises writing information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS.

42. The device of claim 36 wherein the act of automatically selecting a size value for the primary extended DOS partition comprises:

determining a size of a random access memory of the computer system;

comparing the size to a reference value; and

setting the size value of the primary extended DOS partition, wherein if the size is greater than the reference value, the size value for the primary extended DOS partition is set to a first value, and if the size is less than the reference value, the size value is set to a second value.

43. The device of claim 42 wherein the first value is two gigabytes and the second value is one gigabyte.

44. A program storage device which stores instructions that when executed by a computer system performs a method of automatically configuring and formatting the computer system for installation of a prespecified application program in the computer system, wherein the method comprises:

automatically creating a primary active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

automatically selecting, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for a primary extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive;

automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive, wherein the size of the primary extended DOS partition equals the selected size value;

automatically formatting each partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

prompting a system operator to indicate whether the computer system is a single disk drive system or a dual disk drive system.

45. The device of claim 44 wherein the method further comprises:

determining whether a dual hard disk drive system has been selected by the system operator;

if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, automatically partitioning a secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary active DOS partition which matches the primary active DOS partition of the primary hard disk drive; and

if a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated, automatically partitioning the secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary extended DOS partition which matches the primary extended DOS partition of the primary hard disk drive.

46. The device of claim 45 wherein the method further comprises, if a dual hard disk drive system has been selected, automatically formatting the secondary active DOS partition and the secondary extended DOS partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each secondary partition.

47. The device of claim 46 wherein the method further comprises if a dual hard disk drive system has been selected, automatically copying information from the primary active DOS partition to the secondary active DOS partition.

48. The device of claim 45 wherein:

the act of automatically creating the primary active DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises writing information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS;

the act of automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises writing information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS; and

the act of automatically creating the secondary active DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises writing information from the Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a third low level call to BIOS; and

the act of automatically creating the secondary extended DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises writing information from the Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a fourth low level call to BIOS.

49. A program storage device which stores instructions that when executed by a computer perform a method of automatically configuring and formatting a computer system and installing a prespecified program, wherein the method comprises:

inserting a first memory device into a first reading device of the computer system;

supplying power to the computer system;

executing an operating system program in the computer system, wherein the operating system program is stored on a first memory device;

automatically creating a primary active DOS partition on a primary hard disk drive of the computer system;

automatically selecting, based on a detected computer system parameter, a size value for a primary extended DOS partition, wherein said detected computer system parameter is not related to the primary hard disk drive;

for a primary extended DOS partition;

automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition, wherein the size of the primary extended DOS partition equals the selected size value;

automatically rebooting the computer system for a first time by making a first low level call to BIOS;

automatically formatting the primary active and extended DOS partitions so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each partition;

automatically copying a specified CD driver to the primary active DOS partition;

automatically copying customized CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT startup files from a first memory device to the primary active DOS partition;

removing a first memory device from a first reading device;

automatically rebooting the computer system for a second time by making a second low level call to BIOS;

inserting a second memory device into a second reading device of the computer system, wherein a second memory device contains the prespecified program;

automatically executing a DOS batch file in order to install said prespecified program;

prompting a system operator as to whether the computer system is a single hard disk drive system or a dual hard disk drive system;

determining whether a dual hard disk drive system has been indicated by a system operator;

if a dual hard disk drive architecture has been selected, automatically partitioning a secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary active DOS partition which matches the primary active DOS partition created for the primary hard disk drive; and

if a dual hard disk drive system has been selected, automatically partitioning the secondary hard disk drive so as to create a secondary extended DOS partition which matches the primary extended DOS partition created for the primary hard disk drive.

50. The device of claim 49 wherein the method further comprises, if a dual hard disk drive system has been selected, automatically formatting the secondary active DOS partition and the secondary extended DOS partition so as to create a root directory and a file allocation table for each secondary partition.

51. The device of claim 50 wherein the method further comprises if a dual hard disk drive system has been selected, automatically copying information from the primary active DOS partition to the secondary active DOS partition.

52. The device of claim 49 wherein:

the act of automatically creating the primary active DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises writing information from a Boot Record file contained on a diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a first low level call to BIOS;

the act of automatically creating the primary extended DOS partition on the primary hard disk drive comprises writing information from an Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the primary hard disk drive by making a second low level call to BIOS; and

the act of automatically creating the secondary active DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises writing information from the Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a third low level call to BIOS; and

the act of automatically creating the secondary extended DOS partition on the secondary hard disk drive comprises writing information from the Extended Boot Record file contained on the diskette to appropriate sectors on the secondary hard disk drive by making a fourth low level call to BIOS.