MSDOS SUBSET Win XP Pro

Clarifications

DOS and Windows XP is slightly incongruous as, although there is a Command Line that exists inside XP, it is intrinsically NOT MS-DOS.

Back in the days of MS-DOS, high memory (himem.sys / emm386.exe) was the extra 384 [u]bytes[/u] above the 640 [u]bytes[/u] [that is - the first Megabyte] normally reserved for System control.

MS-DOS proper, disappeared with the advent of XP along with 'autoexec.bat' and 'config.sys'.

What are you booting from?

Old Mycroft is spot on, you don't need to modify anything for the cmd prompt windows operations. You may have a compatibility issue with certain programs though.
You can tweak these programs by choosing their properties and modifing the settings. Or you can run the Wizard. The wizard can be accessed from the Start - All Programs - Accessories Menu or from the Help and support center.
What used to change in Config.sys and autoexec.bat are now handeled through system32\autoexec.nt and config.nt.
XP does look at the autoexec.bat file during bootup, but will only use the PATH and SET commands. NTVDM.exe pretty much handles MS-DOS programs.

This is what I got from you today:

[i]One of your fellow TechRepublic members has sent you a private message:

From: sid_kraft@...
Subject: MSDOS Memory
Message:
Hi Mark: I am booting from a hard disk with the Win XP OS on it. I do agree with you but have been having trouble getting any information. I have heard, in the past, that the MSDOS subset in Win XP is not a true Dos environment and I am beginning to believe more and more that I cannot access higher memory using traditional Dos commands. And yes, I believe that I will have to create a separate boot disk with only Dos on the hard disk. Funny, only you have provided this information, all others have said that they do not use Dos anymore and could not let me know the correct commands to provide to the Op Sys. I also notice that in the Dos subset, there is a Autoexec.Bat and a Config.sys. However, they are empty and don't seem to be executable anyway! Sid Kraft[/i]

Now, although I can empathise with your difficulties, I'm still slightly in the dark as to what you are trying to achieve.

I initially wondered if you were attempting to utilise MS-DOS to access the top end of your 4GB of RAM, but then wondered if it might be simpler than that.

Without knowing what you are trying to do/run in a DOS environment I'm finding it difficult to suggest anything at all.

Have you considered using DOSBox at all? It will give you as close to an MS-DOS environment as you could hope for while still running under Windows control.

http://www.dosbox.com/

Perhaps you could let us know what you are wanting to use MS-DOS for? ;)