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Explanation of Hard Drive Options in the Image for DOS Menus

When creating or restoring an image, you are presented with several options for hard drive selection.  Here is an explanation of each of the options presented:

  • BIOS: Locates and accesses drives using the system BIOS. Please note that any problems or limitations inherent to the system BIOS will apply.

  • BIOS (Direct): Attempts to locate the hard drive using the system BIOS, but then attempts to access it directly, bypassing the BIOS. This can sometimes be helpful in cases where performance with the BIOS option is very poor. To get the most out of this option when creating an image, you should select a file (direct) – rather than file (os) – as the target for saving the image.

    • Note: Use BIOS (direct) when you are going to be accessing SATA hard drives and CD/DVD drives or using the BIOS (direct) option anywhere.
  • USB: Examines the attached USB controller, if any, for available high-speed hard drives.

  • IEEE1394: Examines the attached IEEE 1394 controller, if any, for available hard drives.

  • Virtual Drive: Enables you to select a single file virtual drive. More information on using virtual drives can be found in the Image for DOS manual.

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