How to Install DOS

DOS is an early operating system from Microsoft that for the most part has now been replaced by Microsoft Windows. However, people still like to use DOS commands for activities like playing DOS games or using DOS programs like Robot. Since DOS is an older interface from Windows, the method to install DOS can also seem a little old-fashioned.

Steps

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    Purchase the DOS installation disks (they come in a set of 3 floppy disks). Usually you can purchase the set of floppy disks and an external floppy disk drive if needed for a very affordable price.
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    Insert the first installation disk in the floppy disk drive and restart your computer. The first disk is a bootable disk so you should see an option to hit a key to boot from the disk (the exact key can vary depending on which computer you have).
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    Hit the key to boot from the floppy drive. Your computer will abandon the usual boot process and instead you will see a blue screen with Microsoft DOS setup menu.
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    Press the Enter key on your keyboard to continue with the setup process.
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    Select "Configure first hard disk (recommended)" by hitting the Enter key again.
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    Read the information on the Caution window. You may want to consider the following options before continuing to install DOS.Press F3 if you want to back up your files. You will be exited from the DOS installation process.Hit the Escape key if you want to return to the previous window to review your choices.
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    Wait while your system configurations are checked. After configuration check has completed your hard drive will be formatted using the FAT16 file system. Press the "Y" key on your keyboard if you want to continue installing DOS. The setup program will now continue to configure your hard drive and then restart your computer.
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    Confirm your date/time, country and keyboard layout in the next window. You can use your cursor keys to change the selections. If all settings are correct, you can highlight "The settings are correct" and press Enter.
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    Install DOS in the default directory by leaving the directory location unchanged in the next window and just hitting Enter.
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    Let your computer copy the files from the first installation disk. A status bar will appear so you can see the progress.
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    Replace disk 1 with disk 2 when prompted and hit Enter to continue. You will see the status bar appear again.
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    Take out disk 2 and insert disk 3 when the next prompt window appears and press Enter. This will allow files to be copied from the third installation disk until all files have been copied.
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    Remove the final disk from your floppy drive when you see the message appear that says "Remove disks from all floppy disk drives." Press Enter after your floppy drive has been emptied.
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    Press Enter to restart your computer when you get to the window titled "MS-DOS Setup Complete."
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Warnings

  • Data can be deleted while installing DOS if you format your hard drive. Create hard drive partitions or backup your important files to avoid data loss.
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Things You'll Need

  • DOS installation disks
  • External floppy drive

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References

  1. http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000866.htm
  2. http://en.kioskea.net/contents/dos/dosinst.php3
  3. http://www.windowsreinstall.com/install/msdos/install622/page1.htm

About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 11 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 94,186 times.
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Co-authors: 11
Updated: January 21, 2022
Views: 94,186
Categories: Operating Systems
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