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Q165503: Description of the File System Troubleshooting Options

Article: Q165503
Product(s): Microsoft Windows 95.x Retail Product
Version(s): 95
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbenv kbtool diskmem win95 kbDiskMemory
Last Modified: 28-JUL-2001

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Windows 95 
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SUMMARY
=======

The System tool in Control Panel contains a set of options for changing file
system performance settings. You can use these options when you experience
hardware or software compatibility problems.

NOTE: Enabling any of the file system troubleshooting options may seriously
degrade system performance.

MORE INFORMATION
================

To display the file system troubleshooting options, follow these steps:

1. In Control Panel, double-click System.

2. Click the Performance tab.

3. Click File System.

4. Click the Troubleshooting tab.

The following table describes the settings on the Troubleshooting tab:

  File system option    Description
  -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Disable New File      This option alters the internal rules for file
  Sharing And           sharing and locking on hard disks, governing
  Locking Semantics     whether certain processes can have access to
                        open files in certain share modes that guarantee
                        a file will not be modified. This option should
                        be checked only in the rare case that an
                        MS-DOS-based application has problems sharing
                        under Windows 95. This sets SoftCompatMode=0 in
                        the registry.

  Disable Long Name     This option turns off the tunneling feature,
  Preservation For      which preserves long filenames when files are
  Old Programs          opened and saved by applications that do not
                        recognize long filenames. This option should be
                        checked in the rare case that an important legacy
                        application is not compatible with long
                        filenames. This sets PreserveLongNames=0 in the
                        registry.

  Disable Protected-    This option prevents Windows 95 from terminating
  Mode Hard Disk        interrupts from the hard disk controller and
  Interrupt Handling    bypassing the ROM routine that handles these
                        interrupts. Some hard disk drives might require
                        this option to be checked in order for interrupts
                        to be processed correctly. If this option is
                        checked, the ROM routine handles the interrupts,
                        which slows system performance. This sets
                        VirtualHDIRQ=0 in the registry. (This setting is
                        off by default for all computers in Windows 95,
                        which is the reverse of Windows 3.x.)

  Disable All 32-Bit,   This option ensures that no 32-bit disk drivers
  Protected-Mode        are loaded in the system, except the floppy
  Disk Drivers          driver. Typically, you would check this option
                        if the computer does not start due to disk
                        peripheral I/O problems. If this option is
                        enabled, all I/O will go through real-mode
                        drivers or the BIOS. Notice that in this case,
                        all disk drives that are visible only in
                        protected mode will no longer be visible. This
                        sets ForceRMIO=1 in the registry.

  Disable Write-        This option ensures that all data is flushed
  Behind Caching        continually to the hard disk, removing any
  For All Drives        performance benefits gained from disk caching.
                        This option should be checked only in the rare
                        cases where you are performing risky operations
                        and must ensure prevention of data loss. For
                        example, a software developer who is debugging
                        data at Ring 0 while creating a virtual device
                        driver would check this option. This sets
                        DriveWriteBehind=0 in the registry.

Each option sets a value in the following registry key:

  Hkey_Local_Machine\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem

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Keywords          : kbenv kbtool diskmem win95 kbDiskMemory 
Technology        : kbWin95search kbZNotKeyword3
Version           : 95
Hardware          : x86

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