Cannot Quit MS-DOS Mode

ID: Q130448

The information in this article applies to:

SYMPTOMS

An MS-DOS-based program you run in MS-DOS mode may start every time you restart your computer.


CAUSE

This behavior can occur if the MS-DOS-based program terminates abnormally. For example, the computer restarts while the program was running.


RESOLUTION

To resolve this behavior, quit the MS-DOS-based program properly. Windows 95/98 should then start automatically. If Windows 95/98 does not start automatically, use the following steps to work around this problem:

  1. For Windows 95, when you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then choose Safe Mode Command Prompt Only from the Startup menu.

    For Windows 98, press and hold down the CTRL key as the computer restarts, and then choose Safe Mode Command Prompt Only from the Startup menu. For more information about Windows 98 startup, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
    ARTICLE-ID: Q178548
    TITLE : No "Starting Windows 98" Message at Startup


  2. At the command prompt, type "win /wx" (without quotation marks), and then press ENTER.



MORE INFORMATION

When you set up a program information file (PIF) to run an MS-DOS-based program in MS-DOS mode, you can select the "Specify a new MS-DOS configuration" option. If you select this option, you can specify a Config.sys and Autoexec.bat file to be used when you run the MS-DOS-based program.

When you run a program in this manner in Windows 95/98, the Config.sys and Autoexec.bat files in the root directory of the boot drive are renamed to Config.wos and Autoexec.wos, and the Config.sys and Autoexec.bat files specified in the PIF are copied to the root directory. Also, the entry "DOS=SINGLE" is added to the Config.sys file specified by the PIF to cause Windows 95 to start in MS-DOS mode.

If you turn your computer off or restart it while it is running in MS-DOS mode, the PIF-specific Config.sys and Autoexec.bat files are retained in the root directory, and the computer restarts in MS-DOS mode.

When you quit the MS-DOS-based program properly, the PIF-specific CONFIG.SYS and Autoexec.bat files in the root directory are replaced by the original files.

Note that PIF-specific Config.sys and Autoexec.bat files are created only if you select the "Specify a new MS-DOS configuration" check box for an MS-DOS-based program that will run in MS-DOS mode.

For additional information about the process that occurs when you restart your computer in MS-DOS mode, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

ARTICLE-ID: Q138996
TITLE : Description of Restarting Computer in MS-DOS Mode

Additional query words: msdos ms dos loop single 


Keywords          : kbenv kbusage diskmem win95 winboot win98 
Version           : WINDOWS:95
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        :

Last Reviewed: July 23, 1999