MS-DOS-Based Apps May Not Time-Slice Well Under WFWG 3.11
Article ID: 115200
Article Last Modified on 10/27/1999
APPLIES TO
- Microsoft Windows for Workgroups 3.11
This article was previously published under Q115200
SYMPTOMS
When 32-bit file access is enabled and 32-bit disk access is not, your
computer does not accept keyboard input and then appears to stop responding
(hang) in either an MS-DOS Prompt session or in an MS-DOS-based
application. After you type a few characters, the machine appears to hang,
and then the buffer empties, effectively pasting your text into the
application very quickly.
NOTE: Many machines are configured to behave this way (for example, those
with disk drive controllers that are not Western Digital (WD) 1003
compatible and those using disk-compression schemes other than MS-DOS 6.2
DoubleSpace).
CAUSE
When 32-bit file access is enabled without 32-bit disk access being
enabled, Windows for Workgroups 3.11 uses the real-mode mapper. Since the
real-mode mapper presents a synchronous interface to 32-bit file access, it
prevents other system events from occurring simultaneously with disk
access. This problem occurs when a large amount of data has accumulated in
the cache and must be flushed immediately because of a disk reset (CTRL+C)
or critical error. During the time that the data is being written to the
drive, other system events are ignored.
Additional query words: dblspace 3.11 key board delay wait hang hung freeze frozen dump flush buffer virtual machine machines develop time-slice problems rmm
Keywords: KB115200