Microsoft KB Archive/42959

SELECT.EXE Won’t Format 360K Disks in a 1.2 MB Drive PSS ID Number: Q42959 Article last modified on 02-03-1993 PSS database name: O_MSDOS

3.30

MS-DOS

Summary:

The SELECT.EXE program included with Microsoft MS-DOS Version 3.30 will format a floppy disk during execution by invoking the FORMAT.COM program. If you are using a 360K floppy disk in a 1.2 MB (megabyte) drive, the program will attempt to format the 360K disk as a 1.2 MB disk. In other words, SELECT will invoke FORMAT to format a disk to the drive’s default media type, which may not necessarily be the drive’s current media type.

There is no way to inform FORMAT.COM through SELECT.EXE to format the floppy disk as a 360K disk in a 1.2 MB drive (such as the /4 switch). The only workaround is to use a high-density 1.2 MB disk in Drive A and let FORMAT.COM format the disk to 1.2 MB.

Additional reference words: 3.30 noupd

Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1993.