International Business Machines Corporation

John D Paul

Richard Alan Dayan

Richard Bealkowski

John W Blackledge, Jr

Robert Sachsenmaier

Kevin M Zyvoloski

Matthew S Palka, Jr

Doyle S Cronk

Douglas R Geisler

Kenneth D Smeltzer

Matthew T Mittelstedt

Lisa R Arnold

Peter A Woytovech

Robert Duane Johnson

A method and system for supporting discontiguous drive arrangements in a computer system using IDE control parameters having a central processing unit, user interface, short term volatile memory storage, and at least one, to four or more long term static memory storage devices, all of which are connected by a bus to the CPU, is used to provide access to the long term memory storage devices in a manner transparent to both the system and the user.

Method and system for providing discontiguous drive support

A personal computer system according to the present invention comprises a system processor, a random access memory, a read only memory, and at least one direct access storage device. A direct access storage device controller coupled between the system processor and direct access storage device includes a protection mechanism for protecting a region of the storage device. The protected region of the storage device includes a master boot record, a BIOS image and a system reference diskette image. The BIOS image includes a section known as Power on Self Test (POST). POST is used to test and initialize a system. Upon detecting any configuration error, system utilities from the system reference diskette image, such as set configuration programs, diagnostic programs and utility programs can be automatically activated from the direct access storage device.

Apparatus and method for loading a system reference diskette image from

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Boynton Beach, FL, United States of America

John D Paul