.-=[ DSiOW - Dos SysOp's In An OS/2 World ]=-.
				  Issue #2 - Warp!


-=[ An Intro by The Author ]

	Hello all and welcome to issue two of my e-mag "DOS SysOps In An OS/2 
World".  Due to the overwhelming response to the last issue, I have decided to 
release a new one to coincide with the release of the new OS/2 v3.0 Warp!  I 
will be including as much information as I can about how I an other SysOps 
have their systems configured for maximum speed and reliability.  I will also 
be giving my first impressions of Warp and all of its toys <Grin>.  So lets 
get Warped!

-=[ Warp! ]

	Since the Rollout announcement (Oct 11th, 1994) I have  been patiently 
awaiting the new OS/2 v3.0, code Named Warp.  I had kept my eyes open for it 
and to my chagrin, on Nov 4th (the secondary release date) I was able to pick 
up a copy at my local EggHead software store for a measly 74.98.  I took it 
home,got on my computer, kicked everyone off my board :) and booted to DOS.  
From there, I deltree'd my OS/2 dir (F:\OS2) my desktop dir, and all of the 
hidden files on my drive and rebooted onto the install disks.. The installation 
was a dream, first try, and my board was back up and flying in under 30 min.  
I was impressed.  Good job IBM! 

	 I am glad to say that that you and I have been hearing about warp and 
its abilities  is TRUE!  The speed difference is very noticeable, even on my 
high-end system people were telling me how fast and smooth the board was 
running.  I had to do no real tweaking to my setup after I had install warp, it
seemed that most of my tunings from other versions (2.1/2.11/2.99 I & II) worked fine.

-=[ My TestBed System ]

	As of Nov 9th 1994, My system is :

	i486dx2/66
	20 Megs Ram
	540 Maxtor IDE (30 Megs Fat / 495 Megs HPFS) (C: E:)
	1.08 Gig Maxtor EiDE (1080 Megs HPFS) (D:)
	VESA Local Bus
	Promise EiDE Controler
	OS/2 v3.0 Warp

-=[ My Settings ]

	
	As I have worked on the system the past few days, I have found some 
things that help the bbs retain speed and performance.  First and foremost, 
the most important thing, is to use Ray Gwinn's SIO drivers rather then the 
normal com.sys vcom.sys that comes with OS/2, this will increase your throughput 
greatly.  Another thing is to set the priority_disk_io to No..this makes sure 
that when a application is in the foreground, it does not get full control of 
the disk drive.  The New thing that has come about with the introduction of 
Warp is the SESSION_PRIORITY setting.  This is a very interesting setting, and 
while it says in the documentation, that it is for giving priority to multiple 
windows (tm) sessions, it helps the BBS GREATLY.  If you ask around, you will 
probably get 32 different optimal settings from people, from 1 (default) to 32 
(Highest).. I have found that setting the nodes at 2 and everything else I have 
at 1, the board seems to run a lot smoother and the dos session seem to work a 
lot better.  With the SESSION_PRIORITY at 2, My mail tossing, went from about 
2-3 MSG/sec to around 10-15 MSG/sec, a great improvement, especially with the 
amount of mail I toss. And lastly, DPMI_MEMORY_LIMIT should be set at 16, don't 
ask me exactly why, but it has to do with evening out the bumps in memory, and
it really seems to help the board load up faster.

	So... Here is the list, if you dont want to decode that which is above       
	
-=[ In The Dos Box ]

	SESSION_PRIORITY=2 for each node, and 1 for all other non-crucial apps
	
	DPMI_MEMORY_LIMIT=16   Evens out memory
	
	EMS_MEMORY_LIMIT=1024 I see no reason for this to be bigger, even
					   Huge Door games don't need this much, helps
					   with system resources being free.
	
	SIO_IDLE_SENSITIVITY=28 This is the best I have found before running
				 into character loss

	IDLE_SENSITIVITY=38       I think I have always had this set this way, and 
				    when I change it, I see real diff any lower.

	XMS_MEMORY_LIMIT=0     Check and see if anything you run uses XMS, if
					   Not, trash it and set the next one too
	
	XMS_HANDLES=0             If you set the last one to 0, set this one too!


-=[ In The Config.sys ]

	PRIORITY_DISK_IO=NO don't let the foreground app have full disk control

	DEVICE=SIO.SYS  Ray Gwinn has made the greatest OS/2 Comm drivers 
				availiable, use them for the performance gains
 
	MEMMAN=SWAP,COMMIT  use this to tell OS/2 to make a swap file and keep
					it the same size you start it at.

	MAXWAIT=1        This tells OS/2 that Nothing should wait longer then 1 
			 second before being serviced


	Now I will just list my Config.sys file for all to see :)

-=[ Config.sys by Steve Noble ]

  -= Things with a * next to them are the important parts =-

* IFS=D:\OS2\HPFS.IFS /CACHE:2048 /CRECL:64 /AUTOCHECK:DE  
	I have 20 megs of ram, so I run a 2048 HPFS Cache, with the CRECL at 64
	if you have less, you might want to set it at 1024, and 32 respectivly.

PROTSHELL=D:\OS2\PMSHELL.EXE
SET USER_INI=D:\OS2\OS2.INI
SET SYSTEM_INI=D:\OS2\OS2SYS.INI
SET OS2_SHELL=D:\OS2\CMD.EXE
SET AUTOSTART=PROGRAMS,TASKLIST,FOLDERS,CONNECTIONS,LAUNCHPAD
SET RUNWORKPLACE=D:\OS2\PMSHELL.EXE
SET COMSPEC=D:\OS2\CMD.EXE
LIBPATH=.;D:\OS2\DLL;D:\OS2\MDOS;D:\;D:\OS2\APPS\DLL;D:\MMOS2\DLL;D:\IBM
WORKS
SET 
PATH=D:\OS2;D:\OS2\SYSTEM;D:\OS2\INSTALL;D:\;D:\OS2\MDOS;D:\OS2\APPS;D:\MMOS2
;D:\IBMWORKS;
SET 
DPATH=D:\OS2;D:\OS2\SYSTEM;D:\OS2\INSTALL;D:\;D:\OS2\BITMAP;D:\OS2\MDOS;
D:\OS2\APPS;D:\MMOS2;D:\MMOS2\INSTALL;
SET PROMPT=$i[$p]
SET 
HELP=D:\OS2\HELP;D:\OS2\HELP\TUTORIAL;D:\MMOS2\HELP;D:\IBMWORKS
SET GLOSSARY=D:\OS2\HELP\GLOSS;
SET IPF_KEYS=SBCS

* PRIORITY_DISK_IO=NO
	No one gets priority on the Drive

FILES=30
BASEDEV=IBMKBD.SYS
DEVICE=D:\OS2\BOOT\TESTCFG.SYS
DEVICE=D:\OS2\BOOT\DOS.SYS
DEVICE=D:\OS2\BOOT\PMDD.SYS

* BUFFERS=90
	This I think is new for warp (it being this high between 90-100 is good)

IOPL=YES
DISKCACHE=64,LW
	There is no use for me to run a Fat diskcache..my fat drive is only for 
	maintenece booting

* MAXWAIT=1
	Nothing waits more then a second for access, good for BBS's

* MEMMAN=SWAP,COMMIT
	Make it and Keep it that size

* SWAPPATH=E:\SWAP 2048 20408
	Make a HUGE Swapper, and try to get it commited.

BREAK=OFF
THREADS=256
PRINTMONBUFSIZE=134,134,134
COUNTRY=001,D:\OS2\SYSTEM\COUNTRY.SYS
SET KEYS=ON
SET BOOKSHELF=D:\OS2\BOOK;D:\MMOS2;
SET SOMIR=D:\OS2\ETC\SOM.IR;D:\OS2\ETC\WPSH.IR;D:\OS2\ETC\WPDSERV.IR
SET SOMDDIR=D:\OS2\ETC\DSOM
REM SET DELDIR=C:\DELETE,512;D:\DELETE,512;E:\DELETE,512;F:\DELETE,512;
BASEDEV=PRINT01.SYS
BASEDEV=IBM1FLPY.ADD
BASEDEV=IBM2FLPY.ADD
BASEDEV=IBM1S506.ADD
BASEDEV=XDFLOPPY.FLT
BASEDEV=OS2DASD.DMD
SET EPMPATH=D:\OS2\APPS;
PROTECTONLY=NO
SHELL=D:\OS2\MDOS\COMMAND.COM D:\OS2\MDOS
FCBS=16,8
RMSIZE=640
DEVICE=D:\OS2\MDOS\VEMM.SYS
DOS=LOW,NOUMB
DEVICE=D:\OS2\MDOS\VXMS.SYS /UMB
DEVICE=D:\OS2\MDOS\VDPMI.SYS
DEVICE=D:\OS2\MDOS\VDPX.SYS
DEVICE=D:\OS2\BOOT\OS2CDROM.DMD /Q
IFS=D:\OS2\BOOT\CDFS.IFS /Q
DEVICE=D:\OS2\MDOS\VCDROM.SYS
BASEDEV=SBCD2.ADD
DEVICE=D:\OS2\MDOS\VMOUSE.SYS
DEVICE=D:\OS2\BOOT\POINTDD.SYS
DEVICE=D:\OS2\BOOT\MOUSE.SYS

* DEVICE=D:\SIO\SIO.SYS (COM2:38400,2F8,3,-,) (COM3:38400,3E8,4,-,)(COM4:38400,2E8,5,-,)

* DEVICE=D:\SIO\VSIO.SYS

CODEPAGE=437,850
DEVINFO=KBD,US,D:\OS2\KEYBOARD.DCP
---
DEVICE=D:\MMOS2\SB16D2.SYS 1 1 7 7 220 4 330 /N:SBAUD1$ /Q
DEVICE=D:\MMOS2\AUDIOVDD.SYS SBAUD1$
SET MMBASE=D:\MMOS2;
SET DSPPATH=D:\MMOS2\DSP;
SET NCDEBUG=4000
DEVICE=D:\MMOS2\SSMDD.SYS
DEVICE=D:\MMOS2\R0STUB.SYS
---
		all of this slows down the bbs, so if you dont plan on playing
	with the sound, I suggest you rem it out.

SET IBMWORKS_INI=D:\IBMWORKS
SET VIDEO_DEVICES=VIO_SVGA
DEVICE=D:\OS2\MDOS\VSVGA.SYS
DEVINFO=SCR,VGA,D:\OS2\BOOT\VIOTBL.DCP
SET VIO_SVGA=DEVICE(BVHVGA,BVHSVGA)


   Well there is that..there are probably more optimal settings, but I haven't 
found them :) 

-=[ Charles Bowman's Settings ]

	Charles is running OS/2 on a 386dx/40 with 16 Megs of ram, I asked him to 
send me his most optimal settings at this time and this is what I got (Full of good 
stuff in my estimation).

-=[Config.sys by Charles Bowman]

IFS=E:\OS2\HPFS.IFS  /CACHE:2048 /CRECL:64 /AUTOCHECK:DEFGHI
	This is a 16 Meg system, if you run 8 or so you may want
	to keep the CACHE around 1024 and the CRECL around 32,
	experiment to find the best settings for you.

PROTSHELL=E:\OS2\PMSHELL.EXE
SET USER_INI=E:\OS2\OS2.INI
SET SYSTEM_INI=E:\OS2\OS2SYS.INI
SET OS2_SHELL=E:\OS2\CMD.EXE
SET RESTARTOBJECTS=STARTUPFOLDERSONLY  
SET AUTOSTART=PROGRAMS,TASKLIST,FOLDERS,CONNECTIONS
SET RUNWORKPLACE=E:\OS2\PMSHELL.EXE
SET COMSPEC=E:\OS2\CMD.EXE
LIBPATH=.;E:\OS2\DLL;E:\OS2\MDOS;E:\;E:\OS2\APPS\DLL;
SET 
PATH=.\;E:\OS2;E:\OS2\SYSTEM;E:\OS2\INSTALL;E:\SIO;E:\;E:\OS2\MDOS;E:\OS2\APPS;
C:\WINDOWS;D:\ZIP
SET 
DPATH=E:\OS2;E:\OS2\SYSTEM;E:\OS2\INSTALL;E:\;E:\OS2\BITMAP;E:\OS2\MDOS;
E:\OS2\APPS;
C:\WINDOWS
SET PROMPT=$i[$p]
SET HELP=E:\OS2\HELP;E:\OS2\HELP\TUTORIAL;
SET GLOSSARY=E:\OS2\HELP\GLOSS;
SET IPF_KEYS=SBCS
PRIORITY_DISK_IO=NO
FILES=50
DEVICE=E:\OS2\TESTCFG.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\DOS.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\PMDD.SYS
BUFFERS=85
IOPL=NO
MAXWAIT=1
MEMMAN=SWAP,COMMIT   << Awesome Improvement
SWAPPATH=I:\ 4096 16000  << Keeps swapping overhead down
BREAK=OFF
THREADS=512
PRINTMONBUFSIZE=134,0,0
COUNTRY=001,E:\OS2\SYSTEM\COUNTRY.SYS
SET KEYS=ON
REM SET 
DELDIR=C:\DELETE,512;D:\DELETE,512;E:\DELETE,512;F:\DELETE,512;G:\DELETE,512;
H:\DELETE,512;
BASEDEV=PRINT01.SYS
BASEDEV=IBM1FLPY.ADD
BASEDEV=IBM1S506.ADD /A:0 /U:0 /U:1 /SMS  << Right out of 76 tips OS/2 Magazine
	     Using the IBM1S506.ADD file from Warp II, gives the best performance.

BASEDEV=OS2DASD.DMD                       
SET BOOKSHELF=E:\OS2\BOOK
SET EPMPATH=E:\OS2\APPS;
REM DEVICE=E:\OS2\APPS\SASYNCDA.SYS
PROTECTONLY=NO
SHELL=E:\OS2\MDOS\COMMAND.COM E:\OS2\MDOS
FCBS=16,8
RMSIZE=640
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VEMM.SYS
DOS=HIGH,UMB
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VDPX.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VXMS.SYS /UMB
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VDPMI.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VCDROM.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VWIN.SYS
REM DEVICE=E:\OS2\PCMCIA.SYS
REM DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VPCMCIA.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VMOUSE.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\POINTDD.SYS
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MOUSE.SYS SERIAL=COM1
DEVICE=E:\SIO\SIO.SYS (COM2:115200,,,-)(COM3)(COM4:57600,,,-)
DEVICE=E:\SIO\VSIO.SYS
REM DEVICE=E:\OS2\COM.SYS
REM DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VCOM.SYS
CODEPAGE=437,850
DEVINFO=KBD,US,E:\OS2\KEYBOARD.DCP
SET VIDEO_DEVICES=VIO_SVGA
SET VIO_SVGA=DEVICE(BVHVGA,BVHSVGA)
DEVICE=E:\OS2\MDOS\VSVGA.SYS
RUN=E:\OS2\CACHE.EXE /MAXAGE:30000 /DISKIDLE:60000 /BUFFERIDLE:60000
    Of course this is still a major boost.

DISKCACHE=512,LW,128,AC:C
    So is this (but it's my only FAT partition)

DEVICE=E:\OS2\VDISK.SYS 16
DEVINFO=SCR,VGA,E:\OS2\VIOTBL.DCP

-=[Running OS/2 Mailers]

	There has always been a great deal of discussion over the viability of running 
an OS/2 mailer and a Dos based BBS program.  It can and has been done, and is 
very effective.  The bonuses are many, you get can get a fully multi-threaded 32 
bit mailer which will cut down on CPU time, and therefore releasing system resources
for those who need them (your other nodes, or maybe you).  The idea is simple, let
me lay it out for you.

	First, you need a OS/2 Based Front End Mailer (FEM)..Binkley Term and 
Maindoor/2 are the most widely used that I know of (yes, that I know of), MainDoor/2
is a newer program that first was discovered in a Spanish only version, a man took 
the time (and money) to have the docs professionally translated in order to have a
better understanding of the software and help others who wanted to set it up.  I 
have heard (I do not personally know) that it is a very efficient software.  Binkley 
Term is the most widly known and used FEM, used by such people as Pete Norlof of
the famed "OS/2 Shareware BBS".

	Second, you will need a program called Start, or HStart (or any similar 
program, start.exe should be included in your OS.2 package, just type start at a OS/2
cmd prompt) that can spawn a Dos session from an OS/2 session.  


	Install the FEM and configure it to your liking.  Then edit the bbs.cmd file, to 
include a line like this  

:bbs
hstart board.bat

      and just have the batch file call the board.  very simple, there is a lot more that
can be done with this, but I won't go indepth.

-=[Tips!]

	There are some tips that I have found, will help you and your users to better 
enjoy the services that your system provides, you can take of them what you want,
they are really only my opinion.

	1.) Run Tame 3.20, if you run any Door games, because even if your board
seems to runs fine under OS/2, the doors may not. here are my settings for 
Tame loaded like this c:\tame\tame /settings 6 /i

*** 6.set *******
/Idle_Indicate Time
/Idle_Indicate 99
/HK STATUS ALT-CTRL-F10
/NoTimer
/NoWorkTime 8 2
/Task_Switch_Time 10
/Work_Indicate Com2 IRQ3 Com3 IRQ4
/Boost 2 0 
/II NOWORK
*******************

	2.) Unless you have a dedicated mail node, I would suggest that you have your
.bat file for the board spawn another dos/OS2 session, to toss the mail.  It gets the 
board back online faster, and leaves you with less downtime, a plus in many users 
eyes.

 -=[Endtro]

	Well that concludes this edition of DSiOW.  Send any comments, suggestions, 
or other wise to me as 1:203/7666 FidoNet or 50:100/1400 RGSNet, or lastly 
u220@cs.sierra.cc.ca.us.  And if anyone has a .inf compiler and would like to help me
 out, I would be greatly appreciative.

	Steve