There are several switches that you can add to the end of the Windows NT entries in the [operating system] section of the Boot.ini file. They are not case sensitive. Chapter 21, "Troubleshooting Startup and Disk Problems," contains more information about many of these switches. For information about the debugger, see Chapter 39, "Windows NT Debugger."
Table 19.2 Boot.ini Switches
Switch | Description | |
/BASEVIDEO | The computer starts up using the standard VGA video driver. If you have installed a new video driver, but it is not working correctly, selecting the Windows NT entry with this switch enables you to start the computer so you can change to a different driver. | |
/BAUDRATE=nnnn | Specifies the baud rate to be used for debugging. If you do not set the baud rate, the default baud rate is 9600 if a modem is attached, and 19200 for a null-modem cable. This switch has a secondary effect of forcing the /DEBUG switch as well, whether or not use you use /DEBUG. | |
/CRASHDEBUG | The debugger is loaded when you start Windows NT, but remains inactive unless a Kernel error occurs. This mode is useful if you are experiencing random, unpredictable Kernel errors. | |
/DEBUG | The debugger is loaded when you start Windows NT, and can be activated at any time by a host debugger connected to the computer. This is the mode to use when you are debugging problems that are regularly reproducible. | |
/DEBUGPORT= comx | Specifies the com port to use for debugging, where x is the communications port that you want to use. Like /BAUDRATE, this switch will also force the /DEBUG mode. | |
/MAXMEM:n | Specifies the maximum amount of RAM that Windows NT can use. This switch is useful if you suspect a memory chip is bad. See Chapter 21, "Troubleshooting Disk and Startup Problems," for more information. | |
/NODEBUG | No debugging information is being used. | |
/NOSERIALMICE=[COMx | COMx,y,z...] | Disables serial mouse detection of the specified COM port(s). Use this switch if you have a component other than a mouse attached to a serial port during the startup sequence. If you use /NOSERIALMICE without specifying a COM port, serial mouse detection is disabled on all COM ports. See Chapter 20, "Preparing for and Performing Recovery," for more information. | |
/SOS | Displays the device driver names while they are being loaded. Use this switch if Windows NT won't start up and you think a device driver is missing. See Chapter 21, "Troubleshooting Disk and Startup Problems," for more information. | |