Overview
This image is not for a daily machine and nobody should pretend otherwise. It exists for three situations: a piece of industrial or laboratory equipment whose control software was never ported, a virtual machine for running software that has no modern equivalent, and preservation work where the exact environment matters. For those, nothing else will do, and the integral edition is the most complete version of this platform that exists.
Integral means everything that was ever released for the platform has been folded into the installer: the full update history through to the final extended releases, the runtime and framework packages, modern storage controller drivers so setup can actually find a disk on hardware built after the platform was current, and language packs for a long list of interfaces. Licensing is applied during setup, so there is no key prompt.
What was folded in
The update set covers everything through the final extended support releases, which means an install comes up already patched rather than facing hundreds of sequential updates from servers that no longer exist. That last point matters more than anything: a plain image of this platform can no longer update itself at all, so an unpatched install stays unpatched forever.
The runtime and framework packages that almost every application of the era depended on are preinstalled, along with the media codecs and the driver packs for storage, network, audio and chipset. Storage controller drivers are the critical addition, since a stock installer on any machine built in the last fifteen years stops at a screen saying no hard disk is present.
Running it safely
This platform has not received security fixes in a very long time and should be treated accordingly. The correct configuration is no internet connection at all. If it must be networked, put it on an isolated segment that reaches only the specific equipment it needs to talk to, with no route out. A machine of this vintage on an open network is compromised in minutes, not days, and no amount of patching in this image changes that.
In a virtual machine the isolation is easier: give it a host only network, or no adapter at all, and move files in through a shared folder or a disc image. The image includes the guest additions for the common virtualisation platforms, which fixes the display driver and mouse integration that otherwise make it painful to use.
Installing and hardware compatibility
Setup runs unattended past the disk selection step with licensing applied during the process. The image is thirty two bit only, which is correct for this platform, and it will address up to the usual memory ceiling of that architecture regardless of how much is installed. Legacy boot is required, so on newer hardware the firmware needs compatibility support enabled or the installer will not start.
On genuinely period hardware everything works as it did. On modern hardware expect the graphics to fall back to a basic driver, since no current card has a driver for this platform, and expect some onboard devices to have no driver at all. This is why a virtual machine is usually the better answer unless a physical device is the whole reason you need it.
What you get
- Full update history through the final extended releases folded into setup
- Runtime, framework and codec packages preinstalled
- Modern storage controller drivers so setup finds current disks
- Network, audio and chipset driver packs included
- Guest additions for the common virtualisation platforms
- Multilingual interface pack covering a long language list
- Unattended setup with licensing applied during install
- Bootable image suitable for physical machines and virtual machines alike
- Post install configuration set for minimal background activity
Inside the archive
- Bootable ISO image, x86
- Rolled up update set through final extended release
- Runtime, framework and codec packages
- Storage, network, audio and chipset driver packs
- Virtualisation guest additions and install notes
System requirements
| Processor | 300 MHz or faster, x86 |
|---|---|
| Memory | 256 MB minimum, 1 GB recommended, ceiling at the architecture limit |
| Storage | 4 GB minimum, 20 GB recommended |
| Graphics | Any card, expect a basic driver on modern hardware |
| Boot | Legacy BIOS or firmware with compatibility support enabled |
| Network | Isolated segment or no connection at all |
Installing it
- Decide first whether this belongs in a virtual machine. For most purposes it does.
- Write the image to a disc or a USB stick prepared for legacy boot.
- Enable compatibility support in the firmware if the machine is modern, or setup will not start.
- Let setup run to the desktop. It does not ask for a key.
- Configure the network as isolated or disconnected before doing anything else on the machine.
Mirrors
| Route | Region | Note | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct, primary | Europe | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Direct, secondary | North America | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Torrent magnet | Global | Recommended above 2 GB | Online |
Release history
- Additional storage controller drivers added for newer chipsets
- Guest additions refreshed for current virtualisation platform versions
- Runtime package set completed with the final released versions
- Language pack list extended
- Post install background activity reduced further
- Update rollup completed through final extended release
Questions about this release
Is it safe to use on the internet?
No. Plainly no. It has not received security fixes in a very long time. Run it disconnected or on an isolated network segment, and treat any exception as a decision you are making knowingly.
Why does stock setup say there is no hard disk?
Missing storage controller drivers, which is precisely what this image adds. Modern controllers did not exist when the original installer was made.
Should I run it on real hardware or in a virtual machine?
A virtual machine unless a physical device is the entire reason. Virtualisation gives you isolation, snapshots and working display drivers.
Will modern software run on it?
Essentially none of it. This platform is for the specific old software you need, not for anything current.
Comments
Guest additions included saved me an hour. Display and mouse integration worked immediately.
Stock installer could not see my disk. This one found it straight away.
Comments are read before they appear. If a build stops working, say so here and it gets rebuilt rather than quietly left up.
Runs the control software for a spectrometer that was never ported. Isolated segment, no route out, works perfectly.