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Installation Tips
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Installation Tips

Please note the following from Martin Steigerwald of Haage & Partner:

Use a boot partition within the first 4GB of the hard drive as long as you are not absolutely sure that you really understand in which circumstances you can use a partition not within the first 4GB and are in absolute agreement to take the full responsibility on what you are doing and promise faithfully that you will not contact AmigaOS 3.9 support when something goes wrong.

Simply put, boot partitions beyond the first 4GB partitions are NOT officially supported; but can work under special circumstances at your own risk.


  1. After installation, I have SetPatch v44.13 in my C: directory. Is this the latest version of SetPatch? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
  2. After installation, I have FastFileSystem v45.1 in my L: directory. Is this the latest version of FastFileSystem? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
  3. Font loading in my Font Prefs editor seems to be as slow as ever. Was the font cache properly installed and activated during installation? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
  4. Have the printer drivers been updated since the OS 3.5 Boing Bag 1 release? [bad drivers removed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
  5. What should I know about running third-party patches and installing OS 3.9?
  6. I own a SurfSquirrel SCSI; are there any special steps to follow when installing OS 3.9? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
  7. Are there any compatibility issues with Directory Opus Magellan-II?
  8. After installation, double-clicking an executable file with a default tool icon returns a "No default icon" error requester. Why? [fixed in BB1]
  9. Where are the icons for the commodity files? They were not copied during installation. [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
  10. Do I still need the AslPrefs patch file in WBStartup or called from S:User-startup?
  11. "scsi.device" from DEVS:AmigaOS ROM Update is installed unneccessarily, which erroneously overwrites some third-party controller software calling itself "scsi.device". Is there a workaround until a fix is released in Boing Bag 1?
  12. Some special controller software is neither copied to the Emergency-Disk, nor to the installed AmigaOS 3.9 system. Are there workarounds until a fix is released in Boing Bag 1? [fixed in BB1]
  13. Regarding 4GB problems, some drivers are either not being taken care of, or the solution is overkill. Is there a workaround until a fix is released in Boing Bag 1? [fixed in BB1]
  14. There are two files in OS 3.5's Boing Bag 2a newer than what's on the OS 3.9 CD. Can (or should) I use these with OS 3.9? [fixed in BB1]
  15. AmiDock crashes with a "00000004" guru on my A4000T when I try to boot up from the pre-installation Emergency disk (Workbench is ghosted, and my system is unusable). Why?
  16. The installer appears to create the Emergency Disk OK, but when I boot, it opens a screen that I cannot use with my monitor (I use an SVGA monitor and Productivity Mode (640x480)). No matter what I do, I cannot get the boot disk setup so that Productivity Mode is loaded. Why?
  17. I've heard there are revised copies of the OS 3.9 CD (a "Second Edition" or "SE" version); how do I know if I have one, and how do they differ?
  18. How can I get a Jaz or Zip drive to mount from my Emergency Disk (in case I want to restore a backup quickly after a hard drive crash)?
  19. I've encountered script errors during installation; what's causing this?
  20. On bootup, I get the following error message: "Cannot open resource.library, version 44, unable to load AmiDock". I have the correct version of resource.library installed, and AmiDock exists in SYS:WBStartup. Why does this appear, and how do I eliminate this error?
  21. Why was a new section added to the beginning of Startup-sequence v45.4 (consisting primarily of SCSIUpdate commands)? Are there options other than a "0" in the "Set SCSIUpdate 0" line? (i.e. what would a 1 or a 2 do?)
  22. I recently installed OS 3.9, but don't always have the CD-ROM connected. Why won't my Amiga boot up when the CD-ROM drive is disconnected?
  23. How do I make the new SetEnv command in Boing Bag 1 resident?
  24. Once I've created the emergency-disk and boot from it, the Workbench screen doesn't open and instead "LoadWB" returns: "Invalid resident library." Why?

1.
Q: After installation, I have SetPatch v44.13 in my C: directory. Is this the latest version of SetPatch? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
A: No. The latest version of SetPatch on the 3.9 CD (v44.16) is not copied to your hard drive during installation, and needs to be copied manually. There are five copies of SetPatch on the CD, so you'll want to copy the last entry listed in bold:

AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/First-Install/c/SetPatch ... 44.2 (04.10.99)
AmigaOS3.9:Emergency-Boot/C/SetPatch ... 44.13 (05.03.00)
AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/Workbench3.5/C/SetPatch ... 44.13 (05.03.00)
AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/Workbench3.9/C/SetPatch ... 44.13 (05.03.00)
AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/Emergency-Disk/C/SetPatch ... 44.16 (15.09.00)

As Stephen Rupprecht pointed out, you should always use the latest version of SetPatch available.

[Albrecht Kinzkofer]

2.
Q: After installation, I have FastFileSystem v45.1 in my L: directory. Is this the latest version of FastFileSystem? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
A: No. The latest version of FastFileSystem on the 3.9 CD (v45.9) is not copied to your hard drive's L: directory during installation, and needs to be copied manually. There are two copies of FastFileSystem on the CD, so you'll want to copy the second entry listed in bold:

AmigaOS3.9:Emergency-Boot/L/FastFileSystem ... 45.1 (09.10.99)
AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/L/FastFileSystem ... 45.9 (09.03.00)

Please note that you also need to update all other fixed or removable FFS-installed drives with this latest version. Here's how to do it:

  1. Make sure that the tooltype "ASKDEVICE=YES" is entered in the latest version of HDToolBox (44.23).
  2. Run HDToolBox, and select the FFS-installed device that you want to update, and click on "OK".
  3. Select the entry that you want to update from the "Hard Drives in System" window, and click on "Partition Drive".
  4. Click the "Add/Update" button in the bottom right corner.
  5. Select the old FileSystem entry (should be version 45.1), and click on the "Update File System" button at the bottom right corner.
  6. Select the new FastFileSystem file from your L: directory, click "Load" on the file requester, and then the "OK" button at the botton left corner.
  7. Click "Save" in the bottom left corner.
  8. Click the "Exit" button in the bottom middle of the window.
  9. Your FastFileSystem is now updated.
3.
Q: Font loading in my Font Prefs editor seems to be as slow as ever. Was the font cache properly installed and activated during installation? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
A: No. Type the following from a Shell window to activate the Fonts cache:
  1. makedir FONTS:_Cache
  2. setenv ENVARC:diskfont "cache=yes"

Reboot, and you're all done. Thomas Richter adds: "The first font requester or the next FixFonts will create the cache. This first call will be as slow as it used to be since the cache does then not yet exist, but all following calls will make use of the cache."

Also ensure that you're not patching diskfont.library from MCP or any other software.

[David Rey]

4.
Q: Have the printer drivers been updated since the OS 3.5 Boing Bag 1 release? [bad drivers removed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
A: Not yet. Please note that there are two sets of printer drivers on the 3.9 CD:

The drivers in: AmigaOS3.9:Emergency-Boot/Devs/Printers/ are the original drivers from the OS 3.5 CD, and should work fine.

The drivers in: AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/Workbench3.9/Storage/Printers/ are from Boing Bag 1, and are known to be buggy.

5.
Q: What should I know about running third-party patches and installing OS 3.9?
A: Before installation, disable or remove any and all patches. This includes MCP, and any non-essential entries (i.e. commands needed for your accelerator are OK) to S:Startup-sequence and S:User-startup. Remember to remove any patch programs from the SYS:WBStartup drawer as well. Before enabling your patches after installation, be sure that none of your patches are duplicating new functionality already built-into—or offered by—OS 3.9. Remember that WBCtrl, DefIcons, AslPrefs, and others are now integrated into the OS. You can get an idea of what new functions/features are included in 3.9 here.
6.
Q: I own a SurfSquirrel SCSI; are there any special steps to follow when installing OS 3.9? [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
A: Yes. See entry six of the Compatibility page.
7.
Q: Are there any compatibility issues with Directory Opus Magellan-II?
A: Yes. First of all, for maximum compatibility, be sure you're using v5.82, and NOT running it in Workbench replacement mode. Directory Opus Magellan-II patches workbench.library in order to offer much of its functionality. As soon as Directory Opus Magellan-II is run, Workbench automatically disables many of its new features found in workbench.library v44 and higher (without this, Directory Opus wouldn't even run). As a result of this, AnimatedIcons will not work.
8.
Q: After installation, double-clicking an executable file with a default tool icon returns a "No default icon" error requester. Why? [fixed in BB1]
A:

The icon type is incorrectly set for SYS:Prefs/Env-Archive/sys/def_tool.info. Load this file into IconEdit (or RAWBInfo), and change its type from "project" to "tool" and save it again.

[Albrecht Kinzkofer]

9.
Q: Where are the icons for the commodity files? They were not copied during installation. [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
A:

This was a mistake in the installation script—they are located in the AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/icons/ directory.

10.
Q: Do I still need the AslPrefs patch file in WBStartup or called from S:Startup-sequence / S:User-startup?
A: No, it is no longer required with OS 3.9's new functionality. All you need is the "Asl" preferences editor (v45.6 or higher) from AmigaOS3.9:OS-Version3.9/Workbench3.9/Prefs/ in your SYS:Prefs directory.
11.
Q: "scsi.device" from DEVS:AmigaOS ROM Update is installed unneccessarily, which erroneously overwrites some third-party controller software calling itself "scsi.device". Is there a workaround for this? (Controllers affected: Buddha, Catweazel IDE, X-Surf IDE, IDEfix Express).
A:

Rename "DEVS:AmigaOS ROM Update" or put:

SetPatch SKIPROMUPDATES "scsi.device"

in "Emergency-Disk:S/Startup-sequence"

[Martin Steigerwald]

12.
Q: Some special controller software is neither copied to the Emergency-Disk, nor to the installed AmigaOS 3.9 system. Are there workarounds until a fix is released in Boing Bag 1? (Controllers affected: FastATA, GVP SCSI, SurfSquirrel, X-Surf IDE). [fixed in OS 3.9 SE CD]
A:
  • Solution for IDEFix (Express):
    • The following lines (in bold) should appear in your S:Startup-sequence as follows:
      SetPatch SKIPROMUPDATES "scsi.device"
    • Change the entry "C:IDEfix" to C:LoadIDE START QUIET

    The necessary reset will be done automatically by SetPatch so the line
    "C:LoadIDE RESET QUIET" is not needed.

  • Solution for X-Surf IDE / GVP SCSI:
    • Type the following from a Shell window:
      MakeDir Emergency-Disk:Expansion
      Copy CLONE SYS:Expansion/XSurfIDE Emergency-Disk:Expansion
      (for the GVPSCSI, type:
      Copy CLONE SYS:Expansion/gvpscsi Emergency-Disk:Expansion)
    • Add "BindDrivers" after SetPatch to the "Emergency-Disk:S/Startup-sequence" file
  • Solution for SurfSquirrel:
  • Solution for FastATA (not really needed as the device is in ROM, but good to have anyway for maximum speed):
    • Type the following from a Shell window:
      Copy CLONE FastATA.driver Emergency-Disk:C
      Copy CLONE FastATAPrefs Emergency-Disk:Prefs
      Copy CLONE CheckLMB Emergency-Disk:C
      Copy CLONE ENV:FastATA.prefs Emergency-Disk:Prefs/Env-Archive
    • Insert the following at the beginning of "Emergency-Disk:S/Startup-sequence":
      • C:CheckLMB
        If WARN
        SYS:Prefs/FastATAPrefs
        EndIf
        C:FastATA.driver QUIET

[Martin Steigerwald]

13.
Q: Regarding 4GB problems, some drivers are either not being taken care of, or the solution is overkill. Is there a workaround until a fix is released in Boing Bag 1? (Controllers affected: Buddha, Catweazel IDE, FastATA, GVP SCSI, X-Surf IDE, IDEfix Express). [fixed in BB1]
A:

Disable the following two lines in "DEVS:NSDPatch.cfg" by placing a "#" at the beginning of the line:

DEVICE scsi.device DEVICETYPE NSDEVTYPE_TRACKDISK COMMANDS 1-15,20-23,28,!22 FIXSCSIUPDATE

DEVICE 2nd.scsi.device DEVICETYPE NSDEVTYPE_TRACKDISK COMMANDS 1-15,20-23,28,!22 FIXSCSIUPDATE

The other "scsi.device" lines should be safe as they are only triggered by a certain version of "scsi.device".

[Martin Steigerwald]

14.
Q: There are two files in OS 3.5's Boing Bag 2a newer than what's on the OS 3.9 CD. Can (or should) I use these with OS 3.9? [fixed in BB1]
A:

There are two newer files that you can take advantage of from OS 3.5's Boing Bag 2a; they are:

  • /Workbench/Tools/HDToolbox 44.27 (12/12/00)
  • /Workbench/Libs/hdwrench.library 44.122 (12/17/00)
15.
Q: AmiDock crashes with a "00000004" guru on my A4000T when I try to boot up from the pre-installation Emergency disk (Workbench is ghosted, and my system is unusable). Why?
A:

Ensure that you have the following libraries installed in the LIBS: directory on the Emergency disk:

  • 68060.library
  • 68040.library
  • 68040old.library

After installation, check and make sure they're still on the hard drive, too.

[Jeff Sereno]

16.
Q:

The installer appears to create the Emergency Disk OK, but when I boot, it opens a screen that I cannot use with my monitor (I use an SVGA monitor and Productivity Mode (640x480)). No matter what I do, I cannot get the boot disk setup so that Productivity Mode is loaded. Why?

A:

The installer creates a boot disk which uses an OCS screen (presumably on the basis that it is the lowest common denominator). This works fine if you have an old multisync monitor that can sync down to 15kHz, but if you use a monitor whose lowest sync rate is 31kHz, it obviously doesn't work.

The solution is to boot up normally and copy your screenmode.prefs file into the following directory on the Emergency Disk:

Emergency-Disk:Prefs/Env-Archive/Sys/

[N. James Bridge]

17.
Q:

I've heard there are revised copies of the OS 3.9 CD (a "Second Edition" or "SE" version); how do I know if I have one, and how do they differ?

A:

The "Second Edition" CD should be pink; the original CD should be 'warm red'. Also, if your CD has files dated January 26, 2001 (or later) in the root directory, you have the newer "SE" CD. The original CD has no newer files than November 29, 2000.

The Second Edition CD contains various corrections to the installation script. However, please note that when installing OS 3.9 as an update only—NOT a full install, the installation script overwrites the S:Startup-sequence file. Make sure you create and rename a backup copy of your original Startup-sequence file before installation.

Regardless, Boing Bag 3.9-1 fixes most of the issues and problems with the first batch of CDs. There should be no real need for someone who has a first edition/original CD to buy a second edition CD if Boing Bag 3.9-1 is correctly installed.

[Martin Steigerwald]

18.
Q:

How can I get a Jaz or Zip drive to mount from my Emergency Disk (in case I want to restore a backup quickly after a hard drive crash)?

A:
  • Copy SYS:Devs/DosDrivers JAZ0" and "JAZ0.info" from your hard drive to "Emergency-Disk:Devs/DOSDrivers" (if you are using JAZ1 then copy it instead of JAZ0).
  • Add the following line to the "Startup-sequence" on the Emergency Floppy Disk (right above "EndCLI" command at the bottom of the Startup-sequence):
    • C:Mount >NIL: Emergency-Disk:Devs/DOSDrivers/JAZ0 (or JAZ1 if you are using that device).

An analogous procedure applies to Zip drives.

[Gary Goldberg, courtesy of the late Jim Willis]

19.
Q:

I've encountered script errors during installation; what's causing this?

A:

Make sure you have—and are using—only one copy of the official installation utility, "Installer" v44.10 (10/01/99) or later. This should eliminate most script problems encountered during installation, including possible errors with the "MakeDir" command. Officially, Installer should be in your SYS:Utilities/ drawer, but it will also work fine in your SYS:C/ drawer. You can use the Workbench menu item "Window/Find..." to check SYS: for the location (and possible duplicates) of Installer.

Please note: If you choose to use the third-party installation utility "InstallerNG", you assume responsibility for any errors or problems encountered during installation. The install scripts are designed to work exclusively for "Installer", and not "InstallerNG".

20.
Q:

On bootup, I get the following error message: "Cannot open resource.library, version 44, unable to load AmiDock". I have the correct version of resource.library installed, and AmiDock exists in SYS:WBStartup. Why does this appear, and how do I eliminate this error?

A:

In many cases the problem message you received did not accurately reflect a missing or even damaged library, but rather the absence of a "#?.gadget" file that the resource.library function depends on. Check the SYS:Classes/Gadgets/ directory on your system partition and the OS3.9 directory of the install CD-ROM and manually copy any missing #?.gadget files. Ensure that all the #?.gadget files are the latest versions (do this by checking the latest Boing Bag first, then the OS 3.9 CD-ROM).

[Mike Wilson/Cor Kriekaart]

Another cause for this message may be a corrupt or incorrectly installed 68040.library and/or 68060.library file. Make sure that you're using the correct—and valid—680x0.libraries. Such a corrupt file may work under OS 3.1, but will fail in OS 3.9.

[Rob Pleak]

Note that UnixDirs3 has the ability to redirect '/' to be the same as ':'; the root of the drive. This causes many poorly written installers to fail that rely on '/' to be 'parent directory'.

[Shawn Holwegner]

21.
Q:

Why was a new section added to the beginning of Startup-sequence v45.4 (consisting primarily of SCSIUpdate commands)? Are there options other than a "0" in the "Set SCSIUpdate 0" line? (i.e. what would a 1 or a 2 do?)

A:

The following section is what's being referred to:

; $VER: Startup-sequence 45.4 (4.4.2001)
; Startup-sequence for AmigaOS 3.9

; The following lines disable updating "scsi.device" for driver
; software where this could lead to failures. They also start
; IDEFix if installed.
;
; You can manually disable updating "scsi.device" by setting
; the environment variable "NOSCSIUPDATE" to something.

If EXISTS C:SquirrelSCSI
    C:SquirrelSCSI
EndIf

Set SCSIUpdate 1
If EXISTS C:IDEFix
    C:IDEFix
    Set SCSIUpdate 0
EndIf
If EXISTS SYS:Expansion/XSurfIDE
    Set SCSIUpdate 0
EndIf
If EXISTS SYS:Prefs/Env-Archive/NOSCSIUPDATE
    Set SCSIUpdate 0
EndIf
If $SCSIUpdate EQ 1
    SetPatch QUIET
Else
    SetPatch SKIPROMUPDATES "scsi.device" QUIET
EndIf
Unset SCSIUpdate

This is not intended to remove the annoyance of the SetPatch SKIPROMUPDATES "scsi.device" QUIET line (as even with this line, SetPatch installs the ROM Update), but to do so without "scsi.device" when it exists in DEVS:.

This is just to support the less-than-ideal controller software on the market, and to disable usage of the new "scsi.device" when something like IDE-Fix, XSurfIDE, etc. is found. If neccessary, it also loads SurfSquirrel software.

"SCSIUpdate" is simply a temporary variable used to keep track of whether or not "scsi.device" updating should be skipped. It will be unset after installation and is not saved to either ENV: or ENVARC:.

Providing you're using the Boing Bag 1 version of the SetEnv (45.0) command, you may set the environment variable "NOSCSIUPDATE" to anything and it will disable the SCSI-Update as well; i.e.:

SetEnv SAVE NOSCSIUPDATE "bla"

[Martin Steigerwald]

22.
Q:

I recently installed OS 3.9, but don't always have the CD-ROM connected. Why won't my Amiga boot up when the CD-ROM drive is disconnected?

A:

OS3.9 'sneaks' an emergency CD-ROM driver into the DEVS: directory, and is therefore trying to initialize a non-existant CD-ROM drive. Simply drag the device file out of DEVS: and reboot.

[Kevin Orme]

23.
Q:

How do I make the new SetEnv command in Boing Bag 1 resident?

A:

Stephan Rupprecht suggests adding the following line to either your S:Startup-sequence, or S:User-startup file:

Resident >NIL: C:SetEnv PURE REPLACE

[Stephan Rupprecht]

24.
Q:

Once I've created the emergency-disk and boot from it, the Workbench screen doesn't open and instead "LoadWB" returns: "Invalid resident library." Why?

A:

The system currently has 3.0 ROMs installed, and the upgrade to 3.1 ROMs are needed per the list of requirements for OS 3.9.

[Kent Seaton]