himen.sys & emm386.exe

[steved]

Was wondering if anyone could tell me the difference between the two and clarify whether himen.sys needs to be initalised first before the emm386.exe, and if so why?

As I understand it himen.sys manages extended memory and emm386.exe "emulates" expanded memory?

thanks in advance.....


Steven

[Igor M]

In general you understand their functions correctly. Himem.sys manades XMS - extended memory (above 1M) including HMA (High Memory Area - 64K of memory just above 1M limit). Emm386.exe emulates EMS - expanded memory using extended memory for that purpose. Besides Emm386.exe can be used to create UMBs (Upper Memory Blocks) located in the memory area between 640K and 1M. You can use UMB to load drivers (mouse driver for example).
So Himem.sys must be started first to create extended memory, then you start Emm386 to create UMB or/and emulate EMS using extended memory created by Himem. More information you can get typing HELP at the DOS prompt.

[steved]

Thanks Igor, thats exactly what i was looking for!!