I think we are now getting into the differences between a boot disk and plain disk. To be a boot disk, it must have a minimum of three files: the I/O SYStem, the DOS SYStem, and the COMMAND interpreter. If all three of those files are not there, then the PC will not boot --- UNLESS --- the floppy has a configuration file that tells the PC to retrieve and activate a file from the hard disk. You also wouldn't want to use a clean boot disk that has an autoexec that loads files and/or drivers from the hard disk .... but I've seen people do weirder things. As to the write protect, YES by all means use all the insurance you can get. I agreed that it is a wise precaution in my first post. I'm just trying to dispel the myth that a virus can migrate from the hard drive to a clean boot disk that has been used correctly. Jim Meagher ===== Micro Solutions Consulting Member of The HTML Writers Guild http://www.ezy.net/~microsol International Webmasters Association ===== > -----Original Message----- > From: PCSOFT - Personal Computer software discussion list > [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Chris Louth > Sent: Monday, June 08, 1998 8:36 AM > > Not _exactly_ correct. > > I have had exactly that happen! Booting an OSR2 system with a known safe > boot disk, left writable, is not safe. The hard drive is accessed during > boot to access the MSDOS.SYS (I think). The HD is certainly accessed, > anyway, and it caused a great deal of headaches before I figured out > what was happening. Simple answer: Just write-protect the disk! > > Jim Meagher wrote: > > > > If you are booting from a known clean floppy it is IMPOSSIBLE for any > > virus on the hard drive to infect the floppy ---- unless --- > you activate > > an application on the hard drive.