im reading files off floppies with my os and need to know the file system of each floppy i use or any user puts into the system, i need to know if this will read the bootloader into memory so i can read it
(assuming the floppy controller has been reset)
org 100h
mov ah, 02h
mov al, 1 ;just the bootloader
mov ch, 1
mov cl, 1
mov dh, 1
mov dl, 00h
mov bx,databuf
mov es,bx
ret
databuf: times 512 db 0

i am at a friends house who doesnt have a virtual machine and i need someone to tell me if this works

If your bootloader is at track 1, sector 1, head 1 on drive A then...no it still won't work.

Sectors are numbered starting from 1 but tracks/heads start from 0

org 100h
mov ah, 02h
mov al, 1 ;just the bootloader
mov ch, 0
mov cl, 0
mov dh, 0
mov dl, 00h
push cs
pop es
mov bx, databuf
;;;;;;;do i add a pop cs here?
ret
databuf: times 512 db 0

>do i add a pop cs here
No, maybe an int 13h

Sectors are numbered starting from 1

org 100h
mov ah, 02h
mov al, 1 ;just the bootloader
mov ch, 0
mov cl, 1
mov dh, 0
mov dl, 00h
push cs
pop es
mov bx, databuf
int 13h
ret
databuf: times 512 db 0

You are running this from DOS? With a .com file?

yea i need a way to get information about the disk my user puts into the drive and tell whether is fat12 or not, and this example with help me know how to, but my os isnt in working condition right now, so i use this example to use in my os, but for now it is a stand alone file that will load the boot sector and print its contents on the screen, for ow i just need to load the first 512 bytes or the disk. i do plan on running this on dos, im not using the dos disk handlers because when this works, ill just copy the function into my os, without having to change the ints used because they are bios, or standalone

Look for info about the BPB (BIOS Parameter Block), which is in the boot sector of a DOS-formatted floppy.

i have that already, but thank u, it wont be a dos formatted floppy tho, i just need to load the bootloader into the buffer, and il have the info i need and manipulate it from wat i need

so a side question, if i want to put information in say es:ax
all i have to do is
push cs
pop es
mov ax, buffer?
and from there i can put more code to execute or after putting data into es:ax i have to pop cs in order to continue?

You can't pop cs.

oh ok thanks, i dont use push or pop alot

>You can't pop cs.
heh, unless it's an 8088/8086

Forget the 'pop cs' since the push cs/pop es balance.
You load your second stage wherever you want and jump to there...easy.
Usually after you read it you push es and bx then do a far return, since es:bx is used by int 13h.

Anyway, who uses floppies anymore? If the machine is old enough to actually have a floppy drive then perhaps is really is an 8088/8086

lol its my file system in my real mode os

>Anyway, who uses floppies anymore?
VMs, XP with SATA, us 'os construction' people.

An FDC/FDD is one learning point for a PM OS - learning all of the ins and outs of I/O.

Yeah, hehe, i take the FD out of my old PC's and put in new PC's