Important Notice

The pages on this site contain documentation for very old MS-DOS software, purely for historical purposes. If you're looking for up-to-date documentation, particularly for programming, you should not rely on the information found here, as it will be woefully out of date.

 
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                                    MODE
 
Configures system devices. The MODE command performs many different tasks,
such as displaying system status, changing system settings, or reconfiguring
ports or devices.
 
Using the MODE command
 
Because the MODE command can perform many different tasks, the syntax
necessary to carry out each task is different. The following is a list of
tasks for which you can use the MODE command.
 
♦  Reconfiguring a printer attached to a parallel port (LPT1, LPT2, or LPT3)
   for printing at 80 or 132 characters per line, 6 or 8 lines per inch, or
   both (if the printer supports these features). For more information, see
   <MODE (configure printer)>.
 
♦  Configuring the baud rate, parity, and number of data bits and stop bits
   of a serial port (COM1, COM2, COM3, and COM4) for use with a specific
   printer, modem, or other serial device. For more information, see
   <MODE (configure serial port)>.
 
♦  Displaying the status of all devices or of a single device. For more
   information, see <MODE (display device status)>.
 
♦  Redirecting printer output from a parallel port to a serial port so that
   the serial port becomes the system's default printer port. For more
   information, see <MODE (redirect printing)>.
 
♦  Preparing devices for character set (code page) switching. For more
   information, see <MODE (set device code pages)>.
 
♦  Selecting another display adapter or changing the configuration of the
   current display adapter. For more information, see
   <MODE (set display mode)>.
 
♦  Setting the keyboard's typematic rate. For more information, see
   <MODE (set typematic rate)>.
 
Requirement for ANSI.SYS and DISPLAY.SYS
 
MODE can perform some tasks, such as setting the display mode, only if you
have included a DEVICE command for the ANSI.SYS device driver in your
CONFIG.SYS file. You must install DISPLAY.SYS to use MODE (set device code
pages) for character-set switching.
 
Adding mode commands to AUTOEXEC.BAT
 
Although you can type each form of the MODE command at the command prompt,
you can also use MODE commands within your AUTOEXEC.BAT file to reconfigure
your system automatically each time you turn on or restart your computer.
 
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