OS/2 Version 2.0 will operate on IBM and other manufacturer's personal computers which are based on either the Intel 80386 or Intel 80486 (both SX and DX) microprocessors. Included in this group are systems based on the 80386SL (the low power version of the 80386SX) and the 80386SLC (the IBM version of the 80386SL with a 8KB cache included on the chip for improved performance). Models in the IBM PS/2 range, which meet the microprocessor requirement, will run OS/2 V2.0.
In order to run OS/2 V2.0, systems should be configured with a minimum of 4MB of memory. A hard disk of at least 60MB is also recommended.
IBM has established a large compatibility test facility in order to verify that certain key functions of OS/2 Version 2.0 perform correctly on hardware manufactured by companies other than IBM. The list of systems, which have passed these tests, is continually being updated and your PC dealer or IBM representative should be able to provide information on the OS/2 V2.0 compatibility of a particular system.
Where a system unit is equipped with more than 16MB of real memory, OS/2 V2.0 will use all the available memory, providing the system unit is able to support memory above 16MB. Before installing additional memory in a system, it is advisable to check that the system unit is able to address memory above 16MB.
Cache management for disk access in OS/2 V2.0 is more intelligent than previous versions of OS/2. In particular the file system will attempt to prefetch records when doing sequential file access.
OS/2 Version 2.0 exploits the capabilities of the IBM SCSI Busmaster adapters. Requests to the adapter can be chained together and a single command can initiate multiple reads from and writes to the disk subsystem. Devices other than disks attached to the adapter are also supported. OS/2 V2.0 also provides support for some non-IBM SCSI adapters. Details will be found in the "Readme" file which is installed with OS/2 V2.0.
The use and exploitation of hardware facilities by OS/2 Version 2.0 is described in more detail in Hardware Considerations.