Creating Directories for Driver Distribution Media
Many devices are distributed with accompanying media (typically a CD) containing drivers for multiple languages and multiple versions of Microsoft® Windows®. The following table represents one possible directory structure for organizing such media, so that multiple languages can be supported on Windows 9x, Windows NT® 4.0, Windows 2000, and Windows XP. The file names in the following table are for illustration only.
| Directory |
INF File |
Explanation |
| Root directory |
NT4.inf |
Unsigned Unicode INF file for Windows NT 4.0 |
| \Windows |
MultiOS.inf |
Signed Unicode INF file for Windows 2000 and later operating system versions |
| \Win9xEng |
Win9xEng.inf |
Signed English language INF file for Windows 9x/Me |
| \Win9xFra |
Win9xFra.inf |
Signed French language INF file for Windows 9x/Me |
| \Win9xGer |
Win9xGer.inf |
Signed German language INF file for Windows 9x/Me |
The directory structure illustrated in the table should be used for the following reasons:
- Windows 9x/Me does not recognize or handle localized INF Strings.LanguageID sections (see INF Strings Section). For this reason, individual INF files are required for each supported locale on Windows 9x/Me.
- Windows 9x/Me does not recognize INF files stored with Unicode encoding, and thereby ignores them. In the media layout portrayed in the preceding table, the INF files targeted at platforms other than Windows 9x/Me are saved with Unicode encoding. Therefore, Windows 9x/Me ignores them. If this layout were presented to a Windows 9x/Me user, he or she would see a list that includes only the Windows 9x/Me INF files, and none of the Unicode INF files targeted at other operating system versions.
- Because there is no way to differentiate a Windows NT 4.0 INF file from an INF file for later versions of the NT-based operating system, a separate INF file should be provided for Windows NT 4.0 support. In the preceding table, the Windows NT 4.0 INF file is placed in the root directory of the media so that Windows NT 4.0 users can easily find it.
- Windows NT 4.0 does not recognize driver signatures, so an INF file for Windows NT 4.0 can be unsigned. Even though such a file appears as a valid INF file to Windows 2000 and later operating system versions, these operating system versions will choose a signed INF file in preference to one that is unsigned. For additional details, see How Setup Selects Drivers.
The sample INF file (MultiOS.inf), which ships with the Windows DDK, illustrates how a single INF file can be used to install a device on multiple versions of the Windows operating system family.
