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How to: Run a DOS-based Web Server (seriously)
Apache and Nginx, eat your heart out.
December 20, 2023
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Apache and Nginx are great Web Servers. Linux and FreeBSD are fantastic systems for running them on. But… what if… we wanted to do something a little more... off the beaten path?

What if -- hear me out -- we ran a Web Server… on DOS?

Yeah. DOS.

It's doable. Truly it is.

And, while DOS may not be the high-up-time, massively scalable Web Server platform of the future… it's still a heck of a lot of fun to set up. Plus, it only takes a few minutes. At which point you can say to the world: “Hey! I ran a DOS Web Server!”

Which is a far more enjoyable thing to say than perhaps it should be.

We're going to use FreeDOS as the base operating system here. FreeDOS is a Free and Open Source, MS-DOS compatible operating system that is still (even nowadays) under active development.

But, never fear, it's still DOS.

Note: Some of this will also work in MS-DOS, but FreeDOS makes the process much easier.

Step 1) Install FreeDOS

  • Go to freedos.org and download the full .ISO for FreeDOS.
  • Then install FreeDOS.

If you have difficulty here, the FreeDOS team has put together step-by-step instructions (with videos, screenshots, the works). Luckily this should be a simple process for anyone who's installed an Operating System before.

For the purposes of this tutorial, I recommend installing FreeDOS in a virtual machine (QEMU or VirtualBox recommended) – that will simply make the networking component much easier. That said, all of this works great even on bare metal… provided you have supported networking hardware.

If you are installing in a virtual machine, set up a VM with 32 MB of RAM and a 500 MB hard drive. This should be plenty. Because… it's DOS.

Step 2) Install DOS Networking Software

Here's where some of the magic of FreeDOS makes things incredibly easy.

Reboot your DOS machine (or virtual machine) and make sure the FreeDOS installer .ISO is mounted (or the USB/CD is in the drive if you are using DOS on a physical PC).

Run the FreeDOS package manager application by typing:

FDIMPLES.EXE

(On a standard FreeDOS install FDIMPLES.EXE will be in the system path, so you can be in any directory when you run it. Otherwise it is, by default, stored in C:\FDOS\BIN.)

From the “Networking” section, select the following packages:

  • FDNET

  • MTCP

  • WGET

Then chose “OK” to install the packages. At this point you'll want to reboot to load everything properly.

Step 3) Install a Web Server

There are, believe it or not, multiple options for running a Web Server under DOS. Seriously. Not a joke.

In this tutorial I'll show you how to install two of them. Because… why not? You can install either. Or both. Follow your heart.

First, let's install Sioux – which is the more feature-packed of the two we look at here. Run these commands one at a time.

md sioux

cd sioux
wget http://www.georgpotthast.de/sioux/sioux.zip
unzip sioux.zip

Now let's install WebServ. Which, believe it or not, was written in BASIC. That's right. Follow this tutorial and you'll have run a Web Server. Programmed in BASIC. In DOS. (Kemeny & Kurtz would be proud.)

cd \
md webserv
cd webserv
wget http://rubbermallet.org/software/download/websv09b.zip
unzip websv09b.zip

Step 4) Run the Web Server

Note: Both Sioux and WebServ require ntcpdrv.exe to be run first. Luckily, ntcpdrv.exe is included with both and super easy to use. Just be sure to replace the IP, Netmask, and Gateway parameters (in the commands below) with the actual numbers for your DOS machine (you can find them when you first boot DOS).

To run Sioux:

cd \
cd sioux
ntcpdrv -ip=10.0.0.2 -netmask=255.255.255.0 -gateway=10.0.0.1
sioux.exe

To run WebServ:

cd \
cd webserv
ntcpdrv -ip=10.0.0.2 -netmask=255.255.255.0 -gateway=10.0.0.1
webserv.exe

All done!

That's it! You now have your very own DOS-based Web Server!

In order to test it out simply load up any web browser you like and point it at the IP address for your DOS installation (same IP that you see at boot time and that you used with NTCPDRV.EXE above).

Wham-o! You've done it! You've run your own DOS Web Server!

This is what the default page shipped with WebServ looks like (possibly the best default webserver page in existence):

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Final Reminder: 50% discounts (& Lifetime Option) at Lunduke Journal ends tomorrow (Friday)

Heads up: The Lunduke Journal subscription discounts end tomorrow (Friday, Feb 28th). Once the calendar says "March" -- poof -- the discounts are gone.

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After Friday, all prices return to normal and the Lifetime Subscription option “Goes back into the vault”.

Once again: Thank you to all of the subscribers. The Lunduke Journal is possible because of you. You are directly making Indie, Big-Tech-Free Journalism possible. You rule.

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12% of Tech Workers Believe macOS is Based on Linux
Over 70% believe in at least one common Myth of Computer History.

The following data was derived from the 2025 Tech Industry Demographic Survey, which included over 12,000 respondents -- from across companies and organizations throughout the Tech Industry -- surveyed during February of 2025.

 

Ready to have your mind blown?

According to those surveyed:

  • Nearly 12% believe that macOS is based on Linux.
  • Over 70% believe in at least one common Myth of Computer History.
  • The most commonly believed myth (at 52%) is the myth that "the first computer bug was a real bug (a moth)".

 

Those who took the survey were presented with 6 common (but debunked) computer history myths... and were asked to select the myths which they believed to be true and factual historical statements.

Here is the breakdown of how many believed in each myth.

 

 

One rather fascinating piece of data: Those percentages held steady for nearly every demographic group within the survey.

For example:

Roughly 12% of respondents who prefer Linux, believe macOS is based on Linux.  The same was true of Windows users, C / C++ programmers, and those who perfer the Firefox Web Browser... no matter what sub-group was looked at... that number stayed roughly steady (around 12%).

The one outlier appeared when I looked at how many myths a person says they believe in... grouped by generic political leanings (Left, Centrist, or Right Leaning).

 

Notice that the percentage of respondents who "Believe at least one myth" or "Believes 4+ myths" stays roughly consistent (with only mild variances) across all three political groupings.

But, if you look at the "Believes 3+ myths" data, there is an 8% spike among those who identify as "Left Leaning".

While all surveyed were likely to believe at least one myth, "Left Leaning" respondents were slightly more likely to believe up to 3 myths (of the 6 presented).

 

The Myths of Computer History

 

For those curious, here are the 6 myths included in the survey (with links to debunk each of them).  

 

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February 18, 2025
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Plus… for the rest of February there’s some massive discounts (like 50% off).

https://lunduke.locals.com/post/6661699/for-february-50-off-subscriptions-50-off-drm-free-downloads-lifetime-subscriptions-available

So, you know, win-win!

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For February: 50% off Subscriptions, 50% off DRM-Free Downloads, Lifetime Subscriptions available

2025 is off to an amazing start for The Lunduke Journal.

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Yup. The whole gosh darned month.

If it’s February, the discounts below are all available. Choose whatever works best for you. Then feel awesome about supporting truly independent Tech Journalism.

50% Off Yearly Subscription:

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The "World Famous Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscription" is exactly what it sounds like. Pay once and get full access to The Lunduke Journal. For life. A great way to support Big-Tech-Free Journalism.

(This includes full access to the community Forum.)

New Lifetime Subscriptions are available, for $200, from now through February 28th.

The Lifetime Subscription can be obtain via Locals, Substack, or using Bitcoin. All three options work great and are super easy.

How to get a Lifetime Subscription via Locals:

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How to get a Lifetime Subscription with Bitcoin:

And, finally, you can obtain a Lifetime Subscription via Bitcoin. Save a few bucks with this option, as Bitcoin processing has fewer fees associated with it.

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