Identifying your version of Windows 95

• Plain old Windows 95
• Plain old Windows 95 with some silly little add-ons - the Plus! pack
• Plain old Windows 95 with a few odds and sods - OSR 1
• Nice shiny new Windows 95 OSR 2
• Slightly altered Windows 95 - OSR 2.1
• Oh so lovely Internet Explorer 4
• Even better Internet Explorer 4.01
• The closest you can get to having Windows 98 without actually having it - OSR 2.5

Windows 95

This is the first release version of Windows 95.  It was released in August 1995, and is full of bugs.

To see if you own this version check the following:

• The version in Control Panel...System Properties is reported as 95.
• The version you get when you type ver at a Windows DOS prompt is Windows 95 [Version 4.00.95]
• The version reported by typing ver at a proper DOS prompt is version 7.0

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Windows 95 with the Plus! pack

The Windows 95 Plus! Pack was released at around the same time as Windows 95.  It contains a number of features that had been present in the beta versions of '95 that never made it into the final version, because Bill Gates figured why give them to people when you can make them pay.  Most of the differences are cosmetic, though it comes with a much improved version of DriveSpace.

The version numbers are the same, except:

• Control Panel...System Properties says that Plus! is installed, and it gives the serial number.
• When booting, the logo screen says that Plus! is installed.

However, these are not foolproof methods.  The first is overridden if you have IE 4.00 or IE 4.01 installed.  The second may be overridded if you have OSR 2, OSR 2.1 or OSR 2.5 installed.

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Windows 95 with the OSR 1 update

If you had Windows 95 (normal) then you may have also installed the OSR (OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) Service Release) 1 update.  This fixed a number of bugs, particularly to do with networking.

It introduces a number of changes:

• In Control Panel...System Properties the Windows version is reported as 95a
• In Start...Programs...Accessories...System Tools there should be an item called Update Information.  Running it tells you which bits have been changed.

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Windows 95 with the OSR 2 update

If you bought a computer since about the middle of 1996 then chances are you will have the OSR 2 release of Windows95.  This version includes a number of improvements over Windows 95 and 95a, the most noteworthy of which is the FAT 32 filing system.

This version of Windows is only available when purchased with hardware.  For more information, see my OSR 2 page.

It contains most, or even all, of the contents of the Plus! pack, most importantly DriveSpace 3.  If anything is missed out, then it can probably be downloaded.  Microsoft released a patch to allow font smoothing, full colour icons, etc (the things that live on the Plus! tab of Display Properties), and I think that these are the only things that might not otherwise be included.

The main differences are:

• In Control Panel...System Properties, the Windows 95 version is reported as being 95b.
• In a Windows 95 DOS prompt, ver reports Windows 95 [Version 4.00.1111].
• In a real DOS prompt the version is reported as 7.1.
• The Control Panel...System Properties dialog box is slightly altered.  There is a DMA setting for EIDE hard disks, and the settings for enabling profiles are slightly altered.  Also, the driver information is laid out differently.
• The logo screen you get when booting is slightly different.  It says "With Microsoft Internet Explorer" and the coloured bar at the bottom is dithered so it looks nicer.

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Windows 95 with the OSR 2.1 update

The OSR 2.1 update is a downloadable update for OSR 2 that enables USB support.  If you have it installed, the only real difference is:

• Add/Remove Programs will have an option to remove USB support

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Windows 95 with Internet Explorer 4

Internet Explorer 4 is probably the best browser in the world.  It integrates into Windows 95 with its Active Desktop option, which gives a number of useful additions to Windows.

If you have it but do not have Active Desktop enabled, then the changes are:

• In System Properties, where before the Plus! version information would have been, there is Internet Explorer version information, and it will be 4.71.something

If you have Active Desktop then it is more obvious

• Windows will not look like it noramlly does.  Explorer windows have flat buttons (as per Office 97).  You can dock toolbars onto the taskbar.  You can have Web pages all over the place.
• System properties will have an Internet Explorer version numnber, as above.
• On the Start Menu, there will be further changes:
  • In the settings option there will be a number of extra options in the settings sub-menu, so the total will be five in all.
  • If the Programs sub-menu is too tall for the screen, then rather than splitting into two (or more) columns, it will gain little clickable arrows at the top and bottom.
  • You can drag and drop things in the Programs sub-menu, to change the order in which they are listed.
• Right clicking on the Desktop will present you with a menu.  At the top of the menu is a new option, called Active Desktop.
• The Display Properties Control Panel has a tab called Web.

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Windows 95 with Internet Explorer 4.01

Internet Explorer 4.01 is identical to IE 4.00, but it has fewer bugs, a couple of new features, and a different version number.

It is identified in the same way, with the following slight differences.

• The version number is 4.72.something.
• In Internet Properties, on the Advanced Tab, there is a new section called Accessibility settings or something similar.

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Windows 95 with the OSR 2.5 update

This is the newest (and final) version of Windows 95.  It is based on OSR 2, with the OSR 2.1 patch, IE 4.01, and improved online service programs.  It is only available with a new PC, or new hardware, as it is based on Windows 95 OSR 2.

It is identified in the following way.

• System Properties displays version 95c.

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