Partitions on Intel x86 Windows NT computers are identified in the BOOT.INI file by ARC (Advanced RISC Computer) naming conventions, which define the hard disk and partition on which the operation system resides. An example of an ARC name is: multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)

Here's a closer look at how devices are identified using ARC names.

ARC Name Syntax - When the BIOS is not enabled for a SCSI adapter, devices attached to the SCSI bus are identitied by ARC names with the following format: scsi(a)disk(b)rdisk(c)partition(d)

All other devices, including devices attached to SCSI adapters whose BIOS is enabled, are defined by the following format: multi(a)disk(b)rdisk(c)partition(d)

These are the keywords and parameters in all ARC names:

• scsi/multi(a) identifies the hardware adapter, where (a) is the ordinal number of the adapter. The first adapter is assigned the ordinal number (O), the second adapter is assigned the ordinal number (1), and so on.
• disk(b) identifies the devices address on the SCSI bus. When the multi keyword is used, (b) is always (O).
• rdisk(c) identifies the ordinal number of the disk when the multi keyword is used. For the first disk, (c) is (O). When the scsi keyword is used, (c) is always (O).
• partition(d) identifies the partition on the drive that is specified by the foregoing parameters. The value of (d) is (1) for the first partition on the hard disk, (2) for the second partition, and so on.