Norton Utilities


Norton Utilities is a utility software suite designed to help analyze, configure, optimize and maintain a computer. The latest version of the original series of Norton Utilities is Norton Utilities 16 for Windows XP/Vista/7/8, released 26 October 2012.
Peter Norton published the first version for DOS, The Norton Utilities, Release 1, in 1982. Release 2 came out about a year later, subsequent to the first hard drives for the IBM PC line. Peter Norton's company was sold to Symantec in 1990 and Peter Norton himself no longer has any connection to the brand or company.

Norton Utilities for DOS and Windows 3.1

Version 1.0

The initial 1982 release supports DOS 1.x and features the UNERASE utility. This allows files to be undeleted by restoring the first letter of the directory entry. The UNERASE utility was what launched NU on its path to success. Quoting Peter Norton, "Why did The Norton Utilities become such popular software? Well, industry wisdom has it that software becomes standard either by providing superior capabilities or by solving problems that were previously unsolvable. In 1982, when I sat down at my PC to write Unerase, I was solving a common problem to which there was no readily available solution."
14 programs are included, on three floppy disks, list price $80:
  • UnErase, recovers erased files
  • FileFix, repairs damaged files
  • DiskLook, complete floppy disk displays and maps
  • SecMod, easy changes to floppy disk sectors
  • FileHide, interactive hidden file control
  • BatHide, automatic hidden file control
  • TimeMark, displays date, time, elapsed time
  • ScrAtr, sets DOS to work in any colors
  • Reverse, work in black on white
  • Clear, clears the screen for clarity
  • FileSort, keeps floppy disk files by date or name
  • DiskOpt, speeds floppy disk access
  • Beep, causes the PC speaker to beep
  • Print, prints files

    Version 2.0

The main feature of this DOS 2.x compatible version is FILEFIND, used for searching for files. This 1983 release adds hard disk support, and the PRINT program was renamed LPRINT to avoid conflict with the DOS command introduced in MS-DOS 2.0 as PRINT.COM. Following this release Norton became Utilities Editor of PC Magazine.
The executable files were compressed with Realia's Spacemaker.

Version 3.0

This version, copyrighted 1984 but dated 21 January 1985, includes Beep, Directory Sort, Disk Test, File Attributes, File Find, File Size, Line Print, List Directories, Screen Attributes, System Information, Text Search, Time Mark, Volume Label, Wipe Disk and Wipe File.

Version 3.1

This 1986 version adds the Quick UnErase and Unremove Directory programs.

Version 4.0

Release 4.0 adds four new programs:
  • Ask, used for batch file programming
  • File Info, add descriptions up to 65 characters long to each file
  • Norton Change Directory, displays a graphic directory tree; change, remove, rename or make directories
  • Norton Integrator, a menu system to tie the utilities together. Previously the utilities were accessed by typing the command name at the DOS prompt.

    Version 4.0 Advanced Edition

This version, released simultaneously with 4.0 standard edition, is dated 15 May 1987. It adds Speed Disk, a disk defragmenter, and Format Recover.

Version 4.5 Advanced Edition

Norton Disk Doctor is the major addition in this 1988 release.
It also includes Wipedisk; Wipefile, a Batch Enhancer and a sector level disk editor; a system information diagnostic utility and a disk caching program, which is between 10 - 50% faster than Microsoft's SMARTDrive when properly configured.

Version 5.0

Release 5.0 adds new features, including Disk Editor, a utility to perform low level formatting on hard disks and changes such as password protection on the more "dangerous" utilities. It also includes a licensed version of the 4DOS replacement for COMMAND.COM called NDOS. This version also allows the choice of "classic" names or longer names ; these are configurable in the updated version of the Norton Integrator menu system.

Version 6.0

Norton Utilities 6.0 supports DOS 5 and Windows 3.1. It includes Windows Program Manager support, but the tools are still DOS-based, so a set of icons were supplied.
It includes Norton Disk Doctor, Disk Editor, Disk Tools, Speed Disk, Norton Cache, Disk Monitor, Diskreet, NDisk, System Information, NDOS.
The speed of Speed Disk is improved over the previous release.
Diskreet supports Data Encryption Standard.
System Information now includes more detailed information on installed system.
UnErase takes advantage of DOS 5.0's Delete Tracking and Mirror File features to recover data. However, MS-DOS 5.0 adds a new UNDELETE.exe program, licensed from Norton competitor Central Point Software, which takes advantage of the same Delete Sentry control and Deletion-tracking files.. Windows 95's Recycle Bin soon further reduced the need for UnErase.

Version 7.0

Release 7.0 supports MS-DOS 6.0, DoubleSpace, Stacker and SuperStor disk compression tools.
Tools includes Norton Disk Doctor, Disk Editor, Undelete, SmartCan, NDOS, System Information, File Find, Norton Change Directory.
Speed Disk remains as well, although SPEEDISK.exe was licensed by Microsoft and incorporated into MS-DOS as DEFRAG.exe in MS-DOS 6.0 onward.
Release 7.0 has revised user interfaces for the utilities that feature a menu-driven user interface. Also some of these tools now do not need to run in full-screen-mode but just display a window in the center of the screen, like the disk formatter or the disk duplicator utility.
Disk Editor now includes Advanced Recovery Mode.

Version 8.0 for DOS/Windows 3.x

Release 8.0 is nearly the same as 7.0, but adds Windows 3.1 utilities.
DOS Utilities include Norton Disk Doctor, System Information, Change Directory, FileFind, Diskreet, DUPDISK, File Fix, NDOS, Batch Enhancer, Norton Integrator, Speed Disk.
Windows utilities include Norton Disk Doctor, Speed Disk, System Watch, File Compare, INI Tracker, INI Tuner, INI editor, and INI Advisor.

Norton Utilities for Windows 95 and later

Version 1.0 for Windows 95

The original Windows 95 version was released in August 1995.
As a native Windows 95 tool, it supports the VFAT file system used by Windows 95.
It includes Norton Image, Norton System Doctor, Norton Protection, Rescue Disk, System Information, Norton Disk Doctor, Norton UnErase, Space Wizard, Speed Disk, System Information. DOS tools include Disk Editor, Disk Doctor, Pre-Installation TuneUp.
CD-ROM version was announced on 15 January 1996. It adds Disk Companion, Memory Companion and Norton Utilities Companion over floppy disk version.
Disk tools included with this release are not compatible with FAT32.
The Windows version of Speed Disk works with much greater speed than Microsoft's supplied defrag program, as it moved groups of clusters, not single clusters as Microsoft's Windows Disk Defragmenter. Changes in the way Windows operates meant that many of the old utilities were either dropped completely or replaced with GUI based versions. However, with the advent of Windows XP onwards, Norton's Speed Disk reverted to single-cluster defragmentation.

Version 2.0 for Windows 95

Version 2.0 was announced on 7 October 1996.
Version 2.0 features Norton CrashGuard with Anti-Freeze, Norton System Genie, Norton AntiVirus, LiveUpdate, System Genie, Registry Editor, System Doctor, System Benchmark, Disk Benchmark, Multimedia Benchmark, Speed Disk, Space Wizard.
Disk utilities now support FAT32.
A LiveUpdate fix was released for Norton Utilities 2.0 for Windows 95.

Version 2.0 for Windows NT 4.0

Originally called Norton Utilities 2.0 for Windows NT during prerelease, it was announced on 27 January 1997.
It includes Norton Disk Doctor, Norton Speed Disk, Norton System Information, Norton System Doctor, Norton Protection/UnErase, Live Update.
Norton Disk Doctor, Speed Disk support FAT16 and NTFS file systems.
It does not include DOS UnErase, so files deleted from FAT partition needs to be handled by Norton Utilities for Windows 95/98.

Version 3.0 for Windows 95

Officially announced on 10 November 1997, Norton Utilities 3.0 was the first version of to be included in Norton SystemWorks, it includes Norton WinDoctor, Norton Web Services, LiveUpdate Pro, Norton CrashGuard 3.0, Norton Zip Rescue, Norton System Doctor, Norton SpeedStart, Norton Optimization Wizard, Speed Disk.
Via the use of LiveUpdate, a Speed Disk patch is available to take advantage of Windows 98's application launch enhancements.

Marketing

Symantec announced it had sponsored a bug-a-thon between USC and UCLA during the final development stages of the latest product release of Norton Utilities 3.0. The software began shipping on 21 November 1997.

Version 4.0

Symantec announced version 4.0 on 16 February 1999.
Although the 'for Windows' name was dropped from the products, it still appears in support sites.
New additions include Windows 98 support, Norton SystemCheck, Registry Doctor Scan, Norton WinDoctor, Connection Doctor, Norton Wipe Info, Norton CrashGuard 4.0, Norton Zip Rescue, Norton Disk Doctor, Norton UnErase, a six-month subscription to Norton Web Services for $6.95.

Marketing

On 13 May 1999, Symantec offered price reduction and rebates on Norton SystemWorks 2.0 and Norton Utilities 4.0.
Early order includes Net Nanny Internet filter software.

Release 2000 (Version 4.5)

With this release, Symantec changed the naming scheme to incorporate the year of release. Marketed as Norton Utilities 2000, this is the final version to run solely on the original Windows 95 platform.
It includes Norton Speed Disk, Norton System Check, Norton Disk Doctor, Norton Zip Rescue, free 3-month subscription to Norton Web Services.