Connection with a DOS-systtem

(for "can the DOS system be a server ?" see the bottom of this page)

Yes, you can with some limits.
Microsoft offers for download a "DOS Client for Workgroup Networks" called
MSWGCN.EXE, which can downloaded from Microsoft :
Status Jan.5,2001: some info is available in the Microsoft Knowledge Base Q108391,
which has also the download link : ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/softlib/mslfiles/mswgcn.exe :

Connection from a DOS-system to Windows95 or an NT4 Workstation
This DOS network client allows to connect to a workgroup-network, it uses only NetBEUI-protocol.

For connection to an NT-Domain server or for networking using IPX/SPX or TCP/IP protocol, use the Microsoft Network-Client 3.0:
Connection from a DOS-system to an NT4 Server either from harddisk or from a
DOS-Network Boot-disk (based on the Network Client 3.0 or from a
Windows Bootdisk with Network support, created from Windows95/98..
(For connection to a NT-Domain server, you MUST use this Microsoft Network Client 3.0)
- Connection from a DOS-system using TCP/IP
- Update Network Client 3.0 with new Drivers

DOS-system as a Server on a Microsoft network
To share the disk and/or the printer of a DOS-system for access from a Windows system, you need to install first the Microsoft Network Client 3.0 and then download/install the add-on for DOS-based Microsoft Network Server.

A warning: these Microsoft DOS-network drivers are BIG, they take 100 Kbytes of the DOS-memory, so you may need to use UMB (via EMM386.EXE and DOS=HIGH,UMB) and load as much as possible drivers into the UMB.

If it is still too much, then I know only one other option: use on both the DOS and Windows95 system as Network-software "Lantastic" from Artisoft ( http://www.artisoft.com ), where the DOS-client is much smaller and Lantastic even offers the possibility to install a DOS-server-module, allowing Windows95 systems to access the disk of the DOS-system. But Lantastic is NOT FREE, you need to purchase it! (Artisoft offers the trial download of Lantastic 7, which is the Win95 version, but NO a trial version of Lantastic 6, which is the DOS version)