What does Workbench.library do?

[garyg]

I am going to be installing a new SCSI HD on a dead Amiga
using A4000T installation floppy disks (if the capacitors haven't leaked).

I recall when doing this years ago that there's a slight difference between the
A4000T install disk package and other Amigas: if you use the former on an
Amiga other than an A4000T you'll get a blank screen when you boot up
because of a missing file. Is it the Workbench.library file?

[zipper]

Without Workbench.library no Workbench...Workbench.library is missing from the ROM due to missing space and must be delivered on the boot media.

[Boing-ball]

I am going to be installing a new SCSI HD on a dead Amiga
using A4000T installation floppy disks (if the capacitors haven't leaked).

I recall when doing this years ago that there's a slight difference between the
A4000T install disk package and other Amigas: if you use the former on an
Amiga other than an A4000T you'll get a blank screen when you boot up
because of a missing file. Is it the Workbench.library file?

On the 4000T ROMs I believe the space was made because of the 2 driver controllers for SCSI and IDE. So Workbench.library and  possibly icon.library will be needed in Libs.

[zipper]

Exatly!

[garyg]

Curious, then, that the OS 3.1 Install disk on my A4000T set of install disks contains workbench.library
but OS 3.1 Install disk (not otherwise labelled, but presumably for my A4000 desktop) does not.

[Boing-ball]

Amiga A4000D only has built in IDE. So only uses scsi.device, which is standard on all Amiga systems (Except A4000T).

[scuzzb494]

Generally the install disk holds enough information to boot into the system , set up the hard drive and then install the software. Libraries as such are there to assist in the process. Never forgetting that the 'actual' Workbench disk is the disk that is copied during the install process to Workbench and so  the 'workbench.library'  on the Workbench disk for the A4000T is the library file that is copied to the installed system, not the one from the install disk.  Though there is no reason you can't just copy the file from disk.   workbench.library 71456 in Libs.

The very same file is available for download from the Amiga Forever site for systems that do not have the workbench.library in ROM

The ROM on the 4000T contains the drivers for the SCSI-II controller actually in ROM and in order to allow it to fit, workbench.library was moved from ROM to Workbench/Libs. Meaning that it is otherwise in ROM on 3.1 systems. That's my understandingof it.