FujiLink is a new SpartaDOS X driver that integrates FujiNet network resources directly into the operating system for Atari 8-bit computers. Instead of using a separate application, users can access FujiNet through standard SpartaDOS X commands and familiar device names.

The first public version, FujiLink 0.1, is already available for testing. It provides the essential functionality needed to mount and use FujiNet resources from SpartaDOS X 4.50.

FujiNet as a native SpartaDOS X device

Once installed, FujiLink adds a new NET: device handler to SpartaDOS X. It supports eight independently mounted resources, available as:

NET1:
NET2:
...
NET8:

Each device can point to a different FujiNet-supported resource. For example, a TNFS server can be mounted simply by changing the current directory:

CD NET3:TNFS://192.168.1.20/

The FujiNet SD card can be accessed in exactly the same way:

CD NET4:SD:///

After that, the mounted resource behaves like a regular SpartaDOS X device and can be used with standard DOS commands and applications.

One important benefit is that SD-card access does not require PCLink to be enabled in FujiNet or the separate PCLINK.SYS driver to be installed. FujiLink communicates with the FujiNet SD filesystem directly.

Managing mounted resources

Unmounting a single resource is equally simple:

CD NET3:-

This clears the FujiNet prefix assigned to NET3:.

All currently configured network mounts can be removed with:

CD NET:--

FujiLink also provides a small virtual filesystem through NET9:—also available as NETI:—containing status and information files.

For example, the list of currently mounted resources can be displayed with:

TYPE NET9:NETFS.INF

The objective is to expose as much FujiNet functionality as possible through ordinary SpartaDOS X conventions. After installing the driver, users should not need a separate configuration program for everyday filesystem operations.

Installation

Installing FujiLink requires only a few steps:

1. Connect FujiNet to the Atari and boot SpartaDOS X 4.50
2. Copy FUJILINK.SYS to a disk, SDX ROM image or cartridge
3. Add the following line to CONFIG.SYS:

DEVICE FUJILINK

4. Reboot SpartaDOS X.

The NET: devices will then become available automatically.

Current status

FujiLink 0.1 is the first working public prototype. The fundamental filesystem operations are already functional, but the driver still needs broader testing with existing SpartaDOS X software.

Some compatibility issues have already been identified with tools such as MENU and Sparta Commander. These appear to be solvable, but testing with a wider range of applications will help define the final behaviour of the driver.

Aliases, redirection and other advanced SpartaDOS X features also require additional testing.

Planned development

One of the main priorities is reducing FujiLink’s conventional-memory footprint. The current prototype allocates more memory than the final driver should require. A future release is planned to introduce more compact code and lazy memory allocation, reserving resources only when they are actually needed.

A dedicated version for computers equipped with a 65816 processor is also under development. FujiLink816 will be able to move most of the driver into 65816 linear memory, leaving considerably more of the Atari’s main address space available to SpartaDOS X applications.

Planned improvements include:

• a significantly smaller memory footprint;
• lazy allocation of internal buffers;
• a dedicated and more memory-efficient 65816 version;
• improved compatibility with SpartaDOS X utilities;
• further integration with aliases and redirection;
• public procedures that other programs can call;
• access to system information such as FujiNet’s IP address;
• optional startup scripts for automatically mounting frequently used resources.

A simple NETMOUNT.BAT file could, for example, contain a sequence of CD commands and restore all preferred network mounts during system startup.

Developed natively for the Atari

FujiLink is also an important real-world test of the new ORCA/DevKit toolchain for Atari computers. The driver was developed with:

• ORCA/DevKit for Atari;
• LenkaVM 65816, used for regression testing and running the development environment;
• Opus 4.8 for AI-assisted code generation.

No conventional cross-compiler was used—the project was built with an Atari-native development toolchain.

FujiLink and its 65816 counterpart are planned to be released as open-source software.

Feedback wanted

FujiLink 0.1 has been available for several weeks, but more feedback from users is needed. In particular, practical use cases and suggestions will help determine which functions should receive priority in future releases.

If you use SpartaDOS X 4.50 and FujiNet, please test the driver with your normal software and share any compatibility problems, ideas or missing features.

The first release and further discussion are available in the FujiLink topic on AtariAge.

A demonstration of the first working version can also be watched on YouTube.