This article discusses the use of the Windows 98 startup floppy diskand an alternative boot disk to handle troubles in booting up theWindows 98 system.
Most of the discussion here apply equally tothe Windows 95 and Windows ME operating systems (OS) but there areminor differences from one OS to another.
The Windows Startup Disk: If you do not have the Startup Disk for your Windows 98 (or you have misplaced it since you made it when you installed Windows 9x on your system), this is the time to make one. It is conveniently done from Control Panel.
Control_Panel > Add/Remove Programs >Startup Disk
A surprising number of users don't have the startup disk handy and even those who have it have never used it, or do not know what it is for and how useful it is. If you have done it recently, you may remember that the Windows 9x installation steps always provide the option of creating such a diskette --- but never explains how to use it.
What's on the Startup Disk? The diskette is also called Emergency Boot Disk (EBD) is a replica of the contents of the directory at C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\EBD.
The floppy disk is essentially a bare bones DOS 7.x system disk with various disk initialization tools, such as
FDISK.EXE FORMAT.COM SYS.COM
These tools allow you to initialize the hard disk prior to the Win 98 installation. But, in order to read the Win 98 Installation CD-ROM for the setup procedure, you need the capability of accessing the CD-ROM which often needs SCSI device drivers.
ASPI2DOS.SYS ASPI4DOS.SYS ASPI8DOS.SYS ASPI8U2DOS.SYS ASPICD.SYS BTCDROM.SYS BTDOSM.SYS FLASHPT.SYS OAKCDROM.SYS
Surprisingly, there is no software in Startup Disk which allows you to start Windows 98. The tools are good mostly to re-install the Windows 98 operating system from the CD-ROM. Although the Win 98 re-installation procedure would not normally delete user files on the hard disk, it is a very time-consuming process. It should be pointed out that on many occasions, there are steps you can take that are much quicker to make the system disk capable of rebooting into Win 98 system without a complete re-installation of the OS. But, the Startup Disk will not allow you to do so.
The Master Boot Record (MBR):
Every now and then, a Windows 9x system becomes unbootable for various reasons. The most common cause is probably the contents of the master boot record (MBR) of the boot drive (the first disk drive that is enabled) are not configured properly.
FDISK is the official tool to manipulate the contents of the MBR in Microsoft's OSes. The most well known "undocumented" feature (even Microsoft's page documents it) is to refresh the MBR by the following command.
FDISK /MBR
This command runs very quickly without fanfare: it does not even tell you whether or not the operation was successful. Also, it is a good idea to run FDISK (without arguments) and examine the first disk to make sure the first partition is a Primary DOS Partition and it is set as Active Partition.
It is unfortuante that FDISK allows you to make only the Primary DOS parition of the first disk drive an Active partition. So, even if your BIOS configuration menu has a feature to allow you to set the disk volume other than C: as the boot volume, it does not do you any good as long as you use FDISK because it refuses to make any other partition active.
An Alternative Boot Disk:
From time to time, for various reasons, the Windows 98 system disk gets slightly corrupted and becomes not bootable. It take only one crucial file to make the system fail to boot successfully into the Windows 98 environment. Anyway, it is very useful to have a bootable system diskette which allows you to not only boot into a DOS environment, but also reach all the way to the Windows 98 environment even on a volume which cannot otherwise boot itself to the Win98 world. Such a capability is sorely missing from the standard Win98 Startup Disk (a.k.a. EBD).
Note: This technique works with Win98, but NOT on Win ME.
How to make the Alternative Boot Disk:
Perform the following sequence to prepare the boot diskette from a command prompt (in DOS or in a DOS Box).
FORMAT A: /U /S
XXCOPY16 C:\MSDOS.SYS A:\ /H/R/Y
XXCOPY16 C:\CONFIG.SYS A:\ /H
ECHO C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT >A:\AUTOEXEC.BAT
Here, in this example, XXCOPY16 is used because it can be run either in the 16-bit or in the 32- bit environment. But, you may use XXCOPY (the 32-bit version) in a DOX Box of Win9x.
If XXCOPY/XXCOPY16 is not available, you need to perform extra steps (ATTRIB to manipulate the attribute bits first, and copy the file accordingly).
The forth line here is a quick way to make a one-line text file on A:. Of course, you may add other utilities to the diskette such as FDISK.EXE, FORMAT.COM, SYS.COM for your convenience.
If you are not familiar with XXCOPY16, it is available in the XXCOPY Freeware package.
Using the Alternative Boot Disk: This diskette allows you to boot into Win9x where the system disk at C: is not capable of booting itself.
This is usually a result of the partition that is assigned to C: is not an "Active" DOS Primary partition.
Additional note: This technique can be extended to a customized "multi-boot" scheme based on floppy disks.
For instance, I have a Japanese version of Win98SE which is installed on Drive E:. That is, when the particular version was installed, it was deliberately installed to E: so that E:\WINDOWS is the official windows system directory for that environment.
According to Microsoft's official "rule", only one kind of Win9x OS can exist on a system, (the dual-boot is possible with WinNT/2000/XP but not with another Win9x or ME), when I need to boot into the Japanese version of Win98, I use a specially made diskette which has its own unique MSDOS.SYS file which declares that the E: drive is the boot drive. Of course, you may acquire a specialized boot control software such as the System Commander that allows even more flexible booting option among many OSes. But, the alternative boot disk allows you to test the system and see which of the key files are causing a boot sequence problem.
From: Kan Yabumoto
Friday, July 31, 2009
How to Create a Windows 98 Startup Disk from MS-DOS
To make a Windows 98 Startup disk from MS-DOS, use the following steps:
1. Restart your computer, press and hold down the CTRL key until the Windows 98 Startup menu appears, and then choose Command Prompt Only from the Startup menu.
2. Insert a blank, formatted floppy disk into drive A.
3. Type the following commands, pressing ENTER after each command:
cd windows\command
smartdrv.exe
bootdisk a:
NOTE: Smartdrv.exe is not required to create a Windows 98 Startup disk. It is used only to speed the creation of the startup disk.
Follow the instructions on the screen to finish making the Startup disk.
1. Restart your computer, press and hold down the CTRL key until the Windows 98 Startup menu appears, and then choose Command Prompt Only from the Startup menu.
2. Insert a blank, formatted floppy disk into drive A.
3. Type the following commands, pressing ENTER after each command:
cd windows\command
smartdrv.exe
bootdisk a:
NOTE: Smartdrv.exe is not required to create a Windows 98 Startup disk. It is used only to speed the creation of the startup disk.
Follow the instructions on the screen to finish making the Startup disk.
Dell Latitude XPi
Storage Devices: Latitude XPi CD
Diskette Drive CD-ROM Drive Hard-Disk Drive Installing a Hard-Disk Drive Partitioning and Formatting the Hard-Disk Drive Interchanging Hard-Disk Drives With Earlier Models of the Latitude XPi
Diskette Drive
The computer comes with a 3.5-inch, 1.44-MB diskette drive located at the front of the computer.
CD-ROM Drive
The computer comes with a built-in CD-ROM drive located above the diskette drive at the front of the computer.
Hard-Disk Drive
The computer also comes with a removable hard-disk drive located on the left side of the computer above the 3 audio connectors. The computer automatically senses the hard-disk drive type.
NOTES: Remove any diskettes from the drive before moving the computer. Otherwise, the diskette-eject button, which extends when a disk is in the drive, may be damaged.
The computer's BIOS does not support hard-disk drives received from vendors other than Dell.
CAUTION: To prevent data loss, turn off the computer before removing or installing the hard-disk drive. Do not remove the hard-disk drive if the computer is in suspend mode or if the hard-disk drive access indicator is on. Removing the drive under these conditions leads to loss of data.
To remove the hard disk-drive, perform the following steps:
First turn off the computer.
Pull the drive latch toward the front of the computer until the drive door is halfway out. Grasp the drive door, and pull the drive out of the computer.
Installing a Hard-Disk Drive
CAUTION: Do not drop the drive. Mechanical shock can damage the drive and lead to the loss of data. When the hard-disk drive is not in the computer, protect the drive from exposure to static electricity.
To install the hard-disk drive, perform the following steps:
Turn off the computer.
Insert the drive in the hard-disk drive bay with the drive latch pulled out and pointing toward the front of the computer. (Do not remove or install a hard-disk drive if the computer is in suspend mode. Removing or installing a drive under these conditions will lead to the loss of data.)
Slide the drive all the way into the hard-disk drive bay, and then push in the latch to lock the drive into place.
To physically secure the hard-disk drive in the computer, install a commercially available antitheft device in the security cable slot and turn the key.
Create an MS-DOS bootable diskette. Insert a diskette into the diskette drive of a computer running MS-DOS. At the MS-DOS prompt, type format a:/s and press thekey.
To use the computer's suspend-to-disk feature, you will need the mks2d.exe and rms2d.exe utility programs.
The mks2d.exe and rms2d.exe files are available from several potential sources:
The c:\dellutils directory on the computer's original hard-disk drive
The utility diskette supplied with the computer
The program diskette set that should have been created when the computer was received
Copy the mks2d.exe and rms2d.exe files to the MS-DOS bootable diskette created in step 4. For information on copying files, refer to the documentation provided with your operating system.
If an MS-DOS–compatible system will be used on the new hard-disk drive, also copy the fdisk.exe and format.com MS-DOS files to the MS-DOS bootable diskette.
Turn off the computer, or activate suspend-to-disk mode. Wait until suspend-to-disk mode is complete before continuing this procedure.
If necessary, remove the hard-disk drive currently installed in the hard-disk drive bay. Pull the drive latch toward the front of the computer until the drive door is partially out. Grasp the drive door, and gently pull the drive out of the computer.
Remove the new drive from its packaging. Save the original packaging to use when storing or shipping the hard-disk drive.
Install the new drive. Pull out the drive latch on the drive door. Gently push the drive into the drive bay until the drive door is aligned with the computer case.
CAUTION: If the drive does not slide easily into the bay, pull it out and try again. Do not force the drive into the bay.
Partition and logically format the drive as described in Partitioning and Formatting the Hard-Disk Drive found later in this document.
Install the operating system on the drive.
Use the program diskettes you made when you received your Dell computer. Or, see the documentation that accompanied the operating system.
Test the drive by running the Hard-Disk Drive Test Group in the Dell diagnostics. See Chapter 4, "Running the Dell Diagnostics," in the Reference and Troubleshooting Guide for information on running the diagnostics.
Partitioning and Formatting the Hard-Disk Drive
Partition the hard-disk drive.
Use the partitioning software for your particular operating system. (For an MS-DOS–compatible operating system, use the fdisk.exe program on the MS-DOS bootable diskette you created in Installing a Hard-Disk Drive.)
When the partition(s) on the hard-disk drive are set up, some disk space for the S2D partition must be set aside, rather than having the entire hard-disk drive allocated to the operating system(s). Use the following guidelines to determine the size of the S2D partition:
If you are using an MS-DOS–compatible system on the hard-disk drive and you do not use a file compression utility, allow at least 1 MB of space for the S2D partition. Additional space needed for the S2D storage will be derived from the MS-DOS operating system's file storage space.
If you are using an operating system that is not compatible with MS-DOS, the S2D partition should be at least 2 MB larger than the amount of memory installed in your computer. For example, if you are using the Microsoft� Windows NT� operating system and your computer has 4 MB of memory installed, allow at least 6 MB of space for the S2D partition.
If you are using a file compression utility with an MS-DOS–compatible system on the hard-disk drive, the S2D partition must be 1 MB or larger. In addition, the total capacity of the S2D partition plus the uncompressed physical file space on the physical hard-disk drive must be equal to the amount of system memory plus 2 MB.
For example, a computer with 8 MB of system memory would require a total of 10 MB of space for S2D purposes. Given a 1-MB S2D partition, 9 MB of free space on the uncompressed physical drive would be needed to serve as S2D file space.
Format the hard-disk drive.
If you are using an MS-DOS–compatible operating system on the hard-disk drive, use the format.com program. At the MS-DOS prompt, type a:\format c:/s and pressto run the format program.
If you are using an operating system on the hard-disk drive that is not compatible with MS-DOS, refer to the documentation provided with that operating system.
Restart the computer from the MS-DOS bootable diskette you created in Installing a Hard-Disk Drive.
Create the S2D partition.
If you are using an MS-DOS–compatible operating system on the hard-disk drive, type a:\mks2d and press.
If you are using an operating system on the hard-disk drive that is not compatible with MS-DOS, or you want to restrict the suspend-to-disk file storage area to the S2D partition, type a:\mks2d -f and press.
The mks2d program creates the S2D partition on the hard-disk drive. Once the message appears confirming that the partition has been created, press thekey to quit the mks2d program.
Install your software on the hard-disk drive.
Although it is rare, a drive may lose its physical formatting; if you have trouble with your hard-disk drive, run the Hard-Disk Drive Test Group of the Dell diagnostics. See Chapter 4, "Running the Dell Diagnostics," in the Reference and Troubleshooting Guide for information on running the diagnostic tests.
If you ever need to remove the S2D partition to free up capacity on the hard-disk drive, use the rms2d.exe file on the MS-DOS bootable diskette you created in Installing a Hard-Disk Drive. When more space is available on the drive, you can recreate the S2D partition using the mks2d.exe program.
Interchanging Hard-Disk Drives With Earlier Models of the Latitude XPi
If you are using the Microsoft Windows� 3.x operating system, you can interchange hard-disk drives from the Latitude XP and Latitude XPi CD computers models, and you can use hard-disk drives from those computers in the Latitude XPi. In the Windows 3.x operating system, you must update the video drivers and utilities. For information on obtaining a drive configuration upgrade kit to perform this procedure, call Dell. A similar utility is also available on the Dell BBS.
CAUTION: The Microsoft Windows 95 operating system does not support the interchange of hard-disk drives between Latitude XPi CD computers.Do not interchange drives between Latitude XPi CD computers unless you also reinstall the operating system and all software applications. Interchanging hard-disk drives between computers could result in the loss of data and the corruption of the hard-disk drive.
Diskette Drive CD-ROM Drive Hard-Disk Drive Installing a Hard-Disk Drive Partitioning and Formatting the Hard-Disk Drive Interchanging Hard-Disk Drives With Earlier Models of the Latitude XPi
Diskette Drive
The computer comes with a 3.5-inch, 1.44-MB diskette drive located at the front of the computer.
CD-ROM Drive
The computer comes with a built-in CD-ROM drive located above the diskette drive at the front of the computer.
Hard-Disk Drive
The computer also comes with a removable hard-disk drive located on the left side of the computer above the 3 audio connectors. The computer automatically senses the hard-disk drive type.
NOTES: Remove any diskettes from the drive before moving the computer. Otherwise, the diskette-eject button, which extends when a disk is in the drive, may be damaged.
The computer's BIOS does not support hard-disk drives received from vendors other than Dell.
CAUTION: To prevent data loss, turn off the computer before removing or installing the hard-disk drive. Do not remove the hard-disk drive if the computer is in suspend mode or if the hard-disk drive access indicator is on. Removing the drive under these conditions leads to loss of data.
To remove the hard disk-drive, perform the following steps:
First turn off the computer.
Pull the drive latch toward the front of the computer until the drive door is halfway out. Grasp the drive door, and pull the drive out of the computer.
Installing a Hard-Disk Drive
CAUTION: Do not drop the drive. Mechanical shock can damage the drive and lead to the loss of data. When the hard-disk drive is not in the computer, protect the drive from exposure to static electricity.
To install the hard-disk drive, perform the following steps:
Turn off the computer.
Insert the drive in the hard-disk drive bay with the drive latch pulled out and pointing toward the front of the computer. (Do not remove or install a hard-disk drive if the computer is in suspend mode. Removing or installing a drive under these conditions will lead to the loss of data.)
Slide the drive all the way into the hard-disk drive bay, and then push in the latch to lock the drive into place.
To physically secure the hard-disk drive in the computer, install a commercially available antitheft device in the security cable slot and turn the key.
Create an MS-DOS bootable diskette. Insert a diskette into the diskette drive of a computer running MS-DOS. At the MS-DOS prompt, type format a:/s and press the
To use the computer's suspend-to-disk feature, you will need the mks2d.exe and rms2d.exe utility programs.
The mks2d.exe and rms2d.exe files are available from several potential sources:
The c:\dellutils directory on the computer's original hard-disk drive
The utility diskette supplied with the computer
The program diskette set that should have been created when the computer was received
Copy the mks2d.exe and rms2d.exe files to the MS-DOS bootable diskette created in step 4. For information on copying files, refer to the documentation provided with your operating system.
If an MS-DOS–compatible system will be used on the new hard-disk drive, also copy the fdisk.exe and format.com MS-DOS files to the MS-DOS bootable diskette.
Turn off the computer, or activate suspend-to-disk mode. Wait until suspend-to-disk mode is complete before continuing this procedure.
If necessary, remove the hard-disk drive currently installed in the hard-disk drive bay. Pull the drive latch toward the front of the computer until the drive door is partially out. Grasp the drive door, and gently pull the drive out of the computer.
Remove the new drive from its packaging. Save the original packaging to use when storing or shipping the hard-disk drive.
Install the new drive. Pull out the drive latch on the drive door. Gently push the drive into the drive bay until the drive door is aligned with the computer case.
CAUTION: If the drive does not slide easily into the bay, pull it out and try again. Do not force the drive into the bay.
Partition and logically format the drive as described in Partitioning and Formatting the Hard-Disk Drive found later in this document.
Install the operating system on the drive.
Use the program diskettes you made when you received your Dell computer. Or, see the documentation that accompanied the operating system.
Test the drive by running the Hard-Disk Drive Test Group in the Dell diagnostics. See Chapter 4, "Running the Dell Diagnostics," in the Reference and Troubleshooting Guide for information on running the diagnostics.
Partitioning and Formatting the Hard-Disk Drive
Partition the hard-disk drive.
Use the partitioning software for your particular operating system. (For an MS-DOS–compatible operating system, use the fdisk.exe program on the MS-DOS bootable diskette you created in Installing a Hard-Disk Drive.)
When the partition(s) on the hard-disk drive are set up, some disk space for the S2D partition must be set aside, rather than having the entire hard-disk drive allocated to the operating system(s). Use the following guidelines to determine the size of the S2D partition:
If you are using an MS-DOS–compatible system on the hard-disk drive and you do not use a file compression utility, allow at least 1 MB of space for the S2D partition. Additional space needed for the S2D storage will be derived from the MS-DOS operating system's file storage space.
If you are using an operating system that is not compatible with MS-DOS, the S2D partition should be at least 2 MB larger than the amount of memory installed in your computer. For example, if you are using the Microsoft� Windows NT� operating system and your computer has 4 MB of memory installed, allow at least 6 MB of space for the S2D partition.
If you are using a file compression utility with an MS-DOS–compatible system on the hard-disk drive, the S2D partition must be 1 MB or larger. In addition, the total capacity of the S2D partition plus the uncompressed physical file space on the physical hard-disk drive must be equal to the amount of system memory plus 2 MB.
For example, a computer with 8 MB of system memory would require a total of 10 MB of space for S2D purposes. Given a 1-MB S2D partition, 9 MB of free space on the uncompressed physical drive would be needed to serve as S2D file space.
Format the hard-disk drive.
If you are using an MS-DOS–compatible operating system on the hard-disk drive, use the format.com program. At the MS-DOS prompt, type a:\format c:/s and press
If you are using an operating system on the hard-disk drive that is not compatible with MS-DOS, refer to the documentation provided with that operating system.
Restart the computer from the MS-DOS bootable diskette you created in Installing a Hard-Disk Drive.
Create the S2D partition.
If you are using an MS-DOS–compatible operating system on the hard-disk drive, type a:\mks2d and press
If you are using an operating system on the hard-disk drive that is not compatible with MS-DOS, or you want to restrict the suspend-to-disk file storage area to the S2D partition, type a:\mks2d -f and press
The mks2d program creates the S2D partition on the hard-disk drive. Once the message appears confirming that the partition has been created, press the
Install your software on the hard-disk drive.
Although it is rare, a drive may lose its physical formatting; if you have trouble with your hard-disk drive, run the Hard-Disk Drive Test Group of the Dell diagnostics. See Chapter 4, "Running the Dell Diagnostics," in the Reference and Troubleshooting Guide for information on running the diagnostic tests.
If you ever need to remove the S2D partition to free up capacity on the hard-disk drive, use the rms2d.exe file on the MS-DOS bootable diskette you created in Installing a Hard-Disk Drive. When more space is available on the drive, you can recreate the S2D partition using the mks2d.exe program.
Interchanging Hard-Disk Drives With Earlier Models of the Latitude XPi
If you are using the Microsoft Windows� 3.x operating system, you can interchange hard-disk drives from the Latitude XP and Latitude XPi CD computers models, and you can use hard-disk drives from those computers in the Latitude XPi. In the Windows 3.x operating system, you must update the video drivers and utilities. For information on obtaining a drive configuration upgrade kit to perform this procedure, call Dell. A similar utility is also available on the Dell BBS.
CAUTION: The Microsoft Windows 95 operating system does not support the interchange of hard-disk drives between Latitude XPi CD computers.Do not interchange drives between Latitude XPi CD computers unless you also reinstall the operating system and all software applications. Interchanging hard-disk drives between computers could result in the loss of data and the corruption of the hard-disk drive.
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