Windows 98SE will not load

[snowboardingchick]

This is a complicated issue and I will try to explain it the best I can. First, I have two drives. The C: drive has Windows 98SE on it and the D: drive has Windows 2000 SP2 on it. I'm not sure what has happened to the C: drive but at one point it would only boot just past the windows password screen then stop without loading the icons, etc. At that point I could still access the D: drive. However in my attempt to fix the C: drive (reloading some files) I rendered the D: drive inaccessable. After copying the D: drive files to the C: drive via DOS, I reformatted and reloaded the D: drive. It had a virus and I had to go thru the tedious task of getting that all cleaned up. After fixing that, I pulled up Windows Explorer and I can view all of the files, etc. on the C: drive. I rebooted and tried to boot into the C: drive. The following are the messages that I get when trying to boot to the C: (Windows 98SE) drive:

The following file is missing or corrupt: D:\windows\himem.sys. Error in your config.sys file on line 1.

The following file is missing or corrupt: D:\windows\emm8.exe. Error in your config.sys file on line 2.

The following file is missing or corrupt: D:\windows\himem.sys.
The following file is missing or corrupt: D:\windows\dblbuff.sys.
The following file is missing or corrupt: D:\windows\ifshlp.sys.

C:\>set blaster=A220 17 D1 T2

C:\>set sndscape=c:\windows

HIMEM.SYS is missing
Make sure the file is in your windows directory


The thing is, when I go into DOS and look under the C:\Windows directory, the HIMEM.sys file is there. Do I need to replace this file? If so, how? I would very much appreciate any help I can get with this. I fear I have done too much damage on my own.

 

[edfair]

Your post indicates that d:\filename is missing.
So evidently your config.sys is pointing to D: and not to c:.

You probably would be better off to wipe everything out and go thru a reinstall of both operating systems to get the pointers set up right.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[snowboardingchick]

Is there no way to go thru the config.sys line by line and change it to point to the C: drive instead?

 

[edfair]

Of course. Any file editor will allow you to modify text.

I made the suggestion because you evidently have more than just a relocation problem. You have combined two OS installlations on one drive, which may lead to some other problems in the future.

And it looks like the 98 was installed from a DOs installation on the C: drive since there is a config.sys with some commands that were useful in DOS but are not needed with 98.

You could edit the config.sys and delete all the lines so you have a 0 length file (could be 0 to 3 bytes long due to a quirk in edit). And you probably could do the same in your autoexec.bat file. But document both files before you do it, something in the current files might be important.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[Jomama46]

Put in your Startup disk and at a:, type sys c:
If that doesnt do it type,
a:>copy config.sys c:
a:>copy autoexec.bat c:

The first transfers the system files to the root drive and the 2/3 transfers those (pre-windows) files
Only do this if you are a nerd and have the inescapable urge to do so.
Otherwise a clean wipe and reinstall is what you really need.
HTH

Jomama

 

[snowboardingchick]

Ok. I think that is part of the problem. I did the "sys c:"when the icons would not load. After I did that I could not access the D: drive. I'm afraid to do that again and render my d: drive inaccessable.

edfair: forgive me for being naive here, why do you say that I have combined two installations on one drive? W98 on the C: drive was installed using and ESD to fdisk and format, but loaded from a CD.

 

[edfair]

quote: "after copying the d: files to the C: drive",unquote.

The mental picture I have is of the 2K stuff now resident on C:. Not necessarily interfering, but there.

When you did a sys c:, you wiped out the bootup stuff you needed to make the OS selection. And my suggestion on the reload was intended to put a proper 98SE boot set in place, then a 2K overlay install into D: to rebuild the boot loader you need to choose between the 2.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[snowboardingchick]

Ok. I see where you got that from. What I meant was that I copied my data folders onto the c: drive before wiping down the d: drive and reloading it. So basically I have screwed up the boot sequence, initially, so that it would not boot to the d: drive when I did "sys c:". I hate to have to wipe down the c: drive beacuse it contains a lot of info and software. It would mean reloading lots of software as well. Any other suggestions?

 

[edfair]

Reloading the 2K will re-establish the boot choice. You don't have to wipe out the C: to do that.
But I would suggest an "over the top" reload of 98se first to make sure you have everything there like you want it. You go through the same steps as the original load, just make sure it goes into the same directory on the reload that it used originally. SE is probably the best windows to do this with. At the end of the install you will have all the programs and data like it was before the crash. Then do the 2K onto the D:.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.