installation and procedure (Windows 98)

How to Install Windows 98
After you partition and format your hard disk, you can install Windows 98: 1. Insert the Windows 98 Startup disk in the floppy disk drive, and then restart your computer.
2. When the Windows 98 Startup menu is displayed, choose the Start computer with CD-ROM support option, and then press ENTER.
3. If CD-ROM support is provided by the generic drivers on the Startup disk, you receive one of the following messages, where X is the drive letter that is assigned to your CD-ROM drive:
Drive X: = Driver MSCD001

Drive X: = Driver OEMCD001
NOTE: If your CD-ROM drive is not available after you boot from the Windows 98 Startup disk, install the CD-ROM drivers that are included with your CD-ROM drive. For information about how to obtain and install the most current driver for your CD-ROM drive, view the documentation that is included with your device, or contact your hardware manufacturer.


4. Insert the Windows 98 CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive, type the following command at a command prompt, and then press ENTER
X:\setup
where X is the drive letter that is assigned to your CD-ROM drive.

5. When you receive the following message, press ENTER, and then follow the instructions on the screen to complete the Setup procedure:
Please wait while the Setup initializes. Setup is now going to perform a routine check on your system. To continue press Enter.

HOW TO INSTALL THE WINDOWS 98 UPGRADE ON A NEW HARD DISK DRIVE
Last updated: 07/29/03
PROCEDURE. A simple solution to the problem is to "put the cart before the horse." That is, Install FAT32 on the new hard disk before installing Windows. Here's how (do the following steps at your own risk):

Preferably, before buying it, make sure your computer will support the new drive (LBA, cable, drive bays,, etc.). I am assuming here that both drives are IDE hard disks.

Make sure your old hard disk is in good condition. Run SpinRite, scandisk or chkdsk/f and fix any problems.

Back-up your old hard disk, or, at minimum, backup everything that is important: accounting data, documents, Internet Favorites, etc. In particular, back-up your CD-ROM driver, AUTOEXEC.BAT, and CONFIG.SYS.

Make and test a Windows 98 Startup floppy.

This can be done from the Windows 98 Upgrade CD without first installing Windows 98. Put the XCOPY files on the Startup Floppy (see my instructions) if you have Windows or Windows for Workgroups 3.x on your old hard disk, and you want to move the contents of the old hard disk to the new one and perform an upgrade on top of your old Windows (i.e., actually upgrade it). XCOPY cannot be used to move Windows 95 from an old disk to a new one, but XCOPY should be handy for moving application and data files.

Unfortunately, the Windows 95/98 XCOPY command will not copy system and hidden files when used from the DOS prompt. Also, in general, Windows 95/98 cannot be copied from one hard disk to another and work by simply copying files. There are other programs which claim to have the ability to move Windows 95 from one hard disk to another by copying files, but I don't use them. There are programs, such as Powerquest's PartitionMagic and Samantec's Ghost, which can copy an image of a partition on an old drive to a new drive and expand the partition on the new drive, and Windows will work if copied using this method. Western Digital WD DIAGS has this capability, albeit limited, as well.

Shut-down, power-off, unplug the power cord, and remove your old hard disk. Install your new hard disk as a master, single-drive.

To avoid a serious mistake, I always remove the old hard disk before running FDISK or FORMAT on a new one. I usually do not mount a new hard disk in a computer before completing the transfer of data from the old one. It's usually easier to plug and unplug cables when the drive is out of the case. Be sure to protect the bottom of the drive from shorting-out when laying it on the case or lay it on the case up-side-down.

Also, I usually remove all expansion boards from the computer except the display adapter and disconnect Zip drives, etc. Once Windows 98 and any motherboard-specific display adapter software is installed, I reinstall all of the expansion boards, etc., one-at-time.

Set-up your CMOS for the new drive. AMI and Award BIOS "Auto" should work on most new IDE drives.