unistalling win 98

Since the SCSI drive had the original Windows installation, it would =
follow that SCSI BIOS was enabled. But it would appear that the ATA =
drive is tried for a boot sector before the SCSI, and is probably seen =
as C: by the Windows Startup Disk, which is how a reinstall intended to =
be over the top of the SCSI-based installation managed to be installed =
to the ATA drive instead. That's why I suggest that the SCSI needs to be =
scanned for an Active bootable partition before the ATA drive, via BIOS =
setting--if possible.

Of course, if the 80 GB ATA drive was repartitioned properly so that the =
entire thing was an Extended partition with one or more Volumes, this =
probably couldn't happen--at least not in Win9x systems, s.

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Jeff Richards" wrote in message =
...
The SCSI drive will be seen as the primary ('boot') drive if the SCSI =
BIOS=20
is enabled. Otherwise, it won't be seen until the SCSI drivers are =
loaded=20
from Windows, so it will get a drive letter like other installed =
drives (ZIP=20
or memory card). The SCSI BIOS is enabled or disabled in the SCSI =
controller=20
setup utility, which is probably accessed using a special key (such as =

Ctrl+A) during startup.
--=20
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Mathers" wrote in message=20
...
I forgot to tell you that the 20bg drive is a scsi drive. What I did =
was
simply unplug the 80gb IDE drive and rebooted. It boots back to the =
20 gb
drive but gets back to my original problem and why I tried =
reinstalling.=20
Once
the machine goes through the boot sequence and begins to load start =
up=20
apps,
I get an "explorer error", and the computer goes no further with =
loading.=20
I
figured I would reinstall to fill into any holes in the system =
files.=20
Don't
know what caused the explorer error but it has been some time since
restarting my machine. I leave it on constantly and had to reboot =
after
installing an auto update of IE6 SP1 patch or something like that =
from
windows auto update service. Any ideas how to fix the error? Any =
further
suggestions on how to get 98 off the 80gb drive? Thanks for the help =
and=20
your
patients.

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I still want to go back to the question of "Why" you were =
installing over=20
the top of the original installation. But we can get to that later.

In BIOS, make sure that the 20 GB is visible and correctly =
detected. Make=20
sure it is the Primary Master. Then look for the Boot Order item =
and make=20
sure it reads:

1. Floppy (or CDROM)
2. CDROM (or Floppy)
3. HDD0
4. No other devices.

You don't want it looking for HDD1 if it can't find a bootable =
partition=20
on HDD0.

Try that and tell us what happens.

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message=20
...
Sorry about that. I didn't understand your question before. I =
have two
seperate drives. No partitions. I was attempting to reinstall =
over a=20
previous
version. Drive C was a 20 gb for system files, Drive D was 80 gb =
for=20
files,
docs, music, etc.. I set the 80gb as the primary slave when I =
installed=20
it a
few months ago. It put the new os on this 80gb drive and now =
boots from=20
this
drive. I would like it to boot from the 20 gb drive and dump the =
os off=20
the
80 gb drive. Does this info explain better?

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

You still haven't answered all of my questions. For the sake of =

simplicity, we'll call them Old C and New C.

1. Are these "drives" two partitions on the same physical hard =
drive?=20
Or are they actually two different drives? If they are two =
different=20
drives, how are they arranged? I assume one is Primary Master. =
Which=20
one? The other is what, Secondary Master or Primary Slave?

2. Are you attempting to install Windows over the top of a =
previous=20
installation on Old C? Or did you reformat it?

3. Why are you reinstalling? What error(s) led you to decide to =

reinstall?

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message=20
...
Somehow my drive letters were switched and what was the old =
D:=20
became the new
C: and I didn't know it. When I run FDISK, will I lose any =
info=20
from the
drive that I am making inactive? Any problems I should be =
aware of?=20
Thanks!

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I'm having difficulty deciphering your message. Windows 98, =

whichever one you have booted to, is *always* on C:\ drive. =
In=20
order for your machine to boot to that drive, it must be =
the=20
Active drive. If you have another Win98 system installed to =
what=20
is now your D:\ drive, and want that to be the boot drive, =
you=20
have to use a Windows Startup floppy boot, run FDISK, and =
make=20
that partition Active. Then when you boot to that Windows, =
it=20
will be the new C:\ drive.

Why did you think you had to reinstall Windows? What else =
is on=20
the current C:\ drive besides the new Windows installation? =
If=20
there's nothing else, you can reformat that drive. If there =
was=20
other stuff, and you can fix things to boot to the old =
system,=20
you can then delete the Windows folder and the Program =
Files=20
folder (provided you didn't already have a Program Files =
folder=20
there.)

Do you actually have two different hard drives, or only two =

partitions on one drive?

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in =
message=20
...
How can I uninstall win 98se from a second drive. Had to=20
reinstall win98 and
it flip flopped my drive letters and the new os was put =
on the=20
wrong drive.
Now this is the drive it boots up in. Old c drive is now =
the=20
new d drive.
What the hell? Just want it back to booting up in the =
origional=20
config.
Thanks!


=20
=20

That's correct - when the SCSI BIOS setting is adjusted so as to enable the
SCSI BIOS then the SCSI drive will be scanned for a bootable partition
before the ATA drive is looked at.
--
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote in message
...
Since the SCSI drive had the original Windows installation, it would follow
that SCSI BIOS was enabled. But it would appear that the ATA drive is tried
for a boot sector before the SCSI, and is probably seen as C: by the Windows
Startup Disk, which is how a reinstall intended to be over the top of the
SCSI-based installation managed to be installed to the ATA drive instead.
That's why I suggest that the SCSI needs to be scanned for an Active
bootable partition before the ATA drive, via BIOS setting--if possible.

Of course, if the 80 GB ATA drive was repartitioned properly so that the
entire thing was an Extended partition with one or more Volumes, this
probably couldn't happen--at least not in Win9x systems, s.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Jeff Richards" wrote in message
...
The SCSI drive will be seen as the primary ('boot') drive if the SCSI BIOS
is enabled. Otherwise, it won't be seen until the SCSI drivers are loaded
from Windows, so it will get a drive letter like other installed drives
(ZIP
or memory card). The SCSI BIOS is enabled or disabled in the SCSI
controller
setup utility, which is probably accessed using a special key (such as
Ctrl+A) during startup.
--
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Mathers" wrote in message
...
I forgot to tell you that the 20bg drive is a scsi drive. What I did was
simply unplug the 80gb IDE drive and rebooted. It boots back to the 20
gb
drive but gets back to my original problem and why I tried reinstalling.
Once
the machine goes through the boot sequence and begins to load start up
apps,
I get an "explorer error", and the computer goes no further with
loading.
I
figured I would reinstall to fill into any holes in the system files.
Don't
know what caused the explorer error but it has been some time since
restarting my machine. I leave it on constantly and had to reboot after
installing an auto update of IE6 SP1 patch or something like that from
windows auto update service. Any ideas how to fix the error? Any further
suggestions on how to get 98 off the 80gb drive? Thanks for the help and
your
patients.

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I still want to go back to the question of "Why" you were installing
over
the top of the original installation. But we can get to that later.

In BIOS, make sure that the 20 GB is visible and correctly detected.
Make
sure it is the Primary Master. Then look for the Boot Order item and
make
sure it reads:

1. Floppy (or CDROM)
2. CDROM (or Floppy)
3. HDD0
4. No other devices.

You don't want it looking for HDD1 if it can't find a bootable
partition
on HDD0.

Try that and tell us what happens.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message
...
Sorry about that. I didn't understand your question before. I have
two
seperate drives. No partitions. I was attempting to reinstall over a
previous
version. Drive C was a 20 gb for system files, Drive D was 80 gb for
files,
docs, music, etc.. I set the 80gb as the primary slave when I
installed
it a
few months ago. It put the new os on this 80gb drive and now boots
from
this
drive. I would like it to boot from the 20 gb drive and dump the os
off
the
80 gb drive. Does this info explain better?

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

You still haven't answered all of my questions. For the sake of
simplicity, we'll call them Old C and New C.

1. Are these "drives" two partitions on the same physical hard
drive?
Or are they actually two different drives? If they are two
different
drives, how are they arranged? I assume one is Primary Master.
Which
one? The other is what, Secondary Master or Primary Slave?

2. Are you attempting to install Windows over the top of a previous
installation on Old C? Or did you reformat it?

3. Why are you reinstalling? What error(s) led you to decide to
reinstall?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message
...
Somehow my drive letters were switched and what was the old D:
became the new
C: and I didn't know it. When I run FDISK, will I lose any info
from the
drive that I am making inactive? Any problems I should be aware
of?
Thanks!

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I'm having difficulty deciphering your message. Windows 98,
whichever one you have booted to, is *always* on C:\ drive. In
order for your machine to boot to that drive, it must be the
Active drive. If you have another Win98 system installed to
what
is now your D:\ drive, and want that to be the boot drive, you
have to use a Windows Startup floppy boot, run FDISK, and make
that partition Active. Then when you boot to that Windows, it
will be the new C:\ drive.

Why did you think you had to reinstall Windows? What else is on
the current C:\ drive besides the new Windows installation? If
there's nothing else, you can reformat that drive. If there was
other stuff, and you can fix things to boot to the old system,
you can then delete the Windows folder and the Program Files
folder (provided you didn't already have a Program Files folder
there.)

Do you actually have two different hard drives, or only two
partitions on one drive?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message
...
How can I uninstall win 98se from a second drive. Had to
reinstall win98 and
it flip flopped my drive letters and the new os was put on
the
wrong drive.
Now this is the drive it boots up in. Old c drive is now the
new d drive.
What the hell? Just want it back to booting up in the
origional
config.
Thanks!

Always? Or only if MoBo BIOS is set that way? Because I do recall some =
BIOSes that have SCSI as one of the boot order items. And the evidence =
here is that by booting to floppy, the SCSI drive was enumerated after =
the ATA drive, causing Windows to be reinstalled to the ATA drive =
instead of to the SCSI drive. (Of course, that's only a guess on my =
part--could have been some other error, even user error, that caused the =
confusion.)

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Jeff Richards" wrote in message =
...
That's correct - when the SCSI BIOS setting is adjusted so as to =
enable the=20
SCSI BIOS then the SCSI drive will be scanned for a bootable partition =

before the ATA drive is looked at.
--=20
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote in message=20
...
Since the SCSI drive had the original Windows installation, it would =
follow=20
that SCSI BIOS was enabled. But it would appear that the ATA drive is =
tried=20
for a boot sector before the SCSI, and is probably seen as C: by the =
Windows=20
Startup Disk, which is how a reinstall intended to be over the top of =
the=20
SCSI-based installation managed to be installed to the ATA drive =
instead.=20
That's why I suggest that the SCSI needs to be scanned for an Active=20
bootable partition before the ATA drive, via BIOS setting--if =
possible.
=20
Of course, if the 80 GB ATA drive was repartitioned properly so that =
the=20
entire thing was an Extended partition with one or more Volumes, this=20
probably couldn't happen--at least not in Win9x systems, s.
=20
--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Jeff Richards" wrote in message=20
...
The SCSI drive will be seen as the primary ('boot') drive if the =
SCSI BIOS
is enabled. Otherwise, it won't be seen until the SCSI drivers are =
loaded
from Windows, so it will get a drive letter like other installed =
drives=20
(ZIP
or memory card). The SCSI BIOS is enabled or disabled in the SCSI=20
controller
setup utility, which is probably accessed using a special key (such =
as
Ctrl+A) during startup.
--=20
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Mathers" wrote in message
...
I forgot to tell you that the 20bg drive is a scsi drive. What I =
did was
simply unplug the 80gb IDE drive and rebooted. It boots back to =
the 20=20
gb
drive but gets back to my original problem and why I tried =
reinstalling.
Once
the machine goes through the boot sequence and begins to load =
start up
apps,
I get an "explorer error", and the computer goes no further with=20
loading.
I
figured I would reinstall to fill into any holes in the system =
files.
Don't
know what caused the explorer error but it has been some time =
since
restarting my machine. I leave it on constantly and had to reboot =
after
installing an auto update of IE6 SP1 patch or something like that =
from
windows auto update service. Any ideas how to fix the error? Any =
further
suggestions on how to get 98 off the 80gb drive? Thanks for the =
help and
your
patients.

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I still want to go back to the question of "Why" you were =
installing=20
over
the top of the original installation. But we can get to that =
later.

In BIOS, make sure that the 20 GB is visible and correctly =
detected.=20
Make
sure it is the Primary Master. Then look for the Boot Order item =
and=20
make
sure it reads:

1. Floppy (or CDROM)
2. CDROM (or Floppy)
3. HDD0
4. No other devices.

You don't want it looking for HDD1 if it can't find a bootable=20
partition
on HDD0.

Try that and tell us what happens.

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message
...
Sorry about that. I didn't understand your question before. I =
have=20
two
seperate drives. No partitions. I was attempting to reinstall =
over a
previous
version. Drive C was a 20 gb for system files, Drive D was 80 =
gb for
files,
docs, music, etc.. I set the 80gb as the primary slave when I=20
installed
it a
few months ago. It put the new os on this 80gb drive and now =
boots=20
from
this
drive. I would like it to boot from the 20 gb drive and dump =
the os=20
off
the
80 gb drive. Does this info explain better?

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

You still haven't answered all of my questions. For the sake =
of
simplicity, we'll call them Old C and New C.

1. Are these "drives" two partitions on the same physical =
hard=20
drive?
Or are they actually two different drives? If they are two=20
different
drives, how are they arranged? I assume one is Primary =
Master.=20
Which
one? The other is what, Secondary Master or Primary Slave?

2. Are you attempting to install Windows over the top of a =
previous
installation on Old C? Or did you reformat it?

3. Why are you reinstalling? What error(s) led you to decide =
to
reinstall?

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in =
message
...
Somehow my drive letters were switched and what was the old =
D:
became the new
C: and I didn't know it. When I run FDISK, will I lose any =
info
from the
drive that I am making inactive? Any problems I should be =
aware=20
of?
Thanks!

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I'm having difficulty deciphering your message. Windows =
98,
whichever one you have booted to, is *always* on C:\ =
drive. In
order for your machine to boot to that drive, it must be =
the
Active drive. If you have another Win98 system installed =
to=20
what
is now your D:\ drive, and want that to be the boot =
drive, you
have to use a Windows Startup floppy boot, run FDISK, and =
make
that partition Active. Then when you boot to that =
Windows, it
will be the new C:\ drive.

Why did you think you had to reinstall Windows? What else =
is on
the current C:\ drive besides the new Windows =
installation? If
there's nothing else, you can reformat that drive. If =
there was
other stuff, and you can fix things to boot to the old =
system,
you can then delete the Windows folder and the Program =
Files
folder (provided you didn't already have a Program Files =
folder
there.)

Do you actually have two different hard drives, or only =
two
partitions on one drive?

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in =
message
=
...
How can I uninstall win 98se from a second drive. Had =
to
reinstall win98 and
it flip flopped my drive letters and the new os was put =
on=20
the
wrong drive.
Now this is the drive it boots up in. Old c drive is =
now the
new d drive.
What the hell? Just want it back to booting up in the=20
origional
config.
Thanks!




=20
=20

A W98 machine is not likely to have a setting in the MoBo BIOS for scanning
for SCSI, though it's possible. The reliable way to have SCSI seen as
primary is by using the setting in the SCSI card configuration utility.
This ensures that when the MoBo BIOS scans for additional BIOSes the SCSI
BIOS knows that it is required to install the first SCSI drive as the
primary drive.
--
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote in message
...
Always? Or only if MoBo BIOS is set that way? Because I do recall some
BIOSes that have SCSI as one of the boot order items. And the evidence here
is that by booting to floppy, the SCSI drive was enumerated after the ATA
drive, causing Windows to be reinstalled to the ATA drive instead of to the
SCSI drive. (Of course, that's only a guess on my part--could have been some
other error, even user error, that caused the confusion.)

Makes sense. Gotta admit, it's been a while since I worked on such a =
machine. Still, making the entire ATA drive an Extended partition would =
also prevent it from being bootable in most cases for Win9x.

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Jeff Richards" wrote in message =
...
A W98 machine is not likely to have a setting in the MoBo BIOS for =
scanning=20
for SCSI, though it's possible. The reliable way to have SCSI seen as =

primary is by using the setting in the SCSI card configuration =
utility.=20
This ensures that when the MoBo BIOS scans for additional BIOSes the =
SCSI=20
BIOS knows that it is required to install the first SCSI drive as the=20
primary drive.
--=20
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote in message=20
...
Always? Or only if MoBo BIOS is set that way? Because I do recall some =

BIOSes that have SCSI as one of the boot order items. And the evidence =
here=20
is that by booting to floppy, the SCSI drive was enumerated after the =
ATA=20
drive, causing Windows to be reinstalled to the ATA drive instead of =
to the=20
SCSI drive. (Of course, that's only a guess on my part--could have =
been some=20
other error, even user error, that caused the confusion.)
=20

Whould I find this scsi config utility on the scsi cd or is it a win 98 app.?

"Jeff Richards" wrote:

A W98 machine is not likely to have a setting in the MoBo BIOS for scanning
for SCSI, though it's possible. The reliable way to have SCSI seen as
primary is by using the setting in the SCSI card configuration utility.
This ensures that when the MoBo BIOS scans for additional BIOSes the SCSI
BIOS knows that it is required to install the first SCSI drive as the
primary drive.
--
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote in message
...
Always? Or only if MoBo BIOS is set that way? Because I do recall some
BIOSes that have SCSI as one of the boot order items. And the evidence here
is that by booting to floppy, the SCSI drive was enumerated after the ATA
drive, causing Windows to be reinstalled to the ATA drive instead of to the
SCSI drive. (Of course, that's only a guess on my part--could have been some
other error, even user error, that caused the confusion.)

See, I have gone into the BIOS and set it back up as it should with settings
of SCSI/A:/C: but it still boots into the new c: instead of the SCSI device.
I'm going to try both of your suggestions and see what unfolds. Thanks!

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

After my signature, below, I've included advice from MVP Glen Ventura ("Glee"). It addresses what is probably your problem. As for getting the new installation off of your 80GB drive, unless you already had Windows and Program Files folders on that drive, you can simply delete those folders, plus a small handful of files in the D:\ root folder. Be sure "Show All Files" is enabled in Folder Options, View tab before you delete things, or you'll miss a lot.

As for the SCSI drive, unless your system is incredibly old, I still think you should be able to go into BIOS and change the boot order so that the ATA (80GB) drive is not included in the list. Without knowing exactly what your BIOS offers for that list, I can't say precisely, but you need to change that order so that the SCSI drive is at least looked at before the ATA drive when BIOS goes looking for a bootable system.

Come to think of it... Instead of deleting the Windows and Program Files directories from your old (and presumably repaired) system, you can boot a Windows Startup floppy boot disk to get rid of those directories. Again, this only works if you did not previously have those directories. The command to use is:

DELTREE {driveletter}:\WINDOWS
DELTREE {driveletter}:\PROGRA~1

That should stop the drive from booting, and you can clean up the files in the D:\ root folder once you've repaired the old system. *If* you can't repair the old system (and it would be easiest to do that with the 80GB drive disconnected), then you might consider reinstalling over the top, but I wouldn't recommend that as a log-term solution. It's OK for getting back in long enough to recover personal files, in preparation for a reformat an "clean" install, but installing Windows over an updated system is a serious retrograde--many newer system files will be overwritten with older files. You *could* follow that with a reinstallation of every patch and application, and *maybe* end up with a sane system, but a reformat/clean install followed by fully updating and reinstalling applications will much more successfully ensure a sane system.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

Here's the advice from Glen:

Follow the procedures he
Blank Desktop or Illegal Operations Error Message After You Install Internet
Explorer:
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=kb;en-us;249191

If those procedures do not help, have a look he
Recovering From a Failed Internet Explorer Upgrade in Windows 98:
http://www.cs.bsu.edu/~gjjones/admin...nd ows98.html
or
http://tinyurl.com/r5ba

Especially this section at the end:

"If you still have boot problems after you reboot, you should use the command prompt
to edit the c:\windows\system.ini file. On the command line type edit
c:\windows\system.ini.

"Once it is open, change the line shell=explorer.exe to shell=progman.exe. What you
are doing here is changing the default shell (that is having problems) from the
Windows Explorer to the old Windows Program Manager shell.

"Reboot Windows. It should now successfully boot with no errors into an empty
Program Manager shell. Use the File | Run | Browse drop down menu selection to
browse to c:\program files\internet explorer and launch ie5setup.exe or ie6setup.exe
(depending on what is there). Do a custom install and check all the Bold faced
options. When the setup program alerts you that these files are already installed,
tell it to reinstall all of the files.

"When the Internet Explorer Setup program is done and reboots, hit the F8 key to
bring up a Boot Menu. Choose Command Prompt and boot to the command prompt. Once
there, type edit c:\windows\system.ini and, once it is open, change the line
shell=progman.exe back to shell=explorer.exe. Save and exit the file. You have now
set the shell back to the original value."
--
Glen Ventura, MS MVP W95/98 Systems
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm


"Mathers" wrote in message ...
I forgot to tell you that the 20bg drive is a scsi drive. What I did was
simply unplug the 80gb IDE drive and rebooted. It boots back to the 20 gb
drive but gets back to my original problem and why I tried reinstalling. Once
the machine goes through the boot sequence and begins to load start up apps,
I get an "explorer error", and the computer goes no further with loading. I
figured I would reinstall to fill into any holes in the system files. Don't
know what caused the explorer error but it has been some time since
restarting my machine. I leave it on constantly and had to reboot after
installing an auto update of IE6 SP1 patch or something like that from
windows auto update service. Any ideas how to fix the error? Any further
suggestions on how to get 98 off the 80gb drive? Thanks for the help and your
patients.

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I still want to go back to the question of "Why" you were installing over the top of the original installation. But we can get to that later.

In BIOS, make sure that the 20 GB is visible and correctly detected. Make sure it is the Primary Master. Then look for the Boot Order item and make sure it reads:

1. Floppy (or CDROM)
2. CDROM (or Floppy)
3. HDD0
4. No other devices.

You don't want it looking for HDD1 if it can't find a bootable partition on HDD0.

Try that and tell us what happens.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message ...
Sorry about that. I didn't understand your question before. I have two
seperate drives. No partitions. I was attempting to reinstall over a previous
version. Drive C was a 20 gb for system files, Drive D was 80 gb for files,
docs, music, etc.. I set the 80gb as the primary slave when I installed it a
few months ago. It put the new os on this 80gb drive and now boots from this
drive. I would like it to boot from the 20 gb drive and dump the os off the
80 gb drive. Does this info explain better?

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

You still haven't answered all of my questions. For the sake of simplicity, we'll call them Old C and New C.

1. Are these "drives" two partitions on the same physical hard drive? Or are they actually two different drives? If they are two different drives, how are they arranged? I assume one is Primary Master. Which one? The other is what, Secondary Master or Primary Slave?

2. Are you attempting to install Windows over the top of a previous installation on Old C? Or did you reformat it?

3. Why are you reinstalling? What error(s) led you to decide to reinstall?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message ...
Somehow my drive letters were switched and what was the old D: became the new
C: and I didn't know it. When I run FDISK, will I lose any info from the
drive that I am making inactive? Any problems I should be aware of? Thanks!

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I'm having difficulty deciphering your message. Windows 98, whichever one you have booted to, is *always* on C:\ drive. In order for your machine to boot to that drive, it must be the Active drive. If you have another Win98 system installed to what is now your D:\ drive, and want that to be the boot drive, you have to use a Windows Startup floppy boot, run FDISK, and make that partition Active. Then when you boot to that Windows, it will be the new C:\ drive.

Why did you think you had to reinstall Windows? What else is on the current C:\ drive besides the new Windows installation? If there's nothing else, you can reformat that drive. If there was other stuff, and you can fix things to boot to the old system, you can then delete the Windows folder and the Program Files folder (provided you didn't already have a Program Files folder there.)

Do you actually have two different hard drives, or only two partitions on one drive?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message ...
How can I uninstall win 98se from a second drive. Had to reinstall win98 and
it flip flopped my drive letters and the new os was put on the wrong drive.
Now this is the drive it boots up in. Old c drive is now the new d drive.
What the hell? Just want it back to booting up in the origional config.
Thanks!

If it really is scanning the 20GB drive for a bootable partition, and =
isn't finding one, then you should try booting to a Startup Floppy disk =
and running SYS C:

If that doesn't do it, then you really do have problems, probably hard =
drive problems. If it then boots but stalls while loading Windows, then =
Windows needs repair or replacement.

--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Mathers" wrote in message =
...
See, I have gone into the BIOS and set it back up as it should with =
settings=20
of SCSI/A:/C: but it still boots into the new c: instead of the SCSI =
device.=20
I'm going to try both of your suggestions and see what unfolds. =
Thanks!
=20
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:
=20
After my signature, below, I've included advice from MVP Glen =
Ventura ("Glee"). It addresses what is probably your problem. As for =
getting the new installation off of your 80GB drive, unless you already =
had Windows and Program Files folders on that drive, you can simply =
delete those folders, plus a small handful of files in the D:\ root =
folder. Be sure "Show All Files" is enabled in Folder Options, View tab =
before you delete things, or you'll miss a lot.
=20
As for the SCSI drive, unless your system is incredibly old, I still =
think you should be able to go into BIOS and change the boot order so =
that the ATA (80GB) drive is not included in the list. Without knowing =
exactly what your BIOS offers for that list, I can't say precisely, but =
you need to change that order so that the SCSI drive is at least looked =
at before the ATA drive when BIOS goes looking for a bootable system.
=20
Come to think of it... Instead of deleting the Windows and Program =
Files directories from your old (and presumably repaired) system, you =
can boot a Windows Startup floppy boot disk to get rid of those =
directories. Again, this only works if you did not previously have those =
directories. The command to use is:
=20
DELTREE {driveletter}:\WINDOWS
DELTREE {driveletter}:\PROGRA~1
=20
That should stop the drive from booting, and you can clean up the =
files in the D:\ root folder once you've repaired the old system. *If* =
you can't repair the old system (and it would be easiest to do that with =
the 80GB drive disconnected), then you might consider reinstalling over =
the top, but I wouldn't recommend that as a log-term solution. It's OK =
for getting back in long enough to recover personal files, in =
preparation for a reformat an "clean" install, but installing Windows =
over an updated system is a serious retrograde--many newer system files =
will be overwritten with older files. You *could* follow that with a =
reinstallation of every patch and application, and *maybe* end up with a =
sane system, but a reformat/clean install followed by fully updating and =
reinstalling applications will much more successfully ensure a sane =
system.
=20
--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
Here's the advice from Glen:
=20
Follow the procedures he
Blank Desktop or Illegal Operations Error Message After You Install =
Internet
Explorer:
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=3Dkb;en-us;249191
=20
If those procedures do not help, have a look he
Recovering From a Failed Internet Explorer Upgrade in Windows 98:
=
http://www.cs.bsu.edu/~gjjones/admin.../21/recoverin=
gFromAFailedInternetExplorerUpgradeInWindows98.htm l
or
http://tinyurl.com/r5ba
=20
Especially this section at the end:
=20
"If you still have boot problems after you reboot, you should use =
the command prompt
to edit the c:\windows\system.ini file. On the command line type =
edit
c:\windows\system.ini.
=20
"Once it is open, change the line shell=3Dexplorer.exe to =
shell=3Dprogman.exe. What you
are doing here is changing the default shell (that is having =
problems) from the
Windows Explorer to the old Windows Program Manager shell.
=20
"Reboot Windows. It should now successfully boot with no errors into =
an empty
Program Manager shell. Use the File | Run | Browse drop down menu =
selection to
browse to c:\program files\internet explorer and launch ie5setup.exe =
or ie6setup.exe
(depending on what is there). Do a custom install and check all the =
Bold faced
options. When the setup program alerts you that these files are =
already installed,
tell it to reinstall all of the files.
=20
"When the Internet Explorer Setup program is done and reboots, hit =
the F8 key to
bring up a Boot Menu. Choose Command Prompt and boot to the command =
prompt. Once
there, type edit c:\windows\system.ini and, once it is open, change =
the line
shell=3Dprogman.exe back to shell=3Dexplorer.exe. Save and exit the =
file. You have now
set the shell back to the original value."
--=20
Glen Ventura, MS MVP W95/98 Systems
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
=20
=20
"Mathers" wrote in message =
...
I forgot to tell you that the 20bg drive is a scsi drive. What I =
did was=20
simply unplug the 80gb IDE drive and rebooted. It boots back to =
the 20 gb=20
drive but gets back to my original problem and why I tried =
reinstalling. Once=20
the machine goes through the boot sequence and begins to load =
start up apps,=20
I get an "explorer error", and the computer goes no further with =
loading. I=20
figured I would reinstall to fill into any holes in the system =
files. Don't=20
know what caused the explorer error but it has been some time =
since=20
restarting my machine. I leave it on constantly and had to reboot =
after=20
installing an auto update of IE6 SP1 patch or something like that =
from=20
windows auto update service. Any ideas how to fix the error? Any =
further=20
suggestions on how to get 98 off the 80gb drive? Thanks for the =
help and your=20
patients.
=20
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:
=20
I still want to go back to the question of "Why" you were =
installing over the top of the original installation. But we can get to =
that later.
=20
In BIOS, make sure that the 20 GB is visible and correctly =
detected. Make sure it is the Primary Master. Then look for the Boot =
Order item and make sure it reads:
=20
1. Floppy (or CDROM)
2. CDROM (or Floppy)
3. HDD0
4. No other devices.
=20
You don't want it looking for HDD1 if it can't find a bootable =
partition on HDD0.
=20
Try that and tell us what happens.
=20
--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Mathers" wrote in message =
...
Sorry about that. I didn't understand your question before. I =
have two=20
seperate drives. No partitions. I was attempting to reinstall =
over a previous=20
version. Drive C was a 20 gb for system files, Drive D was 80 =
gb for files,=20
docs, music, etc.. I set the 80gb as the primary slave when I =
installed it a=20
few months ago. It put the new os on this 80gb drive and now =
boots from this=20
drive. I would like it to boot from the 20 gb drive and dump =
the os off the=20
80 gb drive. Does this info explain better?
=20
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:
=20
You still haven't answered all of my questions. For the sake =
of simplicity, we'll call them Old C and New C.
=20
1. Are these "drives" two partitions on the same physical =
hard drive? Or are they actually two different drives? If they are two =
different drives, how are they arranged? I assume one is Primary Master. =
Which one? The other is what, Secondary Master or Primary Slave?
=20
2. Are you attempting to install Windows over the top of a =
previous installation on Old C? Or did you reformat it?
=20
3. Why are you reinstalling? What error(s) led you to decide =
to reinstall?
=20
--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Mathers" wrote in =
message ...
Somehow my drive letters were switched and what was the =
old D: became the new=20
C: and I didn't know it. When I run FDISK, will I lose =
any info from the=20
drive that I am making inactive? Any problems I should be =
aware of? Thanks!
=20
"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:
=20
I'm having difficulty deciphering your message. Windows =
98, whichever one you have booted to, is *always* on C:\ drive. In order =
for your machine to boot to that drive, it must be the Active drive. If =
you have another Win98 system installed to what is now your D:\ drive, =
and want that to be the boot drive, you have to use a Windows Startup =
floppy boot, run FDISK, and make that partition Active. Then when you =
boot to that Windows, it will be the new C:\ drive.
=20
Why did you think you had to reinstall Windows? What =
else is on the current C:\ drive besides the new Windows installation? =
If there's nothing else, you can reformat that drive. If there was other =
stuff, and you can fix things to boot to the old system, you can then =
delete the Windows folder and the Program Files folder (provided you =
didn't already have a Program Files folder there.)
=20
Do you actually have two different hard drives, or only =
two partitions on one drive?
=20
--=20
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
=20
"Mathers" wrote in =
message ...
How can I uninstall win 98se from a second drive. Had =
to reinstall win98 and=20
it flip flopped my drive letters and the new os was =
put on the wrong drive.=20
Now this is the drive it boots up in. Old c drive is =
now the new d drive.=20
What the hell? Just want it back to booting up in the =
origional config.=20
Thanks!

The SCSI card configuration utility is usually accessed through a special
keystroke immediately after the BIOS display screen clears. A common
keystroke is Ctrl-A. There should be a message on screen indicating the
keystroke to use and when to use it. However, this may be controlled by a
jumper on the card, or it may require a separate utility.
--
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Mathers" wrote in message
...
Whould I find this scsi config utility on the scsi cd or is it a win 98
app.?

ok, I followed all above steps and I'm back up a running. Boots up as it
should. Now, very few of my apps actually work. I'll open up an app and half
way through, it tells me there are parameters missing and errors. Any idea
why this happened or how to fix it. With as screwed up as things have been,
I'm pondering upgrading to XP. Would you reccomend pulling over info I want
to the 80Gb drive and formmating my old c:\? Will a simple upgrade disk to XP
be as effective and clean? Thanks again for all the help.

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

If it really is scanning the 20GB drive for a bootable partition, and isn't finding one, then you should try booting to a Startup Floppy disk and running SYS C:

If that doesn't do it, then you really do have problems, probably hard drive problems. If it then boots but stalls while loading Windows, then Windows needs repair or replacement.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message ...
See, I have gone into the BIOS and set it back up as it should with settings
of SCSI/A:/C: but it still boots into the new c: instead of the SCSI device.
I'm going to try both of your suggestions and see what unfolds. Thanks!

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

After my signature, below, I've included advice from MVP Glen Ventura ("Glee"). It addresses what is probably your problem. As for getting the new installation off of your 80GB drive, unless you already had Windows and Program Files folders on that drive, you can simply delete those folders, plus a small handful of files in the D:\ root folder. Be sure "Show All Files" is enabled in Folder Options, View tab before you delete things, or you'll miss a lot.

As for the SCSI drive, unless your system is incredibly old, I still think you should be able to go into BIOS and change the boot order so that the ATA (80GB) drive is not included in the list. Without knowing exactly what your BIOS offers for that list, I can't say precisely, but you need to change that order so that the SCSI drive is at least looked at before the ATA drive when BIOS goes looking for a bootable system.

Come to think of it... Instead of deleting the Windows and Program Files directories from your old (and presumably repaired) system, you can boot a Windows Startup floppy boot disk to get rid of those directories. Again, this only works if you did not previously have those directories. The command to use is:

DELTREE {driveletter}:\WINDOWS
DELTREE {driveletter}:\PROGRA~1

That should stop the drive from booting, and you can clean up the files in the D:\ root folder once you've repaired the old system. *If* you can't repair the old system (and it would be easiest to do that with the 80GB drive disconnected), then you might consider reinstalling over the top, but I wouldn't recommend that as a log-term solution. It's OK for getting back in long enough to recover personal files, in preparation for a reformat an "clean" install, but installing Windows over an updated system is a serious retrograde--many newer system files will be overwritten with older files. You *could* follow that with a reinstallation of every patch and application, and *maybe* end up with a sane system, but a reformat/clean install followed by fully updating and reinstalling applications will much more successfully ensure a sane system.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

Here's the advice from Glen:

Follow the procedures he
Blank Desktop or Illegal Operations Error Message After You Install Internet
Explorer:
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=kb;en-us;249191

If those procedures do not help, have a look he
Recovering From a Failed Internet Explorer Upgrade in Windows 98:
http://www.cs.bsu.edu/~gjjones/admin...nd ows98.html
or
http://tinyurl.com/r5ba

Especially this section at the end:

"If you still have boot problems after you reboot, you should use the command prompt
to edit the c:\windows\system.ini file. On the command line type edit
c:\windows\system.ini.

"Once it is open, change the line shell=explorer.exe to shell=progman.exe. What you
are doing here is changing the default shell (that is having problems) from the
Windows Explorer to the old Windows Program Manager shell.

"Reboot Windows. It should now successfully boot with no errors into an empty
Program Manager shell. Use the File | Run | Browse drop down menu selection to
browse to c:\program files\internet explorer and launch ie5setup.exe or ie6setup.exe
(depending on what is there). Do a custom install and check all the Bold faced
options. When the setup program alerts you that these files are already installed,
tell it to reinstall all of the files.

"When the Internet Explorer Setup program is done and reboots, hit the F8 key to
bring up a Boot Menu. Choose Command Prompt and boot to the command prompt. Once
there, type edit c:\windows\system.ini and, once it is open, change the line
shell=progman.exe back to shell=explorer.exe. Save and exit the file. You have now
set the shell back to the original value."
--
Glen Ventura, MS MVP W95/98 Systems
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm


"Mathers" wrote in message ...
I forgot to tell you that the 20bg drive is a scsi drive. What I did was
simply unplug the 80gb IDE drive and rebooted. It boots back to the 20 gb
drive but gets back to my original problem and why I tried reinstalling. Once
the machine goes through the boot sequence and begins to load start up apps,
I get an "explorer error", and the computer goes no further with loading. I
figured I would reinstall to fill into any holes in the system files. Don't
know what caused the explorer error but it has been some time since
restarting my machine. I leave it on constantly and had to reboot after
installing an auto update of IE6 SP1 patch or something like that from
windows auto update service. Any ideas how to fix the error? Any further
suggestions on how to get 98 off the 80gb drive? Thanks for the help and your
patients.

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I still want to go back to the question of "Why" you were installing over the top of the original installation. But we can get to that later.

In BIOS, make sure that the 20 GB is visible and correctly detected. Make sure it is the Primary Master. Then look for the Boot Order item and make sure it reads:

1. Floppy (or CDROM)
2. CDROM (or Floppy)
3. HDD0
4. No other devices.

You don't want it looking for HDD1 if it can't find a bootable partition on HDD0.

Try that and tell us what happens.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message ...
Sorry about that. I didn't understand your question before. I have two
seperate drives. No partitions. I was attempting to reinstall over a previous
version. Drive C was a 20 gb for system files, Drive D was 80 gb for files,
docs, music, etc.. I set the 80gb as the primary slave when I installed it a
few months ago. It put the new os on this 80gb drive and now boots from this
drive. I would like it to boot from the 20 gb drive and dump the os off the
80 gb drive. Does this info explain better?

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

You still haven't answered all of my questions. For the sake of simplicity, we'll call them Old C and New C.

1. Are these "drives" two partitions on the same physical hard drive? Or are they actually two different drives? If they are two different drives, how are they arranged? I assume one is Primary Master. Which one? The other is what, Secondary Master or Primary Slave?

2. Are you attempting to install Windows over the top of a previous installation on Old C? Or did you reformat it?

3. Why are you reinstalling? What error(s) led you to decide to reinstall?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message ...
Somehow my drive letters were switched and what was the old D: became the new
C: and I didn't know it. When I run FDISK, will I lose any info from the
drive that I am making inactive? Any problems I should be aware of? Thanks!

"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

I'm having difficulty deciphering your message. Windows 98, whichever one you have booted to, is *always* on C:\ drive. In order for your machine to boot to that drive, it must be the Active drive. If you have another Win98 system installed to what is now your D:\ drive, and want that to be the boot drive, you have to use a Windows Startup floppy boot, run FDISK, and make that partition Active. Then when you boot to that Windows, it will be the new C:\ drive.

Why did you think you had to reinstall Windows? What else is on the current C:\ drive besides the new Windows installation? If there's nothing else, you can reformat that drive. If there was other stuff, and you can fix things to boot to the old system, you can then delete the Windows folder and the Program Files folder (provided you didn't already have a Program Files folder there.)

Do you actually have two different hard drives, or only two partitions on one drive?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User

"Mathers" wrote in message ...
How can I uninstall win 98se from a second drive. Had to reinstall win98 and
it flip flopped my drive letters and the new os was put on the wrong drive.
Now this is the drive it boots up in. Old c drive is now the new d drive.
What the hell? Just want it back to booting up in the origional config.
Thanks!