Deleting partition drives

I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions. I use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the computer
was new.

If possible, how can I do it?
At the moment I have the following:
Total size Free space
drive (C local disk 1.99 GB 27.0 MB
drive (D local disk 1.99 GB 364 MB
drive (E local disk 1.99 GB 1.46 GB
Host for e (H local disk 1.99 GB 380 MB

I have tried to install and save in drive E: but the problem is that even
when I choose drive E: there are always some files that go automatically to
drive C:, so I am unable to do anything.

The computer was bought in 1998 to Gateway with Widows 95 installed (they
were expecting the Windows 98 CD's) so a bit later they sent us the upgrade
to Windows 98.

It is an Intel Pentium II Processor G6-300
OS Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10.1998)
Intel MMX Technology
192.0 MB RAM

I know it is too old, but it is really helpful for those little jobs I use
it, only if I could get to have the total memory together.

Is there any chance to make it somehow useful? I need your help, please...
Thank you,
Begoña

Begoña wrote:

I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions. I use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the computer
was new.

The only way to merge your partitions without losing data is to use a
third-party program, like Partition Magic or Bootit NG.

E seems to be a compressed drive, which will complicate things.

You may want to think about getting a new larger drive and just moving
everything onto it.

--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(DTS)

It looks to me like your best bet will be to back up any needed files and
start over fresh. The presence of H: drive means that the drive has been
compressed and I am not sure the partitioning tool (BootItNG or Partition
Magic for example) you would need to merge the partitions would work
correctly. A partitioning tool is required because FDisk will only create
or delete partitions. There obviously is not enough free space left to
uncompress the files. The 1.99 GB size also indicates that the drive may
have been partitioned using fat 16 instead of fat 32. Fat 16 uses a lot
more space for a file than fat 32 does. Since the PC is not used for the
internet, you could just load the system and correct drivers--all the tons
of updates would not necessarily be required. I say this because there are
tons of updates that are security related but since you don't plan using it
to access the internet, they and internet explorer updates would not be
necessary. I suggest you wait and see if someone with more experience with
drive compression (I have never used it and never will) can tell you if
partitioning tools work with compressed drives.

If you decide to start over, Zap or Wipe freeware will remove all partition
information so you can start over fresh with FDisk. Download it he
http://www.digitalissues.co.uk/html/...-wipe-zap.html Once the
drive is wiped, run FDisk from your floppy start up disk. When it asks
about large drive support, answer yes as that will give you fat 32.
Considering the planned use of the PC, make one partition using all the
drive's space. Then format the partition and install the system. For
information on installing W98, go to:
http://home.satx.rr.com/badour/html/w98_restore.html

--
Regards


Ron Badour, MS MVP for W98
Tips: http://home.satx.rr.com/badour
Knowledge Base Info:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=kbinfo



"Begoña" wrote in message
...
I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions. I
use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The
memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any
other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original
drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the
computer
was new.

If possible, how can I do it?
At the moment I have the following:
Total size Free
space
drive (C local disk 1.99 GB 27.0 MB
drive (D local disk 1.99 GB 364 MB
drive (E local disk 1.99 GB 1.46 GB
Host for e (H local disk 1.99 GB 380 MB

I have tried to install and save in drive E: but the problem is that even
when I choose drive E: there are always some files that go automatically
to
drive C:, so I am unable to do anything.

The computer was bought in 1998 to Gateway with Widows 95 installed (they
were expecting the Windows 98 CD's) so a bit later they sent us the
upgrade
to Windows 98.

It is an Intel Pentium II Processor G6-300
OS Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10.1998)
Intel MMX Technology
192.0 MB RAM

I know it is too old, but it is really helpful for those little jobs I use
it, only if I could get to have the total memory together.

Is there any chance to make it somehow useful? I need your help, please...
Thank you,
Begoña

I missed something the first time around. I see that the host drive is for
E: and there is enough free space to uncompress it. So, you could
uncompress the partition and then use BootItNG to delete and resize the
partitions. BootItNG can also convert the file system from fat 16 to fat 32
if in fact the partitions are fat 16.

BootIt Next Generation is available from: http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/
and it does partitioning, makes a compressed image, does many other
partitioning chores and is a boot manager. It is not quite as easy to use
as Partition Magic but it is half the cost and has more features. Unlike
the crippled PMagic demo, BING is a *full function* demo you can try for
FREE for 30 days. The web site has a lot of support articles.
--
Regards


Ron Badour, MS MVP for W98
Tips: http://home.satx.rr.com/badour
Knowledge Base Info:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=kbinfo



"Ron Badour" wrote in message
...
It looks to me like your best bet will be to back up any needed files and
start over fresh. The presence of H: drive means that the drive has been
compressed and I am not sure the partitioning tool (BootItNG or Partition
Magic for example) you would need to merge the partitions would work
correctly. A partitioning tool is required because FDisk will only create
or delete partitions. There obviously is not enough free space left to
uncompress the files. The 1.99 GB size also indicates that the drive may
have been partitioned using fat 16 instead of fat 32. Fat 16 uses a lot
more space for a file than fat 32 does. Since the PC is not used for the
internet, you could just load the system and correct drivers--all the tons
of updates would not necessarily be required. I say this because there
are tons of updates that are security related but since you don't plan
using it to access the internet, they and internet explorer updates would
not be necessary. I suggest you wait and see if someone with more
experience with drive compression (I have never used it and never will)
can tell you if partitioning tools work with compressed drives.

If you decide to start over, Zap or Wipe freeware will remove all
partition information so you can start over fresh with FDisk. Download it
he http://www.digitalissues.co.uk/html/...-wipe-zap.html Once
the drive is wiped, run FDisk from your floppy start up disk. When it
asks about large drive support, answer yes as that will give you fat 32.
Considering the planned use of the PC, make one partition using all the
drive's space. Then format the partition and install the system. For
information on installing W98, go to:
http://home.satx.rr.com/badour/html/w98_restore.html

Begoña wrote in message
...
I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions. I
use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The
memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any
other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original
drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the
computer
was new.

If possible, how can I do it?
At the moment I have the following:
Total size Free
space
drive (C local disk 1.99 GB 27.0 MB
drive (D local disk 1.99 GB 364 MB
drive (E local disk 1.99 GB 1.46 GB
Host for e (H local disk 1.99 GB 380 MB

I have tried to install and save in drive E: but the problem is that even
when I choose drive E: there are always some files that go automatically
to
drive C:, so I am unable to do anything.

The computer was bought in 1998 to Gateway with Widows 95 installed (they
were expecting the Windows 98 CD's) so a bit later they sent us the
upgrade
to Windows 98.

It is an Intel Pentium II Processor G6-300
OS Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10.1998)
Intel MMX Technology
192.0 MB RAM

I know it is too old, but it is really helpful for those little jobs I use
it, only if I could get to have the total memory together.

Is there any chance to make it somehow useful? I need your help, please...
Thank you,
Begoña

Is it possible that you could post the make and model of the drive?

The size, I suspect, is fairly small, by todays norms so you could
purchase another one for under 20 bucks. If it were my computer
I would save all the files I needed to another media, wipe the
current drive along with the new slave and reformat them both
with FAT32 and reinstall and then move the files I had saved back
onto the new D: drive. That way you would have a C: drive for
the OS and Programs and a D: drive for data, cab files, drivers
and other things so that if/when you needed to rebuild the system
in the future, it is a LOT easier.

When it comes to compressed volumes, this technology came
out a long time ago when drives were small and expensive. I
have worked on some of them mostly when a computer crashed
and I needed to get stuff off of them. The technology is rather
fragil and I NEVER used it on my own systems. I don't think
Partition Magic can handle them since it works at the partition
level only and a host drive is a virtualization of a drive inside a
partition.

later,
charles......

Begoña wrote in message
...
I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions.
I
use it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The
192.0 MB RAM

The cheapest and simplest solution overall is to add
a second hard drive, clone everything to it, then swap the
two drives so that the new one becomes C:, then FDISK
and FORMAT the old drive so as to maximise its practical
use.

Drive Compression is unsafe. This technique was invented
for Win95 when hard drives were expensive and it is not
reliable, e.g. cannot withstand power outages and some
software errors.

For advice about reinstallation to a new drive, see
http://home.satx.rr.com/badour/html/backup.html
and
www.xxcopy.com (copious documentation on "cloning"
as mentioned above.)

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)


The size, I suspect, is fairly small, by todays norms so you could
purchase another one for under 20 bucks. If it were my computer
I would save all the files I needed to another media, wipe the
current drive along with the new slave and reformat them both
with FAT32 and reinstall and then move the files I had saved back
onto the new D: drive. That way you would have a C: drive for
the OS and Programs and a D: drive for data, cab files, drivers
and other things so that if/when you needed to rebuild the system
in the future, it is a LOT easier.

When it comes to compressed volumes, this technology came
out a long time ago when drives were small and expensive. I
have worked on some of them mostly when a computer crashed
and I needed to get stuff off of them. The technology is rather
fragil and I NEVER used it on my own systems. I don't think
Partition Magic can handle them since it works at the partition
level only and a host drive is a virtualization of a drive inside a
partition.

later,
charles......

Where could I find this information?
I am reading your answers and believe me I have to read very slowly because
this is too professional for me.
I am just a housewife who loves the computer, that has achieved so far to
keep the new computer running fairly well (keep my fingers crossed) and that
has decided to go one step forward by trying to do the same with the old one.
After I see all your answers I am not so sure if I have the level to do
anything. I don't mind trying, but you would have to direct all my moves.

In fact, I was thinking about starting over because I also get a warning "a
required .DLL file, MSVCP60.DLL was not found" and I thought starting over
from zero would be the best. Then I saw Ron Badour's answer and was looking
in the links he sent me and I don't know if I would be able to do it.

The second option Ron gave I thought it would be easier but, do you think I
could do it using the BING'S DEMO? I wouldn't really like to put any money
into this PC.

Please, tell me where or how I can find the information you request.
Thank you,
Begoña

"***** charles" wrote:

Begoña wrote in message
...
I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions. I
use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The
memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any
other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original
drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the
computer
was new.

If possible, how can I do it?
At the moment I have the following:
Total size Free
space
drive (C local disk 1.99 GB 27.0 MB
drive (D local disk 1.99 GB 364 MB
drive (E local disk 1.99 GB 1.46 GB
Host for e (H local disk 1.99 GB 380 MB

I have tried to install and save in drive E: but the problem is that even
when I choose drive E: there are always some files that go automatically
to
drive C:, so I am unable to do anything.

The computer was bought in 1998 to Gateway with Widows 95 installed (they
were expecting the Windows 98 CD's) so a bit later they sent us the
upgrade
to Windows 98.

It is an Intel Pentium II Processor G6-300
OS Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10.1998)
Intel MMX Technology
192.0 MB RAM

I know it is too old, but it is really helpful for those little jobs I use
it, only if I could get to have the total memory together.

Is there any chance to make it somehow useful? I need your help, please...
Thank you,
Begoña

Is it possible that you could post the make and model of the drive?

The size, I suspect, is fairly small, by todays norms so you could
purchase another one for under 20 bucks. If it were my computer
I would save all the files I needed to another media, wipe the
current drive along with the new slave and reformat them both
with FAT32 and reinstall and then move the files I had saved back
onto the new D: drive. That way you would have a C: drive for
the OS and Programs and a D: drive for data, cab files, drivers
and other things so that if/when you needed to rebuild the system
in the future, it is a LOT easier.

When it comes to compressed volumes, this technology came
out a long time ago when drives were small and expensive. I
have worked on some of them mostly when a computer crashed
and I needed to get stuff off of them. The technology is rather
fragil and I NEVER used it on my own systems. I don't think
Partition Magic can handle them since it works at the partition
level only and a host drive is a virtualization of a drive inside a
partition.

later,
charles......

Dealing with a total 8gig,in all, HD it would be best as "Don" said.
Get a new HD partition it to what you need and then transfer the data from
the old drive to the new.
Seagate puts out good HDs and what I have gotten comes with a program CD
that allows you to partition the new HD (as a slave) while using your old
drive's OS.
No need to go into dos.
Once that is done it has the ability to transfer all your data(intact) from
the old to the new with no rebootings or anything else.
Then all you would need to do is set the new HD to master and your done.
Pull the old HD or set it to slave to the new one.
Just read the instructions that come with the new drive and take no short
cuts.
Also...use the new ribbon cable that comes with the new drive.
"Begoña" wrote:

I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions. I use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the computer
was new.

If possible, how can I do it?
At the moment I have the following:
Total size Free space
drive (C local disk 1.99 GB 27.0 MB
drive (D local disk 1.99 GB 364 MB
drive (E local disk 1.99 GB 1.46 GB
Host for e (H local disk 1.99 GB 380 MB

I have tried to install and save in drive E: but the problem is that even
when I choose drive E: there are always some files that go automatically to
drive C:, so I am unable to do anything.

The computer was bought in 1998 to Gateway with Widows 95 installed (they
were expecting the Windows 98 CD's) so a bit later they sent us the upgrade
to Windows 98.

It is an Intel Pentium II Processor G6-300
OS Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10.1998)
Intel MMX Technology
192.0 MB RAM

I know it is too old, but it is really helpful for those little jobs I use
it, only if I could get to have the total memory together.

Is there any chance to make it somehow useful? I need your help, please...
Thank you,
Begoña

You can probably handle either procedure as long as you have good
instructions and take your time. If you want to start over clean, we need
to know what kind of a computer you have, what kind of W98 system disk you
have (did it come with the computer, is it a restore disk, etc.), if you
have a floppy start up disk and if you have a drivers' disk.

If you want to try BING, download it and install it on a blank formatted
floppy disk. You will need to check your W98 help file on drive compression
and how to uncompress it. Once that is done, boot with the BING floppy disk
and install the program on your hard drive. There is no need to install it
on its own partition nor will you be using more than four partitions. Once
that is done, I think you have to reboot with the floppy out. You will
then get a BING boot screen--click on maintenance. When the resulting
screen appears, click on Partition Work. Before I provide more directions,
I will need to know if there is data on the partitions other than C: that
must be saved or if you have it backed up--in other words, can the
partitions other than C: be deleted?

--
Regards


Ron Badour, MS MVP for W98
Tips: http://home.satx.rr.com/badour
Knowledge Base Info:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=kbinfo



"Begoña" wrote in message
...
Where could I find this information?
I am reading your answers and believe me I have to read very slowly
because
this is too professional for me.
I am just a housewife who loves the computer, that has achieved so far to
keep the new computer running fairly well (keep my fingers crossed) and
that
has decided to go one step forward by trying to do the same with the old
one.
After I see all your answers I am not so sure if I have the level to do
anything. I don't mind trying, but you would have to direct all my moves.

In fact, I was thinking about starting over because I also get a warning
"a
required .DLL file, MSVCP60.DLL was not found" and I thought starting over
from zero would be the best. Then I saw Ron Badour's answer and was
looking
in the links he sent me and I don't know if I would be able to do it.

The second option Ron gave I thought it would be easier but, do you think
I
could do it using the BING'S DEMO? I wouldn't really like to put any money
into this PC.

Please, tell me where or how I can find the information you request.
Thank you,
Begoña

"***** charles" wrote:

Begoña wrote in message
...
I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many partitions.
I
use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The
memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any
other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original
drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the
computer
was new.

If possible, how can I do it?
At the moment I have the following:
Total size
Free
space
drive (C local disk 1.99 GB 27.0
MB
drive (D local disk 1.99 GB 364
MB
drive (E local disk 1.99 GB 1.46
GB
Host for e (H local disk 1.99 GB 380 MB

I have tried to install and save in drive E: but the problem is that
even
when I choose drive E: there are always some files that go
automatically
to
drive C:, so I am unable to do anything.

The computer was bought in 1998 to Gateway with Widows 95 installed
(they
were expecting the Windows 98 CD's) so a bit later they sent us the
upgrade
to Windows 98.

It is an Intel Pentium II Processor G6-300
OS Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10.1998)
Intel MMX Technology
192.0 MB RAM

I know it is too old, but it is really helpful for those little jobs I
use
it, only if I could get to have the total memory together.

Is there any chance to make it somehow useful? I need your help,
please...
Thank you,
Begoña

Is it possible that you could post the make and model of the drive?

The size, I suspect, is fairly small, by todays norms so you could
purchase another one for under 20 bucks. If it were my computer
I would save all the files I needed to another media, wipe the
current drive along with the new slave and reformat them both
with FAT32 and reinstall and then move the files I had saved back
onto the new D: drive. That way you would have a C: drive for
the OS and Programs and a D: drive for data, cab files, drivers
and other things so that if/when you needed to rebuild the system
in the future, it is a LOT easier.

When it comes to compressed volumes, this technology came
out a long time ago when drives were small and expensive. I
have worked on some of them mostly when a computer crashed
and I needed to get stuff off of them. The technology is rather
fragil and I NEVER used it on my own systems. I don't think
Partition Magic can handle them since it works at the partition
level only and a host drive is a virtualization of a drive inside a
partition.

later,
charles......

Begoña wrote in message
...
Where could I find this information?

Hi again, we were all beginners at one time or another, some of us a lot
longer ago than we would like to admit.

First you will need to get the info about the drive. This can be done in
several ways. One way is to go into the bios of the computer if the
drive has been "pre-identified". Most computers now a days use a
setting called AUTO so the drive and its' specs are picked up at boot
time. If this is the case, you will need to physically open the computer
and look at the top side of the hard drive for a label or the info on it
that you seek. Most of the computers just have several screws in the
back that you remove and then pull the side panel back and away. If
on the other hand some computers are like little chinese puzzles to
figure out how to get them open. If this is the case, you'll have to
identify the case/brand of computer and let us know so we can either
guide you through the method of opening or point you to a web page
that will do the same thing. One other way to get info about the
hard drive if the system boots up to the desktop is to go to Start -
Settings - Control Panel - System - Device Manager - Disk Drives

I am reading your answers and believe me I have to read very slowly
because
this is too professional for me.
I am just a housewife who loves the computer, that has achieved so far to
keep the new computer running fairly well (keep my fingers crossed) and
that
has decided to go one step forward by trying to do the same with the old
one.
After I see all your answers I am not so sure if I have the level to do
anything. I don't mind trying, but you would have to direct all my moves.

Just take several deep breaths and relax, you can do it. There are a lot of
people here who can get you through it.

In fact, I was thinking about starting over because I also get a warning
"a
required .DLL file, MSVCP60.DLL was not found" and I thought starting over
from zero would be the best. Then I saw Ron Badour's answer and was
looking
in the links he sent me and I don't know if I would be able to do it.

Does this mean that the W98 machine does not boot correctly?
Fixing a problem is different than installing a system.

The second option Ron gave I thought it would be easier but, do you think
I
could do it using the BING'S DEMO? I wouldn't really like to put any money
into this PC.

I haven't seen the demo so I don't know. Just ask lots of questions
and it will work out ok. Some older machines that were designed
to run W98 can be bought for as little as $25 for the whole thing.
I understand about money being tight but I think I would pop for
another hard drive since it makes the backup process/configuration
process A LOT easier. With only one drive in the system it is much
more difficult to backup files you need and can't loose so that they
can be re-installed once the machine is finally configured. If on
the other hand, you don't need/don't want to save ANYTHING
from the current configuration, that makes the process a lot easier.

Please, tell me where or how I can find the information you request.

See above.

charles.....


Thank you,
Begoña

"***** charles" wrote:

Begoña wrote in message
...
I have an old computer running Windows 98 but with too many
partitions. I
use
it only for the house accounting and a few more things and it is not
connected to the Internet. The problem is that every time I try to do
something I have problems because I don't have memory in drive C:. The
memory
is in the other partitions and no matter if I try to save files on any
other
drive, always something it is saved in the main drive C:.

Is it possible to delete these partitions and go back to the original
drive
C:? I am not sure, but I think this was the only partition when the
computer
was new.

If possible, how can I do it?
At the moment I have the following:
Total size
Free
space
drive (C local disk 1.99 GB 27.0
MB
drive (D local disk 1.99 GB 364
MB
drive (E local disk 1.99 GB 1.46
GB
Host for e (H local disk 1.99 GB 380
MB

I have tried to install and save in drive E: but the problem is that
even
when I choose drive E: there are always some files that go
automatically
to
drive C:, so I am unable to do anything.

The computer was bought in 1998 to Gateway with Widows 95 installed
(they
were expecting the Windows 98 CD's) so a bit later they sent us the
upgrade
to Windows 98.

It is an Intel Pentium II Processor G6-300
OS Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10.1998)
Intel MMX Technology
192.0 MB RAM

I know it is too old, but it is really helpful for those little jobs I
use
it, only if I could get to have the total memory together.

Is there any chance to make it somehow useful? I need your help,
please...
Thank you,
Begoña

Is it possible that you could post the make and model of the drive?

The size, I suspect, is fairly small, by todays norms so you could
purchase another one for under 20 bucks. If it were my computer
I would save all the files I needed to another media, wipe the
current drive along with the new slave and reformat them both
with FAT32 and reinstall and then move the files I had saved back
onto the new D: drive. That way you would have a C: drive for
the OS and Programs and a D: drive for data, cab files, drivers
and other things so that if/when you needed to rebuild the system
in the future, it is a LOT easier.

When it comes to compressed volumes, this technology came
out a long time ago when drives were small and expensive. I
have worked on some of them mostly when a computer crashed
and I needed to get stuff off of them. The technology is rather
fragil and I NEVER used it on my own systems. I don't think
Partition Magic can handle them since it works at the partition
level only and a host drive is a virtualization of a drive inside a
partition.

later,
charles......