98SE2ME · UPDATED · 8-12-2008

Please see the top of this topic for most recent 98SE2ME update.

________________________

Update:
http://www.mdgx.com/9s2m/updates.php

8-12-2008
* Options 1 + 2: removed WinME ADVAPI32.DLL 4.90.3000 [%windir%\SYSTEM] because of online gaming software errors:
http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showto...6349&st=898
MUST use ADVAPI32.DLL 4.80.1675 from Win98 SE setup CD-ROM/CABs instead [example = change CD/DVD drive letter if necessary]:
EXTRACT/Y D:\WIN98\WIN98_26.CAB ADVAPI32.DLL /L %winbootdir%\SYSTEM
This file replacement must be done from native/true/real/pure MS-DOS mode.
[thank you Chozo4]

P.S.:
O2.BAT [which installs 98SE2ME options 1 + 2] actually re-installs automatically ADVAPI32.DLL 4.80.1675 from 98SE setup CD-ROM or from CABs [if on user's hard disk/USB stick/etc] into %winbootdir%\SYSTEM after reboot.

HTH

Here's a list of files that are removed from 98SE2Me
that in my opinion i think belong there.

ADVAPI32.DLL
CABINET.DLL
DANIM.DLL
DEVMGR32.DLL
DSKMAINT.DLL
IPROP.DLL
MFC42.DLL
MSDATL2.DLL
MSOWS409.DLL
MSTASK.DLL
MSVCIRT.DLL
NETAPI.DLL
NETAPI32.DLL
NETDI.DLL
NETOS.DLL
OPENGL32.DLL
SAGE.DLL
SETUPAPI.DLL
SETUPX.DLL
SHIMGVW.DLL (20 FILES)

DRVSPACE.EXE
MPLAYER.EXE
MSTASK.EXE
MSTINIT.EXE
SAGE.EXE
SYSTRAY.EXE
TELNET.EXE
THEMES.EXE
WINFILE.EXE (9 FILES)

DRVSPACX.VXD
FIOLOG.VXD
UNIMODEM.VXD
VCACHE.VXD (4 FILES)

DRVSPACE.SYS
THEMES.CPL
MSWRD832.CNV
WRITE32.WPC (4 FILES)

ARIAL.TTF
ARIALBD.TTF
ARIALBI.TTF
ARIALI.TTF
COMIC.TTF
COUR.TTF
COURBD.TTF
COURBI.TTF
COURI.TTF
LSANSI.TTF
TAHOMA.TTF
TAHOMABD.TTF
TIMES.TTF
TIMESBD.TTF
TIMESBI.TTF
TIMESI.TTF
TREBUC.TTF
TREBUCBD.TTF
TREBUCBI.TTF
TREBUCIT.TTF
VERDANA.TTF
VERDANAB.TTF
VERDANAI.TTF
VERDANAZ.TTF
LSANSUNI.TTF (25 FILES)

Example 1

THEMES.EXE + THEMES.CPL
these files are not included because we can obtain these files
from plus98. I don't have plus98 so i can't use these newer files.
So guess i'm able to use the next best thing which is WinME
THEMES.EXE + THEMES.CPL files, but i have been deprive of that
because you feel as if these files are not important because newer
versions can be found. And i feel, just cause we are able to get them elsewhere
(not all of us) that they still should be added.


Example 2

If i don't use IE6 how am i supposed to obtain these newer files
I feel i should not have to install IE just to get these files
then un-install thats stupid.

MSTASK.DLL
SAGE.DLL
MSTASK.EXE
MSTINIT.EXE
SAGE.EXE ?

Example 3

if most of these files (the latest WinME) are not installed or removed
then i really don't see the purpose for 98SE2ME. Some of these
actually belong in here.I can understand some files are buggy
but what about the ones that are not?


Example 4

Newer is not always better
SETUPAPI.DLL from WinXP is no good but the WinME version
is, but you have it removed for what reason.
I'll just boycott this until you improve this.

Read the Readme. He explains everything. Many of the items you talk about wreak havoc on 98SE if used. I'm pretty certain no one cares if anyone decides to use 98SE2ME or not, so threaten to spread the word and have everyone boycott the project. No one will care. This is a free offering from an enthusiast that for years has provided amazing things for the community of Windows users. No one will be upset if you go it on your own rather than using the package. MDGx even provides a manual approach like that in the Readme.

Experiment away. It's your system.

As has been explained many times and also in the Readme, a 98SE system that doesn't have the latest available versions of things like Internet Explorer, Direct X, Windows Media Player, etc, cannot be made secure or bug fixed as older versions have not gotten any updates for ages.

I try to install the 8-12-2008 version of 98SE2ME, option 1, but keep getting a 'winoldap caused an invalid page fault in kernel32.dll' error, after O2.bat, I think, finishes running, (the Gamezone files). I then have to reboot and an earlier 98SE2ME loads.

Appreciate any ideas how to overcome this so that 98SE2ME runs to completion.

And many, many, thanks, MDGx, for this OS, and for the tweaked NVidia 82.69 drivers which do wonders on a FX 5500 card in an old BX MB.

Try this:

1. Install 98SE2ME.EXE = run the installer but exit [do not select any option] at the options menu.

2. Go to the C:\9!M folder, open O2.BAT in Notepad and remark (comment out) these lines
by adding :: [a double colon followed by a space] in front of each one of them.

3. Run the 98SE2ME.PIF shortcut:
http://www.mdgx.com/9s2m/#05
and select option 1 or 2.

See if that error still happens.
And please post here if it runs ok, so I can remove those lines.

And many thanks for your appreciation.

HTH

Thanks, MGDx.

The error persists with or without an O2.bat edit; moreover backups can be created, (without edit), upon system restart, so it's not your code. I think it's a problem in my system. Recently I've had sporadic 'frozen' shutdowns, hence the idea to re-install the latest 98SE2ME to try and overcome this.

The winoldap error occurs at -- C:\WINDOWS\RUNDLL32.EXE C:\WINDOWS\SHELL32.DLL, SHExitWindowsEx 2 -- when extracting or finished extracting from WIN98SE\WIN98_28.CAB

I don't know if this is from O2 script or another. But the 'forced' shutdown is 'normal', meaning no scandisk on restart. :-)

Sorry to bother you, yet appreciate any ideas I can work on.


Update :

‘Frozen’ shutdowns solved by re-installing the network adapter card. My system was not disconnecting from the network when other computers were on line.

8-12-2008 version of 98SE2ME updates, along with those from July, were installed manually, so I’m back with a stable, up-to-date, speedy OS, thanks to MDGx.

It would be good if we could have a different banner in the start up menu, one that said "98SE2ME" with a color scheme that matched the splash screen. Right now, if I install option 3, it changes to the generic Windows ME banner, otherwise it stays with the generic Windows 98 banner.

Also, what version of Windows is supposed to be shown on the desktop (if we have that option set in Tweak UI)? Previously, I had installed Gape's SPSE 2.1a along with a version of 98SE2ME from about December of 2007. The version shown on the desktop was the Windows ME version (4.90xxxx). When I reinstalled Win98 and used SPSE 3.0 b3 along with the latest 98SE2ME (Aug. 2008) the version shown was Win 98 (4.10.2222).

Hello, now that was removed from the 98MP10 the file setupapi.dll [XP SP2] you can restore the file setupapi.dll of WinME in the project 98SE2ME.
Bye.

Mcv'93

I have only modded the banner for the Win98 SE 256 colors patched EXPLORER.EXE [installs from options 1 + 2].

I have never modded WinME explorer.exe banner [which installs from option 3]. And I don't intend to, but if you have your own custom banner, please post here and I'll consider it.

Done.

See:
http://www.mdgx.com/98-5.htm#KRM9S

98SE2ME.EXE:
http://www.mdgx.com/4

I just downloaded the Unofficial IE6 Cumulative Upgrade component only ( (mdie6cu.exe). It installed in windows/system the following dlll> iepeers.dll. Not been able to find out if this is necessary in win98SE, but the version installed 6.00.2800.1616 doesn't seem to be listed here: http://www.programchecker.com/file/31791.aspx

Just wondering what it does and do we need it? TIA

iepeers.dll is explained here [long live good ol' Google ]:
http://www.auditmypc.com/process/iepeers.asp

Please post your questions into the appropriate forum.
This is the 98SE2ME forum, and has nothing to do with iepeers.dll.
The MDIE6CU forum is here:
http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=97816

Thanks.

Mcv'93

Hey, I've got a bit of a problem.

I've installed 98SE on many machines, and I've been working on another right now.
Installing 98SE2ME (option 1, then option 3) has been pretty routine in my setups, and so far I've had at worst minor issues.

Thing is, this time around, Option 1 installs just fine, but installing Option 3 causes a crash (One of those error messages where you can pick Close or Details) in EXPLORER through process EXPLORER.EXE right after I log on (before the desktop shows up). Thus, I can't access anything. Safe mode will not work either.

Here are the details of the error, taken using a VGA image capture tool on another computer:
Click to view attachment


I have a feeling that the issue is being caused by something that has changed in one of the update packs I installed before installing 98SE2ME, as this time around I started using newer versions of these packs than I have used before. I'm just wondering what kind of incompatibility might be occuring (and with what file), and how I can fix it.

I have a hard disk image saved of after I installed Option 1, so if the Option 3 installation keeps failing, I can keep restoring my image until the problem is fixed.

Anyways, here's the order I've installed the updates in:
* Internet Explorer 6.0 SP1
*DirectX 9.0c
* 98 SE SP 3.0 BETA 3
*Windows Update, including WMP 9.0
*WUPG98 Carinthian LH Edition
*Autopatcher Dec 2007 FINAL
*Maximus Decim InternetExplorer 6.0sp1 Component Update 2.4
*Maximus Decim Cumulative Update ver.3.05 (includes NUSB 3.3)
*Maximus Decim Data Access Component Update 1.4
*98SE2ME 11-19-2008 Option 1
*98SE2ME 11-19-2008 Option 3 (FAILED!)

Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

P.S.: I could have sworn I saw one of those "Not enough memory" errors DOS likes to sometimes give right before my machine rebooted for Option 3. Don't know if this happened for Option 1.

HELP!

I have been perusing this forum using much of my time for the last three weeks, AND MGDx's most excellent pages as well as going to Wiki for greater understanding of some terms, and I am STILL not sure of exactly how to go about upgrading my 98SE system to 98SE2ME.

There is the order of install. I believe that it is as follows:
SP2.1
98SE2ME
MD's Cumulative Upgrade
KernelEx

I am not sure whether to install the notebook drivers first, last or both. MGDX says first, and some others say at a different place in the upgrade process. Somewhere in there I believe I have to upgrade to IE6.0 of some flavor, but then, as the last thing, I will remove IE completely with IEradicator. This seems to produce more favorable results that removing IE with 98Lite, which can be used to remove all the other stuff necessary. As I am sure IEradicator will remove IE6, and am not sure it will remove later versions, I do not want to upgrade to any later version if there is not some clear cut reason for doing so and no work around. It does not seem necessary to upgrade to a later version of IE, or to upgrade WindowsMediaPlayer at all. IF later versions of IE or WMP have some necessary files, a work around might be to install 98SE with no other upgrades, install the later version of IE or WMP, copy the necessary files to my data drive, and then format the C: drive and start over.

I am doing a fresh install of 98SE on a ca.early 2001 IBM Thinkpad A22m. Currently it is dual boot with XP. The C: drive ONLY contains the OS, all the data is in other partitions. Firefox portable, the last version 98SE runs, is on the D: drive and the same installation is run under 98SE or XP depending on which I booted into.

Are there any things specific to notebooks in general and IBM notebooks in particular which are not in SP2.1 or the Cumulative Upgrade 3.0.5 which I need to install also? IN view of the below, are there things in SP2.1 or Cumulative Upgrade 3.1.5 which I need to change or remove afterwards. I am passing on WUPG98 and AutoPatcher as both seem to install things I don't want, plus I have a dial-up connection.

One thing which makes things confusing are that when Windows 98 first came out, there was a definite distinction between a LAN and the Internet, and now both are classified as Network. Consequently, if your goal is to prevent anything on the internet from running anything on your computer, but you also have a hardwired Ethernet LAN, how do you know what you can remove, or do not need to install in the first place? I do not, for instance, want to allow my notebook to run anything on my desktop or vice versa, even over the LAN.
I used to let the modem talk to the TCP/IP protocol, but removed all bindings to NetBios, IPX, and Windows File Sharing, while using NetBUEI on the Ethernet, and removing any bindings from the Ethernet card to the TCP/IP protocol.

I do not allow anything to update itself or anything else automatically. Back in the days of DOS and WFW 3.11, you got everything installed and then you never upgraded anything unless it was because a newer device or program couldn't work otherwise. Therefore, I want to remove as much code as possible which lets anything update automatically.

What makes things really difficult is the way I configure a computer. I first install 98SE and get it set up properly, and then I disable Windows Update, ActiveX, Active Desktop, and completely remove IE using 98Lite. The dependencies make things very confusing, for instance, for audio sequenciers and programs which interface with MIDI devices, I need DirectX plug-ins, which seem to depend on DirectShow, which seems to depend on COM+. However, it appears the only part of DirectX Media I need is DirectShow, so it appears I can remove or not install much of the rest of it. The same thing with DCOM, I appear to need COM+, but not DCOM, and Steve Gibson thinks that DCOM merely gives a drive by virus opportunity - but where and how do I upgrade COM+ and loose DCOM. Is MSDE needed if you are not running Office or using SQL?
These are merely instances I know about, There are far far more that I do not. The reason I am so completely detailing what I am trying to do is so that others, far more expert than I in this area, can help me learn what to do to create the most stable, impervious to outside manipulation, advanced in respect to running newer software and newer hardware, Win9x installation is is possible for someone who can't write code to create!

The not write code is not completely true, I got an AA in computer science in 1982, but since I haven't written much code in 30 years, I have forgotten how to write Cobal, Fortran, and Assembly on an IBM System 3 using punch cards. I took an earlier, ca.1970, correspondence course on computer maintenance in the Air Force, but today knowledge of maintaining the hardware of vacuum tube based computers is an even MORE useless skill!

I also want to make the 98SE2ME installation as compatible with more modern hardware as possible in general, and especially in relationship to USB devices. USB compatibility is why I built the desktop to be an XP machine, and now I have learned that I can make 98SE compatible with most of the USB devices I especially need, Flash cards and USB HDDs, that is why I am attempting to downgrade, most of our computers to 98SE from XP, or at least a dual boot them.

I also want to make 98SE compatible with as much as possible of the newer software which only run on XP, especially Firefox, Thunderbird, and OpenOffice.

Computability to XP means computability to an XP install which has been treated in the same manner, use XPlite to remove WindowsUpdate, ActiveX, Outlook, IE, and WMP. For a media player, in both OS, I use the K-Lite Codec pack with MediaPlayer Classic along with VLC portable. Don't need Movie Maker or any other MS application included as "part" of the OS to do something which can be done better and less intrusively by somebody else. I do not need to make anything compatible with DRM, if something needs DRM, I don't need IT!
Incompatibility to MS applications is perhaps an asset!
Neither version of the OS needs compatibility with running anything in MS Office outside of as much compatibility as possible to read and write Office files, as I haven't ever considered installing it since sometime in the mid 90's when I learned that buried in all the Office files was a GUID so that any document created in Word or Office could be traced back to the computer on which it was created. As there was a period of time where most versions of Word documents could be opened only with Word, the work around, since the GUID was created only when a document was created and not when it was modified, was to download a Word file from MSoft, rename it and then delete the contents and use it as a blank file when creating a new document instead of clicking on "new". That way any documents I created in Word or Excel would be traced back to MS as being the originator. I use SoftmakerOffice 2006, and for things it won't handle OpenOffice.

Insofar as internet compatibility is concerned, I always thought that if a Linux box running Netscape, Opera or Firefox could not view a specific web page or site correctly, my install of Windows shouldn't be able to either! I certainly don't need to be more compatible with Windows Vista servers etc.
OTOH, I want my LAN to be able to transfer any file which XP might be able to write, as on some occasions, I might have an XP and a 98SE box on the same LAN.

I wonder how many of the "security patches" are really necessary to a system set up this way, for instance, if something can create a virus in a Word document giving an ActiveX control the ability to do something awful to your installation of MS Office, how unsecure is a system which has the virus, but does NOT have MS Office or ActiveX?

Finally, I want to give GREAT MUCH and munificent thanks to MGDX, for his totally awesome site and great contributions and dedication toward keeping the last OS Microsoft designed for stand alone machines alive!!!!!

'Sides, it ain't REALLY that old, the OS currently used on the Space Shuttles was designed in the mid '70s, long before the first PC ever came off the Assembly Line!

There are utilities to remove any unique, hidden, identifiers from MS Office documents. There's also an update for Office 97 so it won't put them into files.

The latest MS Office that's still pretty decent is Office XP (Office 2002). Office 97 or 2000 are good for 98SE, though 2000 is a bit bloaty. IIRc, even Office XP will run on 98SE, but you need a lot of RAM, which 98SE doesn't handle so well.

Office 2003 is the last version I want to have anything to do with. I've read many reviews of Office 2007 and MS has effed it up something horrible, apparently in an effort to (again) make many of its file formats only work with Office.

This was before Word 97 came out. By the time Word 97 came out, I already knew about the GUID removers, but just like viruses, not having GUIDs in the first place is far better than removing them later!

Up until a couple years ago I used mainly used Wordperfect, which I had been using since V4.2 for DOS. WordPerfect is in my opinion, the best WORDprocessor made. Granted you could more easily put graphics and fancy borders etc in WORD, and reviewer after reviewer panned WordPerfect because it couldn't add eye candy as well as Word, But if you want to process WORDS and not eye candy, WordPerfect is better.

I only went to OpenOffice recently (Which I don't like nearly much as WordPerfect and 1-2-3), because I found a Portable Version - software which does NOT need to be installed! (I still have WordPerfect on some computers, not the whole suite, just WordPerfect, along with Lotus 1-2-3 and Approach, again not the whole SmartSuite, just 1-2-3 and Approach, which is basically a front-end for DBase files. They aren't integrated - so what, never used the integration anyway!)

Just imagine, if it was commercial software! People could put it on a thumb drive and only have one copy, which they could use on any computer they had! No more sticking people who own multiple computers for multiple copies, just so ONE person can use it where they need to! Microsoft, Adobe, Sony and Time-Warner are turning puce at the thought!

However, what I really need is guidance on what needs to be done if you rip all the MSoft bundled and integrated apps out of 98SE2ME leaving just what is REALLY an OS!

I think they shoud be added back.
Sorry for sending you thru the ringer.

According to


I installed WMP9 + the MP9URP9X update pack. This is a total clean install on a 10Gb HDD on a Thinkpad A22m. After I get the install working right, I will copy the partition to the drive I need it on and expand it's size if necessary.

Normally, I use 98 Lite to remove IE and WMP 6.4 and replace WMP with the K-Lite codec pack and Media Player Classic.
Up until trying to upgrade my 98SE to 98SE2ME, I had never installed a version of WMP above 6.4.

98Lite would not remove WMP9.
How do you get rid of WMP9, leaving all the necessary updates to Direct Show and the security patches to other areas of Windows, excluding IE, Active Desktop, Web folders, Windows Update Net Meeting and any .NET components. It is not neccessary for me to have updates for the preceding, as they are gone!
If my install of 98SE2ME is as above, do I even NEED any of the security patches in WMP9? I would prefer to not have any good reason (security questions) to install it at all!


I could always install WMP9 with the updates, and then go through the \windows\system etc directories and copy the files to a subdirectory on a different HDD, and then reinstall the whole mess with the exception of WMP9, and then copy the files from the second HDD to where they needed to go - or I could If I could find out which Files I needed.

Is there any list of files which WMP9 plus updates install which patch files necessary to the actual OS or which are necessary for playing files with other media players or browsers? -assuming that any such will not handle any form of DRM.

I do not need any updates related to DRM, as I do not use such!
I vote with my pocketbook, since I can never tell what DVDs have DRM, I merely buy them rarely - perhaps 3 in the last five years! When they quit putting DRM on DVDs, I might consider spending some money on them!

Five Additional Win ME VxDs Patched to Work with Win 98SE

I've been testing them for a long time (from Dec 2007 to the present), and so has RetroOS (from Apr 2008 to the present; thanks RetroOS, you rock! ), so I'm quite sure they work as intended with Win 98SE.

CDTSD.VxD, CDFS.VxD, SMARTVSD.VxD SCSI1HLP.VXD and VOLTRACK.VXD

Warning: Read carefully the instructions below and only proceed if you are 100% sure you know what you're doing. These instructions do work, but a single small mistake can cripple your system!!! If your system stops booting, you have only yourself to blame. You have been warned!

In case you are interested in using them in your system, here's what you have to do:

*** BACKUP YOUR SYSTEM!!! ***

Create a temporary folder and name it, say, NEWPAT

Using 7-zip, WinRAR, WinZip or whatever your favorite file unpacker may be:

1. Extract CDTSD.VxD, SMARTVSD.VxD SCSI1HLP.VXD and VOLTRACK.VXD from WIN_20.CAB, from your Win ME distribution disk and drop these files into NEWPAT;
2. Extract CDFS.VxD from ME274175.EXE, which you have to download from MDGx's site, and drop it into NEWPAT;
3. Extract all patch patterns from New_VxDs_PATs.7z, which is attached to this post, and drop it in NEWPAT;
4. Extract PATCH.EXE from utils.zip, which you have to download from kanastacorp's site, and drop it into NEWPAT;
5. If you don't already have it, extract GETVER.EXE from CmdLine.zip, which you have to download from lbrisar's site, and drop it into \%windir%\command\ folder (or just into NEWPAT if you don't intend to keep it);

Open a DOS box, go to NEWPAT and run at the command prompt
getver *.VXD
It must show you all the .VxDs you've collected are version 4.90.0.3000, except for CDFS.VxD, which must be v. 4.90.0.3001 (if not, the something went wrong, recheck your previous steps).
Now let's do the actual patching (it must be done as described, because PATCH.EXE does not accept, say, *.VXD) so, at the command prompt run:
PATCH -p CDFS.VxD CDFS.PAT CDFS.NEW
When the prompt reapears, run:
PATCH -p CDTSD.VxD CDTSD.PAT CDTSD.NEW
When the prompt reapears, run:
PATCH -p SMARTVSD.VxD SMARTVSD.PAT SMARTVSD.NEW
When the prompt reapears, run:
PATCH -p SCSI1HLP.VxD SCSI1HLP.PAT SCSI1HLP.NEW
When the prompt reapears, run:
PATCH -p VOLTRACK.VxD VOLTRACK.PAT VOLTRACK.NEW
When the prompt reapears, run:
getver *.NEW
It must show you all the .NEWs PATCH created are version 4.90.0.3001, except for CDFS.VxD, which must be v. 4.90.0.3002 (if not, the something went wrong, recheck your previous steps).
When the prompt reapears, run:
Copy *.NEW %windir%\system\iosubsys /b /v
When the prompt reapears, close the DOS box.

*** This is the hazardous part! Be careful. ***
Restart in MS-DOS mode or boot into DOS from a BOOT diskette.
Go to %windir%\system\iosubsys.
Run a "dir *.NEW" command just to get the list of new files.
Rename to .OLD each of the 5 old .VxDs, one at a time (e. g. "ren CDFS.VXD *.OLD)
Run a "dir *.OLD" command just to check you now have 5 .OLD files corresponding to the 5 .NEW files you had as you started.
Run "ren *.NEW *.VXD"
Run a "dir *.NEW" command and now no file must be found, if everything went as it should.
Restart windows.

*** If windows doesn't start: Rename the five updated .VXDs back to .NEW and the files .OLD back to .VXD
Now windows must boot again. Once back in windows, recheck your steps and try again. ***

Once you're satisfied everything is working as it should, then you may delete the NEWPAT folder and all files inside it.

Of course, as always, the standard disclaimer applies: It works great for me, but YMMV and I can guarantee nothing whatsoever about these patches, and about the use you make of them. So, by deciding to apply them you fully accept that anything you do is of YOUR SOLE RESPONSIBILITY... Hence, if after adding these files your pc morphs into a purple mushroom and explodes, causing a 10-day worldwide blackout in the process, you know you can't blame me for it! You have been warned.

Kanastacorp's site is returning error #509 (= "Bandwidth Limit Exceeded") so I've uploaded their fundamental package here: utils.zip, for you to be able to get PATCH.EXE from it.

A further warning: in case you have a third party SMARTVSD.VXD in your system, like the one installed with the PROMISE add-on PATA or SATA controllers, you must keep the third party SMARTVSD.VXD. So you should do all of the above procedure just for the other four files, and skip replacing SMARTVSD.VXD.

Thank you for your work. A couple of small issues though:
1. What are those files responsible for, within the system? Why should one go through all this hassle, is it worth?
2. Is it possible to find another patching system that would not involve so many steps? An AutoHotkey script, maybe, that'd take care of CD files extraction + backup + binary patching of all of the files, at once?
3. Can the patched files be used without 98SE2ME installed or is the latter mandatory (considering we're in its thread)?

Well, there's no hurry, it could wait until next year. Happy New Year everybody!

CDFS.VXD (CDFS driver): If a media player is installed on the system, e.g., Winamp or Windows Media Player, audio CD files are shown in Windows Explorer as supported media files with the applicable program icon. WIN9x uses this file and files CDTSD.VXD and CDVSD.VXD to manage CD/DVD drives.

CDTSD.VXD: A TSD is a type specific driver that handles the majority of drive calls for that class type(disk or cd) and then uses the spcific device adapter services to communicate with the hard disk. Primary responsibilities of a TSD include drive letter assignment and converting logical requests to physical requests so that the adapter driver can understand it.

SCSI1HLP.VXD (SCSI I): Used by WIN9X to play video CDs in IDE CD drives. It is a filter driver just for SCSI I and some proprietary CD-ROM drives. This driver loads on boot and is unloaded if it is not needed. It is not used when communicating with SCSI II or SCSI III CD-ROM or hard disks. It allows Win9x to implement the SCSI I command sets in use by SCSI I CD-ROM drive models.

VOLTRACK.VXD Volume Tracking Virtual Device Driver for I/O Devices (i.e. CD-Rom, Floppies, etc.).

SMARTVSD.VXD Implements S.M.A.R.T. monitoring for internal IDE HDDs (PATA only). A VSD is a vendor specific driver, and may be used by a hardware manufacturer to help make his/her product more compatible with the ideal hardware expected by WIN9X. However, Microsoft supplied some generic VSDs for some devices, such as CDVSD.VXD, DISKVSD.VXD and this one. They usually are enough for most hardware, but in this specific case, if add-on HDD controllers are added to the system, the SMARTVSD.VXD should be substituted by another, customized to detect both the add-on card and the onboard controller(s).

To have the most up-to-date code-base available. I think it's worth the effort, but that's just my opinion.

Sure. I know my release method is complicated, but it was the best I was able to do. Now that the files are available, let's hope someone can come up with an automated patcher for them. I'm no good at creating installers, sorry!

Yes, they can. 98SE2ME is not mandatory. But they fit well in 98SE2ME, so I think this is the proper thread for releasing them.

Happy New Year to you all!

Thank you for replying, now things are a lot more clear in regard to the above-mentioned files. I've stumbled into something else though - some of the related files on my system do not quite match:
CDFS.VXD 4.10.2222 (QFE)
CDTSD.VXD 4.10.1998
CDVSD.VXD 4.90.3004
DISKTSD.VXD 4.90.3001
DISKVSD.VXD 4.10.1998

Do you think this configuration is OK? I'm asking because I generally have no issues with the HDD or CD/DVDs, except for the fact that any DVD I read with my DVD-RW Samsung SH-S182D appears as a 2GB volume (2,097,120 bytes), not a 4.7GB one as it should. All data can safely and correctly be copied from them, though.

Do you have any idea who can be responsible for this? The COPY2GB patch, maybe, or any of the above-mentioned files?

Anyway, if I can wrap my head around these patches, I may try to create an automated patcher and a restore script (should anything go bad).

Hi dencorso,

Just a quick thanks for the newer vxd files. All installed and working well on my 98SE2ME box.

I did patch them all in a dos box as you described, however I chickened out working in dos at the hazardous bit.

Seeing as none of these files are in use when viewing the desktop I worked with File Manager to rename the new vxd's after checking the version numbers were correct and transferred them one by one, after backing up the original versions to a floppy.

Seemed less hazardous that way, for me at least.

As an afterthought it would be even easier to "right click" on the newer vxd's if you have "Rename" and "Copy to Folder" in the context menu and transfer them that way.

Thanks again,

Hi, lightning slinger!
Way back when, Petr had found out that it's possible to substitute DISKTSD.VxD from the File Manager. Your report makes me think all the VxDs in /IOSUSYS may be substituted in this way. Nice to know it. It really helps make my procedure a little less scary. Nice find! However, the new VxDs will start working only after a system reboot, so it remains necessary to reboot asap after the new files are all in place.

Hi, Drugwash!
Check it again, I guess you read the product version, instead of the file version...
You surely are using v. 4.10.1999
If not, you've got a build I'm not aware of.

Well, this is a known DVD related bug that remains unsolved. My system does the same. But it gives the correct size for CDs. My guess is the problem lies either with CDFS.VxD or VolTrack.VxD. But nobody knows it for sure, afaik. And no, sorry, these new patches don't solve this particular bug... So, yes, your configuration is OK.
Later Edit: My guess turned out to be wrong! The problem is higher up, in the GUI part of windows, and affects anything treated as a "remote filesystem" (such as CDs, DVDs and remote shares)... See Q256576

Now, then, you can keep your configuration as it is, or you can fully upgrade it to the Win ME code base using the patches I just released and upgrading DiskVSD.VxD with the unofficial update available at MDGx's: Q271277.

Just in case, here is some more info, thanks to the Wayback Machine: Q271277 and Q274175. The latter MSKB shows CDFS.VxD 4.90.3001 (the base for my 4.90.3002) addresses the same issue than 4.10.1999, so, here also, the main advantage is to move to a newer (and hopefully better) code-base.

That would be great! Thanks! Perhaps the finding just reported by lightning slinger may be of help in creating the automated patcher, as it removes the need to go into true DOS and back, so its just one reboot instead of two.

Thanks a lot to you both for your interest and prompt feedback! You rock! And Happy New Year once more!

PS: I forgot to mention that these patched files should work with Win 98FE, 98FESP1 and 98SE (with or without 98SE2ME), afaik. I have conducted all my tests in a 98SE2ME system, and so did RetroOS, and that's why I didn't say this right away. But while the new patched files are still untested in Win 98FE and 98FESP1, all my previous patched VxDs from Win ME IOSUBSYS are already tested in the previous versions of 98 and do work in them OK.

Dencorso, thanks for the detailed explanations. Indeed my CDFS.VXD has product version 4.10.2222 and file version 4.10.1999; quite strange numbering scheme, if you ask me, but I recall quite a debate on this issue somewhere around so I'm not gonna dive into it now.

Regarding Q256576, I'm afraid the issue may be related but it's definitely not the same, since the Properties panel would show the very same 2.147.450.880 bytes size.

However, right now while typing this, I found out something really weird. Inserting a dual-layer DVD trying to reproduce the issue, I had a shock: the unique file contained on this DVD (an ISO image), sized 7.957.301.248 bytes made drive size appear as 7.770.810kB (in Total Commander - I never use Explorer). This DVD was burnt on an XP machine. File system: UDF.

After that, I inserted a movie DVD containing 2 folders and (beside other smaller files) four 1.073.709.056 bytes VOB files and the drive size showed 4.287.114 kB in TotCmd. This is an original printed DVD made in Holland. File system: UDF.

Then I inserted a DVD containing 2 folders holding a total of 195 avi and MP3 files, all up to over 4.3 GB. Drive size showed 2.097.120 kB. This DVD was burnt on an XP machine. File system: CDFS.

And then I inserted another DVD containing 4 folders with lots of files and few subfolders that would sum up to over 4.3 GB. What do you know - drive size: 2.097.120 kB. This DVD was burnt on my Win98SE machine. File system: CDFS.

All this leads me to a sole logic conclusion: the CDFS driver is erroneously used when reading DVD media, possibly related to number (and most likely size) of the contained files. The CDFS driver has a drive limit of 2GB. I still have no idea which driver is used for reading the 7GB dual-layer and the printed movie DVDs.

As for the patcher... at first I wanted to make it strictly for this task only. While working on it, I realized it would be a waste of time so I decided to try a universal patching approach. However this requires a lot of thinking, failsafe fallbacks, etc so it will take a while before I can come up with a safe version. And it may become a little complicated in the mean time. Here's a preview:

Sure. I agree it's not the same issue, since it affects a ToolTip and not the Properties Tab. But it is the only mention in the MSKB to the peculiar number 2,147,450,880, which, BTW, can be written [(2^31) - (2^15)]. Now this number seems appear as the upper limit, in some MSVC, MSVB and .NET implementations, for the Int32 C data type, instead of the correct [(2^31) -1] = 2,147,483,647 limit, as defined in the C standard. What crossed my mind is that both bugs probably arrise from the overflow of (MS implemented) Int32 variables, and, just in this general sense, they have a common origin.
But I was also imagining the CD/DVD bug would be higher up, probably in KRNL386.EXE or in Kernel32.DLL. In this you've just proven me wrong. It must lie inside CDFS.VxD, as you have now convincingly demonstrated.
I do confirm your findings. I grabbed a random commercial printed DVD (Hell Freezes Over, by The Eagles) and put it in the tray. As soon as it was mounted, the Properties Tab in Windows Explorer showed "6,519,816,192 bytes (6.07GB)", and "File System: UDF", which is correct (it is a Dual Layer DVD).
BTW, UDF, in Win 9x/ME, is implemented rather unusually: its driver is not at ...\IOSUBSYS\ as might be expected. It is UDF.VxD, which is part of VMM32.VxD in a plain vanilla installation, so it's not usually findable by a system search. But users of fully up-to-date Win 98SE can find it in %windir%\system\VMM32\ as the hotfix v. 4.10.2223 of UDF.VxD, which is installed by Q310695 ("DVD Player Program Cannot Access Data"). There is an equivalent hotfix (v. 4.90.3001) for Win ME. The Win ME version of Q310695 works OK in Win ME and can be ported to Win 98SE, but it does not work as expected with Win 98SE, as is usual for .VxDs from ...\VMM32\.
Good luck with the patcher! It can be pretty handy to have a windows based, .PAT driven, generic patcher. Count on me to test it from your earliest working versions.

Thank you for confirming my findings. I'm not sure where exactly the bug is, but the bug itself is loading the CD driver for a DVD media that is not UDF. I haven't tried removing CDFS.VXD or replacing it with UDF.VXD for testing purposes.

Unfortunately, both testing and work on Replatcher (Replacer + Patcher) will have to be delayed, since my father just died and I have a lot of papers to take care of. As soon as settle this up, I'll get back to our business. Sorry for any inconvenience.

My condolences, Drugwash.

Well, it's not quite the CD driver, but the CDFS driver. So, it's just right to use it for a CDFS medium, be it a CD or a DVD. But, when the original CDFS driver was written, the programmer assumed no CDFS medium would ever be greater than 2 GiB, and that unfortunate assumption became a bug when CDFS DVDs became available.

Thank you.

I wonder why a 4.7GB DVD with a few 1GB files is written as UDF while a similar 4.7GB DVD with many smaller files is written as UDF. Maybe I'm not very focused right now.

I don't remember making any changes to option 3 scripts in a while, so it should work properly.
If you have 2 different versions of 98SE2ME laying around, please PM me with the O3*.BAT files [zipped] from the older edition, and I'll see what I can do.

Thanks.

dencorso:

Many thanks for your hard work [and to RetroOS for testing].

I'll take a look at the VXD files , and probably add them to 98SE2ME [soon].
I'm also considering an exe installer [iexpress].


Best wishes.

AbyssHunted:

Thanks to dencorso, I took a look at older 98SE2ME option 3 batch files [*.BAT + *.INF] from Frebruary 2008, and compared them with the newest ones you have.
The only difference was O3WEB.BAT did not contain quotes for LFN folder names so DOS boxes can recognize LFNs properly, which I've fixed later on. This file does not affect option 3 explorer.exe in any way.
All other files are identical.
Therefore if you have used 98SE2ME option 3 within the past 12 months, option 3 files have never changed, and they should work properly on your computer(s).

Maybe there is something else you or some software setup did that messed up 98SE2ME option 3 installation, perhaps explorer.exe WinME version was replaced with Win98 SE version?
Because if WinME explorer.exe had been replaced with Win98 SE version, then your Windows OS would definitely lock up, and would need to have explorer.exe from WinME reinstalled in %windir% [usually C:\WINDOWS] from native DOS mode.

HTH

The version I had before was either 7-18-2007 or 8-27-2007. Pretty sure it was the 8-27-2007 one.

Can you please PM me with these files:

O3.BAT
O3DOS.BAT
O3RES.BAT
O3RES.INF
O3WEB.BAT

from the version [8-27-2007] you had problems with?
I'll take a look and post here findings.
Thanks.

BTW:
To my knowledge, the current 98SE2ME edition and all older editions from 2008 install 98SE2ME option 3 properly.

Also, please make sure you are using current [newest] versions/editions of all packs/updates you install, older ones might have bugs.

HTH

98SE2ME · UPDATED · 1-14-2009
______________________

1-14-2009
* Options 1 + 2: added modded WinME CDFS.VXD 4.90.3002 [from Q274175 hotfix],
CDTSD.VXD 4.90.3001, SMARTVSD.VXD 4.90.3001, SCSI1HLP.VXD 4.90.3001 +
VOLTRACK.VXD 4.90.3001 [%windir%\SYSTEM\IOSUBSYS]:
http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showto...6349&st=919
[thank you dencorso]
* Options 1 + 2: replaced WinME PPPMAC.VXD 4.90.3000 from WinME WIN_20.CAB
with newer PPPMAC.VXD 4.90.3002 from Q301453 hotfix [%windir%\SYSTEM]:
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=301453
[suggested by PROBLEMCHYLD]
CAUTION:
WinME PPPMAC.VXD 4.90.3002 is experimental!
In case of errors/lockups you can restore your original PPPMAC.VXD from
PPPMAC.ORI backup [created by installing option 1 or 2] found in
%windir%\SYSTEM [usually C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM].

Enjoy.

Many thanks for your continuing hard work in keeping us updated MDGx! Much appreciated.

You're welcome.

@Drugwash: Well, seeing you're back to the forum, I believe now is the time to resume our unfinished discussion... CDFS and UDF are just two alternative filesystems. They are not, in themselves, neither good nor bad, and the choice of using one instead of the other falls on the one who burns the media. The choice is similar to FAT vs. NTFS: one can line up endless arguments either pro or against each filesystem but the issue is intrinsically unresolvable because neither is clearly better or worse, they are just different, and each has its fortes and also has weak points.
Having said this, I'd like to point out that CDFS was originally devised for data storage in CDs (because DVDs and latter media did not exist at that time) and is very well suited for that use, even when applied to DVDs or possibly Blu-Rays.
The original standard music CDs (from 1980 up to the present) use almost no filesystem at all, the Red Book standard being more of a mapping of the mechanical LP concepts onto the (then) new media (the CD). On the other hand, UDF was devised both for data storage and for Video storage, but with this latter use as the main object for its definition. So, while retail music CDs have just an embryonic filesystem, video DVDs are (AFAIK always) recorded using UDF, so as to permit the multiple features a commercial DVD usually exhibit. And, in what regards CDFS, at least in my view, it is the best choice for data storage optical media for almost all uses because it has widespread compatibility and is simpler. Then again, be warned that I favor FAT over NTFS for almost all uses also. The exception being if one *insists* on using files bigger than (4 GiB - 1 byte). Bear in mind that FAT and NTFS were devised for random access media, so using them on optical media entails a lot of useless overhead because these media are squential access only, no matter how fast. If you look closely at it CDFS is even simpler than the venerable CP/M filesystem, although, at the end of the day, both are little more than just a root directory and its bunch of files. And, IMHO, that's the beauty of it.

Oh well, I'm not exactly back; more like trying to find a temporary refuge for a troubled mind.

Regarding the quoted phrase, it should've been [...] a similar 4.7GB DVD with many smaller files is written as CDFS.

I admit not being familiar with neither UDF nor CDFS and not having the time and will to fill in the blanks right now. All I know is that both DVDs have been burned with Nero Express, who automatically chose the file system and this is where I'm asking (myself) what makes it choose one over the other.

The more important question is how to modify the CDFS driver to recognize large capacity optical media (such as dual-layer DVDs, Blu-Ray and whatever may come next).

No. The more important question is how to modify CDFS driver to recognise multisession DVDs!

Well i installed 98SE2ME on a clean install and i got 715 files installed.
your site has 752 listed files not including option 3 files.Where is 37 files thats suppose to install.

@'Marius '95: IMHO, the best way to access all sessions in a multisession optical medium (be it CD or DVD) is by using IsoBuster. If, however, you really wish to have this option as a Windows Explorer feature, you may try the NERO shell extension, neroshx.dll (preferably v. 5.5.0.4), which is part of Nero 5. It adds a tab in the Properties in the right-click menu, that gives access to any session in a multisession disk, one at a time. In my experience it also causes many Explorer crashes, now and then, but works OK, when it doesn't crash. I always remove it from my installations of Nero, because of this instability it causes. On the other hand, multisession DVDs are said to be more prone to problems than multisession CDs, for any given OS, though, AFAIK. I've used my fair share of multisession CDs, way back when, but I confess I have no first-hand experience with multisession DVDs. Today the media is reasonably cheap to my taste, so I now cling to burning single-session, closed at the end, ISO 9660 (with Joliet) optical media, as a rule.

@Drugwash: the problem is what M$ calls a "cosmetic issue" in that the CDFS driver works otherwise correctly, but does report the wrong size when asked. It may require a considerable amount of reverse engeneering to pinpoint and correct. Then again, with some luck, it may yield to a simple patch. I really don't know, but I'll investigate it more closely as soon as I can.

Maybe my web site list is slightly out of date?
If you post the 37 missing file list here, I'll update it soon.

Thanks

I have it installed. Never crashed. Doesn't work with DVDs.

Well these 2 files should be added to the list at your site MPREXE, SIGVERIF.HLP
it must be something in your scripts that allow only 715 out 754 files to installs.

You also need to add shell.dll to the option 3 menu in your readme.txt

Indeed it appears as cosmetic, however certain applications may use the reported size in their own reports, thus creating confusion. For example, a simple disk catalogue software (SuperCat) will display the size of all CDFS DVDs as 2GB, which may lead someone into thinking they may be partly burned (open session) or corrupt. May also mislead regarding the required free destination space when copying from such DVD to another support.

Thank you for looking into the issue.

Anonymous author of numerous 98SE fixes had this to say:

UPDATED · 2-14-2009

__________________________________

2-14-2009
* Options 1 + 2: added modded WinME DISKVSD.VXD 4.90.3002 [from Q271277 hotfix] [%windir%\SYSTEM\IOSUBSYS]:
http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showto...6581&st=993
[thank you dencorso]

Enjoy.

Hi MDGx,

My 98SE2ME continues to run flawlessly and has done since I installed it in April 2006.

I am at present still using the 12-12-2007 version, although all more recent updates have been applied by hand so to speak.

However, with the_guy raising the subject of the unofficial Q918547 fixes in another thread, did remind me ask the following.

According to update 8-1-2006. Options 1 + 2 :replaced GDI32.DLL + GDI.EXE 4.90.3002 from unofficial WinME Q912919 hotfix with newer GDI32.DLL + GDI.EXE 4.90.3003 from unofficial WinME Q918547 MS06-026 security fix.

This was later changed back to the earlier version because of a problem with power management, was it only PROBLEMCHYLD that had this issue or could you reproduce the issue yourself?

Edit: I have been using 4.90.3003 versions for over one month now with no apparent problems of any sort.

Thanks for your work

Colin