Windows 98SE on Inspiron 1525

[rloew]

The system still will not boot! I reinstalled and installed the patch, same as before, but this time it will only boot in safe mode! The only thing I did differently was that I installed the patch during the install, during the time when the system reboots.

Set your SATA Drives to RAID Mode.

[dencorso]

Set your SATA Drives to RAID Mode.

There's no RAID option, AFAIK, sorry. But he should enter BIOS setup, set the Flash Cache module to "OFF", then set the SATA Operation to "ATA". If it works for Win XP, it should work for Win 9x, too. A little more detail on this here.

Of course, after doing this, he should follow my instructions in my previous post, and hope for the best.

[rloew]

Set your SATA Drives to RAID Mode.

There's no RAID option, AFAIK, sorry. But he should enter BIOS setup, set the Flash Cache module to "OFF", then set the SATA Operation to "ATA". If it works for Win XP, it should work for Win 9x, too. A little more detail on this here.

Of course, after doing this, he should follow my instructions in my previous post, and hope for the best.

In IDE Mode, the ESDI_506.PDR Driver is loaded. Without my Patch, SATA Drives may lock up. He should try renaming the ESDI_506.PDR file to force compatability mode.

[osiff]

You did not install the uSP yet, right? If so, do the following

Boot UBUNTU and go to c:\Windows\System, rename VMM32.VXD --> VMM32.NXT and VMM32.BAK --> VMM32.VXD, then go to c:\Windows\System\VMM32 and delete VMM.VXD, VMM.BAK, VCACHE.VXD and VCACHE.BAK.

Now boot to DOS and reapply RLoew's patch, and don't forget to use the /M command line switch.

Reboot, and windows should start correctly. Whatever happens, report before proceeding.

Today was a busy day and I didnt get a chance to do this yet but I will tomarrow. Thanx though

[osiff]

After deleting those files, booting into dos and trying to run the patch with the /m it says "incomplete installation detected - Continue/uninstall/quit" should I Continue? Or uninstall then Continue? Or delete more Files?

[rloew]

After deleting those files, booting into dos and trying to run the patch with the /m it says "incomplete installation detected - Continue/uninstall/quit" should I Continue? Or uninstall then Continue? Or delete more Files?

Try to continue. If not, then Uninstall and reinstall.

[osiff]

It still won't boot. I tried both

[rloew]

It still won't boot. I tried both

1. Try renaming the ESDI_506.PDR file in the WINDOWS\SYSTEM\IOSUBSYS folder and rebooting.

2. If you are using an Add-on Graphics card, disable the Internal Graphics using the BIOS Setup.

3. Select Logged (\BOOTLOG.TXT) from the Startup Menu. After the crash, reboot, copy the C:\BOOTLOG.TXT and C:\BOOTLOG.PRV Files and post them.

Edited March 27, 2011 by rloew

[cdoublejj]

wow i really had to do some skimming why not set it up on a 512 stick then modded with the ram patch and install the 2gb later, god do i had the unofficial service pack, it never works i just get patches online from ms. the unofficial service pack does weird things to the system and i have sneaking suspension it's for fully patched 98se via official updates then unofficial but, it p***ed me so i don't even bother.

[osiff]

"1. Try renaming the ESDI_506.PDR file in the WINDOWS\SYSTEM\IOSUBSYS folder and rebooting."

Rename it to What?

Edited March 27, 2011 by osiff

[rloew]

"1. Try renaming the ESDI_506.PDR file in the WINDOWS\SYSTEM\IOSUBSYS folder and rebooting."

Rename it to What?

I usually use ESDI_506.PD_ or ESDI_506.OLD when testing.

[osiff]

I'm sorry to have to say this but I'm going to have to give up. It seems that most drivers are incompatible even if we get it running so it just doesn't seem possible. Thanks for everything, though.

[dencorso]

To give up, at this point, is really a pity!

While I, for one, was keenly aware of the great difficulty presented by your project, the most difficult things also are the most stimulating (that's why people climb mountains, and the like...). So, please, take a break, go to the movies, enjoy the week and the week-end, and then consider why not give it a last, very forceful, try.

And, in case you do decide for it, bear in mind most of the worst hurdles that await you, on starting again from scratch, are already known: hence we may plan together on how to overcome them beforehand. It would have to be a slow attack, probably backed up by partition imaging, to give you easy fallback points, along the way. But since you've already got the system to boot once, it sure can be done. Of course, you have to weigh well the cost and the benefits, like in any other situation in life. We'll be here, as always, and if you decide to give it that last try, we sure remain available to help you get there, no matter how long it takes.

[osiff]

Wow. You sure know how to persuade. I will keep trying after some resting Thanks for the inspiring Words! Just give me a day or so...

[LoneCrusader]

I'm sorry to have to say this but I'm going to have to give up. It seems that most drivers are incompatible even if we get it running so it just doesn't seem possible. Thanks for everything, though.

I've been trying not to say this, as I don't want to disparage the Unofficial Service Pack, and I am certain that eventually dencorso and rloew would find a way to get your machine up and running with it, but IMHO, the RAM Limitation Patch + the Unofficial Service Pack is a recipe for unnecessary problems. I discussed this in an older post of mine, quoted here:

On the memory issue - there may be ways of tweaking it to work (per the methods given in dencorso's thread). However, I was never able to get any of those memory tweaks to work on my 98SE system. I purchased RLoew's patch, and I've never had another problem. I know some people out there have a problem with paying for a patch, but personally I only recommend this method. I have no problem whatsoever giving someone fair compensation for good work and the time they put into it.

I should also mention an experience that I had when I was first looking into the 98SE RAM issue. I set up my system with 1.5GB of RAM, and I tested both Gape's Service Pack and RLoew's demo patch in separate 98 installs on the same machine. Gape's Service Pack did not correctly display the amount of RAM installed, I think it showed 1224MB or something like that (it's been a while), and the system seemed to be unstable. RLoew's patch worked flawlessly however, so I decided that I would buy it. Later I also tried installing the demo patch to the same 98 system as Gape's Service Pack, and the two seem to be incompatible, the amount of RAM was still incorrectly reported and the system seemed unstable.

I do not mean to disparage Gape or his Service Pack in any way, Ive got a lot of respect for him because he spent his time making something like that to distribute freely.