[M_win]

look at this. Ill be making a mod soon. I have just been very busy. I hope to continue later tonight

[Darra]

Dr. Mac, on Nov 28 2005, 04:16 PM, said:

Dear Forum Members

I wonder if there is a good program that will enable us to do a "system restore" on Win98se (like the ME and XP have)

I do know about GoBack, and many years ago PowerQuest had a program called Second Chance (but, cab't find that anywhwre to download on the net anymore)

Any ideas?

Do you know of any other system-restore-type programs?

A freebie would be nice ... but I'd also like to know about any other programs available.

Your comments and input will be much appreciated.

Thank you.

Dr. Mac

I suggest you get PowerQuest (I guess Symantec now) DriveImage (2002),imho THE BEST.
It may be possible perhaps to "integrate" that feature off WinME into Win98SE ... I can try it some time,since
I have both OS'es..

[Fredledingue]

It seems that the only software that realy do and do only a system file restore is the old SecondChance.
(Ghost and PowerQuest are for HD restore/replication)

Too bad it's an abandonware, not even distributed anymore and was little known at its time (why?).

Is it safe to use that old program considering the w98se evolution and the new environement today?

What about getting all the files on a CD or in zip files and simply copy-paste them when you want to "roll back" your system files?
A line temporarily added to autoexec.bat to move the files before windows is running and here you go.

How come nobody thought of doing that before?

[PROBLEMCHYLD]

I was looking for something like this too
I prefer to use MS System Restore cuz i'm not real heavy on 3rd party apps
although i have a few and thats all i gonna have
Now i hear people complain about how it can restore a virus if you
cleaned your computer.The big ? Is what if you don't have a virus then system restore would be okay
to use right.I figure since microsoft ending support i want need the internet for 98SE anymore
i will use Xp to get
infected with Virus/Malware but not my windows 98SE.

Can some1 see if its possible to run system restore in win98se?

[Fredledingue]

Technicaly I could build some restore app with vbs and bat, even using pkzip and pkunzip to compress the files.
This restore app would work jointly with my Installed File Checker to detect files changes from a certain point.

But I will need some help to know which files can be deleted or replaced while windows is running and which files can't and other advices.

I also need to know if there is some interrest in me doing that. Maybe some true programmers who knows better and knows more advanced programming languages are already or would like to be on a project like this.

[Eck]

The fella looking for Me's System Restore ported to 98SE should be aware that Me's version often broke down, trashing the system it was meant to protect, when a restore failed.

The technology was a shared one with GoBack. Microsoft System Restore IS GoBack, just dumbed down. Like the ScanDisc and Defragmenter are Norton Disk Doctor and Speed Disk, just dumbed down.

Installed the latest available GoBack (now from Symantec) gives you a full version that actually works. Too bad their version can't be dumbed down! The problem is the way it records ANY file change all the time.

Chugga, chugga, there it goes shortening the life of your hard drive and slowing your system when large file changes are going on. Microsoft's System Restore didn't do that until now with Windows Vista. Although it doesn't provide going back to any time, it does offer GoBack's feature of right click file version changes. So it now does the same chugga, chugga crap, thrashing the hard drive constantly. I turned it off because it wouldn't even restore to any saved points because of the way my drive is partitioned. It needs to use its own partitioning methods, not my way of using PQBOOT to hide the inactive partitions.

So I've got scanreg /restore for 98SE, System Restore for XP, but nothing for my Vista partition. Progress, eh?

[PROBLEMCHYLD]

Just more of a reason i wouldn't mind having System Restore in 98SE

http://forums.windri...hp/t-32818.html

[oscardog]

I have been using xxcopy (freeware for personal use) with its /clone switch etc for years to make copies of my system back to its first install. Could easily be scripted as a system restore program including making automatic backups.
For just testing software/driver updates I copy the windows folder to a different drive or partition rename it zindows then cut and paste it back onto drive C. If the software/driver install is not to my liking I boot to safe mode command prompt ren windows to delete and zindows to windows. Hey presto windows back to exactly how it was before any messing about. (assumes system files are not hidden in folder options/view)
This again could easily be made into an app, but I am so use to doing it I have never found the need.
Lastly my systems can also run from a win9x bootcd which enables the above to be done for those who dont like using dos
Hope some of this info helps

[PROBLEMCHYLD]

The fella looking for Me's System Restore ported to 98SE should be aware that Me's version often broke down, trashing the system it was meant to protect, when a restore failed.

Is it because WinME was already buggy
it might work better on Win98SE since it was more stable

[Fredledingue]

I'm working on a script program combined with my "Installed Files Checker" to create "system back ups" and "restore points"... since I manualy erased a filthy virus from my PC with the infos given by Installed Files Checker. (eventualy runing a batch file in dos mode and completing the task by a registry resotre, also in dos mode).

So I think I can do something useful out of that.
I will post a thread about this developement soon...

(click on my signature for Installed Files Checker)

This post has been edited by Fredledingue: 11 September 2006 - 06:08 PM

[wizardofwindows]

Second Chance Get It Here:secondchance zip It installs saying its a 15 day demo but i,ved used it for a year so registering only apply to recieve techinal updates which long since expired .Enjoy i found this after a trip to the wayback machine and some internet savy.by the way its a excellent program that works for win 95/98 including 98se try it out.Long Live 98se.

This post has been edited by wizardofwindows: 12 September 2006 - 06:54 AM

[Philco]

wizardofwindows, on Sep 12 2006, 06:53 AM, said:

Second Chance Get It Here:secondchance zip It installs saying its a 15 day demo but i,ved used it for a year so registering only apply to recieve techinal updates which long since expired .Enjoy i found this after a trip to the wayback machine and some internet savy.by the way its a excellent program that works for win 95/98 including 98se try it out.Long Live 98se.

files broken... please, hosting file secondchance.zip other server (RapidShare, SendSpace,...)

[wizardofwindows]

Sorry philco im on dailup here out in the country takes like 25 minutes could someone else upload it plz. P.S when u install sometimes its better to unrar and click on setup.exe .either ways good .thx u and Long live 98se mgdx for president .

[Eck]

Yep, SecondChance is awesome! I never knew about this and for years alternated between the hard drive grinding to destruction GoBack (also real-mode memory grabbing), and just depending on scanreg /restore.

Now I find that SecondChance is actually better than SystemRestore as it's configurable as to which folders to ignore, has an emergency recovery floppy, etc.

It recently allowed me to experiment with which cd burning program would actually work in my current configuration. I had problems with Nero and Roxio and IOS bootup errors. SecondChance saved me from needing to start fresh. Even when I couldn't load Windows, it would restore to any points from the boot floppy. It also works within Windows of course, if Windows will start!

I actually managed to find a sealed retail cd of it, but installed 2.7 instead. Funny that the updated version wouldn't accept the real cd key and I needed to use the "funny" one included on the PowerQuest SystemTools 2006 compilation. I guess that when people used to update from the program PowerQuest used to send them a different key for the update.

2.7 doesn't use Autoexec to load TSR's. Besides that it's probably essentially the same program. I just felt weird using a "funny" key when I actually bought the program!

It absolutely is SystemRestore (but better) for 9x. I wonder why it was left behind when Symantec bought the rights? Much better than GoBack in my view. No worries about what's going on with other partitions as it doesn't do anything to the boot sector like GoBack does. And you can recover individual files just like GoBack. too. Recover files that changed after a restore, the whole shebang.

[Petr]

Philco, on Sep 12 2006, 05:23 PM, said:

wizardofwindows, on Sep 12 2006, 06:53 AM, said:

Second Chance Get It Here:secondchance zip It installs saying its a 15 day demo but i,ved used it for a year so registering only apply to recieve techinal updates which long since expired .Enjoy i found this after a trip to the wayback machine and some internet savy.by the way its a excellent program that works for win 95/98 including 98se try it out.Long Live 98se.

files broken... please, hosting file secondchance.zip other server (RapidShare, SendSpace,...)

I was able to download the rar file and unpack it with no problem, it contains SecondChance™ by PowerQuest® Version 2.01, the same version can be downloaded also here: http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_down...p/download.html

It seems there is even newer version 2.07, here is German version: http://www.computerhilfe-euskirchen.de/dow...econdchance.zip

English version of 2.07 could be probably found using Google too.

Petr

[Fredledingue]

Despite the availability of Second Chance and whatever you can say, I will keep on with my system back-up script project.

It will be fast, small, easy, open-source and with very litle overhead for each restore point.
I won't say more for the moment.

[bristols]

Sounds great, Fred.

I wish you the best of luck with it, and look forward to trying it out.

[Eck]

It was really hard to find 2.07, at least an English version of it. I wound up downloading a Torrent of that super pack of old PowerQuest programs to get it.

The 2.0 version was on sale by an Ebay seller so that's how I bought that. 2.07 is nicer because of the absence of the AutoExec TSR. Other than that I think it's the same thing.

But it would be great to have something available for everyone. SecondChance can't be that since it is still copywrited software, now owned by Symantec. Kind of like old MS-DOS games. Can't buy most of them but still illegal to distribute.

[Andromeda43]

Eck, on Sep 14 2006, 12:35 AM, said:

It was really hard to find 2.07, at least an English version of it. I wound up downloading a Torrent of that super pack of old PowerQuest programs to get it.

The 2.0 version was on sale by an Ebay seller so that's how I bought that. 2.07 is nicer because of the absence of the AutoExec TSR. Other than that I think it's the same thing.

But it would be great to have something available for everyone. SecondChance can't be that since it is still copywrited software, now owned by Symantec. Kind of like old MS-DOS games. Can't buy most of them but still illegal to distribute.

This thread is getting long and I'm sure I've missed a few posts while scanning it, but I'm still wondering what's wrong with scanreg.exe that comes built into Windows 98/SE and ME?????

It makes a restore point every new calendar day when you boot up your PC. It can be set to make more than the default 5 points before dropping the old ones off in the ol' Bit Bucket.
I use it at least once a week to save some old customer's PC.

In MSCONFIG, you should see an entry, "ScanRegistry", with a path statement, "C:\Windows\scanregw.exe /autorun"

Then, to make the program even more usefull in case of disaster, find "Scanreg.ini"
and edit it. Change the line "MaxBackupCopies =5" to read 30 instead of 5 and Save the file.

Now, it will make backup copies of your registry, every day, for 30 days instead of just 5 days, before it starts dropping off the old Restore Points.

When windows won't even boot up, you can boot up your system with a Boot floppy or CD and run:
Scanreg.exe /Restore
And quite often recover a system to full operation. I do it often.

I have the scanreg program already on my custom boot disk, just for this purpose.
here's the menu that comes up when I boot with that disk:

CD Rom Drivers Are Loaded

Main Menu, Windows ME Utilities

1. Fdisk (setup new hard drive)

2. Fdisk: Make New Boot Record

3. Format drive C:

4. Scandisk C: ( /autofix )

5. Scandisk All Drives ( /all /autofix )

6. Run "Scanreg /restore" (restores an older version of the Registry)

7. Delete WMIEXE.exe (this file, not needed by Windows)

8. Run HOOVER.bat (deletes 98, ME junk files)

9. Remove all files from "C:\_Restore\*.*" in Windows ME.

Type your choice at the DOS prompt and press ENTER.

***************************************************

Everyone who still uses Windows 98, 98/SE or ME, should have such a boot disk
handy at all times. You never know the hour or day when you'll need it.

My own Boot disk is actually made with Windows ME, because it's more versatile.
And, it will allow me to set up a 160 gig HD, which 98 won't do.

Cheers!
Andromeda43

[Fredledingue]

Thanks Andromeda for your suggestion.

My program will actualy save and restore installed files. (Scanreg save and restore only the registry)
My program will not save or work on the registry. Only on files.

Then I could add a few stuffs from your boot disk into some batch file.
I intend to use autoexec.bat to launch this batch files.

For the moment I'm working on the 1st step: saving files which has changed since the last restore point.

When this will be ok, I will work on how to restore those files and maybe other stuffs like the registry.

Suggestions are welcome.