[ThunderCracker]

Hello I have a old windows 98 machine that wont run. It prompts to partition the hard drive. It wont load windows but will boot from Ms Dos via boot disk. When I run FDisk from boot it says no drives exist. What can I do? Is it possible the hard drive is burned out.

[DoubleHelix]

Sounds like the drive is shot. Creating partitions won't resolve the issue.

[ThunderCracker]

Originally Posted by DoubleHelix

Sounds like the drive is shot. Creating partitions won't resolve the issue.

try reading it again I needed to edit the message

[DoubleHelix]

Originally Posted by ThunderCracker

Hello I have a old windows 98 machine that wont run. It prompts to partition the hard drive. It wont load windows but will boot from Ms Dos via boot disk. When I run FDisk from boot it says no drives exist. What can I do? Is it possible the hard drive is burned out.

That's the problem. If the computer doesn't recognize the hard drive, then the hard drive is probably dead. I don't know where you're seeing this prompt to partition, but you can't partition a drive that the computer can't recognize.

[blues_harp28]

I think that Win 98 will boot from Ms Dos via boot disk - when there is no drive in the machine!!
Check that the hard drive is connected correctly - jumper clip set to master etc.
Check here for more info.

http://www.onecomputerguy.com/instal....htm#new_drive
You should see this, to format the drive.
Quote.
Select 1. Create DOS partition or Logical DOS Drive
Select 1. Create Primary DOS Partition
3.Select Y (the default) to use the maximum available size for a Primary DOS Partition and to make the partition active.
4.Reboot with the floppy
5.Format the drive

[Ed999]

Windows 98 will boot from a bootable 3.5 inch disk in the floppy drive even if there are no other disks on the system at all, or no other working disks.

First try booting to A: with a Windows 98 boot disk. Make sure the disk is a Windows 98 boot disk; you can get a proper one from http://www.bootdisk.com

Make sure the floppy disk contains FDISK.EXE then give the following command at the DOS prompt and press enter (do observe the space before the slash):

FDISK /STATUS

If FDISK reports no hard disks present, reboot and enter the BIOS (typically, press DEL or F1 or F2 during startup, it varies) and check whether the BIOS is set correctly. Look for the option "auto detect hard disks", and run it. That will give you a true idea of whether the hard disk is really dead, or if the BIOS is simply on the wrong setting. If successful, save the new settings, then restart normally.

[ThunderCracker]

Originally Posted by Ed999

Windows 98 will boot from a bootable 3.5 inch disk in the floppy drive even if there are no other disks on the system at all, or no other working disks.

First try booting to A: with a Windows 98 boot disk. Make sure the disk is a Windows 98 boot disk; you can get a proper one from http://www.bootdisk.com

Make sure the floppy disk contains FDISK.EXE then give the following command at the DOS prompt and press enter (do observe the space before the slash):

FDISK /STATUS

If FDISK reports no hard disks present, reboot and enter the BIOS (typically, press DEL or F1 or F2 during startup, it varies) and check whether the BIOS is set correctly. Look for the option "auto detect hard disks", and run it. That will give you a true idea of whether the hard disk is really dead, or if the BIOS is simply on the wrong setting. If successful, save the new settings, then restart normally.

Thanks ill try this today what am I looking for once the auto configuration is set. I had a tough time even getting into the bios after putting the boot disk in. Whats a cheap hard drive to get these days if my hard rive is dead?

[DoubleHelix]

If the computer came with Windows 98, it probably wouldn't recognize today's large hard drives. I would suggest a new computer.

[ThunderCracker]

Originally Posted by Ed999

Windows 98 will boot from a bootable 3.5 inch disk in the floppy drive even if there are no other disks on the system at all, or no other working disks.

First try booting to A: with a Windows 98 boot disk. Make sure the disk is a Windows 98 boot disk; you can get a proper one from http://www.bootdisk.com

Make sure the floppy disk contains FDISK.EXE then give the following command at the DOS prompt and press enter (do observe the space before the slash):

FDISK /STATUS

If FDISK reports no hard disks present, reboot and enter the BIOS (typically, press DEL or F1 or F2 during startup, it varies) and check whether the BIOS is set correctly. Look for the option "auto detect hard disks", and run it. That will give you a true idea of whether the hard disk is really dead, or if the BIOS is simply on the wrong setting. If successful, save the new settings, then restart normally.

Ok Now it says the diagnostic tool was successful and is waiting for prompt in ms dos from the A Drive boot disk. How do I prompt a install of Windows from disk

[DoubleHelix]

Is the hard drive detected in the BIOS?
Did you create a partition on it with FDISK?
Did you format that partition?
Do you have a Windows 98 installation disk?
What kind of floppy disk are you using? Is it a MS-DOS 6.22 installation disk? Or a Windows 98 install boot disk? Where did you get it from? What happens when you boot from it?

[Ed999]

If by "successful" you mean that the FDISK command I suggested reported the presence of the hard disk, the next step is to partition the disk. You can probably create a single partition with FDISK, filling the entire disk.

Can I suggest the following link as a guide as to how to use FDISK to partition a disk. Although it refers to Windows ME, the procedures for partitioning and formatting a hard disk under Windows 98 and Windows ME are the same.

Can I also mention (even though you haven't mentioned data files yet!) that partitioning the disk will destroy any existing data on it.

http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/bridip/recovery.htm#13