# Windows Won't Load!!!



## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Mosaic1 at Spywareinfo.com referred me here. I've already posted lengthly details at that sight so if I'm able, I will attempt to copy those over to here. Is that alright??


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I've previously posted this problem on http://www.wilderssecurity.com in the MRU Blaster forum but they don't seem to have a solution.

This is the first of the problems (I will attempt to post the second part in the next post)

Downloaded and installed MRU Blaster thinking it would clean out some of the items in the Pop-up Stopper "Personal Browser History." Not only are those things still there, but it messed up a whole bunch of things on my computer.

First thing I noticed was that most all of the Desktop Icons were gone (with the exception of the few that I think came with the system).

On the START BUTTON:

I can open the Control Panel, but anything I click on in there gives me a message saying "cannot find the file C:\WINDOWS\RUNDLL32.EXE (or one of its components)."

The Help function doesn't work at all saying "The WINHELP.EXE file may be missing or damaged."

RUN--typing in several different programs won't work either. For example: "Cannot find the file REGEDIT (or one of its components). Make sure the path and filename are correct and all required libraries are available."

Also I had the Clipboard Viewer at the top of the Start Button and can't access it now. I get a window "Missing Shortcut" saying "The item CLIPBRD.EXE that this shortcut refers to ahs been changed or moved."

Everything seemed to be okay before downloading and installing MRU Blaster this morning. I left all the check marks as they were; but immediately after running the program, all these things went wrong.

I've not downloaded anything else recently. I think I would rather have a bunch of items in the Browser History than have this BIG MESS!!!

There may be other problems that I'm not even aware of yet....but for now...can these things be reversed? Or is there anything I can do to get things running properly again???

Any help will be greatly appreciated!!!


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Below is the second set of problems that developed:


After the first problem (stated in the post above)I went off-line and was using outlook express to read some email when the screen froze up. After restarting, windows wouldn't load. Some of the messages on the screen....
1) "The following file is missing or corrupted: 
C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS"
2) "The following file is missing or corrupted:
C:\WINDOWS\IFSHLP.SYS"
3) "Warning: the high memory area (HMA) is not available"
4) "Additional low memory (below 640K0 will be used instead"
5) "Loading NAVDX",,,,,,,,(proceeded to scan Memory, Master Boot Records, Boot Record, and files)...."DONE"
6) "Cannot find WIN.COM, unable to continue loading Windows"

I used the Norton Anti-Virus Rescue disks which scanned the same items as in #5 above (program files only) and the Summary reported " No viruses found"
However, Windows still would not load.

The computer starts in DOS but that's as far as I can get. I looked over several directories and didn't see the various files it mentioned as missing/corrupted.

The directory in C:\ shows an AUTOEXEC.LS (?) around the time of getting the MRU Blaster Program.
Then around the time that windows would't load, there's an AUTOEXEC.000 and a CONFIG.000 followed later that same day with the normal AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS

The last two were different than all the previous ones, so I changed them to duplicate the previous setting; however, the problem still remains.

This is the first time that something like this has happened so I have no experience dealing with this and just don't have a clue as to how to proceed. 

Since the problems happened immediately after running MRU Blaster, it appears to be the cause. But even if it's not, do you have any suggestions on how to get thing back to normal???

I will be at this computer for a while longer and will check back for your response. If no reply before I leave, it might be a day or two before I have access to this or another computer---so don't take a slow reply from me as dis-interest......I AM DESPERATE!!!

Thanks in advance for your time and patience


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Additional Question re: above posts

I'm wondering if maybe those files are still there on my computer but MRU maybe just re-directed the pointers to them. Can I search using DOS?

Also if the config.sys and autoexec.bat were changed in the installation process, could I edit those files? Maybe include something that will let DOS find those files???

I am running Windows 95. Another person (using Windows 98) said the exact same thing happened to his computer. And he spent three days reprogramming his computer. I'm not sure what that meant or exactly what he did to fix his problem. I've not had a response from him explaining what he did. Does anyone here know how I should proceed next?

If anybody has any insight or suggestions, please let me know soon. Thanks in advance.


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## mobo (Feb 23, 2003)

I would if I were you just install over the current system if a clean reformat isn't in the cards for you....it sounds like a lot of corruption has occurred and the damage may not be reverseable but for an install..


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## Mosaic1 (Aug 17, 2001)

Hi mobo,
Yes. that's why I sent her here. FOr the expertise of certain members here. She needs a good guide to do this step by step. I have PM'd both Rog and AcaCandy. But we need to get the rest of the facts here too.

Here's the link to the SWI thread:
http://forums.spywareinfo.com/index.php?showtopic=18651

Hi Linda,
Don't forget the last answers to the questions I asked.

Mo


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Mobo,

Thanks for the prompt reply. I only know enough about computer systems to get myself in trouble--which I guess I did--big time. 

Reformat sounds like it would wipe everything out...which I definitely don't want to do. "Install over the current system"....what does that entail? And can I retain all my files: emails, favorites, spreadsheets, program files?

Also, something else just discovered is that there are two (hopefully no more) files that have made their way into my computer--INFWIN.EXE and SAFESEARCH.DLL which I've been told are a parasite/trojan. Could these have caused the problem? And do I need to get rid of these first?

I will try to copy the info about my system from the other site (have been having trouble getting it to load) so you can see the details and let me know how to proceed.

Will Try again right now.......Thanks again


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## mobo (Feb 23, 2003)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *Mobo,
> 
> Reformat sounds like it would wipe everything out...which I definitely don't want to do. "Install over the current system"....what does that entail? And can I retain all my files: emails, favorites, spreadsheets, program files?
> ...


Simply reboot with the boot floppy and from the a prompt type setup without ever fdisking or formatting and all your programs will be left intact..
But first if you can get a hijack log out of the system it could be a start to work with..


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Linda do you have the original installation CD for Win95?

And do you have the ProductKey?

If you don't have the latter, and if the registry isn't too badly damaged we might be able to retrieve it.

Try booting to a command prompt (I think you know the drill by now) and enter:

*C:\Windows\Command\Find /I "ProductKey" C:\Windows\System.dat*

By the way, you can delete those files at the command prompt. It may result in an error message when the OS is reinstalled, but that can be dealt with. Atleast they won't be running.

You will need to know the path to them and use the del command, for example:

del c:\windows\filename


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## mobo (Feb 23, 2003)

And yes linda both of those need to go and maybe more..


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

This is some of the information about my system:

COMPUTER--Accipiter Computers (built by small company) Was in Colorado but moved to Arizona a couple years ago. 

DRIVES: 
A: Regular Floppy & LS120
C: Hard Drive
D: CD ROM

DISKS--Some that I received when I got the computer:

FLOPPIES: 
1)Installation Disk for Windows 95 (Run A:\ or B:\ setup.exe)
2)MS Windows 95 CD-ROM Setup Boot Disk (Disk format: High Density--1.44MB)
3)LS-120 Accelerator Software
4)Cheyenne BitWare for Windows (2 disks--Bitware is in my autoexec.bat)
5)Windows 95 Startup Disk (made by me--but after reading some of Mosiac's links today--not sure I did it correctly).

The other floppies I don't think relate to the windows problem...anti-virus, driver, modem, mouse...but if you need info on these, let me know.

CD-ROMS: 
1)MS Windows 95 with USB Support (includes CD Sampler)
2)MS Windows 95 How & Why
3)MS Internet Explorer-version 4.0


Also, I believe you asked what was in my Windows directory. I'm not sure exactly which ones you need to know about but these seemed the most important. 
C:\WINDOWS---------------59 dir------44 files
C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND---2 dir------39 files
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM-----14 dir--1,383 files

The Windows Startup Disk has a couple of the files that the system says it can't find: HIMEM.SYS and REGEDIT.EXE

Let me know if you need specific information on any of the files in the Windows directories. I've printed copies of these and have them here with me now.

Hope this is the information you needed. 

Thanks for all your time.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by mobo:_
> *Simply reboot with the boot floppy and from the a prompt type setup without ever fdisking or formatting and all your programs will be left intact..
> But first if you can get a hijack log out of the system it could be a start to work with.. *


Mobo,

I can't get on-line with my computer (can I ?) Right now, I'm at a friend's house using his computer. However, I've previously used HijackThis (Sept ?) and posted it to the SWI site. Even though not current, would that help somewhat?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Mobo,

Another thought--can I run HijackThis in DOS?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

You will need:


1 - Win95 Startup floppy
2 - MS Windows 95 with USB Support (includes CD Sampler)
3 - the ProductKey which came with the above.

When you have all those you are prepared to proceed:

1 -- boot with the Win95 Startup floppy and accept CD-ROM support

2 -- note the letter that gets assigned the CD-ROM drive, typically it will be one higher than normal, so that if it was 'd', it will get assigned 'e'

3 -- once you are at the a:> prompt, insert your MS Win95 System CD and enter:

e:\setup

Now you just need to have your ProductKey handy and follow the prompts.

Note carefully any error messages along the way. Most have workarounds if we know exactly what they are or can research them.

It won't hurt to wait a bit and see if anyone has anything else to add. You will probably end up with a very early IE version and this will have to be upgraded.


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## mobo (Feb 23, 2003)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *Mobo,
> 
> Another thought--can I run HijackThis in DOS? *


No and it appears as the way to go is to overinstall as i stated earlier so move ahead with Rog's instructions for now and if any problems arise well have to address them at that time..


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *Linda do you have the original installation CD for Win95?
> 
> And do you have the ProductKey?
> ...


Hi Rollin' Rog,

What exactly is the Product Key? Is this something that would show up on the disk itself? If so, I have them here with me now too.

Do I need to copy and/or print the C:\Windows\System.dat file? Or what do I do with it?

Those two "bad" files are at C:\Windows\System........I have those printed out and with me now. Is there any others that I might look for now?

Side note (probably really stupid) but when you say "booting to a command prompt" does that mean using the Windows Startup Disk when I start the computer? Does it make any difference that my computer can start without any floppy at all. It just starts like normal (without a floppy) but stalls saying it can't find the WIN.COM (among others) file and immediately after, I've got the C: prompt.

This is all so confusing....thanks for bearing with me.


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

When I said boot to a command prompt I meant through the bootmenu, but you can use the startup floppy too. You just must enter the full file path for the del command to work.

If ProductKey returns nothing try ProductID

Both should be in quotes.

The ProductKey is a 25 character ID usually found on the Windows booklet that came with the CD. ProductID's are usually Vendor installed ID's; I forget how many characters they use; but if you have the Windows CD I am almost certain it will be wanting a ProductKey

There is nothing you can do with system.dat except try to get the productkey out of it using the command line I gave.

to delete files in the c:\windows\system folder enter at a command prompt:

del c:\windows\system\filename

where "filename" is the name of the file to be deleted. Include the extension


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Mosaic1:_
> *
> 
> Hi Linda,
> ...


Hi Mo,

Did I cover all the questions you asked?? If not, let me know what else I need to include.

Just remembered that you asked about the cabinet files. I do have them on my hard drive. I think they were in C:\WINDOWS\OPTIONS\CABS....does that sound right?


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## Mosaic1 (Aug 17, 2001)

Hi Linda,
Yes it does. But the CD is probably better. WE know the full fileset will be intact. Right now SI is down because of too much traffic. They were overloaded. So I can't go over and review. But it looks like they ave pretty much everything here. 

Also, look on your tower for a sticker. The computer is old and so it may no longer be there or too faded. But the CD Key may be there too if you are lucky.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *When I said boot to a command prompt I meant through the bootmenu, but you can use the startup floppy too. You just must enter the full file path for the del command to work.
> 
> If ProductKey returns nothing try ProductID
> ...


Another stupid question--"bootmenu"--is that what I get after doing an F8 after startup?

And yet another---is there any difference between starting with and with out a startup floppy?

I still have the Windows booklet and remember some such ong number being on there. Think I had to using something like that to register Windows--didn't I?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Yes, that's the registration ID you used.

In order to install from the CD you will need to use the boot floppy to get CD-ROM support.

When you accept the command prompt option from the f8 bootmenu you end up at the c:> prompt

When you use a startup floppy you end up at the a:> prompt.

I would stick with the c:> prompt until you are ready to actually install using the CD. That will simplify things.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *You will need:
> 
> 1 - Win95 Startup floppy
> ...


To clarify (sorry for my confusion) regarding #1 above, are you referring to the Startup floppy that I made--rather than the installation disk that came with the system?

If so, there may be a problem. Before ever posting at any of the forums, I tried to use that Startup floppy thinking that was all I needed to get windows back up (didn't even think about using the CD) but there was nothing that said "accept CD support." I just wound up at the prompt.

And today after following some of Mosaic's links (as I stated above) I think there are some files missing from it. Is there any way to tell--can I print and send you what is on there to verify if it's okay?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Did you watch carefully the entire time; it will default to "cd-rom" support if no action is taken.

You can create a startup floppy from the setup file on this site:

http://bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm

I believe you have Win95 B

To create this boot disk you first download the setup file to the hard drive on the system you are using now. Then put a clean floppy in the drive and run the setup program to copy its files to the floppy.

Now this is not guaranteed to work if you have a non-standard CD-ROM; but we'll cross that bridge if we come to it.

In any case you can test whether the drive is accessible by putting the CD in and at the a:> prompt enter:

dir e:

this should list the directory contents


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Oh boy--where on this hard drive do I download to? I don't want to mess up anything on his system. This has WinXP, so hope I know what I'm doing. And should I delete all that after I have the copy on a floppy?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Any convenient folder will do; My Documents or even the desktop is probably the easiest. After you are done with it you can delete it if you want.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Rollin' Rog,

I think I remember someone on one of the sites saying to try and get a Win98 disk. Does that make any sense?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Not really; but for this purpose you could use either. All you want to do is get to an a:> prompt and have CD-ROM support. You are not going to install any operating system files from this boot disk.


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## Mosaic1 (Aug 17, 2001)

That was me. I was explaining how to get CDROM support.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Ok--let's see if I've got the whole process right?

I will be going home to do all of this (with the exception of the WIN 95 download) on my computer so I may be out of touch for a while and will be on my own--boy, what a thought!!!

1) Download Win95 Startup to a Floppy

2) Start my Computer (regularly) and at the C: prompt, remove the two files INFWIN.EXE and SAFESEARCH.DLL in the C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory with the "del" command.

3) Turn off computer, put in new Floppy, and turn computer back on--arriving at the a: prompt and accepting CD-ROM support.

4) Put the WIN95 CD in the d: drive

5) At a: prompt enter e: dir

6) And if that works, then I do e: setup.exe and follow any directions.

Is this all correct? And if so, do I then install IE 4.0? Or post back here for further directions? 

Just please tell me that doing all these things won't wipe out any of my files.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Another thought--are these cabinet thingies on the CD-ROM so that I won't have to extract them from my hard drive?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Ok, close but a few adjustments.

You won't see any prompts about CD-ROM support once you have reached the a:> prompt, these are displayed during boot process using the floppy. And you don't really need to take any action, typically there is a time-out delay and then it just continues.

If the CD-ROM drive was 'd' previously, we are expecting it to be 'e' now:

the command is:

*e:\setup*

(do not use a space in this line)

or to list the contents of the Disk *dir e:*

To delete a file in c:\windows\system:

*del c:\windows\system\filename*

... about the cabinet files, yes they are all on the CD in the "win95" folder and Windows setup will deal with that on its own.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

OK--and I'm doing all those commands from the a: prompt, right?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

You can do the del commands from either the c: or a:> prompt.

Anything involving the CD has to be done starting from the a:> prompt


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Well...then here goes...Wish me luck!!!

Thanks so much for your time and patience. I'll let you all know the outcome as soon as I can get back to another computer--or maybe even from my own. Wouldn't that be something!!!

Thanks again...Linda


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Absolutely! Good luck!!

I'll check in again tomorrow to see how things have gone. I imagine there are going to be some issues to work out but it will just take some patience.


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## Mosaic1 (Aug 17, 2001)

Good luck Linda. You'll do great. And with Rog helping you, you can't miss.

Mo


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

I missed the party 

How are we doing Linda?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Well, I'm back!! Thought I'd be able to reply sooner, but other things got in the way--not to mention other issues with my computer.

Sad to say, I haven't yet reinstalled windows. I followed the instructions but got hung up on a drive problem. I was able to delete the two suspicious files from C:\Windows\Systems. But then when I tried to reboot with the Startup Floppy, I always wound up at the C:>prompt. There wasn't an A: drive at all. However, there was a B: and D: drive (or so I thought).

Even though I had not put in the CD-ROM yet, I was able to get a directory of D: but it was exactly the same directory as that of B:
Seems that my computer was actually reading the floppy in A: but reporting the results in both B:> and D:>

The instructions for the CD-ROM drive showed that certain lines (for the drivers-MSCDEX.EXE, etc) needed to be in the config.sys and autoexec.bat which weren't there. Wasn't sure about this since I examined previous ones during the time when the computer was okay and they weren't listed then either. Also, the file C:\WINDOWS\DOSSTART.BAT included C:\WINDOWS\CTPNP with a PATH=\WINDOWS\COMMAND\MSCDES.EXE which was a file not found on the hard drive. The DOSSTART.BAT and CTPNP.CFG are both files that were changed the same day (and I think the same time) that windows failed. CTPNP lists settings such as serial, port, irq, dma, etc. Don't knpw if the S in mscdeS.exe was legitimate or not or if it should have been mscdeX.exe instead.

I'm not sure if the above is important or not. Anyway, I started fooling around with various settings. I'm not sure exactly the order certain things happened as some of the things I tried more than once. Some of the things I tried seemed to help but not fully--others put me back to step one.

LS120/Zip Drive--couldn't do the \setup.exe (I think it needs windows for this). Instead did an \install.exe which I think is for DOS and WIN3.1---but it seemed to work; however, the A:> still didn't appear...instead still getting the B:> 

CD-ROM drive--after many different changes to the config.sys and autoexec.bat (the driver file name in the setup instructions wasn't on my hard drive) nothing seemed to work. I examined some of the files on the new Startup Disk and discovered that the CD2.SYS file was the driver with the same manufacturer as my CD so I copied it to the C: drive and now had access to the CD drive but it was showing an R:> prompt?

I'm not sure what worked and what didn't. Finally the computer wouldn't shut off normally and had to use the switch on the surge protector. Thought this might have something to do with the boot sequence or at least that the boot order might have something to do with not getting access to the A:> prompt.

The BIOS Features Setup listed 12 different options. The one in use was A,C,SCSI which was the only one that had A listed first. the only other possible option was LS120/ZIP, C which I tried. After a restart, this gave me the A:> but then there was no D:drive (previously listed as R). So went back to the original setting---how frustrating and confusing!!!

Anyway, as it stands now, I have:
B:> which reads the floppy
C:> for the hard drive
D:> for the CD-ROM

Questions--
1)What happened to A:>??? And is it okay for the system to call the floppy B:>??? Does this hurt anything???
2)No matter how I start the computer, I end up at the C:>....Is this normal even when I'm booting from a floppy???
3)I can get to the D:> even with out a floppy startup. I thought I need the floppy to get CD access...Is this normal the way it is now???
4)With all these drive changes, I'm now not sure how to proceed to reinstall windows. Do I first have to make additional corrections??? If not, where do I have to be to start the process???

As you can see, I'm not really sure what the hell I've done or what I should do next. Sorry for all the confusion, but if nothing else, you guys can have a good laugh about how someone can really mess things up.

If you can stop ROFL, let me know if there's any hope left.

Thanks.........Linda


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Well that is certainly hard to follow and probably impossible to explain.

It may be that the BIOS is somehow not seeing the floppy as the 'a' drive.

But here's the deal: all you really care about is being able to read the Microsoft CD-ROM. If you can read it, you should be able to run setup off it.

So use what ever method you need to to access the CD. If 

dir d:

gives you a directory of the Microsoft CD, you should see "setup.exe" on that directory list. All you have to do then is enter:

d:\setup.exe


and off you go.

I think what's happening is that you are getting CD-ROM drivers loaded in "real mode" through your autoexec.bat and config.sys files. The bootup is somehow ignoring the floppy, trying to load windows and not succeeding but leaving you at a c:> prompt. Some people do have these drivers loading in "real mode". (It's not recommended though)

In that case, since no "ram drive" is created (which is what the floppy does), the drive letter for the CD-ROM is the same as it would normally be in Windows.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Hi Rollin' Rog

Thanks for replying so quickly. You guys here are on the ball!!!

Could you clarify for me what "real mode" means?

Since that's not recommended tho, should I just remove the drivers out of the config.sys and autoexec.bat?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Leave them. Right now it's probably the best thing you've got going.

"Real mode" means the drivers are loaded into physical memory and remain there. Normally Windows uses what are called "protected mode" hardware drivers for the CD-ROM, but Windows must load properly and not be in "safe mode" for these to be present.

"real mode" drivers are more likely to cause conflicts with other applications because of the way Windows handles them -- the memory space they use is not "protected" by the same schemes used for regular hardware drivers.

The startup disk, if it were loading properly, would also be loading "real mode" drivers -- but it would be creating a special "ram drive" do to it in. The ram drive gets assigned its own letter which changes the letter normally assigned to the ROM drive.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Okay--thanks.......I'll try to absorb what all that really means.

Also, is it a problem that my computer won't shut off normally now? 

What's the cause of that....is it something I did wrong?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Well, I'm not sure how you are expecting to shut it off since you don't have the normal Windows shutdown options.

What you want to do now is just press and hold the power button down for 5 - 8 seconds. If your BIOS supports it, it will automatcally shutdown. Since you have an older system though, it may not. In these cases there is usually a manual power switch. If you are in DOS there should be no risk of program damage in using that.

By the way, here is a better explanation of the difference between "real" and "protected mode" access than I gave. One critical difference is the range of memory that can be accessed by each:

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/cpu/arch/int/modes.htm


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Sorry, I worded my last post badly. What I should have said was that normal to me (in DOS without Windows) was to press the power button to shut down. Previously, since all this started, this is what I did. 

Now starting yesterday and today, the power button does not shut it off. I don't think there is a manual power switch...at least, not where I can see it. 

Maybe I was too anxious and will try holding it down for a longer time. But if that doesn't shut it off.......is it okay to use the switch on the surge protector? Will that hurt anything?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

As long as you are in DOS physically shutting off the power shouldn't be a risk.

But I see no reason why the power button shouldn't continue to work if it was working previously. Try holding it down longer.

The only possible explanation might be some corruption to the CMOS stored data for the BIOS or a physical problem with the button. I'm not absolutely sure the battery affects this at all though.

But since this is a very old system, it is possible the CMOS battery needs replacing. Typically this is a quarter sized lithium type battery. But in some older systems it may be hardwired into the motherboard.

The quarter sized batteries are easily replaced. The others would probably require a professional.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I guess replacing the battery requires opening up the tower. 

There wouldn't be a little compartment that I could get to from the outside...sorta like on a camera or remote?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Nope, you usually have to have full access to the motherboard to find what you are looking for. They don't make it easy


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Okay...think I'll leave that alone unless it's absolutely necessary.

If you think the drives are okay as they now stand and I can go ahead with the reinstall.......I have some other questions before proceeding.

Mosaic1 had said that I might need to uninstall Internet Explorer 5.5 before the windows reinstall---and not doing so could cause other problems. Do I need to do this first?

If so, I would probably know how to do this from Windows but how do I do this in DOS? Is there a specific file name (like uninstall) that I can execute?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

You are not going to be able to do it from DOS.

One thing you might try which can avoid this conflict in some cases is to enter the command:

*ren c:\windows\system\iemigrat.dll iemigrat.old*

This file may not be present in Win95 so you may get a "file missing" message when you try it. In Win98 installations it prevents the reinstall routine from trying to keep the current IE installation.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I have a printed copy of the C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\ directory with me. I will go through it and let you know if its on there.

BTW...in reviewing the posts, caught your edit with the link re: processor modes. Thanks for that info.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

YES!! I do show that in the \Windows\SYSTEMS directory.

So does this file renaming accomplish the same thing as uninstalling IE5.5??


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Looking through some relevant google threads, including an MS article on removing IE5, it appears that it should be there.

It is not an uninstall, but it should force the reinstall routine to use the orginal version IE and not keep old file versions. This has usually avoided conflicts in the past.

However you will probably have IE 3 or something like that after the reinstall. You will get a lot of browsing errors, but you should be good enough to get to the IE Homepage and download a new version.

If you have some ISP software handy, you might also find a later version on their CD's

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/default.asp


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *YES!! I do show that in the \Windows\SYSTEMS directory.
> 
> So does this file renaming accomplish the same thing as uninstalling IE5.5?? *


We must have been posting at the same time.


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

By the way, if you want a quicker download or want to download this setup now and burn it to CD, try Opera7

www.opera.com


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I do have the original IE (ver 4.0) CD that came with my system.
Would I then reinstall that?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

It would be better than IE 3 if that is what you get after the reinstall, but IE 4 will still give you a lot of browsing errors.

You are going to need a later version browser one way or another.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *By the way, if you want a quicker download or want to download this setup now and burn it to CD, try Opera7
> 
> www.opera.com *


I'm not sure if the computer that I'm using right now is CD read only or not.

I went to that link and Opera seems to be a replacement for IE...is that correct?

And that brings up some more questions. Isn't IE connected somehow with my outlook express emails, address book, and favorites?

Looking thru the directories in DOS, these seem to still be on my system. But with the Windows 95 reinstall, what happens to these files? Will I still have access to them?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Or if not the W95 reinstall, what about the previous version of IE...what does that do to those files?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

I'm not sure what you are asking. After the reinstall you should have the original IE version. You want to update from there. You can do two updates -- one to IE 4 and then one to IE 6 or 5.5 or just go from whatever you have after the install to IE5.5 or 6. I can't tell you what is likely to work best for you.

About Outlook Express, yes you will need a recent version of IE for those; I'm not sure what is going to happen to them following the reinstall

Opera7 is entirely independent of IE; it has it's own e-mail capability, but I never use it so can't really tell you how it interacts with OE. In fact I never use OE.

The last time I believe you were on an XP system. Almost all of these have CD-RW drives. But you will need a CD-RW disk and you probably need the help of someone who is experienced in burning CDs.

But XP has its own "drag and drop" capability if the drive is a CD-RW drive and you have the proper type of CD in it.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Well, I'm not sure what I'm asking either. I guess I'm wondering that if my Outlook Express is also 5.5, does this mean that it's a part of IE? The same for the Address Book? And Favorites?

And can I still get to my favorites, previous emails and contacts? Or will they be wiped out along with IE5.5?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

You shouldn't have any problem with your favorites; I'm not so sure about the address book, at least until you upgrade to 5.5 or 6 again. And yes OE is a part of IE, so when you do a full update to a later version, it includes the appropriate version of OE.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *
> I'm not sure what is going to happen to them following the reinstall *


Gee, does that mean that I could lose everything? Is there some way to move them somewhere else on the HD and then maybe later move them back after the reinstall?



> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *
> Opera7 is entirely independent of IE; it has it's own e-mail capability, but I never use it so can't really tell you how it interacts with OE. In fact I never use OE. *


What do you use, if not Opera or OE?



> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *
> The last time I believe you were on an XP system. Almost all of these have CD-RW drives. But you will need a CD-RW disk and you probably need the help of someone who is experienced in burning CDs. *


Yes, I am on that same computer again. Don't know if there's any of those CDs here, but in any case, I've never burned a CD. So that is something else to learn.


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

You shouldn't lose them during a reinstall, I just can't tell you much about OE; I don't know if you will have immediate access to all your OE functions until you update.

I use Opera7 almost exclusively. I never download e-mail except for the occasional form or confirmation letter that I might want to keep -- preferring to leave it at Hotmail or Yahoo and simply access things online.

If you have a CD-RW disk around, just try putting it in the CD-drive and dragging or copying a file to it. XP's writing software is slow, but simple. But there probably is other software installed, such as Roxio - EasyCD. You won't really need that on XP.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Re: IE, I think I checked into upgrading from 5.5 several months ago and couldn't because it wasn't compatible with W95. But I guess the download is still available for IE5.5?

If I wanted to use Opera (I've read other posts that it's better/more secure than IE) then would I be able to import those three things into there?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Actually it looks like MS is not offering IE 5.5 anymore for download.

But there are other places on the net where you can get it. Here are a couple of sites:

http://www.corrigo.com/corrigoconnect/InstallationInstructions.htm

http://public.planetmirror.com/pub/microsoft/ie/

As for Opera, it's a simple matter to import IE Favorites, there is a File > Import option that will do it in a snap.

There is also an option to import Mail from Outlook Express. This I've never used so I can't confirm whether there are any issues to be aware of using it.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Thanks for the links...will check on them soon. But have a few other questions that I hope I can put forth before you have to leave (might be a few days before I can get back on-line).

When I checked the new Startup Disk, there was a directory \WIN95 that had setup.exe file in it. So I'm assuming that the reinstallation would be D:\WIN95\SETUP.EXE.......does that sound right?

And where should I be when I do this? Restarting always gets me to the C:>prompt (with or without the floppy). Assuming I can still get from C: directly to the D: drive, do I still need the floppy in A: or B: (whatever it's calling itself today)?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Let's be clear about what we are referring to. What we normally call a "startup disk" is the "boot" floppy, not the CD.

The Microsoft CD is what should contain setup.exe and a "win95" folder which contains cabinet files. Usually setup.exe is in the main directory as well as in the cab directory; but if it doesn't run from there, then try d:\win95\setup.exe

What ever drive letter command you use to "read" that CD will run setup from it; you just have to enter the proper path no matter what prompt you are starting out from. For example:

d:\setup.exe

ASSUMING that 'd' is the working CD-ROM drive letter.

You won't need the floppy if you are getting CD-ROM support without it.

This is the information you gave me earlier:

Anyway, as it stands now, I have:
B:> which reads the floppy
C:> for the hard drive
D:> for the CD-ROM


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

YES, YES, YES, you are absolutely right--I'm mixing my p's and q's---that's how confusing this becoming to me.

I'm assuming when I'm at the D:> prompt and enter the setup info, it will know to install it in C:\WINDOWS.......is that correct?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Well, that's a good question.

In some cases it might try to install into a "new" directory.

You want to watch the setup screens for a prompt to confirm. If it does not say c:\windows, then you must change the directory.

This is what you want to watch out for:

http://support.microsoft.com/defaul...port/kb/articles/Q142/5/45.asp&NoWebContent=1

And it will know what your boot drive is, it can't install on the CD-ROM


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Linda, I'm afraid I'm going to have to sign off for the night. I hope I've answered most of your questions adequately. Good luck again!


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Thanks...probably would have missed those 000s.

Another thing I just remembered....when I looked through the WIN95 readme file, it said to do a scandisk before installing. This happened at startup but it took so little time that I didn't think it was a full scan (maybe program files only). When I tried to do it with \SCANDISK.EXE, it said there wasn't enough memory.

Thinking back to those first startup screens that said WIN.COM was missing, it also said that the HIMEM.SYS was missing. So I copied that file (from either the Startup Disk or the CD) to the C: drive (forgot now which directory I put it into--my printed copies were made before that and I forgot to re-print). Any way that seemed to work--the scan took ~40 min or so.

However, the result found a virus (or whatever) think it was something like J.S. Exception (?) Printed that information but somehow left those papers at home. Anyway, I sorta remember a notice about it (maybe in Oct.) popping up but I thought that was taken care of. It's now in the Norton Quarantine. 

Am I right in thinking that it's segregated there and can't harm anything? Or do I need to delete it?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

The setup routine will automatically perform a scandisk; the length of time it takes will vary according to the drive size and the cpu speed, probabably anything from a half hour to an hour.

Any viruses you found were not found by Windows Scandisk, but by an antivirus scan. J.S. Exception would only be a problem during internet browsing. If your antivirus found and quarantined it this is not something I would worry about.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Okay....thanks. Another think I forgot to mention is the file said to disable or remove any Anti-Virus before starting. Is this something that can be done in DOS? 

I think it mentioned something about the autoexec.bat too. I do have that in my system batch:
@C:\PROGRA~1\NORTON~1\NAVDX.EXE /Startup

If I just edit that line out, is that enough?


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

If you are booting with the boot disk, that won't be loading anyway.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I'm not really clear on this. But I don't think my computer has ever really booted using the A: drive. I can hear it whirring, but I always wind up at the C:> and right from there I can access the directories on the hard drive.

In order to see what's on the A: drive (or now it's calling itself B:?) I have to type A: (or B:?) to change to that drive.

I think I'm confused about some of the terms too.

If I'm not in Windows--is that always DOS (as I've been calling it) or is it still Windows but in safe mode or command prompt only??


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Without going back and re-reading everything, is your bios setup set to boot to the floppy first?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *
> ".........But then when I tried to reboot with the Startup Floppy, I always wound up at the C:>prompt. There wasn't an A: drive at all. However, there was a B: and D: drive (or so I thought).
> 
> ...


AcaCandy,

Above is a partial description of some of the drive problems--starting at post #38. Hope this helps to explain.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Ok, D and B will be the same because with the boot floppy, a RAM drive is created when you use a boot floppy....and your cdrom drive gets pushed one letter ahead.

I'm wondering if on the boot disk, there isn't an end command to change to c: ?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

But shouldn't I have wound up at the prompt for the floppy instead of the C:>

Anyway, now tho, I do have all three drives accessible B,C,D.
Just that on starting the computer (even with the floppy in) I always wind up at the C:> 

Doesn't this mean that I'm not really by-passing the hard drive at all?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I had never had to use the Startup Floppy to reboot before this problem with Windows not loading. Anytime I backed up anything to the LS120, I just put the Zip disk into the A: drive and everything worked fine.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

The only thing that comes to my mind, is that someone has copied the boot floppy to the hard drive.

What happens if you type 

E:
and press enter?

Sorry if that was already covered, it's been a long day.

Does the drive letter change, can you type setup at that point?


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *DRIVES:
> A: Regular Floppy & LS120
> C: Hard Drive
> ...


Quick question here, are there 2 different drives, the LS120 and the normal floppy?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> CD-ROM drive--after many different changes to the config.sys and autoexec.bat (the driver file name in the setup instructions wasn't on my hard drive) nothing seemed to work. I examined some of the files on the new Startup Disk and discovered that the CD2.SYS file was the driver with the same manufacturer as my CD so I copied it to the C: drive and now had access to the CD drive but it was showing an R:> prompt?


Actually, I tried every letter of the alphabet at different times.

If you have the time you might read all of post #38....even tho I didn't do a very good job of expaining all the different steps I've tried. Rollin' Rog thought it was "hard to follow and probably impossible to explain."

As I stated elsewhere, if nothing else it will give you a good laugh.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Ok, so it gets assigned to the letter R.

Can you change to R: at the c: prompt and see a directory of the windows installation cd?

*going back to read post #38*


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Linda, how many files are on that boot floppy that you have?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

The one that I made myself only had 15 files and according to a link that Mosaic1 gave me, I realized that I only did one step and failed to add other important files to it.

Rollin' Rog sent me to bootdisk.com where I downloaded the new Startup Floppy. That has 28 files.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

And are you getting a menu to start with cdrom support when you boot with that in the drive?

Also, can you answer my other question regarding whether you have two independent drives, LS120 and a REAL floppy drive, or are they one in the same?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *I'm not really clear on this. But I don't think my computer has ever really booted using the A: drive. I can hear it whirring, but I always wind up at the C:> and right from there I can access the directories on the hard drive.
> 
> In order to see what's on the A: drive (or now it's calling itself B:?) I have to type A: (or B:?) to change to that drive.
> ...


I've never seen anything asking for me to accept CD support.
And yes, the Floppy and LS120 use the same drive.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Ok, that was what I was thinking, the LS120 is really an IDE device, not a floppy device. In the bios setup, and I know I've seen a post regarding the boot options, is there removable media for a choice? Sorry, it's easier to ask than scroll back thru. I don't see Rog online and he probably has a clearer picture in his mind than I do at the moment......


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Also, my question regarding the R: prompt? Is that still accessible?


BTW, I'm working on a couple of 6 plus page threads, so it does get confusing


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I don't really know what "removable media" means?

The 12 options for boot sequence included different combinations of A, C, D, E, F, CDROM, SCSI, and LS/ZIP.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

LS/ZIP

What happens if you choose that one?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> The BIOS Features Setup listed 12 different options. The one in use was A,C,SCSI which was the only one that had A listed first. the only other possible option was LS120/ZIP, C which I tried. After a restart, this gave me the A:> but then there was no D:drive (previously listed as R). So went back to the original setting---how frustrating and confusing!!!


Again this is form post #38. Pretty confusing to read, I know.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Did you get a menu to start with cdrom support????? The D drive is the ram drive with a boot disk.......and yes, it is confusing 

At this point, try E:


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Ok, I have re-read the entire thread and I'm happy to report that I am still confused as ever 

Can you test that R: drive theory and also the E: drive, and change the bios setup to boot from the LS120.

And *U#*#*#* I just had a thought, are you using a 120 disk or a normal floppy disk for the bootdisk download?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

You think reading this stuff was confusing, you should have been there and tried to keep track of the changes the computer was spittin' out.

I'm not sure but I think Rollin' Rog covered all the drive issues. As of now the following drives are accessible to me and can read their related directories
B: Floppy and LS120 (combined) *Startup is on regular floppy*
C: Hard Drive
D: CD-ROM (at one point was R:--Not sure how I got it back to D:

My question now has to do with disabling or removing the antiivirus......that was the question when you first replied (will copy that into the next post)


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *..... I forgot to mention the file said to disable or remove any Anti-Virus before starting. Is this something that can be done in DOS?
> 
> I think it mentioned something about the autoexec.bat too. I do have that in my system batch:
> ...


Your reply was that if I was booting from the boot disk, that wouldn't be loading anyway.

But am I really booting from the boot disk when I end up at the C:>prompt???


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

I don't think I would worry about that right now....can we just test the setup.exe?

I think what you are referring to, is that sometimes the bios loads a virus scan, and that should be disabled. All you are going to do is an overinstall.

Sorry, I was under the impression you couldn't get access to the installation cd..............


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

What do you mean by test it???


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Change to the cdrom drive letter, and type 

setup
and hit enter, does setup begin?


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I can only get online by using a friend's computer. So can't do the actual setup until I get back home. Just trying to get as must information as possible now because if there's any issues, I won't be able to ask further help until I get access to another computer.


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Ok, well, if you have access to the cdrom and can see a directory of it, you should be able to type

setup
and go from there.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by AcaCandy:_
> *I don't think I would worry about that right now....can we just test the setup.exe?
> 
> I think what you are referring to, is that sometimes the bios loads a virus scan, and that should be disabled. All you are going to do is an overinstall.*


No, what I was referring to was the readme file for the WIN95 setup. It said to disable or remove the anti-virus before starting.

It said it was necessary to do that step in order to avoid problems with the install.

Do you know how I can do that?


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

Check the bios setup to be sure one isn't scanning from there, if so disable it and save changes coming out of the bios setup, and in your autoexec.bat and/or config.sys files, place a REM followed by one space in front of any lines addressing a virus program.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

I can do the second step okay but not so sure about the bios setup. Is there something specific I should look for?

I know when the computer first starts, there is a short (only a few seconds) scan by the Norton AntiVirus startup scan--memory, boot records, and files (only program, I think).

Is this connected with the bios scan or is that something different?


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Regarding the BIOS virus scan, usually this is not problematic, but in some cases it can be so it is worthwhile to check if possible.

Where this feature is, if it is there at all, depends on the BIOS type.

You may have to look at a few different "pages". Start with something that looks like "BIOS FEATURES SETUP" -- at least this is what is present in my Award BIOS on Win98.

You may see an option "Virus Warning". Just set that to "Disabled". It's actually on the same page that has the boot sequence -- and you 've been there before.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Great to have you back!!!

Think I'm almost there........but I was unable to find the "ProductKey" you mentioned. I do have a print out of the file you said to look in C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM.DAT

There is a ProductID (20 #s) that matches the number on the front of the Windows manual. There is also another Product ID (20 #s) maybe for IE.

I checked on the tower too as Mosaic1 suggested but found nothing. Is there anywhere else I might look for the ProductKey?


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## Mosaic1 (Aug 17, 2001)

Product ID is what you want.


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

ProductID it will be then, I wasn't sure which term was used in Win95 so I went with the "usual".

If what you see on that booklet matches what you found in system.dat then you can be confident you've got it.


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## Mosaic1 (Aug 17, 2001)

Hi Rog,

I needed a refresher myself. Cheat sheet here:

http://www.windows-help.net/windows95/troub-27.shtml

Mo


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Great!!!

I don't think I need to know this to proceed but I'm still sorta (well, a lot) confused regarding drives and booting. I had posted earlier but didn't get an answer--don't think either of you were around then. If you could make it real simple--it might finally get through.

Not sure how to get the earlier post here without losing this post, so I will copy it to the next one.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by linda303:_
> *I'm not really clear on this. But I don't think my computer has ever really booted using the A: drive. I can hear it whirring, but I always wind up at the C:> and right from there I can access the directories on the hard drive.
> 
> In order to see what's on the A: drive (or now it's calling itself B:?) I have to type A: (or B:?) to change to that drive.
> ...


What am I not understanding--is it the terms used or the whole process?


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## ~Candy~ (Jan 27, 2001)

IF you can get to the cdrom, like I think you said you could, all you need to do is type 

setup
and press the enter key.

It's either going to work, or give you an error message. In any event, it's not going to explode


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

You just may have a faulty floppy drive causing that problem. It doesn't seem like it is properly reading the floppy or you would be ending up at whatever prompt your BIOS associated with the floppy drive. I don't think we can and certainly don't appear to need to troubleshoot this now.

Even though you are apparently ending up at a c:> prompt (all of these are DOS prompts, by the way) you have access to the CD-ROM drive. This is because, I assume, CD-ROM, real mode drivers are being loaded through the autoexec.bat, config.sys files.

Safe Mode is "Windows" (not DOS) with a reduced set of drivers. "Safe Mode Command Prompt" (confusing term for sure) is DOS that does not load the autoexec.bat or config.sys files or "himem".

Anyway, I'm not sure what your current confusion is. What you can "read" (see), you can run. If you can see setup.exe on the 'D' drive (CD-ROM) you can run it using the command lines given.

(looks like you've got the triple whammies working on you here  )

*edit* one question which may not have been clarified:

In order to access the 'D' drive with the CD-ROM in it, have you had to boot with the floppy to the c:> prompt first?

If so, and I don't understand it, then that's what you will need to do.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Rollin' Rog

Thanks for clarifying. As I said, I didn't need to know this to proceed---think you've provided me everything I need to know for that. The last question was mainly to clear my own mind.  I realized (through your previous explanations) that I was refering to things by their wrong name and/or process.

With your patience and detailed explanations, maybe my next posts won't be so confusing!!!  We can only hope!!!

Thanks again for all your time, instructions, links, etc.
And thanks too, Mosaic1, for the great referral. :up: 

If this works, you'll hear back from me on my own computer--if not, what a great learning experience!!!


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

... if not, what a great learning experience!!!

That's always my last testament too! But good luck


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Thought I was thru here for the day, but another's problems with duplicate drives posted on this site along with your supposition that mine might be faulty--got me to thinking  (not again). I posted the below information at the SWI back in Sept.



> OK--I removed all the items you suggested. Ran Scandisc/OK. Strange thing, when I was in safe mode, I rechecked the device manager again and it showed some items doubled:
> WAVE SEVICE FOR VOICE MODEM Microsoft ver. 4.10.431
> C\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\SERWAVE.VXD
> WAVE SEVICE FOR VOICE MODEM Microsoft ver. 4.10.431
> ...


Don't know what this all means but thought you might like to add this to the stew.

But like you said--as long as I can get to the different devices, we can let the computer call them B: or whatever.


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

All I can say is keep your fingers crossed. When you reinstall Windows it will go through a fresh hardware detection process and will install whatever drivers it has available for the detected hardware from the Win95 CD. Those that it can't find, you will see disabled with red X's or exclamation points in the Device Manager.

This is of course a different question than whether the hardware itself is faulty. To determine that, you just have to try something else as a substitute if nothing else works. But let's see what happens when and if you get "Windows" back.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Rollin' Rog:_
> *(looks like you've got the triple whammies working on you here  )
> 
> edit one question which may not have been clarified:
> ...


Just noticed your added question. At first, no matter what I did, I couldn't get access to the D drive (floppy or not). After fooling around with the several things I mentioned, I finally got there--but it never seemed as though it was ever thru the floppy.

To test it, I even removed the disks from both drives (A and D) and restarted. I was still able to get to both--although now the A drive (also the LS120) is being referred to as B


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Okedoke, we won't quibble about the letters, as long as the devices are working and you can read disks in them.


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## linda303 (Dec 3, 2003)

Really!!! 

It's surprising that things work at all considering it was a specially built unit and I know just enough to be really dangerous!!! 

Anyway, if this succeeds, you deserve a medal. :up: It will almost be as if you were here holding my hand and walking me through step by step.

Thanks again for all your effort........Linda


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## Johnincal (Dec 12, 2003)

Hey Linda and the other guys in the forum...

Just wanted to say that I have been following Linda's problem for 2 Forums now (Spywareinfo.com and here), and I think you guys are great to take the time to help somebody in trouble like this.

I am by no means a geek, but have followed this with much interest and have learned a considerable amount in the process.

I hope it works out for her, and I will continue to check back.

Thanks for much info,

John


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Welcome to TSG, John. We're keeping our fingers crossed too.


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## Johnincal (Dec 12, 2003)

Thanks for the welcome!


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## Johnincal (Dec 12, 2003)

Just after thanking you for the welcome, I checked my email, and got this Newsletter that Bootdisk.com puts out....This is one of the items that was listed:

2) Tweaks For Old PC's "Drive Not Ready" Message

Chuck S. asks - I have an older pc that someone wanted me to look
at because it was not booting. You get 2 beeps and when you boot
up you get this error in the very first screen:

Pri Master HDD Error
Run Setup
Press F1 to resume

After hitting F1 you get 2 beeps and then this error:
Drive Not Ready Insert boot diskette in drive A

Is it wanting to reinstall windows.......... is the hdd gone
bad......?

*** No, it's not wanting to reinstall Windows. It's simply trying
to find a bootable drive.

Run Setup in this case means go into the bios and see if you can
autodetect the hard drive. The battery may have failed and the
settings may have been lost. If you cant detect the hard drive
then check both power and data cables and check if the drive is
spinning. If you _can_ detect the hard drive in the bios then
replace the motherboard battery.

In this case "Press F1 to resume" simply means you are telling
the PC to try the next step. If it's a real old PC then the drive
may be connected to a separate controller card which may have
failed. If its a real, real old PC, then you wont find a hard
drive autodetect function in the bios, so if the battery has
failed, you have to get the heads, cyls, and sector settings off
the label on the drive and enter them in manually in the bios.

And yes, the hard drive _may_ have gone bad, or the onboard PCI
HDD controller may have gone bad. Or, the primary controller on
the motherboard may have gone bad so one can always try
connecting it to the secondary.

Or, another drive on the same channel as the bootable drive may
have gone bad thus disabling what may well be your still good C:
drive.

On older PCs many folks have their old 540 or so as a slave on
Primary and lets say their newer 2 or 8 gig as Master. If the 540
or so fails it will take down the channel so even a bios detect
wont work.



I am sure you guys already know about this, and to tell you the truth, I am not sure if it even applies, but I remember some talk about the battery and hard drives may be bad, so I wanted to post it.


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## Rollin' Rog (Dec 9, 2000)

Thanks John, but no, that wasn't a factor, all the bootable drives were there, but just were playing letter tricks on us for some reason.


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