Computer hosed

[Cornbread]

What do you do when "format c:" doesn't work?? The computer in question suddenly took a registry flashback to 2 years ago. Then some files were deleted by mistake. A new hard drive was put in and now a new CD ROM drive, but I can't get into windows.. when trying to get into windows, I get the following error message:

"Drive D:=driver oem cd 001 unit 0", then something like "win98 setup files not found"..

also, in a desperate attempt, I tried "format c:" in DOS and got "bad command or file name".

There are more glitches I didn't mention, but wouldn't it seem wise to just wipe the damn thing? but how do I go about that if the computer won't format?

[rond36]

A new hard drive was put in

If it is a new hard drive Windows isn't installed on it so you can't boot to Windows.

Is your hard drive recognized correctly on the BIOS POST screen?

Do you have a boot floppy?

Did you run Fdisk and create a primary partition set it active reboot and run Format to format the new partition?

Microsoft's instructions on how to use Fdisk and Format (http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q255867)

[classicsoftware]

Forget fdisk and format they are ancient history and not for beginners.

All hard drive manufacturers supply (or you can download) from their website a bootable disk that will walk you through the drive setup and allow you partition the drive any way you want. leave fdisk and format for the geeks...

[Cornbread]

Ok, I'm mediating for a friend in Colorado who currently can't get online to do this. I'm in Texas and am helping him out however I can. I don't believe he got a boot disk with his hard drive. In fact, I got one from pricewatch and it didn't come with one, either. It looks like our options are small.

I also think he may have some old version of BIOS because I couldn't get conclusive evidence of whether or not C and D drives were recognized by windows. Pressing delete during startup brought it to the CMOS settings.

However, I do know that C and D drives are recognized in DOS, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to change directories into them.

Now, theoretically, is it not possible that I could format, set the partition and do the ol D:setup for windows and get it all back to normal?

[Budfred]

I'm still having trouble trying to sort out the problem. Are you typing Format C: from a Startup floppy? I don't think you can format C: from C:. If you are using a Startup floppy your D: drive may be a RAM drive and the CD may be E:.

Can you gather more info from your friend and post back. Computer details, processor speed, RAM, Windows version and so on. Most importantly what have you tried to do from where?

Budfred

[Cornbread]

Okay, the computer already has an active partition, so fdisk wasn't necessary. And I found out that the computer now has it's original hard drive back in it. He put in a new hard drive but the problems were identical, so he took the new one back and reinstalled the old one.

Now when he tries to boot the machine it gives a list of vxd files it can't find (in DOS) before it even thinks about starting windows. then when trying to boot windows, it stops and lists all the FUBAR files. Lather, rinse, repeat.

The computer is a 466Mhz Celeron processor, don't know how much ram, on win98Se.

the computer cannot load windows. He's ready to start from scratch in order to get the thing working again.

[Budfred]

Does he have a Startup disk for Windows? If he does, he boots with it in the A: drive and then type Format C: from the A: prompt.

Budfred

[classicsoftware]

Try to boot to a DOS prompt. Hit F* or the control key and bring up the
boot menu. Try safe mode. If you can get into safe mode, run SFC.

If safe mode won't work, get into the command prompt. and see if the cab files for windows are present. If they are, navigate to that folder and run setup. Windows will then install itself over the present copy and you should at least be able to get up and running long enough to downlaod the stuff you need to install the new drive or wipe out the old drive.

If you are going to do an install in place, you will need the Windows serial #/certificate of authenticity.

[sleddog]

To start from scratch you will need:

1. A bootable floppy disk with drivers for the CD-ROM
2. A Windows 98 setup CD

Test that the bootable floppy disk works correctly by using it to boot, then try to change to the CD-ROM drive (which I assume is D:).

A:\>D:

If you cannot change to D: then you do not have CD-ROM support, and that must be fixed before proceeding.

To format a drive you need the DOS program FORMAT.COM. If this program is not on the bootable floppy, then you copy it from the existing Windows 98 installation (or get it from another Windows 98 computer). Boot to the floppy disk (if you haven't already), then at the prompt:

A:\>copy c:\windows\command\format.com a:\

Then you may use the format command from the A:\> prompt:

A:\>format c:

After the format is complete, run Windows setup on the D: drive

A:\>D:\setup

[Budfred]

If you follow sleddog's suggestions and find that D: doesn't take you to a CD, it is possible that D: is a RamDrive used by the Startup disk. You can type dir/w to see what is on it in order to tell. If it is a Ram drive, you will need to figure out what letter is assigned to the CD, probably it will be E:. So type E: and if it accepts, try your Windows install from there.

Budfred

[Cornbread]

okay, I had him try to format c: from the a: prompt, and it said "bad command or file name". I also had him try sleddog's suggestion of :

A:\>copy c:\windows\command\format.com a:\

and it said "file not found"

Is it possible that the CMOS battery died and took the settings with it? Is this a feasible possibility?

The guy's registry must be all jacked up, too.

what now?

[classicsoftware]

Have him look at the config.sys and autoexec.bat files on the startup disk. They should tell you what drive letter is assigned to the CD ROM.

Look for MSCDEX line in autoexec.bat and the letter after the /L parameter will be the drive letter of the cd rom.

[Budfred]

I would ask him to type dir/w at the A: prompt to find out what is on that disk. It sounds like it is not a full Startup disk and he may need to make another one using someone else's computer. To do this, put the Windows CD in the drive of the other computer and when it comes up, use it to make the Startup disk and make sure you opt to include CD support. If the other computer is running the same or an earlier version of Windows, you can make the Startup disk directly from Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel. Write protect the disk and try to do your format again with it.

Budfred

[pawprint]

Cornbread, does your friend have a win98 startup disk?
If not, you can download a win9x bootdisk here (http://tweakcentral.com/bootdisk2.htm) , which will create a disk image file of 804kb which expands to 980 kb on a floppy disk. It has format.com, FDISK.com , scandisk , along with mscdex file for cdrom driver.
If this disk does not allow format of hdd, I would suggest FDISK and create a new partition on hdd, then run format. Use startup disk, and choose without cd-rom support. At the A:\> type in format c:, hit enter. If you need a working win98 startup disk , PM me, and I will send you one.
The win98 startup disk will create a temporary ramdrive utilizing the letter D, so to utilize the temp cd-rom drive, choose option 2)start with cd-rom support. At the A:\> type in E: enter to switch to the E drive. Then type in dir to verify that setup is found on install cd-rom. I always take it one step further, and initialize setup until asked for product ID key, then I abort process, and format C now knowing for sure that I will be able to boot and install after the format. Good luck. :cool:
cheers, ~pawprint~

[Paul Komski]

..and now a new CD ROM drive, but I can't get into windows..
Have I missed something; but did this problem start after the new HD drive or after the new CDROM drive was installed? Would you be able to actually boot up if the CDROM was disconnected - or, as ClassicSoftware suggested, can you get into safe mode by repeatedly tapping the CTRL key on powering up?

[shoryuko]

Hi, if you really couldnt get things to work, I'll suggest you to use another working PC, plug your hdd in as slave, then format it. Maybe you can do that at a friend's house or something.

Else, you can also try to boot from cdrom using WinMe bootcd and format it. Another resolution is that you can use Win2K or WinXP to boot, then use the option during the installation steps to format your hdd too.