Win2k/Win98SE Dual boot repair question

[Computerguy]

I have a Win2k/Win98SE dual boot system, with Win2k on the C: drive and
Win98SE on the D: drive.

Unfortunately, my C: drive just died and I had to replace it. I have
reinstalled Win2k on the new C: drive. Is there an easy way of reconfiguring
the system for dual boot without having to reinstall Win98SE? I believe that
I "only" need to repair the C: boot sector and edit the boot.ini file to add
Win98SE but am not sure.What do I need to do?

TIA,
-GB

 

[John John]

Make a Windows 2000 Emergency Repair Disk and get a Windows 98 boot disk
and follow the instructions here: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=153762

The same instructions as the MS-DOS ones also work for Windows 98.
After you "sys" the drive boot with the Windows 2000 cd and repair the
boot sector.

John

 

[computerguy]

I presume therefore that Win98SE has an installation/setup option that
allows one to install to a partition/drive other than the C: drive (say to
D? I have never tried to do that before and just want to make sure before
I start!

Another question concerns Win98SE updates? Although support is no longer
available does Windows update still work for Win98SE? If not are the updates
available somewhere and will I have to install each one manually?

TIA,
-GB

 

[John John]

The "C" and "D" drive assignments can be misleading. Without knowing how
the operating systems were installed and what happened when you replaced
the Windows 2000 drive it's hard to see the real picture. Try doing the
sys command and see. If worse comes to worse you can always boot the
operating systems with a third party boot loader like BootItNG or XOSL.

As for the Windows 98 updates question you might want to ask in one of
the Windows 98 groups.

John

 

[computerguy]

Hi John John,

What I meant was this:
1) Win2k is installed on the C: partition and is the current boot partition.
2) I want to add a Win98SE dual boot on the D: partition

Will the Win98SE setup allow an installation on a partition other than the
C: ?

TIA,
-GB

 

[John John]

I'm sorry, I misunderstood your question in your earlier post, I thought
Windows 98 was already installed. Yes, it is possible to do what you
want but it can be a most frustrating exercise! I have found this to be
easier to do if the Windows 2000 installation is on an NTFS partition.
If all the partitions are FAT the fun begins! In these cases I have
simply found that using a third party boot manager is the easiest way to
accomplish the dual boot. The information on these pages should be useful:

Dual-Boot Centre
http://www.thpc.info/dualboot.html

Cannot start Windows 2000 or Windows XP after you install Windows 98 or
Windows 98 Second Edition
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;293089

John

 

[Andy]

I have a Win2k/Win98SE dual boot system, with Win2k on the C: drive and
Win98SE on the D: drive.

Unfortunately, my C: drive just died and I had to replace it. I have
reinstalled Win2k on the new C: drive. Is there an easy way of reconfiguring
the system for dual boot without having to reinstall Win98SE? I believe that
I "only" need to repair the C: boot sector and edit the boot.ini file to add
Win98SE but am not sure.What do I need to do?

In general terms you have to do the following:
1. you have to put the Windows 98 boot sector in a file called
bootsect.dos in C:\. (This is normally done by Windows 2000 setup when
Windows 98 has already been installed.)
2. you have to put a file called msdos.sys in C:\ that tells the
Windows 98 boot program where Windows 98 is installed. (This is
normally done when Windows 98 is installed.)
3. you have to put an entry for Windows 98 in boot.ini to enable dual
booting. (This is normally done by Windows 2000 setup when Windows 98
has already been installed.)