win xp to 98

[tandral]

Hi guys,

I would like to know how hard it would be to go
from win xp home ( from dell ) to a retail copy of win 98.
As much as I love windows xp, windows 98 works much better
for the programs I use. Basically my question is can I
switch from ntfs to fat 32 and be able to install
windows 98 or am I suck with windows xp? Also would I just
boot from the windows xp cd and format or boot from the
win 98 cd and format.

Thanks in advance =)

Tan.

 

[Patti MacLeod]

Hi tandral,

Since the current partition on which XP is installed has been formatted
NTFS, you would have to first delete that partition, then create a Primary
DOS partition, format it FAT32 and then install WIN98. If your XP install CD
was supplied by DELL, in all honesty, I don't know if you could use it in
order to simply delete the partition in preparation for installing WIN98 (I
have never used the XP install CD supplied by DELL or any other OEM) or if
it would immediately launch into setup for XP.

Another option would be to boot from your WIN98 install CD (if it's
bootable), invoke FDISK at the command prompt, say Yes to enabling large
disk support and Yes to enabling large disk support for NTFS, select the
option to Delete partition or logical DOS drive then select the option to
Delete Non-DOS partition. Once the Non-DOS partition has been deleted, press
Esc to return to the first menu. Opt to Create DOS partition or Logical DOS
drive, then opt to Create Primary DOS partition. Respond Y to "Do you wish
to use the maximum available size for a Primary DOS partition and make the
partition active?". Once the Primary DOS partition has been created, you'll
need to restart the computer before formatting. Format the newly created
partition and install 98.

If your WIN98 install CD is not bootable, you could use a WIN98 startup
floppy disk to invoke FDISK, do the deletion and creation of partition,
format the partition and install 98. If you don't have a startup floppy
disk, you can d/load the file to create one from here:
http://bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm
Click on the link for Windows 98 SE OEM, and d/load the file to hard drive.
Put a formatted floppy disk in the drive and then double-click on the
d/loaded file in order to create the startup floppy disk.

One thing that I would strongly advise, before formatting and installing 98,
is to ensure that you have d/loaded and saved to removable media any device
drivers that you'll require (eg., modem drivers, NIC drivers, sound card
drivers, video card drivers, etc.) for 98.


Regards,

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Tan,

Yep, quite possible - but you may want to consider a dual boot, see:
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/tips/xp_repair_9x.htm

Though if you have one large NTFS partition, you will need partitioning
software to make room for a FAT32 partition. You may also need a boot
manager if the boot partition is NTFS.

If you do want to go whole-hog with Win98, then you will need to boot a 9x
startup floppy and run fdisk. Remove the non-dos partition, then create at
least a primary dos partition (and set it as active if you elect to create
more than one). Then reboot to the floppy (this is an important step) and
load CD drivers. Format the newly created partition(s) and proceed to run
setup from the Win98 CD.

Of course, all existing data and programs currently on the system will be
lost.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Win9x
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[Harry Ohrn]

Here you go http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q314052

 

[joust in jest]

Tan:
Before embarking on this adventure, go to the DELL web site and see if there
are Win98 drivers for your Motherboard, Video, Sound, and Modem. Because
the hardware was built long AFTER Win 98 was released, and because DELL has
customized hardware, Win 98 most assureadly NOT have built-in drivers.

steve

 

[tandral]

Thanks everyone

Yes I do have all of the drivers downloaded so far
( am missing a few but didnt look for them either) and
they are burnt onto a cd with my other pc which is also
running win 98.
So as long as I can find the rest of the drivers I will go
with win 98 and have also thought about duel boot and that
is an option as well. And I want to thank you all for the
help it was exaclly what I wanted and then some!!

Tan.

 

[Patti MacLeod]

You're very welcome!


Regards,