Can’t Dual Boot to Win98SE

[Vieux Richard]

Have set up 2 partitions & installed Win98SE (first) on one and Win 2000 Professional on the other.

Modified boot.ini to default Win2000 with Win98SE on C:

When I come to try to boot Win98, I get an error: bootsect.dos I/O error.

In Win2000 the Win98 partition appears as D:

How do I fix this?

[Wiskonst]

Vieux Richard

When Windows 2000 is installed to another drive than C:
it overwrites (for reasons unknown to me) the bootsector
of C: (where you have Windows 98SE installed).
If you have a startdiskette of Windows 98 you can recover
the bootsector of C: by executing a sys C: from that disk.
But first you must backup from the rootdirectory of C:
the files io.sys and msdos.sys. Then after sys C: is done you
place these two files back (over the ones created by sys).
Now you have the original bootfiles of Windows 98 but a
new bootsector.
Now Windows 98 must boot normally.

[azscary]

My second computer is a dual boot Win98 / 2000 and I did not have to modify any boot.ini file. After the install of the Win 2K the dos screen automatically gave me the option to boot Win 98 or 2000. Try setting the boot.ini back to the default and reboot.

[Vieux Richard]

I did get a message from W2K during SETUP saying that the other partition would TEMPORARILY be unavailable.

The problem with your suggestion will be that the default boot.ini will not know about a second O/S.

What is the default setting for boot.ini?

[azscary]

Remove the modifications you made to boot.ini.
I made absolutely NO CHANGES to the boot.ini file and after installing Win 2K it gave me the option of which OS to start at boot up.

[mike breck]

Did you install Win98 first on C: and then install W2K to D:

If you do that, then you should get the boot menu which allows you to choose which OS to boot into.

The default boot.ini (which boots to W2K by default) for Win98/W2K should look like this

[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT
[operating systems]
C:\="Microsoft Windows"
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect

If you wanted to make Win98 the default OS which boots then boot.ini would look like this

[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=C:\ [operating systems] C:\="Microsoft Windows 98SE"
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINNT="Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional" /fastdetect

If you installed W2K first and then Win98 second, then you could try a Repair install of W2K or alternatively just format the HD and install the OSs in the correct order to allow dual-booting i.e. Win9x first, W2K second.

HTH

[Vieux Richard]

Mike,

My boot.ini looks exactly like yours for booting W2K as default except Windows 98SE appears after W2K.

Frankly, I have spent enough time farting about with a stupid multiboot option that appears impossible to fix without reinstalling both OS.

If it's that fragile then I'll have to live without W98SE and just have W2K.

azscary, I made the change to put the boot.ini back to default but that does not solve my requirement to multi-boot. See my comments above.

[azscary]

Hmmm.
That is odd because when I did my dual boot, which is still running, all I did was partition the HD in two equal partitions and then install Win 98 on the C: and then installed Win 2000 on the other partition which turned out to be F: cause of the CD and burner. When I rebooted after the driver install for Win 2000 the DOS screen popped up ands asked me which OS I wanted to start. I had to do no extra file editing or nothing. It just worked. Sorry you are having such a hard time.

[Vieux Richard]

Having re-installed W2K yest again, the only way I can get in to W98 now is to boot from a boot diskette, fdisk the mbr and sys c: That now gets me in to W98 but am locked out of W2K asthere is no boot.ini

[mike breck]

Try a W2K Repair install. Either just running from the W2K CD or, even better, supplementing the W2K CD with a W2K ERD
(Emergency repair disk) floppy.


After making the ERD, format C: and install Win98
Change the boot sequence in the BIOS to CD-Rom first
Boot with the W2K CD and start Setup
After the License agreement select your W2K installation and press R for Repair.
Press F for Fast repair
Insert the ERD when prompted

This will copy back all the original W2K Boot files back to the root of C:

If you don't have an ERD floppy, then just run the Repair from the W2K, without it.

You really shouldn't have this much bother setting up a dual-boot with Win9x and W2K, if you install Win9x first and W2K second - to separate partitions on the same HD.

You're sure your not installing both to the same partition?

[Vieux Richard]

This is getting really silly. I followed your suggestion of using the ERD & after Setup had finished copying the files, I was met with the BSOD!
I then followed M$'s KB on restoring NTLDR & NTDETECT & modified the Boot.ini to include C:\="Microsoft Windows". On rebooting & choosing "Microsoft Windows" I received the Bootdetect.com error which then stuffed me for rebooting to either partition.
So I again had to use a Win98 bootdisk, fdisk MBR and sys c: to get back into Win98. So another 3 hours spent & I'm still back to square 1.
In the meantime I reinstalled W2K on the D: partition & having checking with Partition Magic my Win98 is sitting on C:
I think I have tried everything now & patience fast running out.

[Wiskonst]

Vieux Richard

I have on my PC installed Windows 95 (first) and Windows 2000 and done a sys C: as stated in my first posting.
After that I installed a third party bootmanager (Vamos,
http://www.vamos.de/english/bootman_download.html)
and set that up creating two entries to the two partitions where I installed W95 and W2000. Further I copied the W2000 boot files (ntdetect.com, ntldr and boot.ini) from C: to the drive where W2000 resides (root dir). I removed from boot.ini all entries except W2000.
This works fine to me. Vamos can find both OS's and boot them from their own partitions. W98SE should work the same as W95.
Sorry I didn't answer sooner; I didn't keep track of this thread.

Wiskonst

[Wiskonst]

Vieux Richard

Instead of using a third party bootmanager the W2000 bootmanager should also work. To return to your first posting, the file 'bootsect.dos' (containing the W98 bootsector from C: ) is probably inaccesable due to the hidden- and system-attributes. Remove these with attrib.exe.
In this case you should leave the W2000 bootfiles where they were put by W2000 installation (in C: root dir) and also leave the C: bootsector (which is a NT-bootsector after installation of W2000) alone (do not do a sys C: ).

Hope this helps.

[Vieux Richard]

Have now reinstalled W2K and when rebooting am now given the option of booting to W98 or W2K but when I select W98, the system justs hangs.

[Wiskonst]

Frankly I have no clue anymore what could be wrong with your dual boot.
I made a test-install of W2000 and I could boot both systems through the W2000 bootmenu just fine.
Could you save a dir C: to a file and e-mail it to me? Also the files bootsect.dos, io.sys and msdos.sys.

jf4h.nw7s@wanadoo.nl
Remove from this adress all digits.

[Markoman01027]

You probably made the mistake of installing Windows 2000 first and then installing Windows 98. You have to install 98SE first and then 2000. Check out this thread. Although it complies with XP, but you should get the idea of it.

http://forum.pcmech.com/showthread.p...threadid=24831

[Wiskonst]

Originally posted by Markoman01027 You probably made the mistake of installing Windows 2000 first and then installing Windows 98.

If you read the thread carefully, you'll see that Vieux Richard took the correct order.

[Al Pollock]

I am presently runing a multiple boot system. I set up my HD(30 gig) for four partions the first is 8 gig , Then I load win98 ,wiin 2K and lastly XP. It works no problems.For Each OS you must do a clean install.
AL

[Markoman01027]

Originally posted by Wiskonst If you read the thread carefully, you'll see that Vieux Richard took the correct order.

Sorry, must of overlooked the first post. My apology. I guess 3 hours of homework at midnight makes you really tired the next day.

[Vieux Richard]

Wiskonst,

As I am booting to Win 2K, I am assuming that you wanted to see the files on Win98 which is now D: Please tell me which files you want to see on the Win98 directory - also how I can save the directory to a file.
Have searched for the bootsect.dos, io.sys and msdos.sys files but only msdos.sys is there.

[Wiskonst]

You can make io.sys and bootsect.dos visible by setting the explorer to display hidden files. They must be in the W98 rootdirectory.
(Explorer-menu Extra, Options, second tab, set option 'hidden files' to 'display hidden files'.)
You can save a dir C: (or D: ) to a file by typing from a DOS-window:

C:
cd\
attrib *.sys -h -s
attrib *.dos -h -s
dir C: > root-C.dir

The file root-C.dir will contain the output of the dir-command.
(The exact filename is unimportant.)

I was interested in the bootfiles of W98 and especially in the file 'bootsect.dos' because I suspect it to contain a NT-bootsector rather than a DOS-bootsector.
'Bootsect.dos' is the original bootsector of C: preserved by the W2000 installation and through this file the W2000 bootmenu should be able to boot W98 (as if it were the actual bootsector of C: ).

In essence all MS OS's use only two types of bootsectors:
1. DOS-bootsector, used by MS-DOS, Win 3, Win 95 through ME.
It lookes for the files io.sys and msdos.sys to boot the OS.
2. NT-bootsector, used by Win NT through XP.
It lookes for the files ntdetect.com and ntldr.

If 'bootsect.dos' contains the wrong bootsector it will not be able to boot W98 because it lookes for the wrong files.
The fact that you now installed W98 to D: complexes things a bit because I'm not sure how the W2000 bootmenu handles W95/98 installations on other drives than C:.

Hope you will get further on this.

[Wiskonst]

Something else could be the matter.
You say W2000 sees the W98 partition as D:
You might try changing in boot.ini the lines referring to W98 to point to D:
(Make a backup of boot.ini first)

So:
'Default=C:\'
becomes
'Default=D:\'
and
'C:\="Microsoft Windows 98SE"'
becomes
'D:\="Microsoft Windows 98SE"'
(without the single quotes).

Be sure the files 'bootsect.dos', 'io.sys' and 'msdos.sys' are in the installation partition of W98.
To avoid misunderstandings: the W2000 bootmenu (boot.ini) should also be on the same drive where W98 is installed.
I'm not sure the above works because it's possible the W2000 bootmenu can handle nothing but C: or a physical drive designation.

A question:
Do you have more than one physical harddrive in your system?
(This would explain why W2000 designates the W98 drive as D: ).
In this case W98 (plus W2000 bootmenu) should be on the first harddisk (hd0) on the first primary partition.

[Vieux Richard]

Wiskonst, have e-mailed you the files your requested (from D.
Tried changing boot.ini to look at D: for Win 98 but it made no difference, still cannot boot Win 98.
Please note that I did not install Win 98 to D: - the reason that it appears as D: is that I am looking at it through Win 2000 which is the C: drive. Nothing has been changed since my original post, only that when I installed W2K it asked which partition I wanted it installed on and I put it on the unallocated one (there are only 2) that did not have Win 98.
BTW I notice that I have a ntdetect.com and ntldr on C: and D: - not sure if this is relevant.

[Wiskonst]

Vieux Richard

Thank you for sending the files.
I think they are allright.
So the main problem lies in the fact that W2000 sees
the W98 drive as D: . It probably looks for the bootfiles of W98 on the wrong drive (the one it sees as C:, which is not the W98 drive).

Are both partitions on your harddisk primary? They should be.
When the W2000 installation asked for the partition to install it on, what driveletter did W98 have and what driveletter did you put W2000 on? The last should definitively not be C: ; W2000 should detect W98 on C: .
I am still assuming you have only one physical harddisk.

[Vieux Richard]

There is one HD and 2 partitions - both are primary.

Not sure that Win98 had a drive letter when Win2000 installed. I seem to remember not running the Drive Mapping option after the install.

What would happen if I reinstalled Win98 - would this fix the problem. Not happy about having to reinstall win2000 again.

[Wiskonst]

Vieux Richard

Reinstallation of W98 would only work if done on the right partition, C:.
This would involve reinstallation of W2000 too.
At installation of W2000 you can force the installation program to give you the choice of drive to install to by clicking the button 'advanced options' in the window that appears right after supplying the registration key. Put a checkmark before the option 'I want to choose the installation partition during setup'.
Now at some further time during installation (after the first restart) you will see a list of available partitions to install W2000 to. Have a look where W98 is (give this partition a recognizable name from W98); if it's not on C: it makes no sense to continue the installation process since you will get the same problems again.
If W98 is not on C: you will have to format both partitions and do a reinstall of W98 too.

The only alternative to reinstalling both systems might be the following edit to boot.ini:
replace
'C:\="Microsoft Windows 98SE"'
with
'multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\Windows="Microsoft Windows 98SE"'
(again without the single quotes).
For default choose one of the entries now present, either
'default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\Windows' or
'default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WinNT'
If '\WinNT' is combined with 'partition(2)' then '\Windows' should be combined with 'partition(1)'.

It's likely this will fail however if W98 takes over the drive designations of W2000. Then it will not find it's further files which it thinks are on C:.

So a complete reinstall, how ever tedious, seems the best solution.
Sorry ...
The whole problem arises from the fact that W98 cannot boot from an other drive than C:.

[Alfie]

What file systems are set up on the partitions?
Fat or ntfs?

[Wiskonst]

Originally posted by Alfie What file systems are set up on the partitions? Fat or ntfs?

For W98 FAT16 or (better) FAT32,
for W2000 FAT32 or NTFS.

[Vieux Richard]

Alfie, FAT 32 on Win 2000 and FAT on Win 98.

Wiskonst, I made the changes to boot.ini but it did not work.
Thanks for all your help, I'll watch out for the issues more carefully in future. I suppose there's no third-party boot manager that will "replace" this horrible Windows boot loader? The ones I've used so far, still have to use the Windows booti.ini

[Wiskonst]

A third party bootmanager is of course still a second alternative.
You could work with the installations as they are now.
Myself I use Vamos (see my second posting) but there are other good ones (f.i. Xosl). Vamos installs itself in the free room behind the MBR, the logical place for a bootmanager.
If you want to do this you will have to perform a sys C: as in my first posting in order to remove the bootsector of the W2000 installation.