80Gb HD & Win 98

  • Thread starter Thread starter S.Boardman
  • Start date Start date
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S.Boardman

About this time last year I asked advice about overclocking and changing the
RAID from stripe to mirror. I got the stuff, but I only did half. Now I want
to do some more stuff and want to sort the RAID/backup first.

I have Win 98, and bought 80Gb Western Digital Caviar PATA drives to replace
the 2 x 20Gb RAID.

I have used the updated Fdisk, used large disk support, and the BIOS on the
mobo supports the disk. Format, Fdisk and BIOS all report the correct size.
Win 98 reports 1.99 Gb however many partitions I make (tried two and three).
I read that often the diagram is wrong in My Computer, so checked in
'Display as web page', on the left side - this is also wrong. SiSoft Sandra
2001 also reports he wrong size, and interestingly gives 'squiggly'
characters instead of FAT32.

Would this be fixed in 98SE? Or do I have to get XP? Or is there another
option?

Thanks.

MSI KT333 mobo, XP2500+, 512Mb Corsair 3200 RAM, Antec 430W PSU.
 
About this time last year I asked advice about overclocking and changing the
RAID from stripe to mirror. I got the stuff, but I only did half. Now I want
to do some more stuff and want to sort the RAID/backup first.

I have Win 98, and bought 80Gb Western Digital Caviar PATA drives to replace
the 2 x 20Gb RAID.

I have used the updated Fdisk, used large disk support, and the BIOS on the
mobo supports the disk. Format, Fdisk and BIOS all report the correct size.
Win 98 reports 1.99 Gb however many partitions I make (tried two and three).
I read that often the diagram is wrong in My Computer, so checked in
'Display as web page', on the left side - this is also wrong. SiSoft Sandra
2001 also reports he wrong size, and interestingly gives 'squiggly'
characters instead of FAT32.

Would this be fixed in 98SE? Or do I have to get XP? Or is there another
option?

Thanks.

MSI KT333 mobo, XP2500+, 512Mb Corsair 3200 RAM, Antec 430W PSU.
Click to expand...

When Partitioning with Fdisk in win98 you need to say ,"Yes" to
enabling large disk support.This is FAT32 otherwise it defaults to
FAT(16) which has the limit you are hitting.
More info here,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/hard.html

HTH :)



--
Free Windows/PC help,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/trouble.html
remove obvious to reply
email (e-mail address removed)
Free original songs to download and,"BURN" :O)
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/nomessiahsmusic.htm
 
Shep© said:
On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 12:34:41 -0000 It was a dark and stormy night when
snip!

When Partitioning with Fdisk in win98 you need to say ,"Yes" to
enabling large disk support.This is FAT32 otherwise it defaults to
FAT(16) which has the limit you are hitting.
More info here,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/hard.html

HTH :)
Click to expand...

But I did do. It is [Y] automatically selected - I pressed return to go on
to the next stage...
 
Shep© said:
On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 12:34:41 -0000 It was a dark and stormy night when
snip!

When Partitioning with Fdisk in win98 you need to say ,"Yes" to
enabling large disk support.This is FAT32 otherwise it defaults to
FAT(16) which has the limit you are hitting.
More info here,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/hard.html

HTH :)
Click to expand...

But I did do. It is [Y] automatically selected - I pressed return to go on
to the next stage...
Click to expand...

The drive allocation tables may have been corrupted.This can happen if
the drive has had an NTFS file system on it and you go back
incorrectly to a FAT system.
This is a free CDrom .ISO
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/bootd.zip
that can be burnt and makes a bootable CDrom floppy disk emulation.It
contains the powerful,"Aefdisk" which can easily remove all partitions
correctly with the

aefdisk.exe \delall

command.

You can then use the fdisk on the Cdrom to remake the partitions as
it's the updated WinME version that works for win98/ME.
Or you can use your WinXP disk to remake them for WinXP.

When having problems partitioning using fdisk it's best to do a
,"Fail-Safe" operation.

Remove partitions with Aefdisk
Shut down and shut off the system.
Re-boot
Remake partition/s
Shutdown and switch off.
Re-boot and reformat.
Shutdown and switch off.
Install O/S
The above is,"Data Destructive".

If you wish to do none data destructive partitioning you will need a
3rd party program like,"Partition Magic" but that costs money.

HTH :)




--
Free Windows/PC help,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/trouble.html
remove obvious to reply
email (e-mail address removed)
Free original songs to download and,"BURN" :O)
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/nomessiahsmusic.htm
 
Shep© said:
news:[email protected]...
Click to expand...
snip!
When Partitioning with Fdisk in win98 you need to say ,"Yes" to
enabling large disk support.This is FAT32 otherwise it defaults to
FAT(16) which has the limit you are hitting.
More info here,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/hard.html

HTH :)
Click to expand...

But I did do. It is [Y] automatically selected - I pressed return to go on
to the next stage...
Click to expand...

The drive allocation tables may have been corrupted.This can happen if
the drive has had an NTFS file system on it and you go back
incorrectly to a FAT system.
This is a free CDrom .ISO
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/bootd.zip
that can be burnt and makes a bootable CDrom floppy disk emulation.It
contains the powerful,"Aefdisk" which can easily remove all partitions
correctly with the

aefdisk.exe \delall

command.

You can then use the fdisk on the Cdrom to remake the partitions as
it's the updated WinME version that works for win98/ME.
Or you can use your WinXP disk to remake them for WinXP.

When having problems partitioning using fdisk it's best to do a
,"Fail-Safe" operation.

Remove partitions with Aefdisk
Shut down and shut off the system.
Re-boot
Remake partition/s
Shutdown and switch off.
Re-boot and reformat.
Shutdown and switch off.
Install O/S
The above is,"Data Destructive".

If you wish to do none data destructive partitioning you will need a
3rd party program like,"Partition Magic" but that costs money.

HTH :)
Click to expand...
I just tried the original operations on a new drive identical to the first,
so no mbr screw up. I rebooted after each operation. Still 1.99Gb in Win98.
I'll give your way a go...
 
S.Boardman said:
snip!
I just tried the original operations on a new drive identical to the first,
so no mbr screw up. I rebooted after each operation. Still 1.99Gb in Win98.
I'll give your way a go...
--
Click to expand...

Sorry to reply to my own post. I don't have a cd or DVD burner. Just a
DVD-ROM :-(
 
Sorry to reply to my own post. I don't have a cd or DVD burner. Just a
DVD-ROM :-(
Click to expand...

You can still make an Aefdisk/Win98 boot floppy,
http://www.bootdisk.com
They are all on that site :P
Again.Shutdown and switch off the system after each operation as a
fail safe.
I hope this is not an old machine with a 2 gig bios limit?



--
Free Windows/PC help,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/trouble.html
remove obvious to reply
email (e-mail address removed)
Free original songs to download and,"BURN" :O)
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/nomessiahsmusic.htm
 
Shep© said:
You can still make an Aefdisk/Win98 boot floppy,
http://www.bootdisk.com
They are all on that site :P
Again.Shutdown and switch off the system after each operation as a
fail safe.
I hope this is not an old machine with a 2 gig bios limit?
Click to expand...
No. The bios sees it at the correct size. Everything except Win98. I noticed
that the primary controller has an exclamation mark on it, and both
partitions are running in MS DOS compatibility mode. I used Partition Magic
6 on one drive, but it stopped part way through, I don't know if that
version is too old.
 
No. The bios sees it at the correct size. Everything except Win98. I noticed
that the primary controller has an exclamation mark on it, and both
partitions are running in MS DOS compatibility mode. I used Partition Magic
6 on one drive, but it stopped part way through, I don't know if that
version is too old.
Click to expand...

I think you need to re-install the motherboard updated drivers
pack.Some of these like the VIA 4-in-2 packs contain the required IDE
controller sofware.SIS chip sets it's usually contained in an updated
AGP drivers pack.
Get the drives out of MSdos Compatibility mode as per,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/mode.html
HTH :)



--
Free Windows/PC help,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/trouble.html
remove obvious to reply
email (e-mail address removed)
Free original songs to download and,"BURN" :O)
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/nomessiahsmusic.htm
 
Shep© said:
I think you need to re-install the motherboard updated drivers
pack.Some of these like the VIA 4-in-2 packs contain the required IDE
controller sofware.SIS chip sets it's usually contained in an updated
AGP drivers pack.
Get the drives out of MSdos Compatibility mode as per,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/mode.html
HTH :)
Click to expand...
The partition operation and format are fine because I just tested them on an
identical copy of Win 98 on another PC - it reads the capacity fine. I have
updated the VIA 4 in 1 drivers. With the drive in place, I still get an
exclamation mark. The latest BIOS is installed. I'm soooo fed up.
 
The partition operation and format are fine because I just tested them on an
identical copy of Win 98 on another PC - it reads the capacity fine. I have
updated the VIA 4 in 1 drivers. With the drive in place, I still get an
exclamation mark. The latest BIOS is installed. I'm soooo fed up.
Click to expand...


I'd look at the m'board bios settings again, and if Device
Manager mentions anything specific regarding that
exclamation mark.
 
kony said:
I'd look at the m'board bios settings again, and if Device
Manager mentions anything specific regarding that
exclamation mark.
Click to expand...
Hello Kony. You were very helpful last time :-)

However I have solved the problem. As the full capacity was recognised in
the other Win 98 PC, it got me thinking. I took out the flat IDE cable from
the second PC and replaced the round cable I had been using. Hey presto, it
worked. I didn't know whether I had bought the wrong sort of round cable, so
I tried an identical round cable, and it worked too. Then I tried the
original round cable, thinking I must have just got a naff one, but it works
now as well! Go figure!

Now I can add another 512Mb RAM (I know about vcache), and a Radeon 9800Pro
before HL2 arrives :-)
 
Hello Kony. You were very helpful last time :-)

However I have solved the problem. As the full capacity was recognised in
the other Win 98 PC, it got me thinking. I took out the flat IDE cable from
the second PC and replaced the round cable I had been using. Hey presto, it
worked. I didn't know whether I had bought the wrong sort of round cable, so
I tried an identical round cable, and it worked too. Then I tried the
original round cable, thinking I must have just got a naff one, but it works
now as well! Go figure!

Now I can add another 512Mb RAM (I know about vcache), and a Radeon 9800Pro
before HL2 arrives :-)
Click to expand...

Let,"Cacheman" set the Vcache for you as it can set a more useful one
than the arbitrary MS fix as per,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/easy.html

HTH :)



--
Free Windows/PC help,
http://www.geocities.com/sheppola/trouble.html
remove obvious to reply
email (e-mail address removed)
Free original songs to download and,"BURN" :O)
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/nomessiahsmusic.htm
 
Would this be fixed in 98SE? Or do I have to get XP? Or is there another
option?

Thanks.

MSI KT333 mobo, XP2500+, 512Mb Corsair 3200 RAM, Antec 430W PSU.
Click to expand...

Been there-done that. Was a pain. I built a new system and installed
Win98se on a 160G drive. Even though Win98se didn't complain, it
doesn't work with anything ove a 137G. I found out after I used it for
a couple of days, gave my old computer away and was transferring files
from my old hard drive. I found it on Seagate's web site.

Fdisk didn't want to work on my 120G I replaced it with. I ended up
using Seagate's partitioning tool. Was WAY faster than Win98se fdisk
too.

Go to the home page for your hard drive and get their tools. It'll
take 1/4-1/2 the time fdisk takes. fdisk on my large drive took about
an hour. To be honest, fdisk took so long I just left and checked back
every so often. When I had to repartition the drive I used Seagate's
partition tool. Took less than 10 minutes. I still had to wait for
Win98se to format though. I believe the HD mfg also has format
utilities. I was too .....busy... that's it busy ;-) to use them.
Actually, I was just so pi$$ed that I never even thought about using
them.

Good luck,
Steve

My real email address is dealsgalore[A-T]earthlink.net

http://www.cheap-land.com
 
Steve said:
<<snip>>

Fdisk didn't want to work on my 120G I replaced it with.
Click to expand...

Working on other people's computers, new or messed up, everyday,
I always keep a Windows startup diskette and its image on a CD.
Win98 Fdisk wouldn't properly read the size of a HDD larger than
64GB, but I solved this by replacing the Fdisk exe with one from
WinME.
I ended up using Seagate's partitioning tool. Was WAY faster
than Win98se fdisk too.
Click to expand...

Anything seems to be faster than MS Fdisk. Partition Magic also
works great.
every so often. When I had to repartition the drive I used Seagate's
partition tool. Took less than 10 minutes. I still had to wait for
Win98se to format though. I believe the HD mfg also has format
utilities. I was too .....busy... that's it busy ;-) to use them.
Actually, I was just so pi$$ed that I never even thought about using
them.
Click to expand...

Once you've formatted C:, install Win98SE and format the other
partitions from Windows. The trick is to keep moving your mouse
while formatting. A 30GB partition will full-format in 5 seconds !
Of course, there's no way it could check for bad sectors in that
time, but so far I've never had a bad sector in a new drive.
This trick also works in WinME but not in WinXP.
 
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