Conflicting FAT32 Detection

  • Thread starter Thread starter Francis J. Courtien
  • Start date Start date
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Francis J. Courtien

I'm preparing to go from Windows 98 SE to XP Pro via a full install. I
did a full tape backup and created a new Windows 98 startup diskette
just in case. When I tested both the startup diskette, and the boot
floppy that goes with the tapes, I get the following error message:

"Windows 98 has detected that drive C does not contain a valid FAT or
FAT32 partition"

Results of fdisk/status command shows 1 HDD with 30G but no drive
letters are listed.

Here's where I'm at:

- I get the same results with other boot floppies from: older Windows 98
startup diskettes, Norton anti-virus, Norton emergency, Western Digital
tools.

- I can boot normally into Windows 98 and everything is ok. Properties
on each drive letter C and D shows they're FAT32.

- Restart in MS-DOS mode is ok. I see the Windows folder on drive C when
I do a dir command. I see the 1 HDD listed and the 2 drive letters
listed when I enter fdisk/status.

- In the BIOS, I reset the HDD detection from User to Auto (Note: It
switches back to User anyway). During all boots, I see the following
(I'm abbreviating):
Hard disk - primary master: cyl-58168, heads-16, sector-63,
size-30022mb, lba mode-lba, 32 bit mode-off, block mode-16 sec, pio
mode-4, vdma mode-4.

My question is:

Do I have a hardware or BIOS problem that I need to resolve before
installing XP, or is it a Windows 98 software problem that I may, or may
not, need to resolve at this point ?

Thanks !
 
Francis J. Courtien said:
I'm preparing to go from Windows 98 SE to XP Pro via a full install. I
did a full tape backup and created a new Windows 98 startup diskette
just in case. When I tested both the startup diskette, and the boot
floppy that goes with the tapes, I get the following error message:

"Windows 98 has detected that drive C does not contain a valid FAT or
FAT32 partition"

Results of fdisk/status command shows 1 HDD with 30G but no drive
letters are listed.

Here's where I'm at:

- I get the same results with other boot floppies from: older Windows 98
startup diskettes, Norton anti-virus, Norton emergency, Western Digital
tools.

- I can boot normally into Windows 98 and everything is ok. Properties
on each drive letter C and D shows they're FAT32.

- Restart in MS-DOS mode is ok. I see the Windows folder on drive C when
I do a dir command. I see the 1 HDD listed and the 2 drive letters
listed when I enter fdisk/status.

- In the BIOS, I reset the HDD detection from User to Auto (Note: It
switches back to User anyway). During all boots, I see the following
(I'm abbreviating):
Hard disk - primary master: cyl-58168, heads-16, sector-63,
size-30022mb, lba mode-lba, 32 bit mode-off, block mode-16 sec, pio
mode-4, vdma mode-4.

My question is:

Do I have a hardware or BIOS problem that I need to resolve before
installing XP, or is it a Windows 98 software problem that I may, or may
not, need to resolve at this point ?
Click to expand...

are you using a drive overlay?
if so...you cannot boot directly with a floppy...
you need to select from the menu.
 
If you're doing a full install anyway, why don't you delete all the
partitions and let XP recreate them? That way they'll be clean.

I also agree with the previous poster -- it sounds like perhaps overlay
software.

Tom
 
I don't think so but how can I confirm ?

Thanks
are you using a drive overlay?
if so...you cannot boot directly with a floppy...
you need to select from the menu.
Click to expand...
 
If you're doing a full install anyway, why don't you delete all the
partitions and let XP recreate them? That way they'll be clean.
Click to expand...
I also agree with the previous poster --
it sounds like perhaps overlay software.
Click to expand...

But it may be necessary for the system to see the boot drive.

So he cant necessarily just delete it and start over with XP.
 
Rod Speed said:
But it may be necessary for the system to see the boot drive.

So he cant necessarily just delete it and start over with XP.
Click to expand...
You may have a drive overlay program installed. The boot diskette has to
have the overlay program to see the HD.

Mike.
 
As long as the CD drive boots the install CD, XP doesn't care if there are
any partitions. How else would you deal with a new drive?

Tom
 
Francis J. Courtien said:
I don't think so but how can I confirm ?
Click to expand...


if you are using a drive overlay
you;d initially see a message such as:

drive controlled by ez bios

hit <control> to boot with floppy

( i forgot the exact wording...but it would be some fairly obvious message)
 
As long as the CD drive boots the install CD,
XP doesn't care if there are any partitions.
Click to expand...

Yes, but it wont necessarily see the whole of the boot
drive if the bios has a problem with larger drives.
How else would you deal with a new drive?
Click to expand...

Separate issue entirely to the use of bios
overlays so the bios can see all the boot drive.
 
As long as the CD drive boots the install CD, XP doesn't care if there are
any partitions. How else would you deal with a new drive?
Click to expand...

I think if the computer is new enough to be able to boot from the CD-ROM,
that any DDO wouldn't matter since XP doesn't need them. The OP might
want to run the Upgrade Advisor to make sure his computer will work with
XP though,
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/howtobuy/upgrading/advisor.asp

Then just try booting from the CD and watch how the installer is able to
see the system drive.
 
Problem solved. Go Back 3.0 Personal Edition, part of Norton System
Works 2002, was causing the problem. Here's the workaround for booting
off a floppy and detecting the FAT32 on the HDD:

1.) Boot with a current rescue disk created with an up-to-date (Live
Update'd) version of Norton
2.) Run the Norton Rescue Disk Recovery command
3.) Accept the partition table fix it detects as being needed
4.) Reboot with the desired other boot floppy and use the HDD as needed
5.) When Windows 98 starts up normally next time, re-enable Go Back as
prompted
6.) Repeat as needed from #1 since this is a toggling of sorts back and
forth between accessing the HDD via floppy in an emergency, and having
Go Back enabled as normal.

I eliminated the cause as being the suspected disk overlay / DDO via the
following articles:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;186057&Product=w98

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;245162&Product=w98

I re-confirmed that the BIOS and the associated HDD settings were using
LBA mode which seemed to negate DDO. I guess they're mutually exclusive ?

What's unclear is that under #5 above, Go Back detects that the "Go Back
MBR Modified" by some other utility, in this case Norton. When Go Back
is enabled vs. being uninstalled or canceled, it proceeds to "fix"
things. But via #3 above, Norton detects that of the 3 items it checks
for "damage", it's the partition table info. that is damaged, not the
other 2 items: boot records and CMOS info. ?

Thanks !
 
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