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Go to the CD-ROM God Web site to make a floppy boot disk that will let you access the CD-ROM from DOS.
   technofile
Al Fasoldt's reviews and commentaries, continuously available online since 1983

The basics of reinstalling Windows, Part 2: Make a boot floppy that really works


Oct. 17, 1999

By Al Fasoldt
Copyright ©1999, Al Fasoldt
Copyright ©1999, The Syracuse Newspapers

   Note: The CD-ROM God software link has been changed to a working link.

   Backing up files and other stuff you created is the first step when you want to reinstall Windows. I explained this in detail last week. There's another thing you have to do before you ever touch the Windows installation CD, so read the next part carefully.
   You have to make sure you can access your CD-ROM drive after booting up from a floppy disk. Before you can reinstall Windows properly, you have to wipe out all the files on the computer's hard drive, and that means Windows will get wiped out, too.
   Windows has no problem accessing your CD, but with Windows gone, your CD might as well be missing, too. And if you can't get at the files on the Windows installation CD -- if you don't have a floppy disk that lets you boot the computer and get at the CD-ROM drive -- you're sunk.
   Most PCs do not come with floppy boot disks that let you access the CD-ROM drive. Most PC users never create a CD-ROM boot floppy because they don't realize they need one. Some recent PCs don't need such disks, so all is not lost if you're lucky enough to own a relatively new PC that can boot from a CD-ROM -- and if you have the full Windows 98 installation CD.
   There are a lot of "ifs" in that scenario, so let's go back and look at the basic problem.
   Older PCs are brain-dead when it comes to CD-ROMs. They don't know what to do with them. They need special help from the operating system. They need CD-ROM drivers (computer instructions that tell it how to work with a device). If these drivers are not correctly installed on a floppy boot disk, the CD-ROM is locked out.
   Newer PCs often get around this problem by knowing how to start up from a bootable CD-ROM disk. Most CD-ROM disks are not bootable, but the full Windows 98 installation CD usually is. If you have Windows 98 and a fairly new PC, put the Windows 98 CD into the drive and reboot. If the installation program starts, you can relax. Move on to "The next step is so obvious" below.
   If your PC can't boot from a CD-ROM, you need to locate a floppy boot disk that has proper CD-ROM drivers. There are hundreds of possible driver files, so I can't tell you which ones to use. But someone else can. Download the latest version of the CD-ROM God software. Install the software. It should create a floppy booter that lets you access your PC's CD-ROM drive.
   The next step is so obvious that many users overlook it. Locate all the logons and passwords you use and write them down on a piece of paper. (You don't want them stored on your computer. You're going to wipe out all the files on the computer.) If you have forgotten any passwords but can still see them displayed as asterisks, get a program that displays the passwords behind the asterisks. It's Snadboy's Revelation, free from http://www.snadboy.com/.
   You've made your backups, made sure you can boot from a floppy and get at the CD-ROM and written down your logon and password information. Now you can start the reinstallation.
   Boot up from the floppy. You'll be running DOS. Type FORMAT C: and press the Enter key. Type Y and press Enter when you are asked if you really want to do this. After the format is complete, put the Windows installation CD into the CD-ROM drive. Then type the letter of your CD-ROM drive -- it could be D, E, F or G, or maybe a higher letter -- followed by a colon. Press Enter. If you don't get an error message, you're OK.
   Type SETUP and press Enter. Windows will start the installation. Be sure to choose "Custom" (or the option that allows you to make your own choices, whatever it may be called) when you install Windows.