Format problems

Thread view:

Enable EMail Alerts

Start New Thread

Thread rating:

Yue - 30 Dec 2003 19:13 GMT

I am trying to install Win98 after removing linux from my
system. However, when Scandisk runs, I get the message
saying that it could not read from my hard disk. When I
run fdisk, it says that there is a data flow error with my
hard disk, and when I try to format the hard drive, I get
an error saying that there is insufficient memory for the
operation. Seeing as how I have 512 megs of RAM, I don't
understand how that is possible...

How can I get Win98 onto my system, or get "format" to
work?

Reply to this Message

Richard G. Harper - 31 Dec 2003 01:02 GMT

Check your drive manufacturer's Web site (or the CD/floppy that came with
the drive, if you still have it) for a disk wipe utility. I'm betting
there's leftover Linux on there that FDISK and FORMAT can't handle.

Signature

Richard G. Harper (rgharper@email.com) MVP Win9x
* Please post all messages and replies in the newsgroup so that
* all may benefit. Private mail is usually not replied to.
* Help US Help YOU ... http://www.dts-l.org/goodpost.htm

>I am trying to install Win98 after removing linux from my
> system. However, when Scandisk runs, I get the message
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> How can I get Win98 onto my system, or get "format" to
> work?

Reply to this Message

Mikhail Zhilin - 31 Dec 2003 09:20 GMT

Run:

fdisk /mbr

and see if you can run Fdisk with no parameters after that.
--
Mikhail Zhilin (MS MVP - Win9x)
http://www.aha.ru/~mwz
Sorry, no technical support by e-mail.
Please reply to the newsgroups only.
======

>I am trying to install Win98 after removing linux from my
>system. However, when Scandisk runs, I get the message
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
>How can I get Win98 onto my system, or get "format" to
>work?

Reply to this Message

cquirke (MVP Win9x) - 31 Dec 2003 17:36 GMT

On Tue, 30 Dec 2003 11:13:42 -0800, "Yue"

There may be multiple problems here...

>I am trying to install Win98 after removing linux from my
>system. However, when Scandisk runs, I get the message
>saying that it could not read from my hard disk.

If the HD geometry is incorrect in CMOS, or was at the time the HD was
partitioned and formatted (by Linux?), you may find Scandisk surface
scan finds a solid wad of "bad clusters" at the end of the volume.
This bedevils Scandisk's "fix" strategy, which is to copy the contents
to the end of the volume, but that shouldn't apply as the clusters
should be empty (so that Scandisk just marks them Bad).

OTOH, bad clusters that are NOT in a solid wad extending to the end of
the last volume on the HD are true surface defects, and are nature's
way of telling you your HD is dying. Listen up.

>When I run fdisk, it says that there is a data flow error with my
>hard disk,

Clarify that? It's not the words I've seen FDisk use in the past; are
you translating from a language other than English?

>and when I try to format the hard drive, I get an error saying
>that there is insufficient memory for the operation.

OK; now that is a different (and trivial) problem.

FAT32 volumes have larger File Allocation Tables that require the
Scandisk (and Format?) utilities to use extended memory (XMS), which
in turn requires HiMem.sys to be loaded from Config.sys

>Seeing as how I have 512 megs of RAM, I don't
>understand how that is possible...

It's a DOS memory management thing. DOS was originally limited by the
IBM design, which placed system ROMs between address 640k and 1M, thus
breaking DOS's requirement for contiguous memory (which in any case
was limited to a potential maximum 1088k addressability by the
processors that were in use when DOS was written).

In the 286 era, HiMem.sys was added to provide access to High memory
(the first 64k after 1M) and eXtended memory (XMS) beyond that.

In the 386 era, Emm386.exe was added to emulate Expanded Memory
Services (EMS) and provide access to Upper memory Blocks (UMB) that
lie between ROMs in the 640k to 1M address range.

To manage FAT32 file systems from DOS mode, you need at least
HiMem.sys; you don't need Emm386 or DOS=High.

>------------------------------------ ---- --- -- - - - -

I hated going to weddings. All the grandmas would
poke me saying "You're next". They stopped that
when I started doing it to them at funerals.

>------------------------------------ ---- --- -- - - - -

Reply to this Message