Windows 2000 Professional on the Z97 Platform

[bluebolt]

I tested W2k Pro installation using an MSI Z97 PC Mate (LGA 1150) motherboard with an Intel i7-4790K CPU in the socket, and 4 x 2GB G.SKILL DDR3 1600 RAM (F3-12800CL9Q-8GBZL).

 

I ran the HFSLIP package provided by tomasz86.  Then I used nLite to integrate Intel’s August 2013 chipset installation INF and blackwingcat’s 8.9d AHCI SATA drivers (for the Series 9 processor), and to create the OS ISO, which I burned to CD.

 

As an experiment, I left the onboard serial port at its default setting (enabled); as expected, installation stalled at the message, “Setup is starting Windows 2000,” so I disabled the COM port (BIOS / Settings / Advanced / Super IO) and proceeded to a new attempt.

 

This worked, no surprise (based on previous experience with the Z87), and W2k Pro completed the text-mode phase of installation.

 

Next up was “Windows 2000 Professional Setup”: “Installing Devices”: “Setup is detecting and installing devices on your computer,” and a progress bar, which dead-stalled approximately a third of the way there.  I eventually forced off the computer.

 

Returning to the BIOS, I disabled Parallel Port and proceeded to a new attempt.  This time, W2k Pro finished “Installing Devices” and, once again, the game was afoot (evidently many of the problems associated with using W2k Pro on modern hardware can be taken care of by disabling extraneous onboard peripherals).

 

From there, Windows 2000 Professional presented the same problem as on previous Intel motherboard iterations, in that there is no USB function until you use your (PS/2) keyboard and Device Manager to direct the system to other USB drivers.  However, with the Z97 no “Series 9” USB driver presented during this step; instead, the system started out with “Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller” (but still no USB function), so I tried:

 

          -Generic USB Hub

          -Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller

          -USB 2.0 Root Hub

          -USB Root Hub

          -Standard Open HCD PCI to USB

 

Finally I returned to letting Windows Update have its try, and it still wanted Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller.  It was quite a roundabout process, but by some combination of these, positive USB function was eventually obtained.  Maybe experience will smooth out the sequence, but wow, practically had to beat the thing into submission…

 

Everything seems to work fine.  Remaining Problem Devices don’t amount to much: SM Bus Controller, Universal Serial Bus (USB) Controller, PCI Bus.  I’ll see how things work once the software is installed.

 

Incidentally, I also ran an alternate test without Intel’s Chipset Installation Utility drivers, instead putting BWC’s custom Intel Matrix Storage Manager 7.6 Series 9 and INF chipset cabinet files in the HFCABS folder of HFSLIP, before using nLite to add BWC’s 8.9d AHCI driver.  The resulting OS install turned out the same, except BWC’s doesn’t nag about the problem devices at every boot-up.

 

Edited April 1, 2015 by bluebolt

[AnX]

Why not enable HT technology? Won't hurt to try.

[bluebolt]

Tested previously on Z77 and the marks took a nosedive.  Tomasz86 had warned me about that with W2k Pro…though I think BWC did report higher performance with HT however in one of his configurations.

 

The Z97 is just back from service, so I haven’t had the chance to do much else with it yet (of course it konked right in the middle of testing null “drivers” that Fernando was writing for it, so hopefully I can get that back on track, as I would prefer to de-list even the inconsequential “problem” devices). 

 

I would like to see some numbers with and without PAE, and when I test I’ll try HT as well and post those; like you say, won’t hurt to try.

[bluebolt]

I tested using CrystalMark 2004R3 Portable, SuperPi, and 7-Zip Benchmark.  I tested with hyper-threading disabled (4CPU) and with HT enabled (8CPU).  I tested with and without Physical Address Extension.  No special tuning on the system, not even installed in a chassis, didn’t touch the clock (turbo mode put it at 4.2 GHz).

 

In whatever configuration, SuperPi results were all about the same (e.g. 8.56 seconds to calculate Pi to a million digits), like so:

 

 

 

With or without PAE (7-Zip would not work with HT enabled), 7-Zip results were about the same (e.g. 18,481), like so:

 

 

 

The best CrystalMark top-line score was 405,077 with PAE enabled:

 

 

 

Not quite as good without PAE:

 

 

 

And substantially worse with HT enabled:

 

Edited May 12, 2015 by bluebolt

[AnX]

Win2k runs fine with a native 8 core CPU  (like the FX-8350). I wonder what's the deal with HTT.

[bluebolt]

As it turns out, to quickly obtain USB function with the 9-Series we first make Device Manager install the Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controllers.  From there, use Windows Update in Device Manager to install the other USB drivers as it wants (seems ironic that the Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controllers don’t show up in Device Manager when all is done).  Now this process is actually faster than doing the 8-Series or 7-Series (tidbit:  any time you run Intel’s chipset installation utility on the 7- or 8-Series you have to go through the USB install process all over again, but not so with the 9-Series).

 

The rest of the news is not so good.

 

I re-tested using a Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3P motherboard, and there is a problem, as it stops at “Setup is starting Windows 2000.”  We’ve seen this before, but here I’d already disabled the serial COM port, the parallel port, and every other suspect I could get my hands on.

 

I thought the problem was the new M.2 interface.  The MSI board I originally tested on did not have an M.2 port.

 

I tested again, this time using Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3 (which is like the GA-Z97-HD3P but without m.2 or SATA Express ports) -- but it still wouldn’t get past “Setup is starting Windows 2000.”

 

W2k Pro does install in Standard PC mode, whoop-de-do, though this at least provides a look at a completed installation:

 

 

The “PCI Device” listing is just the SMBus.  The real problems are whatever W2k is misreading as a FDD and a PS/2 mouse.  Too bad.

Edited June 4, 2015 by bluebolt

[AnX]

I really wonder what's the deal with the Windows NT4/2000 MPS kernel that causes these problems. On my ASUS M5A99FX Pro r2.0 win2k installed with all USB devices working (this is an AMD board mind you) and same with my mom's ASUS X200CA laptop. It seems ASUS (and MSI presumably) are the go-to brands for Win2k Support IMO.

[AnX]

Perosnally i think Win2k is best off on AMD CPU platforms. The classic chipset layout + real cores are what helps.

[bluebolt]

Several members here have reported that W2k Pro installs better on AMD hardware, and at moments like this I find that easy to believe.

 

Intel is practically no help at all, and it’s sickening that MS has to discombobulate existing hardware and existing software and practically any extant alternative in order to sell its latest OS.

 

Then again, I watched a recent newegg video with a couple of guys from Intel talking about their latest SSDs (the 750 series), and how you would need to “play with” Windows 7 for it to work in even a “limited fashion” with that hardware.  So they may also not be far from the last generation of Intel hardware that will even take a full-fledged Windows 7 install.

Edited June 4, 2015 by bluebolt

[AnX]

AMD retains a more compatible platform overall, and is less expensive, which benefits consumers more. Intel may have the latest tech but they like to lock out OSes. Windows 8.x is an atrocity IMO.

Edited June 4, 2015 by AnX

[AnX]

However AMD's Radeon is a different story. For graphics nVidia is the best in backwards compatibility by far.

Thing is Intel uses a newer layout which could potentially confuse Win2k. AMD still uses the old northbridge/HT link system which hasn't ever caused problems with Windows 2000.

Edited June 4, 2015 by AnX

[James.H]

Hello bluebolt.

Long time passed since 2015, when you tried install Windows 2000 on Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3 and GA-Z97-HD3P . Did you manage to install Windows 2000

on any of them?

I tried to install on Windows 2000 on Gigabyte GA-Z97-D3H . It has M.2 and COM. COM disabled on BIOS settings, but instillation stops at “Setup is starting Windows 2000.” If I press F5 and select "Standard PC" I can install Windows and it works. Of course see I see only one processor's core.

After that installed Gurgelmeyer's USP5 (Windows 2000 Unofficial SP 5.1.2195) , Windows 2000 SP4 Update Rollup 2 and BlackWingCat Extended Kernel Windows 2000 KB 935839 v30e x86 ENU . After that on Windows device manager tried to change processor driver from "Standard PC" into "ACPI Multiprocessor PC" . Sorry, but after restart got blue screen.

One more problem - for SATA can't use AHCI. Windows 2000 installed when on BIOS for SATA selected IDE mode. When on BIOS selected AHCI and loaded driver version 11.2.0.1006 , selected VEN_8086&DEV_8C82&CC (Intel(R) SATA AHCI Controller DEV_8C82 added by Fernando) during instillation got message "Insufficient memory for nvgts2.sys" .
On your screenshot with device manager I see that you installed AHCI (Intel(R) 9 Series Chipset Family SATA AHCI Controller) , What is driver version here?

Motherboard works with standard Windows XP. There have ACPI Multiprocessor PC. Windows XP also can't install when selected AHCI (see the same message) .
Motherboard perfectly works on W7 x86. Perfectly works when selected AHCI, IDE and RAID.

What is final result with MSI Z97 PC Mate? There works everything? Can you write which drivers you used when installed this board? Can you recommend few  Haswell, Broadwell boards, where Windows 2000 can be installed more easy?

What is the latest Intel chipset, where you managed to install Windows 2000? 

Please share your experience. Thank you in advance.

[bluebolt]

Hi James, I made no further attempts on the Gigabyte boards; XP 32-bit runs really well on them, so that's where those have long stood.  Likewise, I moved my MSI Z97 PC Mate on to other things way back.  The driver I used was BWC’s 8.9d AHCI; I don't think driver version 11.2.0.1006 will work on W2K Pro, although it works fine with XP on my Gigabyte boards.  I don't know why it does not work on your Gigabyte board.

The trick with W2K Pro and AHCI is using an installation disc that has BWC's Extended Kernel integrated, thus the HFSLIP package tomasz86 made.  Though layering BWC's kernel versions is not ideal, after installation you can update to a newer Extended Kernel version.

The latest chipset I tried with Windows 2K Pro is the ASRock X99, where all is well.  I have a couple of huge Lian Li PC-V1000L cases moving lots of air with different operating systems on individual NVMe and SSD drives.  If I want to change operating systems I just power up, stop at the BIOS and make my selection.

If I try the Z97 again it will probably be on a ASRock Z97 Anniversary board that is currently running XP Pro 64-bit.  I very much like that platform and miss not having a Windows 2000 Professional operating system there.  I would also like to attempt post-facto switch over from IDE to AHCI to avoid running one extended kernel version atop another.