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I was able to figure out the main issue after chatgpt referenced boot image related stuff. essentially it was not using the actual modified stuff, because i wasn't providing the .img/.ima base file from beforehand when creating the boot media via the software i was using. i know you did mention about this earlier, but i didn't understand what that meant exactly in my context. for those starting with just the 98SE boot disk iso, you'll need winimage + ultraiso and / or anyburn, but if you already have a stock 98SE boot image in .img form, then all you need is ultraiso i believe. i had chatgpt write a short guide on this, but i'm also providing the boot disk in .ima form already + my modified 98SE boot disk iso already made as attachments for some time so people can download and use / test, though i haven't been able to test the iso one's actual functionality, because i only have unsupported systems at the moment that are incompatible, like "hp 14-dq0054dx" using an external usb optical drive, shows as no fixed drive present, AHCI not loaded, etc. the boot disk doesn't support NTFS. It is essentially stock 98SE boot disk + CTMOUSE, AHCICDA.SYS, HimemX2, JEMM386.EXE, UIDE.SYS, modified autoexec.bat/config.sys/setramd.bat. https://limewire.com/d/Dq2t6#JQjSz1GzN9 SHORT VERSION for creating bootable el torito cd iso using extracted modified files injected into ultraiso + stock 98SE boot disk .ima file: CLEAN SHORT METHOD (what you want) You already have: - Stock Win98SE boot .IMG (good boot sector) - Modified boot files (CONFIG.SYS / AUTOEXEC.BAT / drivers) - ISO content (WIN98 folder / CAB files etc.) STEP 1: Open the .IMG in WinImage and make sure your modified CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT are inside it. Save the .IMG. STEP 2: Open UltraISO. STEP 3: File -> New -> Data CD/DVD Image STEP 4: Drag and drop the Windows 98 CD files into the ISO project: - WIN98 folder - CAB files - SETUP.EXE (if present) STEP 5: Bootable -> Load Boot File Select your modified Win98SE boot .IMG STEP 6: File -> Save As Choose: Standard ISO (*.iso)

I burned the 98SE boot disk iso onto a cd and booted it via internal optical drive ( sata in ide mode ) on the Hp probook 6460b. I have used this method on other computers without problem, of course, almost all of them were much older ( usually no newer than ich6 ) and usually the connection was pure ide, not sata in ide mode.

No, i used various combinations in your "a20alwon" package, all of them produced the same messages i mentioned earlier. these were all with usb legacy checked in bios, and fast boot = off. i also re-tested your "2_1_PREFERRED" method with usb legacy unchecked, but no change. To isolate this better, can you perhaps upload an already made modified ms dos 7.1 boot disk iso for me to test so i can check whether i'm doing something wrong or not? I attached my original 98SE boot disk below ( expires in 1 week ). https://limewire.com/d/ow9JG#U7khgdkRPI

i thought i gave enough information. i dont know what else to do that would be feasible for me, but let me post some more info. as i was discussing back to chatgpt. they specifically mentioned to remove "umb" from the config.sys for the 98SE boot disk iso burned to cd, booted it on hp probook 6460b - selected - start computer with cd rom support, then: error - unable to control a20 line! xms driver not installed. loads a couple cd dos drivers, then ram drive - extended memory manager not present. warning - the high memory area (hma) is not available. additional low memory (below 640 KB) will be used instead. windows 98 startup disk could not create a temporary driver for the diagnostic tools. this may be because this computer has less than the minimum required extended memory. path not found - :\command.com, :\extract.exe, :\readme.txt, bad command or file name, the diagnostic tools were successfully loaded to drive . file not found. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- i tried various combinations below in config.sys DEVICE=HIMEMX2.EXE /MAX=256M /METHOD:ALWAYSON /VERBOSE - didn't work with "umb" omitted from config.sys or device=HIMEMX2.EXE /MAX=256M /METHOD:PORT92 /VERBOSE - didn't work with "umb" omitted from config.sys or device=HIMEMX2.EXE /MAX=256M /METHOD:BIOS /VERBOSE - didn't work with "umb" omitted from config.sys an example file of config.sys i used: [menu] menuitem=CD, Start computer with CD-ROM support. menuitem=NOCD, Start computer without CD-ROM support. menuitem=HELP, View the Help file. menudefault=CD,30 menucolor=7,0 [CD] device=HIMEMX2.EXE /MAX=256M /METHOD:BIOS /VERBOSE device=oakcdrom.sys /D:mscd001 device=btdosm.sys device=flashpt.sys device=btcdrom.sys /D:mscd001 device=aspi2dos.sys device=aspi8dos.sys device=aspi4dos.sys device=aspi8u2.sys device=aspicd.sys /D:mscd001 [NOCD] device=HIMEMX2.EXE /MAX=256M /METHOD:BIOS /VERBOSE [HELP] device=HIMEMX2.EXE /MAX=256M /METHOD:BIOS /VERBOSE [COMMON] files=40 buffers=40 dos=high stacks=9,256 device=ramdrive.sys /E 2048 lastdrive=z ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ i also used xmgr.sys with the following in config.sys: [menu] menuitem=CD, Start computer with CD-ROM support. menuitem=NOCD, Start computer without CD-ROM support. menuitem=HELP, View the Help file. menudefault=CD,30 menucolor=7,0 [CD] device=XMGR.SYS /R device=oakcdrom.sys /D:mscd001 device=btdosm.sys device=flashpt.sys device=btcdrom.sys /D:mscd001 device=aspi2dos.sys device=aspi8dos.sys device=aspi4dos.sys device=aspi8u2.sys device=aspicd.sys /D:mscd001 [NOCD] device=XMGR.SYS /R [HELP] device=XMGR.SYS /R [COMMON] files=40 buffers=40 dos=high stacks=9,256 device=ramdrive.sys /E 2048 lastdrive=z ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ok but also XMS driver could not be loaded / command.com, etc. is that normal too? btw, this isn't same topic but i was wondering if you know whether "patcher9x" package includes all fixes from rloew's patchmem, or does one need to install patchmem before patcher9x in certain situations. patcher9x notes does reference certain portions of adding patchmem, but im not sure if that means everything from it - https://github.com/JHRobotics/patcher9x

Maybe i don't know how to use this package, but i've tried various different methods / options by integrating it with a ms dos 7.1 boot disk ( used poweriso to make replace any files, and click save ), but i always get the unable to control A20 line. I even tested alternative sources like himemx.exe, himemx2.exe, and xmgr.sys ( also renamed as himem.sys ), but all produced the same problems. I am testing on hp probook 6460b laptop. bios is set to IDE mode. also tested with or without usb legacy enabled, currently enabled, no difference. The only other setting that i think could have any effect is the "fast boot" option in bios, currently it is unchecked. the boot disk is of iso form, booting from optical drive ( cd-rw disc ). Installed memory is 4 GB.

Thanks, this helps tremendously, I see that your updated inf from "WIN98SE_ATAPCIBM.ZIP" matches what the original sata.inf from TBPLUS package provides, but also adds some extra device descriptions, so i am using that version renamed to SATA.INF in the TBPLUS package. Since you say the updated ESDI_506.PDR is a prepatched standalone / enhanced version of PATCHSATA, does that mean PATCHSATA is no longer required, since your updated esdi_506.pdr already does what patchsata does but better? Also is the situation similar to windows 95? Lastly, if keeping PATCHSATA, can i also use the older sata.inf with the updated SATA.INF ( renamed one ).

SweetLow, can any of your updated versions work on Windows 95 Osr 2.x? I was thinking i can use the updated ACHI.PDR, the original package of Rloew mentions Windows 95. If i'm not mistaken, ESDI_506.PDR is only relevant when keeping devices in IDE mode when using Sata devices ( requiring also PATCHSATA ), though may require the 1116 version of esdi_506.pdr on WIN95 ( i have not tested ), but the specific version of ESDI_506.PDR becomes irrelevant when switching to AHCI mode and using the ACHI drivers. Can users replace all updated files in your package into the original package of Rloew's files and use in the same way, or are there certain dependencies, like needing certain esdi_506.pdr versions, other updates, etc?

I'm having a hard time finding any clear explanation to how the vcache minfilecache/maxfilecache settings work on windows 9x systems and properly configure them. I have seen vague / limited or conflicting sources on how it works and / or what settings to use for "proper" function. Some sources put a minfilecache far less than the maxfilecache, others like myself put the same amount for both, then there's what appears to be a guideline on not setting the minfilecache to less than 1/24 of usable ram, which is what i also use alongside the same maxfilecache size, and this generally works in terms of not generating as much "strange" errors, but the caching inside windows significantly goes past this, and someone can correct me if im wrong, but it doesn't appear that win9x has a separate "file / system cache", in other words, minfilecache/maxfilecache and system / file cache are essentially the same thing? I also came across something interesting mentioned by rloew in a fairly old post, suggesting that if the maxfilecache is set lower than the internal assigned minfilecache that can be checked in a registry area ( HKEY_DYN_DATA\PerfStats\StatData VCACHE\cMinPages ), then it will not respect the settings. At the same time i was researching this matter, i was discussing this with chatgpt, and they said that even if i used the setting in registry for the internal assigned one for minfilecache, it wouldn't matter, because the vcache function is dynamic and constantly changing. I also came across another post here "https://web.archive.org/web/20100917110735/http://adriansrojakpot.com/Speed_Demonz/Disk_Cache_Optimization/Disk_Cache_Optimization_03.htm", that mentions "But if you set MinFileCache to the same value as MaxFileCache, Win9x would simply ignore it and use the swapfile instead.", which im not sure is accurate or not? Also even if that were correct, that doesn't seem to answer the part on caching overall and why my system's resources quickly deplete with just opening file explorer a few times just after boot, and i'll just assert that my problem is not due to memory leaks, but rather windows aggressively caching, whether dynamically or not, and i dont want aggressive caching. For more clarification on the above, the tested systems had 1/24 of system ram for minfilecache/maxfilecache, with maxphyspage=40000, on cold boot system resources were about 94 percent after a little bit sitting at idle, which makes sense if windows caches roughly 42 MB, and the OS is another 20 MB or so added on top, but as soon as i open file explorer, exit and check resources again, it goes quickly down to 8x percent, and even 7x percent after not too long, though it does go back up to 8x again, but it usually stays a few percent lower than 94 for the remaining time. And then there are programs like cacheman that modify disk cache size, presumably meant for vache settings, but is that any different than just manually editing the system.ini settings yourself, because if not, the program wouldn't really be useful for that area, other than offering some minor convenience, though there is other settings like vfat contiguous / path cache / name cache / read ahead threshold, but even here, it's not clear as to whether or not those tweaks can help if windows already dynamically adjusts these areas with a supposed "optimal" range?

Any updates? Also since we are talking about xnview, i think it's ok to ask about a related thing. Does anyone know if there's an official or unofficial method for getting rid of the file icons showing on the bottom right of thumbnails in windows explorer when xnview is installed on windows 9x / 2K? I know modern os have the option to disable this via folder options by unchecking "display file icon on thumbnails", but it's absent in 2K and older. I asked chatgpt if they know of any solutions but they have concluded that there might not be and / or that the file icon handler part might be baked into the thumbnail part itself.

Ok so fortunately i found a workable route, though the system hasn't gone through rigorous testing, with some important things missing / some apparent bugs, restart issues, etc. Basically i started fresh and used again "YSI_Win2kPro_R3.3_DEV-TEST-processr.iso" obtainable from here "http://static.skver.space/w2k/isos/", but this time before installing, i disabled "multi core" in bios, and used IDE mode instead of AHCI. on setup, i used f5 option "Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) PC )", and wallah, it no longer got stuck at "Setup is starting windows 2000". Right after install though, it stalled out with a loading cursor, i waited a while, then manually shut off the system, and it rebooted normally into desktop to finish up some stuff. Now i won't be able to document all the stuff i did up to this point. But i did want to document this here to help others, and give the assurance that acpi support on modern hardware is more feasible, just that you need to carefully examine your bios very well. in my case, i didnt think multi core setting would matter, but it made all the difference here, though i did have to also use IDE mode as well in particular. I used videoprt.sys 5.0.2195.6833 + acpi.sys 5.1.2600.7777 to get basic functionality from the intel hd 3000 graphics. i had black/blue screen earlier on boot with other videoprt.sys versions. i installed the gpu driver using the executable, link for the gpu driver can be obtained from the following "https://web.archive.org/web/20140830162901/http://w2k.flxsrv.org/cgi-bin/dl.cgi?file=win2k_145111.exe". I do have .net framework 3.5 sp1 installed ( ran setup.cmd to install ) obtainable from blackwingcat's site ( https://win2k.org/wlu/wluen.htm ), but im not sure if that's absolutely required for the gpu to work, it seems to be only for the control panel thing which i did test working. The instability issues im having inside the os though could partially be / indirectly affected by too much usable ram at the moment ( 4 GB installed ), so i plan on limiting this to 2 GB ( boot settings ) and seeing if it helps in any way. Also for those dual booting, you can still re-enable the multi core bios setting later on, but you must immediately go to windows 2000 safe mode right after to disable the exclamation / problematic processor name with also the "unknown device" right underneath it in the same section of device manager, or else the system will become unbootable. For some reason, you dont need to disable the exclamation processor when the "multi core" setting is disabled, though im not sure if the "unknown device" that shows in safe mode is directly because of enabling "multi core" or if it had already existed there when "multi core" setting was disabled.

If you can still answer on the usbser.sys / usbhub.sys version 700x known to be problematic, that would help. yes, most of this ( both acpi and usb related ) is something i have to figure out mainly on my own at this point probably, but it would help to know if i can get another perspective before i do any more modifications. Here is the thread mentioning the usb problematic updates" "

I did look at the thread you linked before all this but it was more on general guidelines on how to integrate the related files and does not really provide any other info. The thing is on the topic of replacing files in sp4.cab / driver.cab, etc, i asked chatgpt on it ( yes, i know chatgpt can be often wrong ), but according to them, they said that it makes most sense to replace the files in all areas they are currently located in ( specifically confirming on sp4.cab/driver.cab ), as well as the "_" versions of the files for wherever they are located, However, there are things where chatgpt may not always tell you unless you ask about it, so it does not mean my approach is correct either, but rather that there may be additional steps i need to do that i haven't done yet. On the HAL switching or whatever, i dont think that is because of incorrect replacement of files, because i also used blackwingcat's iso packages without modifying them and trying the same approach ( standard pc to ACPI PC from device manager ) and it still had the same problems as i had mentioned in my earlier posts. I also tried the vanilla 2K pro sp4 iso you requested ( nothing modified at all ) in exactly the same way as the other routes, ( standard pc to ACPI PC from device manager ) and no difference.

Ok i see you didn't mention different / newer versions for hidusb.sys, usbintel.sys, and usbscan.sys, does that mean i dont need updates for these? Other than that, I do need to request for some other files, for "KB891069" ( usbaudio.sys ), "KB890202" ( usbstor.sys ), and "KB883528" (usbprint.sys ), i cannot extract the files from the package, the .sys files are not there, and only appear to be installed via a windows 2000 system. Can you link these, same for "KB838921 ( usbhub.sys ) and usbser.sys ( unless the vanilla sp4 one is ok ). i actually didnt mention KB838417 for usbser.sys, because from one site, it mentions that this update is listed as problematic, causing BSOD on usb 1 devices, so no to 7006 version?

based off my windows 2000 sp4 iso package ( only "usb.in_" (effectively usb.inf) was modified for the related files, i did not touch anything else in the iso for the following files below ): hidclass.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6655 - yes includes same version, but there's a file with same name in another folder ( driver.cab ) in lowercase that is actually a lower file version at 5.0.2163.1. the reason why i find this important is if i wanted to replace these files with your updated / fixed versions, i want to be sure im replacing them correctly in all appropriate areas, and im not sure if i need to also replace that lower case version too? i know that i also have to replace the "_" versions as well, by creating an extra copy and convert it to that format, such as in the case of "hidclass.sy_", but i dont know if i also need to modify other areas. hidusb.sys - 1999-10-04 - 5.00.2142.1 - same openhci.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6675 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2164.1 uhcd.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6655 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2143.1 usb.inf - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6717 - appears to be the same, driver version 5.00.2195.6717 usbaudio.sys - 1999-10-12 - 5.00.2150.1 - same usbcamd.sys - 1999-09-27 - 5.00.2135.1 - same usbd.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6658 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2147.1 usbehci.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6709 - same usbhub.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6689 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2181.1 usbhub20.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6655 - same usbintel.sys - 1999-09-25 - 5.00.2134.1 - same usbport.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6681 - same usbprint.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6655 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2164.1 usbscan.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6655 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2151.1 usbser.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6655 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2153.1 usbstor.inf - 1999-12-10 - 5.00.2195.1 - could only find "usbstor.in_", once expanded, driver version said 5.00.2183.1 usbstor.sys - 2003-06-19 - 5.00.2195.6655 - same in "sp4.cab", but in "driver.cab", it reads 5.0.2138.1 I may not individually test such updates if i could somehow integrate the necessary files into another custom iso to test, because at the moment, my system isn't bootable anymore and i'd have to start fresh anyways, and so i would rather just make another custom iso to test as the next attempt. The issue would be if any windows updates / unofficial updates would override the files with older / not functional ones, but upon extracting various packages, such as update rollup 1 / uu rollup v11, only the uu rollup v11 ( Windows2000-UURollup-v11-d20141130-x86-ENU ) installs newer hidclass.sys and usbser.sys, so i dont think it would be a problem. Though i ought to check inside those updates you linked for more details. As for vanilla windows 2000 sp4 install with ACPI PC selected, yes, it does the same thing, it hangs at "setup is starting windows 2000".