ME: how can i execute the setup with 2GB's of RAM?

[Joaquim]

how can i execute the Windows ME setup with 2GB's of RAM?

my problem is when i do the command 'setup', nothing happpens... only black screen

Edited September 2, 2022 by Joaquim

[awkduck]

You'll probably want to make sure that the Blackscreen is actually a 2GB ram issue. Otherwise, you could end up with the problem returning later. Though, it might be the problem. If it isn't, the problem may not show up again, possibly relating only to setup.

If for the install you cannot "Physically" or thru "Bios" reduce the memory to 512MB of ram, you can place the harddrive in a different PC. Then finish the setup, configure or patch WinME with boot to dos option, unzip Rloew's Patchmem somewhere, boot to dos, and then run the patch. At that point you can return the harddrive to the 2GB machine. Allow it to boot and configure itself to the new hardware . If the memory patch is overwritten, during some update, boot to dos and run the patch again.

You can also use Virtualbox, but then you need to decide how to transfer the system to the physical harddrive. With one method, you could zip the entire drive, preserving file attributes and ensuring hidden files copy. Make a pendrive WinME Dos bootable, copy the zipped system and a unzipping program to the same pendrive, boot the 2GB machine with the pendrive, unzip the system to the harddrive, and then run "sys c:" (C: will actually probably need to be D:).

You would have to decide how you would get the file from the VirtualBox disk image. Maybe mount the disk image and copy the file, FTP transfer, http upload, install VirtualBox Guest Extentions(mapped network drive), or over VirtualBox usb -> Pendrive. I think some decompression programs extract ISO's and certian disk images. I don't know if I would recommend setting up any drivers, while in virtual box. USB could be pesky, when transferring to another system. 

If you use "vboxmanage" you can convert the disk image to other formats. You could then use a system clone/rescue boot CD/USB and clone/restore the image to the physical harddrive. You just have to make sure the image is converted to a type supported by the restore system. Depending on the restore method used, you might have to use some kind of partition tool (Live Gparted maybe?) so that you can expand the partition to the actual size of the harddrive.

I have never tried this, but there are dos programs to create a ramdrive. Maybe you could make a 1.5GB ramdrive from Autoexec.bat. There are also programs that just fill the ram. Maybe then Windows would let you continue, since it can only make use of 512MB. This method would require that you install a prior Windows Dos, then copy the WinME setup files, and run them from the harddrive.

There are more ways. Maybe easier ways. These are just some of the ones I've more recently used, over the last six months. However, not for WinME. I haven't installed that, since the first time I ever installed it. And that was back when it's stock IE stilled worked fine, for everything.

[Joaquim]

the disk was damage.. thank you so much for all

i did more tests

[Molly Dawn]

for emulation I recommend 86box as its a LLE and thus better suited set it to emulate a pentium 150 with 128mb ram and install to a .IMG (raw) disk. then just use a usb 'burning' tool that supports dos mode MBR booting and burn the .img to a physical HDD.  obiously that would require an OS to be installed on the system, but you could always use a 30 day trial (dont enter a cd key) of win 7 on a different hdd just to boot the machine and run 86box to do the install and then burn the image to the HDD you actually plan to use.  complicated yes, but it does work.

[awkduck]

2 hours ago, Molly Dawn said:

thus better suited set it to emulate a pentium 150 with 128mb ram

This is a good point, Molly Dawn.

The version of VirtualBox I use is from the 4.x series. I use the PIIX3 chipset. I have no idea if the newer versions of VirtualBox include that option. I also forgot to mention, I configure VirtualBox to the minimal hardware configuration. It isn't probably important. But it prevents Windows from detecting uneeded hardware.

2 hours ago, Molly Dawn said:

just use a usb 'burning' tool that supports dos mode MBR booting

This reminded me, Grub4Dos can boot IMG and VHD harddisk images. That would be another way to copy the system over. You could even run the system booted via the image, and still have access to the entire physical harddisk. But, you would be running over Int13. It might be possible to do this with Grub2. Its been awhile since I've looked into it.

3 hours ago, Molly Dawn said:

complicated yes, but it does work

Some of us certainly seem to be, Masochists. :)