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If Something Goes Wrong

Windows 98 Second Edition is not working

Other problems may involve a device driver. See Windows 98 Second Edition can help you on page 186 to fix the problem.

TECHNICAL NOTE: Windows 98 Second Edition automatically starts in Safe mode if it detects that system startup failed or the Registry (the file that defines how Windows 98 Second Edition is set up) is corrupted.

Step-by-step confirmation

When you turn on your computer, Windows 98 Second Edition processes the startup files. With Step-by-step confirmation, the system asks you to confirm each line of the startup process once it appears.

Use this option when:

The startup process fails while loading the startup files

You need to verify all drivers are being loaded

You need to temporarily disable one or more specific driver(s)

You need to check for errors in the startup files

Windows 98 Second Edition uses a file called IO.SYS, which contains all the information needed to start the computer. Although your computer does not need the Config.Sys and Autoexec.Bat files to start, it does process these files to support backward compatibility with some programs and device drivers. The same holds true for the System.Ini and Win.Ini files.

TECHNICAL NOTE: Programs and devices that are backward compatible are designed to work with older operating systems and other programs. For example, many features of Windows 98 Second Edition are backward compatible with earlier versions of Windows. This lets you use older programs with Windows 98 Second Edition.