psaez wrote on 2024-08-27, 11:35:

Hi […]
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Hi

I need to copy a fresh install from a drive from another.

After doing it (including hidden files) selecting all and copying all from a windows 2000 partition... I can't boot windows 98. It tells that NTLDR is missing.

How can this be solved?

Maybe my english is not good enought but i cant understand what you say

You have windows 2000 in one partition, and in another empty you want to copy a windows 98 install from another disk or partition? no problem, just copy all, but you will need to do a sys to make windows 98 booteable, from a floppy or another windows 98 working partition

If you want rid of 2k and have only 98, then likely fdisk /mbr from a 98 dos bootdisk should fix it.

As ever, don't take as gospel someone saying to do fdisk stuff off the web. I think at worst this will make your non-booting system not boot, so a net gain of zero 😀

progman.exe wrote on 2024-08-27, 13:12:

If you want rid of 2k and have only 98, then likely fdisk /mbr from a 98 dos bootdisk should fix it.

I don't think Win2k is writing a functionally different MBR from Win98. The MBR should be OS-agnostic.
What should help is sys c: when booted from Win98 floppy, because the existing boot sector is trying to load NTLDR instead of IO.SYS.

Azarien wrote on 2024-08-27, 13:22:

progman.exe wrote on 2024-08-27, 13:12:

If you want rid of 2k and have only 98, then likely fdisk /mbr from a 98 dos bootdisk should fix it.

I don't think Win2k is writing a functionally different MBR from Win98. The MBR should be OS-agnostic.
What should help is sys c: when booted from Win98 floppy, because the existing boot sector is trying to load NTLDR instead of IO.SYS.

Thank you, doing sys c: worked perfectly

I was trying to copy a w98 install from one disk to other. I used windows 2000 to copy it.

The boot broke when I did that, and now is working with that command.

psaez wrote on 2024-08-27, 13:46:

I was trying to copy a w98 install from one disk to other. I used windows 2000 to copy it.

Just a guess, the target disk had a windows installation (an NT derivative version that uses the NT loader) at some point in the past that was never removed.
Windows 98 wouldn't boot anyway with a simple file copy, making the disk bootable is a necessary step regardless of what was previously on the disk.

konc wrote on 2024-08-27, 15:01:

psaez wrote on 2024-08-27, 13:46:

I was trying to copy a w98 install from one disk to other. I used windows 2000 to copy it.

Just a guess, the target disk had a windows installation (an NT derivative version that uses the NT loader) at some point in the past that was never removed.
Windows 98 wouldn't boot anyway with a simple file copy, making the disk bootable is a necessary step regardless of what was previously on the disk.

And making it bootable is sys c: or the other mbr command commented here?

psaez wrote on 2024-08-27, 15:36:

konc wrote on 2024-08-27, 15:01:

psaez wrote on 2024-08-27, 13:46:

I was trying to copy a w98 install from one disk to other. I used windows 2000 to copy it.

Just a guess, the target disk had a windows installation (an NT derivative version that uses the NT loader) at some point in the past that was never removed.
Windows 98 wouldn't boot anyway with a simple file copy, making the disk bootable is a necessary step regardless of what was previously on the disk.

And making it bootable is sys c: or the other mbr command commented here?

The sys command that was correctly mentioned earlier by Azarien (and also worked 😉 )

Ah, I see where I was a bit wrong, the sys command ..."will install a boot sector capable of booting the operating system into the first logical sector of the volume."
from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SYS_(comm ... kin=vector

I thought sys.com only copied the right files to the destination drive, and that something else was needed for the boot sector. The first post I thought implied all files had been copied and so sys would not be needed, meaning the command has to be fdisk /mbr (or something else). Seems not, but good to hear the machine is now booting.

Sys (or format /s, which is better as different versions have different requirements on the exact sector and/or FAT location of the kernel, and an empty filesystem is the simplest way to guarantee that, while a manual file by file copy pretty much guarantees the opposite) = minimal DOS install = copy io/msdos/command/drvspace according to those limitations (fail otherwise) and write appropriate VBR

Fdisk /mbr = write appropriate MBR, duh (which despite variations over the years, mainly due to translations and LBA support, Microsoft's MBR conceptually still works like in 1982: go out of the way to ensure exactly 1 partition is active, load and run its VBR)

So yes, wanting to find NTLDR is a VBR thing 😀