Upgrading From Windows 95 To Windows 98

Home > Tips & Tweaks > Back Up Some Files> Upgrading From Windows 95 To Windows 98

Upgrading From Windows 95 To Windows 98

Upgrading From Windows 95: The 5 Step Process

Windows 98 Setup will run differently depending upon whether you are upgrading from Windows 95, or another operating system. This article is specific to an upgrade from the Windows 95 operating system.

Very little user input is required to upgrade an existing Windows 95 installation to Windows 98. Setup is divided up into 5 distinct steps:

STEP 1:Preparing To Run The Setup Wizard

1 - When you first insert the Windows 98 Upgrade CD into your CD-ROM drive, if Autorun is enabled on your PC, the Windows 98 Setup Splash screen appears to welcome you to the Windows 98 Setup program. Click the "Continue" button. Setup will then perform a few internal housekeeping items, such as creating a "Setuplog.txt" file on your C:\ drive that will record all the steps that the program performs. You can use this log to troubleshoot setup problems should they occur. Another operation that is performed at this time is a check to make sure all virus scanning software is disabled. If Windows 98 Setup detects a virus checking software program running, it will advise you to disable it before continuing with the setup.

2 - Next, you will see a dialog box with a progress bar informing you that Windows 98 is loading the "Setup Wizard" that will guide you through the rest of the installation process.

STEP 2: Collecting Information About Your Computer

1 - When the Setup Wizard has completed loading, you will be presented with a standard Microsoft License agreement. Take the time to read this agreement, since by clicking the "I agree" radio button, you become legally bound to that contract.

2 - Setup then requires you to enter the 20 character Product ID code. This ID can be found on the back of the CD sleeve.

3 - After entering the Product ID code, you will see a "Checking System" dialog box. Behind the scenes, Setup is running Scandisk to detect any disk problems with your hard drive.

4 - The next dialog box displayed is "Initializing Your System." Setup is initializing your system registry, checking the current settings for all hardware devices attached to your system.

5 - The "Preparing Directory" dialog box lets you know that Setup is preparing the directory (usually C:\Windows) where it will install Windows 98 to, and also validating that enough disk space is available to complete the installation.

6 - Setup will then give you the opportunity to save your existing Windows 95 system files. Choose "Yes" for this option, if you need the ability to uninstall Windows 98 and revert back to your current Windows 95 system. Choosing "No" will install Windows 98 without the option of uninstalling it at a later date, and will not preserve your existing Windows 95 settings.

7 - The "Regional Settings" dialog box let's you choose your geographic area.

8 - The "Create Startup Disk" dialog box prompts you to label a formatted 3.5" diskette into the diskette drive, so that Setup can create and Emergency Startup Disk for you. This used to be optional during Windows 95 setup, however, Windows 98 setup requires you to create a diskette.

9 - After the creation of the startup diskette, Windows 98 Setup prepare to load all the source files onto your computer.

STEP 3: Copying Windows 98 Files To Your Computer

1 - After Setup has collected the information it needs from you and your computer, it starts transferring the Windows 98 files to your computer. During this phase, Windows 98 Setup does not require any user input. A progress bar is displayed to show you the percentage of the task completed, and the approximate time remaining to complete the setup operation.

CAUTION: Do not interrupt file copying. If Setup is interrupted during the file-copying phase, Windows 98 may not run when you restart your computer because Windows 98 will not have all of the necessary files to start. If you interrupt Setup during this phase, you must run Setup again.

STEP 4: Restarting Your Computer

1 - After Setup finishes transferring the needed Windows 98 system files to your system, you are prompted to restart your computer. You do not have to reply to this dialog box, since the restart will automatically occur in 15 seconds.

2 - When the computer restarts, you'll see a splash screen that says "Getting ready to start Windows 98 for the first time." During this operation, Windows 98 is validating that the files it installed are correct.

STEP 5: Setting Up Hardware and Finalizing Settings

1- After Setup restarts your computer for the first time, Windows 98 then detects the hardware you have installed on your computer. This is very different from the Windows 95 Setup, where detecting your computer's devices occurred prior to the file copy phase of Setup. Performing hardware detection after restarting your computer is more reliable and less likely to create problems that cause the computer to stop responding.

2 - After hardware detection, Windows 98 configures the Control Panel, Programs on the Start menu, the Windows Help System, MS-DOS program settings, adjusts installed programs so they launch faster, sets your time zone and saves the new system configuration.

3 - When Setup finishes setting up hardware and adjusting your system configuration settings, Setup restarts your computer for the second time. When the computer restarts, it builds a driver information database, and sets up personalized settings for the Internet Explorer 4 browsing software, Start menu, Online services, Volume Control, and Channels.

4 - When you see the "Welcome to Windows 98" dialog box congratulate yourself on a successful upgrade.

Back To Tips Homepage