Re: NO ROM BASIC, System halted

On Sun, 10 Sep 2006 05:01:55 GMT, pmj commented


"Ali" <ali.on.usenet@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:Xns9839C29CD1364314159265358@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
<snip>

Having got the Long File Name utilities onto the hard drive I've
been moving stuff around, so that even if SETUP decides to trash
the partition, there'll be no great loss.

Then I ran scandisk on the logical dirves on the big disk: there's
an invalid long file name on one of the data partitions, but it is
otherwise OK.

That may just be cos the File *Path* is too long for MSDOS?

I know that ScanDisk chucks up that Error quite a bit, cos many
windoze file Paths can be quite long (longer than is Valid for MSDOS)

That's a possibilitity.

<big snip>

This time during or after the POST, a new message came up (it had
also come up at the same point when all this started). it said
Pri Master HDD Error
Run SETUP
Press F1 to Resume

So, was that Message from the *BIOS* then?

Presumably; it was white on black like the POST messages.

& which "SETUP" is it referring to?
If it *is* a BIOS Message, (which it sounds like it is, cos I don't
recognise that as being an MSDOS or windoze Message) then I think
that means Run the BIOS Setup Utility (i.e. During the POST, Press DEL
or F2 or whatever Key is the one to get into the BIOS.

I pressed F1

Yep - that "Press F1 to Continue" is the classic Message from a BIOS,
when it "HALTS" on an Error...

... and it tried to boot from floppy,

Yep, cos "Continue" in this case, means continue Booting up, using
whatever other Boot Device is available (next in Priority), since it
tried to Boot from the HDD (Hard Disk Drive) & couldn't & the Floppy
was the next thing for it to try.

... but reported Not Found; then booted from CD (pasing throuh two
menus on the way.

I take it that those were the normal w98 CD Boot Menus then?

Microsoft Windows 98 CD-ROM Startup Menu
========================================
1. Boot from Hard Disk
2. Boot from CD-ROM

Then, (if you Choose Boot from CD-ROM)...

Microsoft Windows 98 Startup Menu
=================================
1. Start Windows 98 Setup from CD-ROM
2. Start Computer with CD-ROM Support
3. Start Computer without CD-ROM Support
Yes, pressing 2 a both menus

... The dodgy HDD wasn't visible to DOS,

Well, it *should* have been, when Booted up off the CD like that!
But obviously not if the BIOS had probs reading it.

... so I changed the boot order so the CD came first, and booted
into DOS from it.

So it sounds like sometimes the BIOS *does* recognise it & sometimes
the BIOS doesn't? - So (when it doesn't) you were getting the Option
to Boot from CD, (if there's a Bootable CD in the Drive), but you only
got that Option when the Hard Disk wasn't being recognised.
(& when there wasn't any (Bootable) CD (or Floppy) either, then it
just gave up & gives that "NO ROM BASIC, System Halted" Error.

That's right


But now, with the CD set to be above the Hard Disk in the BIOS Boot
Order Settings (which is prolly the best (& most usual) way to have
it Set), you now can always get the Option to Boot from CD, if you want,
just by putting a Bootable CD in the CD ROM Drive.

... This time the the HDD was visible, and I'm busy copying files
around to get them off the dodgy disk. When I've done that, I'll
try running SETUP, like the message said.

I think you'll find that Message was from the *BIOS* (& not MSDOS
or windoze) & that it was talking about Running the *BIOS* SETUP
Routine, so as to just check &/or adjust the BIOS Settings for the
Hard Disk, or to change the Boot order etc. It wasn't talking about
(or suggesting) Running *windoze* Setup Routine.

But anyway, I reckon (like you say & from what you have said, it
sounds like the Hard Disk definitely has a problem, so prolly the
best idea is to Copy as much of your Data off it as you can, then
Wipe it completely & Format it & start from Fresh, to see if it's
a resolvable problem, or if the Hard Disk is just in the throes
of Dying - in which case, it's lucky that you found out in time
& that it didn't just fail & Die completely!
:-).

Since you have another Hard Disk, (that already has Partitions on it)
why not (as I think you mentioned somewhere?) just Install windoze
onto (one of the Partitions on) the *other* Hard Disk, (without the
suspect/dodgy Drive Powered up or Connected) & then Connect the Drive
(once windoze is Installed OK on the other one) & use windoze to Copy
the stuff (whatever is readable) from it?

Yes I'll do that. It's why I was aking about the Windows Installer,


It's a lot easier to Navigate around the Disk & Copy stuff off it
using windoze!

If the Disk isn't being used as the one with the Operating System on
it, (which it won't be, if you Boot into the Installation on another
Disk) then it won't get written to much (if at all) by w9x & the Data
(that is readable) on it will still be OK & Accessible

Also, it will be much *quicker* to do all that sort of Copying of
stuff from within windoze, cos windoze uses (has built-in to it) things
equivalent to the old MSDOS SMARTDRV.EXE Utility - if you *are* going
to do it using MSDOS, make sure to Load the SMARTDRV Utility, otherwise
(Disk Access type) things take a lot longer.

HTH

Yes it does



--
Ali
.

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