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Computer can't find c: drive


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#1
Hopela

Hopela

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Hello everyone!

I'm a newbie here and my problem is as follows:

I have an old laptop (Compaq Presatio 1690) with a non-functioning cd-player. I wanted to reinstall the operating system on this computer (win98).
Without a functioning cd-player I can't use the restore-cd that came with the laptop.

So I thought I was being smart by taking the harddrive out of the laptop and connecting it directly to another computer (via USB from an 2.5 HDD storage box). That seemed to work since I now had access to the harddrive in question.

However, WinXP on the other computer won't let me install Win98 on the external drive (can only be done to the master drive or something). I tried to format the drive and then put win98 installation files in a folder on the hdd. My thought was that once it was in place in the laptop again I could from DOS go to the folder with win98 and start the install.exe from there. So I put it back in the Compaq laptop. When I start it it says "No operating system found". Ok. So I start it up with win98 startup floppy. Then it says it can't find a c: drive, and that's about where I'm now stuck.

I've tried to partition and format it with Paragon Partition Manager via the other computer, and everything seems to go ok, but everytime I put it back in the Compaq it just says it cant find the c: drive.

Can some kind soul here take pity on me and help me out?
I have promised the computer som someone else. That is why I'm trying to get it up and running.

I hope I haven't been too confusing in my explanation, if so just ask me to clarify :whistling:

/Hopela :blink:
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#2
AnthonyJ

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can you get access to an external usb cd-rom drive?

some boot up floppy's check for a cdrom drive, if your drive isnt working it maybe identifing the cd as c: (unlikely but possible) most use d: or r:. also when you formated it in xp what format did you use?

Edited by AnthonyJ, 16 March 2007 - 04:30 PM.

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#3
Hopela

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I have already tried to access an external usb cd-rom drive but apparently there are no drivers for DOS for it (hp cd-writer 8200). So the answer to that is no, I cannot access it because I can't get DOS to recognize the usb-ports. But otherwise that would have been a good idea yes. :whistling:

The boot up floppy recognizes the original cd-rom drive, but that is of no use since that one isn't working. I've tried checking for driveletters besides c:
but it appears that the floppy loads the diagnostic tools on a virtual drive it names c: and then nothing more is happening since it seems to decide that there are no more drives but a:, c: (just for the diagnostic tools, no real drive) and then d: for the cd-rom that isn't working.

I formated it as FAT32 since I want to install win98 on it. I've read somewhere that it can sometimes be a problem if the disk is formated by another pogram than FDISK and that can cause it not to be recognized. So I wiped the disk, put it back inte laptop to do FDISK but can't since it can't even find the drive even in its unformatted state (also tried both partitioned and unpartitioned).

Is there something I'm missing here about DOS? Or is it possibly something I need to do in BIOS instead?
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#4
AnthonyJ

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if you can, on your xp machine make a bootable floppy and try it
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#5
Hopela

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Unfortunately that computer does not have a floppy drive (Fujitsu Siemens amilo A1630).
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