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FLOPPY - W98 - YECHH!!!!

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by kahunanui

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OK, Windows 98: Fdd (A:\) works absolutley fine in DOS AND Windows Safe Mode. Will NOT work in normal windows mode. In "regular" windows, when you try to access the floppy, sometimes absolutely NOTHING HAPPENS and the computer LOCKS UP. Other timesthe light comes on and it locks up but the light keeps comeing on and going off intermitently(sp?) Nasty nasty nasty. In EVERY other respect this system is totally rock solid.

Followed MS Tech Doc on troubleshooting floppies with no luck. Have done everything that we can think of as far as BIOS and system/OS settings. In spite of the fact the drive works fine in DOS and Safe Mode, we changed drives and cables. Same problem. I have gone through every document in Q&A referring to fdd probswithout seeing this problem. Some are close, but not the same. Can anyone help us with this or is this client doomed to access floppies only in either DOS or Windows Safe Mode? YIKES! HELP PLEASE!!!!!!!!

17 replies

by dklippert

Are there duplicate drivers? What hapens when you Rename/Delete Config.sys and Autoexec.bat?
Have you removed and reinstalled from Device manager?

by kahunanui

No duplicate drivers we know of. Tried booting w/ no autoexec or config.sys with the same results. We have deleted the fdd controller which didn't help. We have followed MS's Tech doc Q131690 including all others we could find about floppy drives.We have checked and actually changed the resources for the drive (DMA etc.) in Device Mgr with no results. This one is really stumping us.

by thechas

The fact that the drive works fine in DOS and safe mode, confirms tht the hardware is fine, and that it is a Windows driver problem.

Specifically, Windows is having trouble communicating with the drive through the IDE bus.
Looking at the system I am on at the moment, the Floppy is connected to the floppy controller. Wich in turn, is connected to the PCI bus controller.

There are 2 things that have given me similar problems on more than 1 system.

First, if you havn't already done so, install the chipset mfgs IDE driver.

Then, remove the floppy drive and controller from device manager.

Upon reboot, go into BIOS setup, and verify that the switch to report floppy drives to windows is enabled.
Also, set the update configurationswitch to enable. (this should be done any time you add hardware)

If that does not correct the problem, the next step would be to un-install and remove your plug-in cards. (Modem, sound, NIC)
If the floppy now functions, you need to add the cards back in 1 at a time to find which one is conflicting.
Then, try that card in a different slot.

I also have seen where MS is now recommending that the BIOS switch for Plug and Play operating system installed should be set to "NO"!

While on the subject of BIOS settings, make sure that the modes for the floppy drive are set correctly. I have seen more than a few MB's with extra modes and switches for the floppy drive lately.

If this is not a freshly built system, I would also look closely at the installed programs.

Chas

by kahunanui

We thank you very much for your [detailed] answer.

You wrote: "Upon reboot, go into BIOS setup, and verify that the switch to report floppy drives to windows is enabled.
Also, set the update configuration switch to enable."

Unfortunately, this is a Compaq Presario (7360) as you know is extremely limited BIOS options. None of the above is available including the plug and play options. I'm surprised there is as much options as there is. They treat their users [customers] like mushrooms... keep 'em in the dark and feed 'em poo poo. I agree...the problem is driver/software related. I have seen this numerous times before in W95 & w98 (mostly 98 - very rare in OSR2+) but I was always able to solve it. Wacky 98...never know what to expect. Thanks Again

by jimandkathy

Unlike other drives the power setting for the drive may or may not be closest to pin one. If the cable is reveresed it may work but have the power light stay on always. The drive may work properly for awhile before failing. It maybe that Windows in Normal mode notice what nither DOS or Safe Mode notice and therefor is not working.

Jim

by otl

Have you checked in control panel -> system -> floppy disk controllers the properties for the standard floppy disk controller ?

Under General there is a box in device usage to disable in this hardware profile uncheck it.

Also under Disk drives -> properties -> settings -> options on to Disconnect the Drive.

Hope this helps.

by kahunanui

Sorry we didn't have a chance to get to this... we had already tried all this. We're still stuck in safe mode for the floppy.

by john tieso

Do you have SCSI Hard Drive? If so, you may have a conflict that prevents the win drive from accessing the FDD. In DOS (andin WIn98 safe mode) These drivers are not loaded. The FDD works in native form and simply reads directly. WIN98 (and otherWIN products) change that and put the FDD under control of a driver to prevent many direct reads.

by hjs

Try this: Boot into safe mode and delete everthing in device mgr.( sound card etc. ) especially the floppy controller. Reboot and have the OS reinstall everything and see if it works. If not than try a reinstall of the OS over the top and see if that fixes it. If not you may have to reinstall the OS from scratch.

by kahunanui

We cleaned it out (as you mentioned) in Safe Mode - no change. The other two suggestions are already on my list but won't be used except as a last resort. However, the client admitted he didn't use the floppy much anyway and as long as it works in safe mode he's ok with it. He made referrence to the fact that the Mac people had been doing without floppies for years. HA! He's right.

by oaojr

A long shot. On one occassion I had a client purchase a new mouse and installed the software. Floppy did crazy things. You might uninstall mouse and floppy, reboot and let windows set them up.

by data ninja

Have you looked at the "Search for new floppy disk drives each time Windows starts" option in "My Computer/properties/Performance/Floppy Disk" area. If it was disabled to speed up the boot process and the Floppy was removed from Device Manager or had a problem, then Windows would not look for it again.
Another less obvious item is: Does this pc have TweakUI installed? If so, in Control Panel/TweakUI, has the "A:" drive under "My Computer" been unchecked? This will disable access to the Floppy drive also.

by kahunanui

I my entire career, I have only come across this a few times and in each case other than this one, I was able to provide a fix. Most of the time it was to disable it in the hardware profile and use the real mode drivers. Talk about frustrating. Stuck in safe mode for the floppy.

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