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salraf

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FAT 32 and memory question

i have win98 running and am trying to convert my drives to FAT32. when i run the FAT32 program under accessories I always get the message that there is not enough memory. i still get this message despite rem-ing everything from config and autoexec.bat. any suggestions?
my config.sys only has 4 lines including 2 for file and buffer size. the other 2 consist of device=himem.sys and a device line for my cd rom. like i said i still get the message despite adding rem to these.

also what exactly is himem.sys and do i need to include it in my config.sys..

appreciate the help
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lordxeroth

You have to give some more info about your computer: you can't use FAT32 on drives smaller than 500Mb.
HIMEM.SYS manages the 'upper' memory of your computer (above 640Kb). This is needed in DOS-mode (win95/98 always boots in DOS mode).
You dont say how much RAM you have, but converting to FAT 32 will require a fair amount.  Do you have more than one hard drive partition?  If you do then you can reduce the amount of physical RAM required by changing the location of the Windows swap file to the one which you are not converting, otherwise Windows cant use Virtual memory to perform this operation.
the "not enough memory" can be pointing at your hard disk space, it may not have enough room to convert

bill
Avatar of salraf

ASKER

here's more computer info
pii 300
160 mg ram
2 hard drives (4 gb and 3.5 ) which because of various reasons had to be partitioned into 4 drives. each 2gb and the last 900 mgs.
interestingly i was able to convert the 900 drive to fat32 (quite a while ago).
as it stands the 4gb has been designated drive c and e. the 3.5 gb is drives d and f.
appreciate the further help
Which drive letter or letters have you tried to convert?
Since you have 160 megs of memory you might try turning the swap file off or move it to a drive other than the one you are tring to convert.
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rayt333

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To continue to increase the amount of free conventional memory, and then convert your  hard disk to the FAT32 file system in real mode, follow these steps:

     1.Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click System Information.

     2.On the Tools menu, click System Configuration Utility.

     3.On the Autoexec.bat tab, click the check boxes of all non-essential drivers and programs to clear them.

     4.On the Config.sys tab, click the check boxes of all non-essential drivers and programs to clear them.

     5.Click New, and then type the following lines (note that you must click New before adding each line)
            device=c:\<windows>\himem.sys
            device=c:\<windows>\emm386.exe /noems
            dos=high,umb
  where <windows> is the folder in which Windows 98 is installed.

       NOTE: If any of these lines already exist, select the line and then click Edit to change it.

     6.Using the Find tool, check for the existence of the Dblspace.ini or Drvspace.ini file in the root folder of your physical boot drive (drive C or the host for drive C).

       NOTE: The Dblspace.ini and Drvspace.ini files are hidden files. To view hidden files, click Folder Options on the View menu in Windows Explorer, click the View tab, click Show All Files, and then click OK.

       If either file exists, follow these steps:

          a.Using a text editor (such as Notepad), open the Dblspace.ini or Drvspace.ini file.

          b.Search for the "ActivateDrive=" line.

           c.If the line exists, close the Dblspace.ini or Drvspace.ini file, and then add the following line to the Config.sys file:
 devicehigh=c:\<windows>\command\drvspace.sys /move
                 

If the line does not exist, close and then rename the Dblspace.ini or Drvspace.ini file to a different name (such as Dblspace.xxx or Drvspace.xxx).
 For information about renaming files in Windows 98, click Start, click Help, click the Index tab, type renaming, and then double-click the "Renaming Files" topic.

7.Click OK, and then click Yes when you are prompted to restart your computer.

 8.Click Start, point to Find, and then click Files And Folders.

 9.Type "exit to dos.pif" (including quotation marks), and then click Find Now.

10.In the list of found files, right-click the Exit To Dos.pif file, and then click Rename.

11.Type "old exit to dos" (without quotation marks), and then press ENTER.

12.In the Named box, type "dosstart.bat" (without quotation marks), and then click Find  Now.

13.In the list of found files, right-click the Dosstart.bat file, and then click Rename.

14.Type "old dosstart.bat" (without quotation marks), and then press ENTER.

15.Run the Drive Converter (FAT32) tool and try to convert your drive to the FAT32 file system again. If your drive is converted successfully, do not proceed with step 16. If the problem persists, try increasing the amount of free conventional memory, and then convert your hard disk to the FAT32 file system in real mode. To do so, continue with step 16:

16.Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.

17.Double-click Add/Remove Programs, and then click the Install/Uninstall tab.

18.In the list of installed programs, click Delete Windows 98 Uninstall Information if it appears in the list, and then click Add/Remove.

19.Click Yes to delete the uninstall information, click OK, and then restart your
       computer.

20.While your computer is restarting, press and hold down the CTRL key until the Windows 98 Startup menu appears, and then choose Command Prompt Only.

21.At the command prompt, type the following lines, pressing ENTER after each line
            <drive>:
            attrib suhdlog.dat -h -r
            del suhdlog.dat

 where <drive> is the drive letter of your physical boot drive (drive C or the host for drive C).

       NOTE: Steps 8-13 are required to remove the Windows 98 uninstall information. The Drive Converter (FAT32) tool automatically removes Windows 98 uninstall information when it is started in Windows, but not when it is started in real mode (step 14).
 Windows 98 cannot be uninstalled if your hard disk is converted to the FAT32 file system after you install Windows 98.

22.At the command prompt, type the following line, and then press ENTER
            CVT <drive>: /CVT32
 where <drive> is the letter of the drive you are converting to the FAT32 file system.

23.Follow the instructions on your screen to convert your hard disk to the FAT32 file system.

       NOTE: If the conversion still does not complete successfully, the directory structure may be too large on the drive you are trying to convert. To work around this behavior, move some folders and files to another drive and then repeat steps 14-15.

       To determine which folders to move, use the following steps:

          a.Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click ScanDisk.

          b.Click Standard, and then click Advanced.

           c.Click to select the "Report MS-DOS mode name length errors" check box, and then click OK.

          d.Click Start.

          e.Write down the path for any folders that ScanDisk reports in the resulting
            "Scandisk found an error on (drive:)" messages, and then click OK.

           f.Quit ScanDisk.

          g.After ScanDisk is finished, move each folder whose path contains more than 66 characters to another location with a shorter path.



24.After your drive is converted to the FAT32 file system, Windows 98 starts. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click System Information.

25.On the Tools menu, click System Configuration Utility.

26.On the Autoexec.bat tab, click all of the check boxes to select them.

27.On the Config.sys tab, click all of the check boxes to select them.

28.Click the check boxes of the lines you typed in step 5 to clear them, and then click OK. Click No when you are prompted to restart your computer.

29.Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click Disk Defragmenter.

30.Select the drive you converted to the FAT32 file system, and then click OK. Follow the instructions on your screen to defragment your drive, and then restart your computer.
Avatar of salraf

ASKER

ray toooooo complicated. make it simple for me. there must be a way to convert without going through the quantum physics that you have mentioned.
salraf
note that most of those suggestions will not even apply to your system, each system is set up a little bit (in some cases alot) different, no one here can tell you exactly what will work with your setup but we try to cover all the bases and hopefully part of the info helps you in you particular setup. Ignore any steps that does not apply to your system