Advanced Troubleshooting Settings
The Advanced Troubleshooting Settings
The troubleshooting options available on this dialog box allow you to make extreme configuration changes and should only be used in special situations when nothing else seems to work.
The Advanced settings should only be used in extreme troubleshooting situations.
In this article, we'll go through and describe each of the options on the Advanced Troubleshooting Settings dialog box. As we do, we'll explain the types of situations where each setting will come in handy.
Disable System ROM Breakpoint
Under normal circumstances, Windows 98 looks to an address space between F000:0000 and 1 MB in ROM (Read Only Memory) to find a special instruction that it uses as a system break point. If this address space contains something other than permanently available ROM, Windows 98 could become unstable. If you suspect that an application or utility is using this location in ROM for some proprietary purpose, you can use the Disable System ROM Breakpoint setting to test your theory. When you do, Windows 98 will use a chunk of conventional memory to set its breakpoint.
Selecting this check box creates a setting in the System.ini file: SystemROMBreakPoint=0. This setting is also equivalent to starting Windows 98 with the /d:s command-line switch.
Disable Virtual HD IRQ
As the hard drive works, it issues interrupts via the hard drive controller when it needs CPU time. Normally, Windows 98 will intervene and more efficiently pass the interrupts on to the CPU. If you suspect that you have a problem with a hard drive IRQ, you can use the Disable Virtual HD IRQ setting to prevent Windows 98 from managing these interrupts. When you do, the ROM routine handles the interrupts, which can slow system performance. Keep in mind that some hard disk drives may require this setting to be enabled for interrupts to be processed correctly.
Selecting this check box creates a setting in the System.ini file: VirtualHDIRQ=0. This setting is also equivalent to starting Windows 98 with the /d:v command-line switch.
EMM Exclude A000-FFFF
As Windows 98 manages its memory, it continually scans for unused memory space. However, this scanning can interfere with certain devices that use some of the same memory addresses. If you suspect that a device that's using memory space that Windows is scanning is causing your problem, you can use the EMM Exclude A000-FFFF setting to prevent Windows from trying to scan for unused memory address space in the section of memory between A000-FFFF--the most likely location that such a device would use. In addition, this setting disables the RAM and ROM search instructions for the memory address space.
Selecting this check box creates a setting in the System.ini file: EMMExclude=a000-ffff. This setting is also equivalent to starting Windows 98 with the /d:x command-line switch.
Force Compatibility Mode Disk Access
As you know, Windows 98 uses 32-bit drivers for all of the disks in the system. If, when you check the Performance tab in the System Properties dialog box, you discover that one or more of the hard disks in your system is using MS-DOS Compatibility mode due to disk peripheral input/output (I/O) problems, you can use the Force Compatibility Mode Disk Access setting to troubleshoot the problem. When you enable this setting, it prevents Windows 98 from using 32-bit disk drivers, except for the floppy driver, and forces it to use 16-bit, or real-mode, drivers or the BIOS to manage the drives. Keep in mind that any disk that only works in protected mode will no longer function. Using this setting is also equivalent to starting Windows 98 with the /d:f command-line switch.
VGA 640 x 480 x 16
If you're troubleshooting a video-related problem, you can use the VGA 640 x 480 x 16 setting. When you do, Windows 98 uses the standard VGA display adapter driver. Selecting this check box disables the existing display.drv= line of the System.ini file, and adds the display.drv=vga.drv line to the [boot] section of the System.ini file.
Use SCSI Double-Buffering
If you're using SCSI devices in your system, and you're encountering a disk access problem, this setting may be needed. Normally, Windows 98 will detect whether this setting is needed and enable it by default. Enabling this setting adds the line Doublebuffer=2 to the Msdos.sys file. This setting is unavailable if a Doublebuffer line already exists in the Msdos.sys file.
Enable Startup Menu
When you're troubleshooting startup problems, chances are that you'll use the MS-DOS-based Windows 98 Startup menu quite a bit. However, having to press the [Ctrl] key each time Windows 98 loads in order to access the menu can be tiresome. If you select the Enable Startup Menu check box, you won't need to worry about pressing the [Ctrl] key.
Disable Scandisk After Bad Shutdown
When your system fails to shutdown properly, Windows 98 automatically runs ScanDisk the next time that the system loads. When you're troubleshooting shutdown problems, the last thing you want to deal with is ScanDisk coming up every time that you restart the system. Enabling this setting prevents ScanDisk from running and is the equivalent of adding the line Autoscan=0 to the Msdos.sys file.
Limit Memory To x MB
If you suspect that a bad RAM chip is causing the problem you're dealing with, you can use the Limit Memory To x MB setting to help you to isolate the bad chip. This setting limits the amount of memory that your system uses to the value that you use for x. Of course the smallest value that you can use is 16 MB, as anything lower will prevent Windows 98 from loading.
Disable Fast Shutdown
If you're having problems shutting down Windows 98, you may want to enable the Disable Fast Shutdown setting as a troubleshooting step. Doing so disables all of Windows 98's shutdown performance enhancements.
Disable UDF File System
If you're experiencing a problem with a proprietary CD-ROM or DVD drive, it may not be compatible with the UDF (Universal Disk Format) file system. To test this theory, you can enable the Disable UDF File System setting.
Enable Pentium F0 (Lock CmpXchg) Workaround
The Pentium and Pentium MMX processors are susceptible to an illegal instruction sequence that could be part of a virus. When this instruction is executed, the processor will hang. When you enable the Enable Pentium F0 (Lock CmpXchg) Workaround setting, Windows 98 activates a protection routine that prevents the processor from hanging and will allow you to track down the cause of the problem. Keep in mind that you need to disable this setting once you find and eliminate the cause of the problem. The reason being that some applications will lock up the system when this setting is enabled.
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