Setting up Windows 98SE on an Intel Coffee Lake Refresh with 9th generation real hardware
Setting up Windows 98SE on an Intel Coffee Lake Refresh with 9th generation real hardware
I work with dual booting Windows 11/98SE and similar systems. Typically I pair an RTX graphics card with Windows 10/11, while using a Voodoo 3 PCI for Windows 9x. The graphics card isn't set as the main video device because Windows 9x can't change that setting. I suggest opting for a full ATX model since I ran out of free PCI-E slots in this setup.
For this 9th generation build, the hardware includes: Intel i3-9100F @ 3.6 GHz * The CPU isn't critical for compatibility; a 9900K is also fine. Asus PRIME H310M-E R2.0 * paired with the latest "Windows 11 ready" BIOS from June 2022.
At first I hesitated about updating to the newest BIOS, as this change caused issues in my previous configuration. 8GB RAM Corsair 3000MHz * You can use the maximum available, though a 512MB limit must be respected (or a patch needed). ATI X700 128MB GPU * A very PCI-Express focused card that works well with VIA 6421 PCI to SATA adapter. *(Another adapter is needed for converting PCI-E to PCI.)** This PCI to SATA card came with a SATA WD RAPTOR 10K at 36GB. * SSDs also function, but I usually choose an SSD...*
PCI Aureal Vortex 8810 - via another PCI-e to PCI adapter. A short video is available if you'd like.
What a surprise! I managed to get Windows 2000 working, but not Windows 98 SE on a DOS-based system?
Windows 98 tends to install more smoothly since the operating system doesn’t attempt to initialize disk hardware and can operate in MS-DOS compatibility mode using basic BIOS commands. NT behaves the opposite; installing NT versions like 3.x, 4, or 2K becomes problematic if the system fails to initialize the disk, often resulting in a standard BSOD stating "Boot device inaccessible." Some workarounds exist, such as using UNIAta drivers. However, implementing SATA/AHCI on this H310 motherboard isn’t compatible with Windows 98. You can’t switch SATA to legacy mode in BIOS or adjust related settings. Using a dedicated SATA controller, as I did, allows stable Windows 98 installation without BSODs.