If you have a Windows 98 startup disk the CD ROM drivers are supposed to be on it.  Are you booting from the startup disk?  Once you do this, either by using the boot menu (F12 at computer start-up) or by setting the diskette drive to number 1 in the boot order (F1 at computer start-up for setup) you need to make the CD drive the default drive by typing the drive letter of the CD ROM followed by a colon ( D: for example).  Once you have made the CD the default, you should be able to get to setup.  If the setup.exe executable is not in the root directory of the CD you need to change directory to Win98 and type "setup" from there.

 

Just change you BIOS (setup) so your boot order is CD Drive first.  Put you Windows XP disk in the drive and boot of the CD, and install the OS.   Not sure why your trying to use Win 98 boot disk ?

 

Good catch Tom.  I thought the user wanted to install Windows 98.

 

I changed the BIOS and also started loading '98. (The reason I tried loading 98 is because I have a startup disk.) At any rate, '98 did not load properly. When I go through the 98 OS install instructions, on the second restart, it automatically starts in safe mode. It also is not showing there are any CDROM recognized (when I g to "my computer" in safe mode. I tried loading XP as well (from the boot disk and also after the change was made in BIOS) and in DOS, the message I receive is: "not ready reading drive D." Or drive "e" for that matter. As I stated, I was able to go through loading '98, but then it just starts in safe mode and when i try to have it startup in "normal mode" it hangs... forever and ever... I mean hours. I have fdisked before and was able to load XP right after by using the boot from CD option.. with no problems... now I can't load any OS. It really makes no sense to me. 

The problem is... I can't even get the CD to boot and/or run. Im am stuck in DOS. Perhaps I am not explaining myself clearly?

Normally when I load XP/Vista on to a  new hard drive I just partition the drive with an option that comes up shortly after the boot up.    The only other issue I think you may have but forget for sure.

 

Did the 8300 support RAID ?  If they did you might have to install the RAID Pre-OS driver from a diskette shortly after booting by pressing F6 shortly after booting off the XP CD.    I think there may be an option in your BIOS to avoid having to load the driver if you have no need for RAID, in the future.

 

I don't know what the problem is. It will not install XP. The message I get when I try to install from the Dell XP Operating system CD is: "cannot run setup in DOS mode." Did I do something wrong when I Fdisked? I formatted the drive. But yet it still wont load XP. It will load 98, but then.. only partially with errors. And then it will only run 98 in safe mode. It also says that 98 did not finish loading. Can someone give me some helphre. I am so frustrated, I am ready to take a sldgehammer to my computer. I know I must be doing smething wrong... but I have done this fdsk before and it always booed right from the Dell XP disk withut any problems. HELP PLEASE!!

How do i swap optical drives?

Should I crate an extended partition? Use the max space available for partitioning after FDISK?