Copy Windows 98 to the Hard Drive
There are many reasons I like to copy the Win98 folder from the CD to my hard drive.

The first is simply for convenience. I am no longer prompted to insert the CD if I want to add or remove a Windows application, extract a file using SFC (System File Checker), load new drivers and the many other things that require the Windows 98 CD.

I also do not have to worry about leaving my CD at work or somewhere. (Memory not as good as it used to be)

Another personal preference is to place it on a separate partition then I can format and install Windows directly from the hard drive.

You may be limited in hard drive space or you simply do not want to use the space for any of the above reasons. Completely understandable as everyone should setup and manage their computer to their liking.

There are several ways to perform the copy. The first is for those who are not that familiar with DOS or are uncomfortable using it. It takes a bit longer but the end results are the same.

Option #1 - Copy using Windows

  1. Insert the Windows 98 CD and browse to the Win98 folder.
  2. Right click on the folder and select copy.
  3. Go to your C: drive and right click on an empty space.
  4. Select Paste.
  5. Click on Start and Run.
  6. Type regedit and click OK.
  7. Browse to the following Key
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\
    Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup
  8. Look in the right pane for SourcePath.
  9. It should show something like "D:\win98".
  10. Double click on the SourcePath and change the D: to C:
If you are not comfortable making changes to the registry you can download sourcepath.reg which will change the setting in the registry. After downloading, double click sourepath.reg.

If you have the .cab files in a location other than C:\Win98, we created a .vbs file that will allow you to input the correct path and it will insert that into the registry. Download SourcePath.vbs

Option #2 - Copy using DOS

  1. Insert the Windows CD.
  2. Click on Start and Programs. Click MS-DOS.
  3. At the C:\Windows>type cd\ [Enter]
  4. At the C:\>type md win98 [Enter]
  5. At the C:\>type D: [Enter]
  6. At the D:\>type cd win98 [Enter]
  7. At the D:\Win98>type copy *.* c:\win98 [Enter]
  8. Make the registry changes as stated above.
Option #3 - Copy before installing Windows
  1. Start the computer using a Win98 bootdisk.
  2. At the A:\>type C: [Enter]
  3. At the C:\>type md win98 [Enter]
  4. At the C:\>type D: [Enter]
  5. At the D:\>type cd win98 [Enter]
  6. At the D:\Win98>type copy *.* c:\win98 [Enter]
  7. You can now install Windows from the hard drive. At the C:\Win98>type setup [Enter]
  8. The registry settings mentioned above are not necessary as you installed Win98 from the hard drive.

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Best Regards and Wishes,
Mesich and The Count