Disk write errors

[Bob Ninow]

I am working on a problem for a friend from church and
have never encountered a problem such as the one about to
be described.

Sometimes when the system is booting a "Disk write error.
Unable to write to the disk drive c:" message is
displayed. The error dialog box provides an OK button
which most times will allow the system to continue. Then
a second and sometimes more of the same messages occur.
After Windows has built the desktop and while the user is
doing work the error may pop up (bad choice of words)
again, click OK and most times you can continue working.

Virus scan using the latest definitions and Norton anti
virus 2004 produced no virus infection. Complete
diagnostics, with a non-destructive write disk test
enabled did not find any problems.

To the best of my information the problem "may" have
started after an attempted installation of Borderbund
Create a Card software was done but can not confirm.

No searches have produced any useful results and am at
wits end.

What are the required files for the disk sub-system
within Windows 98 Second Edition? I suspect something
was replaced, perhaps partially, by the installation.

Thanks and please excuse the length of this tome but I
wanted to provide as mush information as possible.

Bob

[Bert Kinney]

Hi Bob,

First step would be to backup any important data.

Next run a thorough scan of the hard drive. To do so Boot the
system with a Windows Startup Disk. At the A:\ prompt type
scandisk C: then press enter. Let Scandisk perform the standard
scan and a surface scan. When the surface scan is finished remove
the Startup disk and reboot the system.

If that comes up clean do a search for any installed SpyWare/malware/adware:
Ad-aware is a free multi spyware removal utility that scans
your memory, registry and hard drives for known spyware
components and lets you remove them safely. After installing
Ad-Aware make sure to run the update feature before scanning.
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ For large amounts of installed
spyware and such, it may be necessary to run Ad-Aware several
times to clear them all.

More tools that will do the same.
CWShredder:
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/cwschronicles.html
Download Link:
http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/files/CWShredder.exe
Spybot:
http://www.safer-networking.org/

SpywareBlaster:
http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html
SpywareBlaster doesn't scan and clean for spyware - it
prevents it from ever being installed. SpywareBlaster is
a non memory resident utility. It works by setting a "kill bit"
for the CLSIDs of spyware ActiveX controls, it prevents the
installation of any of them from a webpage.

For more information:
The Parasite Fight:
http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm

Darnit:
http://www.mvps.org/inetexplorer/Darnit.htm#tshoot

Dealing with Unwanted Spyware and Parasites:
http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm

If all this fails perform a clean boot.
How to Perform Clean-Boot Troubleshooting for Windows 98:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q192926

Please report back with your findings.

--
Regards,
Bert Kinney [MS-MVP DTS]
http://dts-l.org/
How to Configure Outlook Express for Internet News:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=171164


"Bob Ninow" wrote
> I am working on a problem for a friend from church and
> have never encountered a problem such as the one about to
> be described.
>
> Sometimes when the system is booting a "Disk write error.
> Unable to write to the disk drive c:" message is
> displayed. The error dialog box provides an OK button
> which most times will allow the system to continue. Then
> a second and sometimes more of the same messages occur.
> After Windows has built the desktop and while the user is
> doing work the error may pop up (bad choice of words)
> again, click OK and most times you can continue working.
>
> Virus scan using the latest definitions and Norton anti
> virus 2004 produced no virus infection. Complete
> diagnostics, with a non-destructive write disk test
> enabled did not find any problems.
>
> To the best of my information the problem "may" have
> started after an attempted installation of Borderbund
> Create a Card software was done but can not confirm.
>
> No searches have produced any useful results and am at
> wits end.
>
> What are the required files for the disk sub-system
> within Windows 98 Second Edition? I suspect something
> was replaced, perhaps partially, by the installation.
>
> Thanks and please excuse the length of this tome but I
> wanted to provide as mush information as possible.
>
> Bob

[Bob Ninow]

Thanks for the suggestions, but not a solution yet.

SCANDISK in DOS reportes errors that must be fixed in
Windows using SCANDSKW. Attempted using SCANDSKW within
Windows and errors that must be fixed after scandskw
completes are reported. The scan completes several hours
later because a thorough surface scan is required,
however the errors are not repaired. Attempted to use
Norton Disk Doctor from Norton Systemworks 2004
Professional and no disks are displayed when NDD starts,
not even the floppy.
Ran Spybot 1.3 and Ad Aware both found and repaired a few
problems.

Running out of ideas and patience. Microsoft's Knowledge
Base is next to useless for any Windows 98 issue. The
system being worked on does not have the horse power to
migrate to XP so that option is not available.

Thanks again!!

Bob
>-----Original Message-----
>Hi Bob,
>
>First step would be to backup any important data.
>
>Next run a thorough scan of the hard drive. To do so
Boot the
>system with a Windows Startup Disk. At the A:\ prompt
type
>scandisk C: then press enter. Let Scandisk perform the
standard
>scan and a surface scan. When the surface scan is
finished remove
>the Startup disk and reboot the system.
>
>If that comes up clean do a search for any installed
SpyWare/malware/adware:
>Ad-aware is a free multi spyware removal utility that
scans
>your memory, registry and hard drives for known spyware
>components and lets you remove them safely. After
installing
>Ad-Aware make sure to run the update feature before
scanning.
>http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ For large amounts of
installed
>spyware and such, it may be necessary to run Ad-Aware
several
>times to clear them all.
>
>More tools that will do the same.
>CWShredder:
>http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/cwschronicles.html
>Download Link:
>http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/files/CWShredder.exe
>Spybot:
>http://www.safer-networking.org/
>
>SpywareBlaster:
>http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html
>SpywareBlaster doesn't scan and clean for spyware - it
>prevents it from ever being installed. SpywareBlaster is
>a non memory resident utility. It works by setting
a "kill bit"
>for the CLSIDs of spyware ActiveX controls, it prevents
the
>installation of any of them from a webpage.
>
>For more information:
>The Parasite Fight:
>http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm
>
>Darnit:
>http://www.mvps.org/inetexplorer/Darnit.htm#tshoot
>
>Dealing with Unwanted Spyware and Parasites:
>http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
>
>If all this fails perform a clean boot.
>How to Perform Clean-Boot Troubleshooting for Windows 98:
>http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-
US;q192926
>
>Please report back with your findings.
>
>--
>Regards,
>Bert Kinney [MS-MVP DTS]
>http://dts-l.org/
>How to Configure Outlook Express for Internet News:
>http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=171164
>
>
>"Bob Ninow" wrote
>> I am working on a problem for a friend from church and
>> have never encountered a problem such as the one about
to
>> be described.
>>
>> Sometimes when the system is booting a "Disk write
error.
>> Unable to write to the disk drive c:" message is
>> displayed. The error dialog box provides an OK button
>> which most times will allow the system to continue.
Then
>> a second and sometimes more of the same messages occur.
>> After Windows has built the desktop and while the user
is
>> doing work the error may pop up (bad choice of words)
>> again, click OK and most times you can continue
working.
>>
>> Virus scan using the latest definitions and Norton anti
>> virus 2004 produced no virus infection. Complete
>> diagnostics, with a non-destructive write disk test
>> enabled did not find any problems.
>>
>> To the best of my information the problem "may" have
>> started after an attempted installation of Borderbund
>> Create a Card software was done but can not confirm.
>>
>> No searches have produced any useful results and am at
>> wits end.
>>
>> What are the required files for the disk sub-system
>> within Windows 98 Second Edition? I suspect something
>> was replaced, perhaps partially, by the installation.
>>
>> Thanks and please excuse the length of this tome but I
>> wanted to provide as mush information as possible.
>>
>> Bob
>
>
>.
>

[Bert Kinney]

Hi Bob,

Find the make and model of the hard drive and go to the
manufactures web site. Down load there hard drive diagnostic
software and run it. I don't put much faith in Norton products
these days.

--
Regards,
Bert Kinney [MS-MVP DTS]
http://dts-l.org/


"Bob Ninow" wrote
> Thanks for the suggestions, but not a solution yet.
>
> SCANDISK in DOS reportes errors that must be fixed in
> Windows using SCANDSKW. Attempted using SCANDSKW within
> Windows and errors that must be fixed after scandskw
> completes are reported. The scan completes several hours
> later because a thorough surface scan is required,
> however the errors are not repaired. Attempted to use
> Norton Disk Doctor from Norton Systemworks 2004
> Professional and no disks are displayed when NDD starts,
> not even the floppy.
> Ran Spybot 1.3 and Ad Aware both found and repaired a few
> problems.
>
> Running out of ideas and patience. Microsoft's Knowledge
> Base is next to useless for any Windows 98 issue. The
> system being worked on does not have the horse power to
> migrate to XP so that option is not available.
>
> Thanks again!!
>
> Bob
> >-----Original Message-----
> >Hi Bob,
> >
> >First step would be to backup any important data.
> >
> >Next run a thorough scan of the hard drive. To do so
> Boot the
> >system with a Windows Startup Disk. At the A:\ prompt
> type
> >scandisk C: then press enter. Let Scandisk perform the
> standard
> >scan and a surface scan. When the surface scan is
> finished remove
> >the Startup disk and reboot the system.
> >
> >If that comes up clean do a search for any installed
> SpyWare/malware/adware:
> >Ad-aware is a free multi spyware removal utility that
> scans
> >your memory, registry and hard drives for known spyware
> >components and lets you remove them safely. After
> installing
> >Ad-Aware make sure to run the update feature before
> scanning.
> >http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ For large amounts of
> installed
> >spyware and such, it may be necessary to run Ad-Aware
> several
> >times to clear them all.
> >
> >More tools that will do the same.
> >CWShredder:
> >http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/cwschronicles.html
> >Download Link:
> >http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/files/CWShredder.exe
> >Spybot:
> >http://www.safer-networking.org/
> >
> >SpywareBlaster:
> >http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html
> >SpywareBlaster doesn't scan and clean for spyware - it
> >prevents it from ever being installed. SpywareBlaster is
> >a non memory resident utility. It works by setting
> a "kill bit"
> >for the CLSIDs of spyware ActiveX controls, it prevents
> the
> >installation of any of them from a webpage.
> >
> >For more information:
> >The Parasite Fight:
> >http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm
> >
> >Darnit:
> >http://www.mvps.org/inetexplorer/Darnit.htm#tshoot
> >
> >Dealing with Unwanted Spyware and Parasites:
> >http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
> >
> >If all this fails perform a clean boot.
> >How to Perform Clean-Boot Troubleshooting for Windows 98:
> >http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-
> US;q192926
> >
> >Please report back with your findings.
> >
> >--
> >Regards,
> >Bert Kinney [MS-MVP DTS]
> >http://dts-l.org/
> >How to Configure Outlook Express for Internet News:
> >http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=171164
> >
> >
> >"Bob Ninow" wrote
> >> I am working on a problem for a friend from church and
> >> have never encountered a problem such as the one about
> to
> >> be described.
> >>
> >> Sometimes when the system is booting a "Disk write
> error.
> >> Unable to write to the disk drive c:" message is
> >> displayed. The error dialog box provides an OK button
> >> which most times will allow the system to continue.
> Then
> >> a second and sometimes more of the same messages occur.
> >> After Windows has built the desktop and while the user
> is
> >> doing work the error may pop up (bad choice of words)
> >> again, click OK and most times you can continue
> working.
> >>
> >> Virus scan using the latest definitions and Norton anti
> >> virus 2004 produced no virus infection. Complete
> >> diagnostics, with a non-destructive write disk test
> >> enabled did not find any problems.
> >>
> >> To the best of my information the problem "may" have
> >> started after an attempted installation of Borderbund
> >> Create a Card software was done but can not confirm.
> >>
> >> No searches have produced any useful results and am at
> >> wits end.
> >>
> >> What are the required files for the disk sub-system
> >> within Windows 98 Second Edition? I suspect something
> >> was replaced, perhaps partially, by the installation.
> >>
> >> Thanks and please excuse the length of this tome but I
> >> wanted to provide as mush information as possible.
> >>
> >> Bob
> >
> >
> >.
> >

[Murray]

I have got the same problem with the same error, Bert
please post the steps on backing up data , never done that
before,
Rgds,
Murray

>-----Original Message-----
>Hi Bob,
>
>First step would be to backup any important data.
>
>Next run a thorough scan of the hard drive. To do so Boot
the
>system with a Windows Startup Disk. At the A:\ prompt type
>scandisk C: then press enter. Let Scandisk perform the
standard
>scan and a surface scan. When the surface scan is
finished remove
>the Startup disk and reboot the system.
>
>If that comes up clean do a search for any installed
SpyWare/malware/adware:
>Ad-aware is a free multi spyware removal utility that
scans
>your memory, registry and hard drives for known spyware
>components and lets you remove them safely. After
installing
>Ad-Aware make sure to run the update feature before
scanning.
>http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ For large amounts of
installed
>spyware and such, it may be necessary to run Ad-Aware
several
>times to clear them all.
>
>More tools that will do the same.
>CWShredder:
>http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/cwschronicles.html
>Download Link:
>http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/files/CWShredder.exe
>Spybot:
>http://www.safer-networking.org/
>
>SpywareBlaster:
>http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html
>SpywareBlaster doesn't scan and clean for spyware - it
>prevents it from ever being installed. SpywareBlaster is
>a non memory resident utility. It works by setting
a "kill bit"
>for the CLSIDs of spyware ActiveX controls, it prevents
the
>installation of any of them from a webpage.
>
>For more information:
>The Parasite Fight:
>http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm
>
>Darnit:
>http://www.mvps.org/inetexplorer/Darnit.htm#tshoot
>
>Dealing with Unwanted Spyware and Parasites:
>http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
>
>If all this fails perform a clean boot.
>How to Perform Clean-Boot Troubleshooting for Windows 98:
>http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-
US;q192926
>
>Please report back with your findings.
>
>--
>Regards,
>Bert Kinney [MS-MVP DTS]
>http://dts-l.org/
>How to Configure Outlook Express for Internet News:
>http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=171164
>
>
>"Bob Ninow" wrote
>> I am working on a problem for a friend from church and
>> have never encountered a problem such as the one about
to
>> be described.
>>
>> Sometimes when the system is booting a "Disk write
error.
>> Unable to write to the disk drive c:" message is
>> displayed. The error dialog box provides an OK button
>> which most times will allow the system to continue.
Then
>> a second and sometimes more of the same messages occur.
>> After Windows has built the desktop and while the user
is
>> doing work the error may pop up (bad choice of words)
>> again, click OK and most times you can continue working.
>>
>> Virus scan using the latest definitions and Norton anti
>> virus 2004 produced no virus infection. Complete
>> diagnostics, with a non-destructive write disk test
>> enabled did not find any problems.
>>
>> To the best of my information the problem "may" have
>> started after an attempted installation of Borderbund
>> Create a Card software was done but can not confirm.
>>
>> No searches have produced any useful results and am at
>> wits end.
>>
>> What are the required files for the disk sub-system
>> within Windows 98 Second Edition? I suspect something
>> was replaced, perhaps partially, by the installation.
>>
>> Thanks and please excuse the length of this tome but I
>> wanted to provide as mush information as possible.
>>
>> Bob
>
>
>.
>