Windows 98 hangs after entering password on fresh install
I am doing a fresh reinstall of Windows 98 SE on a Dell Optiplex GX1 550Mbr+. I previously had this very same version of Windows on this machine. The install works perfectly, but when I get to the login screen, I hit escape (or type in the password and press enter), and it just hangs.
I have tried:
- Changing hard drives
- Changing CD drives
- Changing the RAM
- Swapping the hard drive into another machine
- Removing the password
The first 3 points result in no improvement, event if I re-install from scratch.
When I swap the hard drive into another computer, I can log in just fine, so it doesn't seem to be the installation at fault.
When I remove the password (using another computer), it just hangs at the green desktop background. The mouse will move, but nothing ever loads.
CTRL + ALT + DEL will bring up the task manager, and I can restart the computer, or kill the only process (Hidserv).
Running the computer in Safe Mode works.
windows-98
asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
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I am doing a fresh reinstall of Windows 98 SE on a Dell Optiplex GX1 550Mbr+. I previously had this very same version of Windows on this machine. The install works perfectly, but when I get to the login screen, I hit escape (or type in the password and press enter), and it just hangs.
I have tried:
- Changing hard drives
- Changing CD drives
- Changing the RAM
- Swapping the hard drive into another machine
- Removing the password
The first 3 points result in no improvement, event if I re-install from scratch.
When I swap the hard drive into another computer, I can log in just fine, so it doesn't seem to be the installation at fault.
When I remove the password (using another computer), it just hangs at the green desktop background. The mouse will move, but nothing ever loads.
CTRL + ALT + DEL will bring up the task manager, and I can restart the computer, or kill the only process (Hidserv).
Running the computer in Safe Mode works.
windows-98
asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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Does the computer have a network card and is it connected? The next thing after login is connecting to the network.
– tofro
9 hours ago
It has onboard ethernet, but it is not connected.
– Jonathan
9 hours ago
Can you try connecting it? Or disable the NIC from safe mode?
– tofro
9 hours ago
I connected it to the offline network, to no avail. The online network does not work any better. I'm going to try disabling it from safe mode now
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
Disabling the NIC (I did it right from the BIOS) does not work either - it still hangs right after where the login screen would be (I currently have it removed).
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
add a comment |
I am doing a fresh reinstall of Windows 98 SE on a Dell Optiplex GX1 550Mbr+. I previously had this very same version of Windows on this machine. The install works perfectly, but when I get to the login screen, I hit escape (or type in the password and press enter), and it just hangs.
I have tried:
- Changing hard drives
- Changing CD drives
- Changing the RAM
- Swapping the hard drive into another machine
- Removing the password
The first 3 points result in no improvement, event if I re-install from scratch.
When I swap the hard drive into another computer, I can log in just fine, so it doesn't seem to be the installation at fault.
When I remove the password (using another computer), it just hangs at the green desktop background. The mouse will move, but nothing ever loads.
CTRL + ALT + DEL will bring up the task manager, and I can restart the computer, or kill the only process (Hidserv).
Running the computer in Safe Mode works.
windows-98
asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I am doing a fresh reinstall of Windows 98 SE on a Dell Optiplex GX1 550Mbr+. I previously had this very same version of Windows on this machine. The install works perfectly, but when I get to the login screen, I hit escape (or type in the password and press enter), and it just hangs.
I have tried:
- Changing hard drives
- Changing CD drives
- Changing the RAM
- Swapping the hard drive into another machine
- Removing the password
The first 3 points result in no improvement, event if I re-install from scratch.
When I swap the hard drive into another computer, I can log in just fine, so it doesn't seem to be the installation at fault.
When I remove the password (using another computer), it just hangs at the green desktop background. The mouse will move, but nothing ever loads.
CTRL + ALT + DEL will bring up the task manager, and I can restart the computer, or kill the only process (Hidserv).
Running the computer in Safe Mode works.
windows-98
windows-98
asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
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Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 8 hours ago
Jonathan
asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
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Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
asked 9 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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New contributor
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Check out our Code of Conduct.
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Does the computer have a network card and is it connected? The next thing after login is connecting to the network.
– tofro
9 hours ago
It has onboard ethernet, but it is not connected.
– Jonathan
9 hours ago
Can you try connecting it? Or disable the NIC from safe mode?
– tofro
9 hours ago
I connected it to the offline network, to no avail. The online network does not work any better. I'm going to try disabling it from safe mode now
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
Disabling the NIC (I did it right from the BIOS) does not work either - it still hangs right after where the login screen would be (I currently have it removed).
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
add a comment |
Does the computer have a network card and is it connected? The next thing after login is connecting to the network.
– tofro
9 hours ago
It has onboard ethernet, but it is not connected.
– Jonathan
9 hours ago
Can you try connecting it? Or disable the NIC from safe mode?
– tofro
9 hours ago
I connected it to the offline network, to no avail. The online network does not work any better. I'm going to try disabling it from safe mode now
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
Disabling the NIC (I did it right from the BIOS) does not work either - it still hangs right after where the login screen would be (I currently have it removed).
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
Does the computer have a network card and is it connected? The next thing after login is connecting to the network.
– tofro
9 hours ago
Does the computer have a network card and is it connected? The next thing after login is connecting to the network.
– tofro
9 hours ago
It has onboard ethernet, but it is not connected.
– Jonathan
9 hours ago
It has onboard ethernet, but it is not connected.
– Jonathan
9 hours ago
Can you try connecting it? Or disable the NIC from safe mode?
– tofro
9 hours ago
Can you try connecting it? Or disable the NIC from safe mode?
– tofro
9 hours ago
I connected it to the offline network, to no avail. The online network does not work any better. I'm going to try disabling it from safe mode now
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
I connected it to the offline network, to no avail. The online network does not work any better. I'm going to try disabling it from safe mode now
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
Disabling the NIC (I did it right from the BIOS) does not work either - it still hangs right after where the login screen would be (I currently have it removed).
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
Disabling the NIC (I did it right from the BIOS) does not work either - it still hangs right after where the login screen would be (I currently have it removed).
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
add a comment |
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
I found the answer! Using Safe Mode, in msconf, I disabled all the options in the startup tab except:
- Scan registry
- Task Monitor
- System Tray
That worked, so then I re-enabled the following:
- Load power profile
- Load Power Profile
- Scheduling Agent
C:WINDOWSSYSTEMmstask.exe
That was still working, so I restarted again after enabling
- Welcome
- Hidserv
Since that did work, I finally enabled the last option in msconfig:
- Scheduling agent
mstinit.exe /firstlogon
And it worked!
I tried again on another fresh install on the same computer. This time, I only disabled hidserv, and I got the same success (Windows started normally, and I was able to re-enable hidserv in msconfig). So the problem was hidserv.
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
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Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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1 Answer
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1 Answer
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active
oldest
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active
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votes
I found the answer! Using Safe Mode, in msconf, I disabled all the options in the startup tab except:
- Scan registry
- Task Monitor
- System Tray
That worked, so then I re-enabled the following:
- Load power profile
- Load Power Profile
- Scheduling Agent
C:WINDOWSSYSTEMmstask.exe
That was still working, so I restarted again after enabling
- Welcome
- Hidserv
Since that did work, I finally enabled the last option in msconfig:
- Scheduling agent
mstinit.exe /firstlogon
And it worked!
I tried again on another fresh install on the same computer. This time, I only disabled hidserv, and I got the same success (Windows started normally, and I was able to re-enable hidserv in msconfig). So the problem was hidserv.
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
I found the answer! Using Safe Mode, in msconf, I disabled all the options in the startup tab except:
- Scan registry
- Task Monitor
- System Tray
That worked, so then I re-enabled the following:
- Load power profile
- Load Power Profile
- Scheduling Agent
C:WINDOWSSYSTEMmstask.exe
That was still working, so I restarted again after enabling
- Welcome
- Hidserv
Since that did work, I finally enabled the last option in msconfig:
- Scheduling agent
mstinit.exe /firstlogon
And it worked!
I tried again on another fresh install on the same computer. This time, I only disabled hidserv, and I got the same success (Windows started normally, and I was able to re-enable hidserv in msconfig). So the problem was hidserv.
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
I found the answer! Using Safe Mode, in msconf, I disabled all the options in the startup tab except:
- Scan registry
- Task Monitor
- System Tray
That worked, so then I re-enabled the following:
- Load power profile
- Load Power Profile
- Scheduling Agent
C:WINDOWSSYSTEMmstask.exe
That was still working, so I restarted again after enabling
- Welcome
- Hidserv
Since that did work, I finally enabled the last option in msconfig:
- Scheduling agent
mstinit.exe /firstlogon
And it worked!
I tried again on another fresh install on the same computer. This time, I only disabled hidserv, and I got the same success (Windows started normally, and I was able to re-enable hidserv in msconfig). So the problem was hidserv.
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I found the answer! Using Safe Mode, in msconf, I disabled all the options in the startup tab except:
- Scan registry
- Task Monitor
- System Tray
That worked, so then I re-enabled the following:
- Load power profile
- Load Power Profile
- Scheduling Agent
C:WINDOWSSYSTEMmstask.exe
That was still working, so I restarted again after enabling
- Welcome
- Hidserv
Since that did work, I finally enabled the last option in msconfig:
- Scheduling agent
mstinit.exe /firstlogon
And it worked!
I tried again on another fresh install on the same computer. This time, I only disabled hidserv, and I got the same success (Windows started normally, and I was able to re-enable hidserv in msconfig). So the problem was hidserv.
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
New contributor
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
answered 7 hours ago
JonathanJonathan
1264
1264
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New contributor
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Check out our Code of Conduct.
Jonathan is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
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add a comment |
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Does the computer have a network card and is it connected? The next thing after login is connecting to the network.
– tofro
9 hours ago
It has onboard ethernet, but it is not connected.
– Jonathan
9 hours ago
Can you try connecting it? Or disable the NIC from safe mode?
– tofro
9 hours ago
I connected it to the offline network, to no avail. The online network does not work any better. I'm going to try disabling it from safe mode now
– Jonathan
8 hours ago
Disabling the NIC (I did it right from the BIOS) does not work either - it still hangs right after where the login screen would be (I currently have it removed).
– Jonathan
8 hours ago