Side Effects of an Aborted Windows 3.0 to 3.1 Upgrade

 Last reviewed: November 21, 1994
Article ID: Q82716
The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Windows operating system versions 3.1, 3.11

SUMMARY

The process of upgrading from Microsoft Windows operating system version 3.0 to Microsoft Windows operating system version 3.1 requires that the character (MS-DOS) mode portion of Setup disable certain Windows 3.0 components. These components must be replaced by new 3.1 components so that they don't interfere with the upgrade process. The Windows 3.1 Setup program temporarily disables the following items:

  • All fonts except the system, fixed pitch, and OEM fonts.
  • The shell (Program Manager, Norton Desktop for Windows, and so on).
  • The desktop bitmap.
  • Screen savers.
  • The Task Manager.
  • Installable drivers loaded through the drivers= line in the SYSTEM.INI file.

If the Setup process is interrupted before the Windows graphical user interface (GUI) mode portion has been completed, some or all of the above items may not be properly reenabled.

To regain Windows 3.0 functionality, the WIN.INI and SYSTEM.INI files must be edited as described below.

MORE INFORMATION

To restore the disabled Windows 3.0 components that are controlled by the SYSTEM.INI file, rename the following lines in the SYSTEM.INI file; do NOT alter the information to the right of the equal sign: 

   Windows Component     Section       Line to Rename    New Name
   -----------------     -------       --------------    --------

   Shell                 [boot]        oldshell=         shell=

   Task Manager          [boot]        oldtaskman=       taskman=

   Installable drivers   [boot]        olddrivers=       drivers=
To restore the disabled Windows 3.0 component that is controlled by the WIN.INI file, rename the following line in the WIN.INI file; do NOT alter the information to the right of the equal sign: 

   Windows Component     Section       Line to Rename    New Name
   -----------------     -------       --------------    --------

   Desktop bitmap        [desktop]     oldwallpaper=     wallpaper=

   Note: The screen savers should always be properly reenabled, and
   therefore should require no changes to be made.
Fonts are disabled by renaming the [fonts] section in the WIN.INI file to [wt4gpi8s56bz]. Setup can encounter problems with reenabling the old fonts if the system memory is very low or if two aborted installations have occurred. If there is a problem, Setup will display a message box telling you that trouble was encountered when restoring the previously installed fonts and that the [fonts] and [wt4gpi8s56bz] sections must be merged by hand. This merging process is fairly simple.

To merge the two sections, open the WIN.INI file in a text editor (for example, the MS-DOS version 5.0 Editor), and do the following:

  1. Delete any line from the [wt4gpi8s56bz] section that is duplicated in the [fonts] section.

  2. Append the contents of the [wt4gpi8s56bz] section to the [fonts] section.

  3. Delete the [wt4gpi8s56bz] section.

KBCategory: kbsetup kbdisplay
KBSubcategory: win31
Additional reference words: ndw 3.00 3.0 3.10 3.1 installation 3.11

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Last reviewed: November 21, 1994
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