How to Reinstall Windows 95 to a New Folder

• Microsoft Windows 95

SUMMARY

This article describes how to reinstall Windows 95 to a new folder.

MORE INFORMATION

NOTE: Be sure to disable any anti-virus software or "dirty" TSRs before you run Windows 95 Setup. For information about "dirty" TSRs, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q139052
   TITLE     : "Dirty" and "Deadly" TSRs Detected by Windows 95

Installing from Your Hard Disk

1. Click Start, point to Programs, and then click MS-DOS Prompt.

2. At the command prompt, type the following lines, pressing ENTER after each line:

         cd\ 
         md w95flat
   

3. Insert the Windows 95 CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive.

4. At the command prompt, type the following line, and then press ENTER

         copy <drive>:\win95\*.* c:\w95flat 
   

   where <drive> is the drive letter assigned to your CD-ROM drive.

5. Restart your computer. When you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then choose Command Prompt Only.

6. Make a backup copy of the system files in case you decide to return to your original installation of Windows 95. To do so, follow these steps:

   a. Type the following lines. Press ENTER after each line:

            attrib -s -h -r msdos.sys
            copy msdos.sys *.xxx
            copy autoexec.bat *.xxx
            copy config.sys *.xxx
   
      b. To return to your original Windows 95 installation, copy
         the files listed above to their original names, and then
         restart your computer.
   
   

7. Type the following line, and then press ENTER.

   cd w95flat

8. Run Setup. Specify a new folder for the Windows 95 installation. Make sure not to use the folder for your current installation of Windows 95.

Installing from Windows 95 CD-ROM or Floppy Disks

1. Restart your computer. When you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then choose Command Prompt Only.

2. Make a backup copy of the system files in case you decide to return to your original installation of Windows 95. To do so, follow these steps:

   a. Type the following lines. Press ENTER after each line:

            attrib -s -h -r msdos.sys
            copy msdos.sys *.xxx
            copy autoexec.bat *.xxx
            copy config.sys *.xxx
   
      b. To return to your original Windows 95 installation, copy
         the files listed above to their original names, and then
         restart your computer.
   
   

3. To install Windows 95 from disks, proceed to step 9.

4. To install Windows 95 from a CD-ROM, the real-mode CD-ROM drivers must be loaded in the Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files. If they are not, continue with these steps. If they are, proceed to step 9.

5. View the Autoexec.dos file and note the line referring to the Mscdex.exe file.

6. View the Config.dos file and note the line referring to the CD-ROM driver.

7. Edit the Autoexec.bat file and add the MSCDEX statement you noted in step 5. Edit the Config.sys file and add the CD-ROM driver line you noted in step 6.

8. After you edit and save the Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files, restart the computer. When you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then choose Command Prompt Only.

9. Run Setup from the original Windows 95 disks or CD-ROM. Specify a new folder for the Windows 95 installation. Make sure not to use the folder for your current installation of Windows 95.