Can Windows 9x Use a 138 GB HDD if it's Split into Two Partitions?

[Shaina11]

I know the Windows 9x series can't access a 138 GB HDD due to the lack of a 48-bit LBA driver. But what if the hard drive is split into two partitions? Like each partition has half the storage of the whole drive. Would this work, or would the drive still be incompatible due to the missing driver?

I figure it's a lost cause without an unofficial driver. I have seen one, but I'd rather not use unofficial updates wherever possible.

 

[bskchaos]

Even if you get the disk working it might work in PIO mode, AKA slow as f...

You might have better luck explaining why you need Win9x.

 

[photonboy]

I don't think so.

Also depends on whether it's a secondary drive or main drive. Sometimes secondary drives can have higher sizes accessed due to the drivers.

Frankly, it's been too long for me. Stick in the drive and if it doesn't work you're probably out of luck.

 

[Shaina11]

Thanks for the responses. Chances are I'll just try to stick with a drive smaller than 120 GB for dual booting 98. The reason for keeping Windows 98 around is simply because I prefer real hardware for my old DOS games.

 

[photonboy]

Thanks for the responses. Chances are I'll just try to stick with a drive smaller than 120 GB for dual booting 98. The reason for keeping Windows 98 around is simply because I prefer real hardware for my old DOS games.

Depends on the game which is better. In some cases, W7 or better plus DOSBOX is best.

You can Google on a per-game basis though. I can't think of too many games you definitely need W98 plus specific hardware for though I do know they exist.

 

[Shaina11]

Thanks for your help. I'm probably going to go with older hardware than I had originally thought, I want it to be pretty much compatible with a lot of the old DOS games, so chances are it'll run Windows 98/SE with an ISA Sound Blaster 16, possibly an AMD K6 400 MHz or slower, probably won't have dual boot, except for maybe DOS, though I kind of doubt that as Windows 9x is practically DOS on its own.