What version of Windows is on it? Does the drive show up in the information screens when your machine is first powered up? (The POST screens of information during the checking stage, before Windows starts to load)

Has anything been changed on your system lately?

Do you have a floppy or a CD inserted?

The os version is windows 98.Nothing has being changed lately.There is no floppy or cd inserted.
The drive does show up during POST but it can't load the os.

try changing the data and power cables.

Do you have the Win98 CD? Try to boot from it. Don’t know how this will help you, but you can Maybe reinstall Windows if you don’t mind lOOSING your DATA. I have never done a repair with Win98 don’t even Know if it’s possible but maybe that’s what you should be trying to do.

OR,

If you have another machine you can put that hard drive in that machine and hopefully recover any vital data. Then put the hard drive back and reinstall windows.

These are just some options and are really, only good if your hard drive is not dead.

This looks to be unknown for now.

Sorry for the delay.

If your drive is detected during POST but doesn't appear as a system disk, then either the boot sector on the hard drive is corrupted or the system boot files are missing or corrupted. You'll find a reasonably good guide to troubleshooting the situation at:

http://www.howtodothings.com/showart...sp?article=662

You'll need a Windows 98 Boot diskette so you can boot from your floppy drive, and if you haven't got a woring one there then make one on a friends Windows 98 system, get your local computer shop to make one for you if they're friendly enough, or download the necessary boot diskette image from:

www.bootdisk.com

I have heard good things about SpinRite but you will need to have a boot disk. Here is a link to the site -- it is not free. http://www.grc.com/sr/spinrite.htm

Grim