Member Avatar for terry29946

I run Windows 98 SE because I have programs that won't run on anything else so upgradind software is not an option. I think my old motherboard is getting a bit flakey but I have been warned off upgrading to a modern motherboard explaining that Windows might not be able to handle new hardware features. Is this really a problem, would 98 SE run OK on the latest motherboards? Thanks, Terry

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Dani AI

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Short answer for : yes, you can sometimes make Windows 98 SE boot and run on much newer motherboards, but “it works” and “it is practical” are very different things. Modern firmware and controllers were not designed for a 1999 OS — the usual stumbling blocks are firmware (UEFI vs legacy BIOS), storage controller mode (AHCI/NVMe vs IDE/PATA), lack of chipset/LAN/audio/USB drivers, GPU driver availability, and Windows 98’s own RAM/large-disk limits. Practical experience and retro‑computing guides show many people succeed only after careful hardware choices or by adding legacy controllers. (en.wikipedia.org)

If you want a bare‑metal install: buy a board that exposes a Legacy/CSM boot option and an ability to switch SATA to “IDE/Compatibility” (or use an older PATA controller). If the board will not present drives in IDE mode you will need an add‑in PCI/PCIe SATA or PATA card with Windows 98 drivers (many builders use a dedicated legacy controller card instead of relying on the onboard SATA). Limit RAM while installing (Windows 98 often misbehaves above ~512MB and can be unstable above 1GB) and plan to apply community patches/driver bundles (BigIDE/IO.SYS fixes, universal SATA patches like those discussed on retro/driver forums) to handle large disks and new controllers. Expect to hunt for drivers for LAN/sound/USB or use vintage PCI cards that have Win98 drivers. (linustechtips.com)

A simpler, far more reliable route — suggested by and used by many retro users — is to run 98SE inside a virtual machine (VirtualBox/VMware/QEMU) or keep a dedicated older PC. Virtual machines emulate legacy IDE/PCI hardware so driver problems are minimal and the OS is isolated from the Internet (safer). If the goal is running legacy apps rather than vintage hardware, start with a VM to confirm the software works before attempting the fragile bare‑metal route. (virtualbox.org)

Checklist before buying a replacement board: does the firmware offer Legacy/CSM? can SATA be forced to IDE/compatibility? are vendor Win9x drivers available? can you add a PCI/PATA/SATA card with Win98 drivers? plan for RAM/BigIDE patches and expect to test in a VM first.

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Member Avatar for TT4Titans

98 would run on the new systems.who ever told you it wouldn't doesn't know what they are saying.

Member Avatar for terry29946

Thanks for that reassurance. The guy who told me 98 might have trouble was the guy I was trying to buy a new motherboard from! Perhaps he wasn't a good salesman. Thanks

Member Avatar for The Dude

He doesnt like Win98se form what im gathering.

I have heard of people taking an XP machene and swapping drives and using it on Win98se!!! (And man is it good)

Just gotta get past the driver issues and your good to go.. (And this one guy succeeded)

Member Avatar for TT4Titans

Any driver issues you may have Holler.

Member Avatar for DenisOxon

Thanks for that reassurance. The guy who told me 98 might have trouble was the guy I was trying to buy a new motherboard from! Perhaps he wasn't a good salesman. Thanks

I think your saleman is correct - I doubt if w98 will run on a new motherboard. Ihave had NT4 fail to run on a new motherboard and NT4 is same age as W98.

Good luck

Denis

Member Avatar for jbennet

Do what I did?

I needed NT4 as an app of mine didnt run on XP. I now just run NT4 from my XP machine (1gb ram needed!) using Virtual PC (an emulator). Its very good as it emulates standard hardware and Microsoft has kits for emulating previous versions of windows so that you can integrate the systems and get them set up quickly

It has allowed me to run legacy OSes on my new modern system as the system it emulates is very standard and suported by just about every OS i have ever tried.

Member Avatar for TT4Titans

NT4 and 98 might be the same age but 2 totally type of OS's.NT uses a NTFS (New Technology File System) 98 FAT32 (File Allocation Table).NTFS actually came out in the Mid 90's but that doesn't mean 95,98 or ME will run on it.NT was actually made and designed for business and networking.Take NT dual boot with 95,98 or ME using the NTFS for NT and FAT for the others you won't be able to read the files on 95,98 or ME.that is like ME it was made the same time as 2000 but 2 different OS's.I have put 98SE on newer systems i have even put windows 3.1 and DOS 6.22 on my Dell inspiron 1200 laptop.

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