hello first time trying PCEM, i have problem trying to installing windows 95 using PCEM v17 windows iam not a tech savy, so would help to know what i do wrong or the correct step to make it work.
i follow some tutorial in "setting up PCEM for windows 95 games in the oligopolist's tutorials" despite the outdateness i manage to find the option that been mention and so far as i look in the image seems to work as intended, until the mount win95 part.
i use CD-ROM of PCEM load image try to check if it manage to mount and type "E:" it say "invalid drive specification" so i try to mount the iso into CD drive (G:) in my laptop using PowerISO and try "Host CD/DVD Drive (G:)" from the PCEM still say the same
try another iso version and download from another site still the same.
i see some comment there that got the same problem but nothing so far for solution other than telling to just directly using the PCEM to mount the iso which i have done before with the same result. so i decide to ask here directly.
i use the [IDE] standard IDE since it dont covered in that site maybe due to that.
here what i have done or the configuration
machine: [Socket7] Shuttle HOT-557
CPU: Intel Pentium 133
FPU: built-in (grey out)
dynamic recompiler (seems to have a check but it was grey out, so no idea is it working or turn off)
memory: 128 mb
waitstates: system default (grey out)
synchronize time to host clock checked
Device: S3 ViRGE/DX
Speed: Fast VLB/PCI
voodoo graphics checked
voodoo type: voodoo 2
framebuffer: 4mb
texture memory size: 4mb
Bilinear filtering checked
screen filter not checked
Render threads: 2
SLI not checked
Recompiler checked
Device: sound blaster AWE32
CMS/game blaster not checked
Gravis ultrasound not checked
Innovation SSI-2001 not checked
LPT device: Stereo LPT DAC
HDD: IDE standard IDE
FDD1: 3.2' 2.88M
FDD2: 3.2' 2.88M
CD Model: PCemCD
CDSpeed: 24X
Drive 0 Primary Master (C:)
Type: Hard drive
File: E:\PCEM\hdd\win95.img
Sector: 63 Heads: 16
Cylinder: 16383 Size: 8063mb
Drive 1 primary slave (D:) blank
Drive 2 secondary master (E:) blank
Drive 3 secondary slave (F:) blank
invalid drive specification when trying to mount windows 95 iso using PCEM v17
Re: invalid drive specification when trying to mount windows 95 iso using PCEM v17
You're probably using a boot image that doesn't create a RAMDrive at boot. A RAMDrive gets assigned the letter D, so the CD drive gets E.
Without a RAMDrive, The CD drive is assigned D.
If you're using 95 osr2.5 because the guide is saying so, don't. Windows 98 SE is better and you wouldn't need to mess with the Fdisk and Format commands, or copy the CD image's content to C (copying could still be useful for some situations but I haven't had the need to do it). You should use a Windows 98 floppy boot disk image though (unless you're using a CD image that is itself bootable).
Also, with v17 you could use dynamic VHD, instead of IMG, to save space.
Without a RAMDrive, The CD drive is assigned D.
If you're using 95 osr2.5 because the guide is saying so, don't. Windows 98 SE is better and you wouldn't need to mess with the Fdisk and Format commands, or copy the CD image's content to C (copying could still be useful for some situations but I haven't had the need to do it). You should use a Windows 98 floppy boot disk image though (unless you're using a CD image that is itself bootable).
Also, with v17 you could use dynamic VHD, instead of IMG, to save space.
Re: invalid drive specification when trying to mount windows 95 iso using PCEM v17
My recommendation would also give preference to Windows 98 SE over Windows 95. Win98 SE is typically easier to get working and is the better OS in my opinion. Some people like Win95 better and that is fine. I use it too.
If you have a bootable CD for Win95 or Win98 SE, then you should be able to get started with Windows 95 or 98 fairly easily. If not, there are some options for you.
I set up my Win98 VMs without a bootable CD or even a boot disk. I had a copy of DOS 6.22. Once I installed that, I installed 3rd party CD-ROM drivers from the 90s so that I could use my Win95 or 98 CD. Your CD-ROM drive should be set to D:. DOS makes it easy to set up drive specifications.
A DOS PC can use a small 10mb hard drive or a large 2gb hard drive. To upgrade your new DOS VM to Win98, use a 250mb, 500mb, 1gb or 2gb hard drive.
Win95 can easily be installed on a much smaller hard drive than what you would use on Win98. 250mb is a good start for both Win95 or 98, but I recommend 500mb or 1gb for Win95.
For any Win98 system, I recommend starting with a 2gb hard drive. Anything larger than 2gb requires more work at the outset. Once you get Win98 working, then you can try installing Win98 on larger hard drives. At that point the size of the emulated hard drive depends very heavily on which tasks you endeavour to do with these PCem VMs.
Once Win98 is installed, you can make a virtual boot disk through Windows 98 on PCem. This will make it easier to build larger hard drives for Win98.
Once you have CD-ROM drivers installed in DOS, installing Win95/98 becomes a much easier task. I recommend 16mb or 32mb of RAM for Win95 and 32mb or 64mb of RAM for Win98. I use the Sound Blaster 16 and have never tried the AWE32. The less you tax your PC's CPU the better, and most of the load will be from the emulated CPU or video card.
One thing I like about Win95 and Win98 is that often enough all the drivers you need to get up and running are already included on your Win95 or Win98 CD. If you use the Voodoo 2, then you might need more drivers, but these are frequently found on the CDs of your favorite games from the late 90s or early 2000s.
If you use the Voodoo 3, a great option for later Win98 games, then you will likely need a Voodoo 3 driver CD.
If your game CDs do not load up when you start a game in PCem (ie. "CD not found!" error), then this is where having the actual game CD helps a lot. Otherwise, you will have to make sure you are using a CD image in BIN/CUE format or some other high quality CD-ROM format that preserves the entire CD itself, and not just the files themselves. If that still does not work, then you have to install a program like Daemon tools on your PCem VM and move your CD images to the VM's emulated hard drive and load the CD images from within your PCem VM. You would do that by using a program like Alcohol 52%, put your CD images on a new DVD-sized ISO file, load that in PCem, and copy the CD images onto the emulated hard drive of your PCem VM.
Once you have Win98 all set up and working on PCem, you will notice it is much easier to load these older programs and games as most, if not all, of your compatibility problems will be solved. I have really enjoyed using PCem and I even used it as a productivity tool on the rare occasion. It is not VMWare, and cannot be used as such, but it is amazing.
I hope this helps,
tk421
If you have a bootable CD for Win95 or Win98 SE, then you should be able to get started with Windows 95 or 98 fairly easily. If not, there are some options for you.
I set up my Win98 VMs without a bootable CD or even a boot disk. I had a copy of DOS 6.22. Once I installed that, I installed 3rd party CD-ROM drivers from the 90s so that I could use my Win95 or 98 CD. Your CD-ROM drive should be set to D:. DOS makes it easy to set up drive specifications.
A DOS PC can use a small 10mb hard drive or a large 2gb hard drive. To upgrade your new DOS VM to Win98, use a 250mb, 500mb, 1gb or 2gb hard drive.
Win95 can easily be installed on a much smaller hard drive than what you would use on Win98. 250mb is a good start for both Win95 or 98, but I recommend 500mb or 1gb for Win95.
For any Win98 system, I recommend starting with a 2gb hard drive. Anything larger than 2gb requires more work at the outset. Once you get Win98 working, then you can try installing Win98 on larger hard drives. At that point the size of the emulated hard drive depends very heavily on which tasks you endeavour to do with these PCem VMs.
Once Win98 is installed, you can make a virtual boot disk through Windows 98 on PCem. This will make it easier to build larger hard drives for Win98.
Once you have CD-ROM drivers installed in DOS, installing Win95/98 becomes a much easier task. I recommend 16mb or 32mb of RAM for Win95 and 32mb or 64mb of RAM for Win98. I use the Sound Blaster 16 and have never tried the AWE32. The less you tax your PC's CPU the better, and most of the load will be from the emulated CPU or video card.
One thing I like about Win95 and Win98 is that often enough all the drivers you need to get up and running are already included on your Win95 or Win98 CD. If you use the Voodoo 2, then you might need more drivers, but these are frequently found on the CDs of your favorite games from the late 90s or early 2000s.
If you use the Voodoo 3, a great option for later Win98 games, then you will likely need a Voodoo 3 driver CD.
If your game CDs do not load up when you start a game in PCem (ie. "CD not found!" error), then this is where having the actual game CD helps a lot. Otherwise, you will have to make sure you are using a CD image in BIN/CUE format or some other high quality CD-ROM format that preserves the entire CD itself, and not just the files themselves. If that still does not work, then you have to install a program like Daemon tools on your PCem VM and move your CD images to the VM's emulated hard drive and load the CD images from within your PCem VM. You would do that by using a program like Alcohol 52%, put your CD images on a new DVD-sized ISO file, load that in PCem, and copy the CD images onto the emulated hard drive of your PCem VM.
Once you have Win98 all set up and working on PCem, you will notice it is much easier to load these older programs and games as most, if not all, of your compatibility problems will be solved. I have really enjoyed using PCem and I even used it as a productivity tool on the rare occasion. It is not VMWare, and cannot be used as such, but it is amazing.
I hope this helps,
tk421