Windows FAQs

How do I find my files and programs?

Do I have to reinstall my applications after installing Windows 95 on the system that had Windows before?

What  do I do if an application I am running ss responding?

How do I do a clean boot for Windows 95?

How can I go to my previous version of MS-DOS?  I tried pressing F4 while Booting when it says "Starting Windows 95", but nothing happens and I don't get the option "Previous version of MS-DOS" when I press F8

How do I recover from a power failure or unintentional rebooting during the Windows 95 installation process?

I have deleted a file by mistake.  Can I get it back?

I have accidentally delete a file through File Manager and immediately tried to recover it through the Recycle Bin, but the file was not there!  I though it stored all deleted files.  Why can't I see it, and how do I recover it?

After I completed Set Up, the system was trying to reboot but died.  Now what do I do?

To Install Windows from DOS

How do I find my files and programs?

To find any file, whether a program or a data file, you can take three independent paths through Windows 95 by using My Computer, Explorer or Find.

To use My Computer, follow these instructions:

1. Double-click the My Computer icon on the desk.  The My Computer window will open.

2. Double-click the drive that you want to search and then the directories or folders that you believe contain the files.  Each folder that you double-click opens a new folder window.

3. When you find the file and the file is a program, you can load or start it by double-clicking it.  

Tip:  If the file is a data file that is associated with a program (you can tell a file is associated with a program if it uses the program's icon), you can start that program and open the data file by double-clicking the data file.

To use Explorer, follow these steps:

1. Click the Start button in the lower left of your screen.  The Start menu will open.

2. Move the mouse pointer to Programs (you don't have to click),and then click Windows Explorer.

3. Click the drive and folder you want to open in the left pane, and then double-click the file you want to start or open in the right pane.

Tip:   Right-clicking a file in the right pane of the Explorer window or in a folder window opens a pop-up menu, shown next, that allows you to copy, move, delete, or send a file to a floppy disk or to a fax.

The next set of steps shows you how to use Find:

1. Click the Start button, point on Find, and then click Files Or Folders.  The Find dialog box opens.

2. Select the drives (and folders, if desired) you want to search and click Find Now.  When the search is complete, the files will be listed below the Find dialog box.  You can do anything with those listings (open, start, copy, move and delete them) that you can do in either Explorer or My Computer.

Do I have to reinstall my applications after installing Windows 95 on the system that had Windows before?

If you install Windows 95 over your existing Windows 3.x directory or folder, then you do not need to reinstall applications.  If you install Windows 95 into a new folder, then you will have to reinstall all your Windows applications. Copying files from your Windows 3.x folder to Window 95 is not sufficient.

Tip:  There is almost no need to keep Windows 3.x on your computer (virtually all programs run as well or better under Windows 95), so Windows 95 should be installed over your existing Windows 3.x.

What  do I do if an application I am running ss responding?

You can use CTRL-ALT-DEL to end an application that is no longer responding to the system.  When you press three keys at the same time, the Close Program dialog box will come up, listing all active applications.  Select your application and click the End Task button.  Windows 95 will allow you to continue working in the other applications that are running without having to reboot the whole system.

Caution:  Do not press CTRL-ALT-DEL a second time, unless you want to reboot your computer and lose any information that has not been saved.

How do I do a clean boot for Windows 95?

When troubleshooting Windows 95 or a specific application, you sometimes have to run the system in the simplest possible configuration to single out the source of the problem or a conflict,  In the previous operating systems, you had to create a separate boot disk and boot off this floppy.  Windows 95 gives you an easier way of creating a clean environment.  Use these steps for that purpose:

1. Restart your computer.

2. When you see the message "Starting Windows 95", immediately press F8.  You will see a menu of the following options:

Ø      Normal   This starts regular Windows 95 without changes.

Ø      Logged   This starts regular Windows 95, but creates a file called Bootleg.txt that lists all the steps during bootup.  This is very useful in tracking down Windows 95 startup failure.  You can read the Bootlog.txt file with Notepad.

Ø      Safe Mode   Windows 95 is started by use of the most generic default settings:  VGA display driver, no network, Microsoft mouse driver, and the minimum device drivers necessary to start Windows.  No CD-ROM drives, printers or other peripheral devices are used.  Config.sys and Autoexec.bat are ignored.  You can also get this by pressing F5 at the "Starting Windows 95" message.

Ø      Safe Mode With Network Support   This starts Windows 95 in a minimum mode, as before, but adds networking for the situation where you must have access to network drives.  You can also get this by pressing F6 at the "Starting Windows 95" message.

Ø      Step-By-Step Confirmation   This is called interactive start.  It starts Windows 95, but asks if you want to execute each line in your Config.sys and Autobat files (or the Windows 95 default if you don't have these files).  Type Y if you want to process the line; type N if you don't.  You will receive an error message if one of the command lines fails (an indicator of where the system fails).  It will process the Registry and load all Windows drivers.   

Ø      Command Prompt Only   This starts only the DOS part of Windows 95.  All drivers are loaded and all command files processed, but the graphic user interface (GUI) is not started.  You are left at the C:\ prompt.  You can type win to load the GUI.  You can also get the Windows 95 DOS command prompt by pressing ALT-F5 at the "Starting Windows 95" message.

Ø      Safe Mode Command Prompt Only   This is the same as the Safe Mode option, but ss at the C:\ prompt without loading the GUI.  Type win to load the GUI.  You can also get this by pressing SHIFT-F5 at the "Starting Windows 95" message.

Ø      Previous Version Of MS-DOS   (This is only available if you have dual-boot MS-DOS/Windows 95 set up on your system.)  This starts your computer in the previous version of MS-DOS that was on your computer when you installed Windows 95.  (see the next question.)  You can also get this by pressing F4 at the "Starting Windows 95" message.  

Note   With OSR 2 you can no longer dual-boot with Windows 3.1/DOS.  This applies to the following question as well.
 

How can I go to my previous version of MS-DOS?  I tried pressing F4 while Booting when it says "Starting Windows 95", but nothing happens and I don't get the option "Previous version of MS-DOS" when I press F8

If pressing F4 does not work, dual booting is not enabled on your computer.  You can enable this feature with these steps:

1. Open Notepad (Start menu/Programs/Accessories/Notepad), and open a file called Msdos.sys in your root directory or folder.

2. Locate the section entitled "Options", and change the line BootMulti=O to BootMulti=1.

3. Save the changes and reboot.  Pressing F4 during booting will load your previous version of MS-DOS, and pressing F8 will give you an option to start the previous MS-DOS version.  If you boot into your previous version of MS-DOS, you must reboot your computer to return to Windows 95.

Tip:   If you have installed Windows 95 into a new directory without deleting Windows 3.x from your computer, you can start Windows 3.x by booting into the previous version of MS-DOS and then typing win. 

How do I recover from a power failure or unintentional rebooting during the Windows 95 installation process?

The Windows 95 installation program includes a Safe Recovery option.  Depending on where the installation was interrupted, you may be able to turn your computer off and then on (don't just press CTRL-ALT-DEL), run Set up again, and choose the Safe Recovery option when you are prompted.  If this doesn't work the first time, try running Set up a second time.

I have deleted a file by mistake.  Can I get it back?

Yes.  Any files that you delete in My Computer, Explorer or any Windows 95 application are automatically moved to the Recycle Bin on your Desk.  The deleted files can be recovered by opening the Recycle Bin, selecting the files, and choosing Restore from the File menu.

Caution   You can permanently delete files in the Recycle Bin by right-clicking the Recycle Bin and choosing Empty Recycle Bin.  Once this is done, though, files cannot be recovered. 

I have accidentally delete a file through File Manager and immediately tried to recover it through the Recycle Bin, but the file was not there!  I though it stored all deleted files.  Why can't I see it, and how do I recover it?

The Recycle Bin stores files deleted through 32-bit native Windows 95 utilities only.  You can recover files deleted in My Computer, Explorer or any Windows 95 application.  File Manager is a 16-bit Windows 3.x application, and it does not support file recovery through the Recycle Bin.  You can try to recover your file using disk utilities for Windows 95, such as Norton Utilities for Windows 95.

Tip   Use only native Windows 95 file management utilities to have use of the Recycle Bin and long filenames.

After I completed Set Up, the system was trying to reboot but died.  Now what do I do?

1. Turn the PC off and then back on (do not just press CTRL-ALT-DEL).

2. Press F8 when you see "Starting Windows 95", to open the Startup menu and choose Safe Mode.

If Windows 95 starts, change the video driver to the standard VGA driver by following these steps:

1. OSR 2  Right-click the desk, choose Properties, click the Settings tab, and then click the Change Display Type button (or the Advanced Properties button in OSR 2).

2. OSR 2  Click the Change button in the Adapter Type section (or the Adapter tab in OSR 2) and click Show All Devices.

3. In the Manufacturers list, click Standard Display Types, and then click Standard Display Adapter (VGA).  Click OK.

4. Click the Start button, choose Shut Down, and choose Restart The Computer.

If Windows 95 still does not work, reboot from a floppy disk with your previous DOS, rename your Config.sys and Autoexec.bat (at a DOS prompt, type ren autoexec.bat autoexec.tmp and ren config.sys config.tmp), and restart off your hard disk.

If the problem persists, use these steps:

1. Restart off your hard disk, press F8 at "Starting Windows 95," and choose Safe Mode.

2. Right-click My Computer, choose Properties, click the Performance tab, and click the File System button.

3. Click the Troubleshooting tab.

4. Check all of the available boxes, then click OK in all dialog boxes, and reboot.  

To Install Windows from DOS

In DOS, after FDISK and FORMAT:

MD C:\WINDOWS 

Press ENTER

Press the F3 key

C:\WINDOWS\OPTIONS

Press ENTER

 Press the F3 key

C:\WINDOWS\OPTIONS\CABS

Press ENTER

F: ( This is the letter of the CD ROM )

CD WIN98

COPY *.* C:\WINDOWS\OPTIONS\CABS

Press ENTER

C:

CD WINDOWS\OPTIONS\CABS\SETUP