How do i uninstall win98 without a reformat?

[Marksels]

Hi ive been wondering since i dont realy have a way to back up my system i wonder how can i reinstall windows without doing a reformat. I thought of just deleteing the c:\windows folder under dos, but cant find the right command. Is there a command to? if so what is it? If there is another way to delete windows without reformating, and saving all everything else on my system. Then please tell. Thanks.

 

[SaturnX]

Ok, well I think this is possible.. though I've never tried it 😉 use at your own risk.
First of all backup your entire registry into one file. Then boot into dos mode and type:
deltree c:\windows this will delete your entire Windows directory.. then reinstall, and simply add the registry that you backed up before... In theory this should work.. though I'd still stick with a complete reformat.

--Mark

 

[bauerbrazil]

Do this.

- Boot from a Windows diskette with CDROM support
- Rename the folder c:\windows ( ren c:\windows [anything] )
- Rename the folder c:\program files ( ren c:\program files [anything] )
- Reinstall Windows

You'll have to reinstall all programs but you'll save your stuff.

 

[SSP]

I wouldn't recommend copying the registry file after a new install. Not all registers are created equal. 😉

 

[Gunbuster]

The real question: Why is deltree sooooo slow

 

[SSP]

A complete format is the best way, but if you must...

I'd say rename the windows dir. Then reinstall windows. You won't loose any programs, but you'll have to add the shortcuts, file associations and stuff manually (remember, shift+right click is your friend when it comes to file associations).

Hope that helps.


BTW, you can just reinstall windows over it self (delete the win.com file, once you delete it, there's no going back). You won't even notice a difference (except it takes more space), but it might not get rid of what every your trying to get rid of.

🙂