error message

jp198780

jp198780

New Member
ok, i havent started my Compaq up in geez, about 2 weeks, i started it up, i get the Windows 98 screen, then the bootup scanner with AVG, and then a little while after that i get a message, it says "Invalid VxD Dynamic link, call to device number 3, service B." theres more 2 the message, but it shutdown before i got it all, i cant get passed the message, the computer just shuts down, whats this from? thanks.
 
ok, i read the article, and it said 2 resolve it, boot into safe mode etc., but i cant even boot 2 safe mode? i get the message.
 
Do you have a floppy drive with that unit? If you did you could boot off of a 98 startup floppy and try the "fdisk /mbr" command to see if that could get Windows running. Unlike XP if that along with the MS article didn't see results you probably have to reinstall Windows with the recovery disk if you have one. That was the drawback with the 9X-ME family where virtual drivers for devices like video cards caused locks. If you knew the exact file names for the video drivers and were able to boot to a dos prompt youi could manually remove them.

Without a floppy drive a bootable cd made with the files from a 98 startup floppy would allow boot from the cd drive. You would need a cd writer there however. With the recovery disk you could start the 98 installer to overwrite the current installation on the drive in order to save files off of it. You would then be better off to reformat it after to clean up the drive for a clean install of 98. Fat32 as well as Fat16 OSes are always fun to work with while pulling hair. Some system files as well as video drivers are probably corrupted. The complete shutdown on the other hand sounds like a battery problem if not hardware related. Even if Windows locks you shouldn't see the unit turn itself off that quick since the power management isn't even loaded. Memory developing faults is another item that could cause this type of error message as well.
 
no i dont have a floppy in there, i took it out, since i dont use floppys. and i dont have a 98 CD or floppy.
 
no, i found the laptop in the trash around April lol, it was in parts, and all the parts were there, soo i rebuilt it.
 
The first link seen there at the top is for Windows and dos boot disks. It will now depend on what OS you plan to continue running on it. If you don't have a 98SE installation disk you could install XP on it just to run it or even tryout a Linux distro since that is a rather outdated model. With a Linux you first have to download and burn to cd the iso images or order a complete there for a low cost since Linux for the most part is a free OS with different distros often labeled the "flavor of the month" by many writers. XP simply boots off of the installation cd to install.
 
well im going 2 run 98SE until i get 2000, sometime. i dont have a XP CD either lol, i have no Windows CD's, i used 2 have 95, 98, and 2000, but lost em when i moved.
 
I think you are in a deep pit there without a rope or latter! Without having any installation disks let alone a 98SE to repair or reinstall Windows you are deep in.... ^#%^@$#@@$! foobar land. Of course you could always download a free Linux distro if you had a cd burner lying around to make up the installation disk(s) there or simply burn the Knoppix 5.0.1 Live cd distro to access the files on the Compaq's hard drive.
 
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