Issue with dual-boot system w/ large HDD

Dave Hardenbrook · Guest

I recently replaced a 60 GB hard disk that had crashed on a system, and
replaced it with a 320 GB. I configured it to match the old system,
which Dual-booted Windows 98 SE and XP. The problem I'm having is that
the system randomly freezes in Windows 98, usually during writes to the
drive, e.g. while installing drivers. I have scanned the disk and it's
error-free, and there are no issues with the drive under XP -- It will
even read/write to the Win98 partition without problems.

Is this an issue with the BIOS not liking the large HDD under Win98? If
so, why does it read the drive at all? Is there a work-around? The 98
partition is needed for apps that won't install let alone run under XP.
Upgrading the BIOS is out of the question because the motherboard
manufacturer (Epox) has folded.

Here's the specs if that's any help:

BIOS: Award 6.0 PG, 2/08/2002
Chipset: VIA KT133A

HDD: Seagate PATA/100 320 GB
Win98 partition: 10 GB
WinXP boot partition: 50 GB
(Rest of disk devoted to docs, data, etc.)

Dave