Windows 98 or Windows 95 Defaults to Safe Mode Even After Successful Start (143283)

SYMPTOMS

When you start your computer, if your computer is running Windows 98, the Windows 98 Startup menu may appear even though you do not press and hold down the CTRL key while your computer starts. If your computer is running Windows 95, the Windows 95 Startup menu may appear even though you do not press the F8 key when you see the "Starting Windows 95" message. You may then receive the following error message:

Warning: Windows did not finish loading on the previous attempt. Choose Safe mode, to start Windows with a minimal set of drivers.

If you do not choose an option, Windows 98 or Windows 95 starts in Safe mode by default. This behavior can occur even if Windows 98 or Windows 95 started successfully the last time that you started your computer.

CAUSE

This issue can occur if Windows 98 or Windows 95 was unable to delete the Wnbootng.sts file in the Windows folder the last time that you started Windows 98 or Windows 95. The Wnbootng.sts file is created each time that you start Windows 98 or Windows 95, and the file is automatically deleted after Windows 98 or Windows 95 starts successfully.

If Windows 98 or Windows 95 does not start successfully, the Wnbootng.sts file remains in the Windows folder, and the error message in the "Symptoms" section of this article is displayed the next time that you start Windows 98 or Windows 95. If Windows 98 or Windows 95 cannot remove the Wnbootng.sts file, the error message is displayed each time that you start Windows 98 or Windows 95.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, use Windows Explorer or My Computer to delete the Wnbootng.sts file in the Windows folder, and then restart your computer.

If you cannot resolve this issue by deleting the Wnbootng.sts file, use the following steps.

Note You must have a Windows 98 or Windows 95 Startup disk to use the following steps. If you do not have a Startup disk, create one before you use these steps. To create a Startup disk, double-click Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel, click the Startup Disk tab, and then click Create Disk.

At a command prompt, type the following commands (where drive is your computer's physical boot disk), pressing ENTER after each command:
attrib -s -h -r drive:\io.sys
ren drive:\io.sys io.xxx
Insert the Windows 98 or Windows 95 Startup disk in drive A.
Type the following command (where drive is your computer's physical boot disk), and then press ENTER:
a:\sys drive:
Remove the Startup disk, and then restart Windows 98 or Windows 95.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about issues that might occur when you use the sys command, please click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

149110 Cannot Start Windows 95 After Using the SYS Command