KB199886 - PC 98 Hardware Devices May Not Work Correctly in Windows 98

PSS ID Number: 199886

Article Last Modified on 5/8/2002

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows 98

This article was previously published under Q199886

SYMPTOMS

After you install Windows 98, you may not have full functionality with some PC 98 hardware.

CAUSE

This behavior occurs because the Smartvsd.vxd file is not included in the retail version of Windows 98. This file is present in the Windows\System\Iosubsys folder on a computer that is upgraded from Microsoft Windows 95, but this file is not present after completing a fresh install of Windows 98.

RESOLUTION

A supported fix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that is described in this article. Apply it only to computers that are experiencing this specific problem.

To resolve this problem, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services phone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;EN-US;CNTACTMS

NOTE: In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question.

The English version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later:

   Date      Time    Version     Size    File name   
   --------------------------------------------------
   6/23/98   2:30pm  4.00.1111   17,982  Smartvsd.vxd

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

The Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology system (SMART) is an industry term used to describe technology that monitors and predicts device performance.

The SMART IOCTL API specification, version 1.1 or later, published by Compaq Computer Corporation and Microsoft Corporation, describes the API used by a program to issue SMART commands to an IDE drive under Windows 98. In Windows, the API is implemented in a vendor-specific driver named Smartvsd.vxd.

All computers wearing the PC 98 Systems Badge must have a hard disk that is SMART compliant.

For additional information about Windows 98 and Windows 98 Second Edition hotfixes, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

206071 General Information About Windows 98 and Windows 98 Second Edition Hotfixes

Keywords: kbHardware kbprb KB199886
Technology: kbWin98 kbWin98search