5.5 Installing Windows 9x
5.5.2
Requirements for installing Windows 98
To install Windows 98, the following minimum hardware platform is required:
  • An 486DX66Mhz or faster processor, operating with at least 16 MB of RAM. A recommended minimum of 32 MB of RAM, or ideally, 64 MB of RAM if the system can support it. 
  • The system must possess a keyboard, a mouse, and a 16-color VGA monitor or better (SVGA recommended). 
  • The system hard drive needs to have between 255 and 355 MB of free space available to successfully install Windows 98 full version on a FAT16 drive, or between 175 and 255 MB drive space on a FAT32 drive. 
  • To upgrade from Windows 95 requires about 195 MB of free hard disk space, but may range from between 120 MB and 255 MB, depending on the options that are installed. 
  • Sometimes a modem is required to download device drivers upgrades from various sources on the Internet. The minimum required is a 14.4kbps (28.8kbps or faster is recommended). 
  • 3.5-inch high-density floppy disk drive and CD-ROM drive (32 speed is recommended).

Note: The actual amount of disk space used depends on the type of install being performed (New, Upgrade, Custom, Portable, and so on). Regardless, a minimum 2-gigabyte hard drive is needed for a Windows 98 installation. The information outlined above is summarized on the table.

Lab Activity (PDF, 11.82 KB) 
  In this lab, students will be able to install Windows 98.