are you running windows98se? Because the patch (unofficial sp2) can cause shutdown errors with non windows98 se editions.

Hmmm. Yes It's W98se with the SP added. What you say though makes me think I should do a fresh install and update/tweak it myself - the SPs are just so fast and handy. I never had this problem before [even with previous retro W98/SP] though I dimly remember the issue from years ago..

At what point is it freezing? At the "Please Wait" screen before the final shutdown, or earlier?

Disabling Advanced Power Management in your BIOS might be a good idea. (APM always seemed to only cause problems.)

This is not an uncommon problem with 98. The causes are a bit mysterious though.

It could be ACPI related but if you switch to APM the system may not turn off on its own at all (require you to hit power button). You may also lose CPU HLT idling, meaning the CPU will run hotter when idle.

Considering it isn't problematic initially, I'm leaning towards a driver or software install of some sort being the issue. Try leaving the Unofficial Service Pack out.

keep in mind that ACPI mode with Win98 has to be forced manually... running setup.exe in DOS will not let it automatically detect and use ACPI

Jorpho wrote:

At what point is it freezing? At the "Please Wait" screen before the final shutdown, or earlier?

Locks up just as soon as I hit Start->Turn Off Computer. The screen sort of greys out and no shutdown options can be selected.

I'm inclined to just reinstall though I may start by falling back on one of several Acronis images I made during a carefull incremental install. Getting USB2 up and running was a pain but worth it, and I kept pretty good notes on the proper upgrade sequence for that.

I found it interesting that there was never a conclusive diagnosis and fix for this - seems MS basically bailed on 98 after the issue became a repeated annoyance..

TheMAN wrote:

keep in mind that ACPI mode with Win98 has to be forced manually... running setup.exe in DOS will not let it automatically detect and use ACPI

Actually it will usually install in ACPI mode. It depends on whether the setup program approves of the motherboard's ACPI BIOS implementation. For example, my Abit BF6, ASUS TUSL2, and Shuttle AN35N all install in ACPI mode. If there are ACPI devices in the System device listing, it's in ACPI mode.

tincup wrote:

Locks up just as soon as I hit Start->Turn Off Computer. The screen sort of greys out and no shutdown options can be selected.

That sounds particularly strange. Yeah I would reinstall. Try running without the unofficial service pack. Install drivers one at a time and test shutdown every time. Same with any apps that use a driver (ie Daemon Tools).

there is a registry key to enable/disable ACPI mode after installation.... just google!

I'll try disabling ACPI in bios and report any findings. Mobo is a trusty old Abit VA6.

OK..

BIOS: ACPI=disable
1st restart ok
2nd LOCKUP

DEV MGR: force APM v1
1st LOCKUP

BIOS: PM Control by APM=NO
1st ok
2nd ok
3rd LOCKUP

BIOS: ACPI=enable
1st ok
2nd ok
3rd ok
4th LOCKUP

DEV MGR: reset APM v12
1st ok
2nd LOCKUP

Can't draw firm conclusions from any of this. Will continue using the shortcut methode for now. One thing though. I did recently upgraded the cpu from a P3-800 to a Tualatin 1000, and I'm pretty certain the shutdown problems started *after* this. Perhaps cpu cycles are involved. I'm planning to test a further upgrade on a 1400 soon so if the problem is more severe...

tincup wrote:

Locks up just as soon as I hit Start->Turn Off Computer. The screen sort of greys out and no shutdown options can be selected.

Well, the most famous Windows 98 shutdown bug appears at the "Please Wait" screen as I mentioned before. You're evidently experiencing something quite different, I'd say – there's no reason for anything magical to start happening before you even select a shutdown option.

So, I'm betting is has something to do with your video card and the greying-out effect. Does the problem go away if you switch to standard VGA? What is your video card, anyway?

Venerable Voodoo5500 on 3dfx ref drivers. Can always try reinstalling drivers but will try VGA mode too. Thanks for input - probably looking at a roll-back/install.

EDIT: 5 consequtive good restarts in VGA mode. Re-nstalled 3dfx ref drivers [beta w/ tools], lockup on first shutdown.

Rather than go nuts at this late hour I simply restored a 6-week old C: image, and things are fine for now...

swaaye wrote:

That sounds particularly strange. Yeah I would reinstall. Try running without the unofficial service pack. Install drivers one at a time and test shutdown every time. Same with any apps that use a driver (ie Daemon Tools).

The current install was a methodical install, making Acronis images at critical stages as I went along. Then I'd test out varous things and when happy, roll back to the previous milestone and install/tweak only the things I wanted. This produced a clean uncluttered final state which I had no problem with for a couple of months... Im curious if any of the earlier images are free of the bug and will probably try them out one by one...

On the other hand in the old W98 days I remember routinely reinstalling a fully installed backup of C:\ I kept on a separate partiition, using EXMax. Did that once a month or at the slightest hint of problems.. Ah yes the glorious old days are coming back...

tincup wrote:

Did that once a month or at the slightest hint of problems.. Ah yes the glorious old days are coming back...

You're being awfully kind. 😉