Solved Error setting up windows 95/NT application in VM with Windows XP

[amss1976]

Hello,

I am trying to install a program wich has in its minimum specifications the Windows 95/NT Operating system.

I have it running normally on a very old laptop (about 10 years old) that is running Windows 98 Home Edition with SP2 (from 2002). As this laptop is very old I tried to install it on VM running on a desktop with Windows 7.

I installed the latest VM on my Windows 7 system and created a VM with Windows XP Pro with SP3.

However when I try to setup the program (in the XP VM) I receive the following error message:
"Not possible to run Windows 16-bit programs" as the window title
"Not possible to locate the file <path of the setup file> (or one of its components). Make sure that the path and the name of the file are correct and that all necessary libraries are available" as the main text message.

Note: both XP systems (VM and laptop are 32-bit versions).

Any ideas of what am I doing wrong?

I am trying to use the VM solution as I was not able to install the program directly under Windows 7.

I thank in advance for all the help that I might get.

 

[Kari]

Hi and welcome to the Seven Forums.

Some essential information is needed from you:

• Which virtualization program you use to run XP vm? (VirtualBox, VMware, Virtual PC?)
• What is the name of the old 16 bit application?
• Do you have original install media for it?
• How / from which drive you are trying to install it on your vm?

Also, please post the screenshot showing the exact error message you receive.

• http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/9717-screenshot-paint.html
• http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/9733-screenshots-files-upload-post-seven-forums.html

Kari

 

[amss1976]

Hi and welcome to the Seven Forums.

Some essential information is needed from you:

• Which virtualization program you use to run XP vm? (VirtualBox, VMware, Virtual PC?)
• What is the name of the old 16 bit application?
• Do you have original install media for it?
• How / from which drive you are trying to install it on your vm?

Also, please post the screenshot showing the exact error message you receive.

• http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/9717-screenshot-paint.html
• http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/9733-screenshots-files-upload-post-seven-forums.html

Kari

Thank you for trying to help me. Below are the answers to your questions and in attachment it the Prt Scr from the message I get when I try to run it on the XP VM. The message is in Portuguese but I tried to translate it on my first post (the message shows when i double-click the setp.ece file under Disk1 directory).

• I am using Oracle VM VirtualBox (latest version).
• The application I am trying to run is a portuguese accounting program from the company "Eticadata" called CTE (v. 3.10.4).
• I have the original media to install it (CD)
• I am trying to install it, using the original media, by sharing the "physical" CD drive to the guest machine.

I don't know if this is a relevant information: the structure of the installation directory is split into several disks (floppy sized parts). There are 21 folders (disks).

 

[Kari]

I don't know if this is a relevant information: the structure of the installation directory is split into several disks (floppy sized parts). There are 21 folders (disks).

This might be really relevant.

Let me check I get this correctly: originally this application came on 21 floppy disks, meaning that to install it you insert floppy 1 and start installer, which then asks floppy 2 and so on. Your CD contains these 21 floppies, each on its own folder.

If so, you might get the installer to work with a bit "manual labor" .

First, create a floppy image of the floppy 1 folder on CD(*). Create then a virtual floppy disk for your XP virtual machine, attach the floppy image you created to your virtual floppy, start vm and launch the installer from virtual floppy.

If it works, create images of all 21 floppies and when one floppy is done, remove it from virtual floppy, attach the next floppy image and so on.

A bit complicated, some extra work bit it just might work.

Using MagicISO to create floppy disk image

(*) = Create an image, copy contents of folder floppy 1 to this image. Notice: copy the files from the folder to your image, not the folder itself. An example: Folder Floppy1 contains files File1, File2 and File3. You need to copy the files File1, File2 and File3 to your floppy image's root, not the folder Floppy1.

Kari

 

[amss1976]

I don't know if this is a relevant information: the structure of the installation directory is split into several disks (floppy sized parts). There are 21 folders (disks).

This might be really relevant.

Let me check I get this correctly: originally this application came on 21 floppy disks, meaning that to install it you insert floppy 1 and start installer, which then asks floppy 2 and so on. Your CD contains these 21 floppies, each on its own folder.

If so, you might get the installer to work with a bit "manual labor" .

First, create a floppy image of the floppy 1 folder on CD(*). Create then a virtual floppy disk for your XP virtual machine, attach the floppy image you created to your virtual floppy, start vm and launch the installer from virtual floppy.

If it works, create images of all 21 floppies and when one floppy is done, remove it from virtual floppy, attach the next floppy image and so on.

A bit complicated, some extra work bit it just might work.

Using MagicISO to create floppy disk image

(*) = Create an image, copy contents of folder floppy 1 to this image. Notice: copy the files from the folder to your image, not the folder itself. An example: Folder Floppy1 contains files File1, File2 and File3. You need to copy the files File1, File2 and File3 to your floppy image's root, not the folder Floppy1.

Kari

Thank you very much Kari for this tip.

I had to try several options on the size of the floppy images (using 1.44M and 2.88M (I think this was the biggest option on the floppy option)). At first when I made those images, when I mounted them on the VM and tried to access it, it would say that the disk was not formatted and asked if I wanted to format it but, after several tries, it finnaly worked and I managed to setup the program under the XP VM.



Thanks a lot for all your help.

 

[Kari]

Thanks for coming back to tell this, good to hear you finally got it working .