Remote assistance

[Ilwrath]

I use VNC.

Real VNC Website

It's a free (as in speech) software, and there are both clients and servers available on many platforms.  I've actually controlled windows servers from my Amiga using this.

Really, though, you should probably consider updating the Win98 machine to 2k (or NT4 if it's really old).  Both have similiar base system requirements to 98se, and are MUCH more stable for things that aren't games.  That way, you'll have to mess around with it much less.  Last time I rebooted my Win2k server was after a power failure.

[Ilwrath]

Hmm... odin beat me to it.  ;-)  

I would also agree with him in saying that Linux or BSD would even be a better choice than 98 for that router box if you want to do a little reading into how to set it up.  

And you can use VNC on any of it.  :-)

[Ilwrath]

It appeared to me that the BIOS settings program is loaded of a small dedicated partition on the HD. Pretty weird.

Yes, they do.  You can download a program from Compaq (called, cutely enough, a ROMPAQ) to re-install this partition.

Not that I've learned this from experience.  (Whistles innocently)

As for performance, it should be fine.  I actually have a P1- 133mhz w/ 64mb RAM that I use as test Win2k server.  Amazingly, for a single user, it is able to click along ok.  No speed demon, but it works for very light tests.

[Ilwrath]

:-D So I shouldn't fdisk that HD then

You should be able to fdisk or whatever.  Just dont de-allocate that small partition, though, unless you have the disk(s) to re-install it.

Do Compaq's usually have flashable ROMs btw?

Most seem to, in some form, or another.  Some appear to just load the updates to the HD partition, and don't really flash anything, but there's usually some way to update.

[Ilwrath]

however the despro I have got, has no such partion, and there is nothing in the bios that should be upsetting win2kpro, I have looked throughly.

I find it strange, cause when I had the machine it had nt4 workstation on it, so i tohught great, ill wipe this and just stick win2k on it, no dice.

There was a certain type of early power-management that would upset Win2k badly enough that it wouldn't install cleanly.  Forget which it was.  I remember I had to apply a BIOS update to my old P1 and then disable all power management features.  (I don't remember if the BIOS update was for the power-management or to enable larger HDs, though!)

Also, a faulty CD ROM drive will cause Win2k to install corrupt.  (Seems it doesn't actually check the integrity of the files as it is copying them to the HD)  I spent a couple hours chasing that problem, once, as well.  ;-)

[Ilwrath]

If I were to install another OS on the HD, something like Linux or whatever and it installs it's own bootmanager, would that clash with the Compaq BIOS prog?

I think you should be ok, so long as you do a manual partitioning and make sure that the partition remains marked as in-use in whatever partitioning program you use.  I don't recall having problems when going from the 98 bootloader to NT4 on a Compaq like that.  I don't think I tried Linux on one, though.  (Last time I used a Compaq of that style was at a job I was working several years ago.)