This is strange. After partitioning, formatting, and installing Win 98...I receive the dreaded "Verifying DMI Pool Data" message which freezes my computer. The only way I can boot into my system without going into SAFE mode is by doing the step-by-step confirmation. There's nothing in my boot logs to indicate a bad hardware/software configuration. I updated my BIOS, disabled/reinabled my internal/external cache, auto detected my hard drive, did an fdisk /mbr, a sys c: from a 98 startup disk, secured all my cable/card connections, cleared my cmos, did a 'Reset Configuration Data', you name it...i've tried it. Does anyone have any clue what the problem might be and how I can find it? Thanx.

That one may be a little hard to figure out as the usual cure for it is to SYS C: and you have already tried that. Microsoft says it's a hardware issue http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;EN-US;Q287553& so I would try to find out which piece of hardware is causing it , if nothing in the logs tip it off strip the computer down to nothing but a hard drive and video card and bootup and see if it goes away if it does start adding back one item at a time untill the error return's and you have found the culprit. post back if you don't find it good luck

It is not really freezing at Varifying DMI Pool if you can get to Safe Mode. It must be freezing when loading part of Windows. Did you try a Clean Boot? From Safe Mode... Start>Run, type msconfig, click Ok, choose Selective Startup, UNCHECK all boxes and reboot. If it boots to anything other than Safe Mode (no Safe Mode in all four corners of the screen), add the check marks back in one at a time to locate the problem.

When answering above, I completely forgot that you could boot to Windows normally when you go through Step by Step, so a Clean boot won't prove anything unless you had to answer NO to some of the questions in Step by Step. Sorry about that. If you DID have to answer NO to some questions in Step by Step, then go ahead and use the Clean Boot trouble shooting technique to narrow down the problem (but you don't need to go to Safe Mode to use msconfig). If you can get to normal Windows by answering YES to all questions during Step by Step, then I would suggest you reinstall the newest drivers for your video card.

Bill this page may help you out on the problem found it after my last post to you http://www.plasma-online.de/index.html?content=http%3A//www.plasma-online.de/english/help/solutions/win9x_dmi.html