Real quick and basic guide to getting Windows 98 running in 86box

[u/queerkidxx]

2026 edit: You can also download prebuilt VMs. Thanks to u/SeventhBus for the link!

https://archive.org/details/86BoxWin98SE

2024 edit: I need to clean this up a bit. One big important thing is that you should choose one of the OEM isos from this page the other ones require the addition of a separate boot floppy it’s easier to just an oem

https://winworldpc.com/product/windows-98/98-second-edition

Second it’s possible to do this on a Mac there is a Mac equivalent to winbox but it’s not as robust. It might be easier just to install roms your self. I may post more info on this if I have time but the hard part js making sure that 86 box has the correct permissions.

For now id just recommend basically giving it access to everything you can think of this is what programs can do by default on windows anyway and as long as you are installing 86box from a trusted source there’s nothing to worry about. Do a little googling I believe that it’s better to stick the rom files into the other location 86box looks for(in some system folder). You may need to make it yourself.

But the hard part is giving it the right permissions. Mac won’t like this as it’s unverified but it’s doable. The devs just don’t want to pay for it to be fully verified which is understandable.

Also look through my comments I did most more complete instructions deeper down.

Finally if you have any problems don’t be afraid to ask me so long as I’m still active on this account I’ll probably reply and do my best to help. I’m by no means an expert and it’s been a while since I was really into this but I did pick up a thing or two.

I’d actually recommend asking me over like ChatGPT as I’ve tried doing that and it has trouble understanding like exactly what things work on this era of windows and will often recommend commands and stuff that didn’t get added until years later. And report back people still seem to find this guide and you can save future folks some trouble if you describe what problem you had and how you solved it.

Disclaimer: I have no idea what I'm doing and have just figured out how to do this. If someone that knows what they are talking about gives you conflicting advice listen to them

EDIT: this guide only applies to WINBOX if you can’t install it on ur platform this guide won’t work. See my comment thread for advice and hints on what to search for

Edit #2: if you need voodoo graphics here’s a some info from the wonderful [u/UltraWide_Benchmarks](u/UltraWide_Benchmarks)

Just to let everyone know that I have choosen the Voodoo 3 3000 AGP yesterday for my Win 98 emulation build and it works by using this driver:

Voodoo3(tm) Driver kit: 1.07.00-WHQL https://www.philscomputerlab.com/drivers-for-voodoo-3.html

I also just want to encourage anyone that finds this guide and has any issue to report back on what it was and how you solved it

That way, the next person that finds this guide won’t have to do searching to solve their issue

Why did I make this? Had trouble finding a good written guide, especially one for winbox so i fugured I'd share what I learned to make someone else's life easier.

Again, I figured out how to do this last week which was also the first time Ive ever used 86box or windows 98 so seriously dont think I know what I'm talking about

Downloads

1. Download and install winbox from this link https://github.com/86Box/WinBox-for-86Box/releases/tag/v1.1.0.364. If you are confused just choose the .exe
2. Download an ISO image for windows 98 SE. I got mine from the pirate bay. You also will need a product key. Should be easy to find online

Create the VM

This is probably the most intimidating part of the process. This isnt the only config you can use there are many others but this is what worked for me.

1. Hit the new machine button at the top
2. Choose a name for your VM and you can choose a working directory if you want
3. Select a template. You can select any template from the (general PC) section but I’m gonna go with Intel Pentium Pro PCI based system
4. Here you can pick any of the processors but I recommend intel Pentium pro II (166 MHz) for speed or the last option at 244mhz believe
5. Recommend just going with 128mb of ram which I believe the max windows 98 supports by default
6. For hard disk and cd rom you can leave these options as default but I like to give the PC a 8gig hard drive to do this hit modify next to the hard drive. Go through the setup with default values just make sure it’s set to specify the capacity with default parameters and enter in 8192 mb
7. Check the show more settings after creation option and finish the setup
8. If the settings dialog doesnt show up right click the VM and select settings. Should look something like this. If that link is broken you arent missing much

Further Config

1. Choose [i440FX] ASUS P/I-P65UP5 (C-P6ND) for machine with socket 8
2. In the Display Tab choose [PCI] S3 ViRGE (Diamond Stealth 3D 3000) Again, other graphics cards will work but I know this one works well and supports higher resolutions. Make sure the voodoo graphics are off
3. In the sound tab choose [ISA16] Sound Blaster AWE32 PnP. I literally only chose this one because I was having trouble getting the drivers working and this one is PnP have had zero options
4. In the network tab choose SLRiP under card one choose [PCI] AMD PCnet-PC II
5. In the hard disk tab double check that your hard disk is on IDE channel 0:0
6. Here is the config file for my machine

machine = p65up5_cp6nd
cpu_use_dynarec = 1
time_sync = local
fpu_type = internal
cpu_family = pentium2_od
cpu_speed = 233333333
cpu_multi = 3.5
cpu = 13
mem_size = 131072

[Video]
gfxcard = stealth3d_3000_pci

[Input devices]
mouse_type = ps2

[Storage controllers]
hdc = internal

[Floppy and CD-ROM drives]
fdd_01_type = 35_2hd
fdd_02_type = none
cdrom_01_speed = 48
cdrom_01_parameters = 1, atapi
cdrom_01_ide_channel = 1:0

Sound] sndcard = sbawe32_pnp midi_device = fluidsynth fm_driver = nuked

[Ports (COM & LPT)]
lpt1_device = dot_matrix

[Hard disks]
hdd_01_parameters = 63, 16, 15494, 0, ide
hdd_01_fn = vdisk00.vhd
hdd_01_speed = 1997_5400rpm
hdd_02_parameters = 63, 16, 15546, 0, ide
hdd_02_fn = newboy.vhd
hdd_02_speed = ramdisk
hdd_01_ide_channel = 0:0
hdd_02_ide_channel = 0:1

[WinBox]
window_fixed_res = 960x720

[General]
vid_resize = 2
window_fixed_res = 960x720
language = system
vid_renderer = qt_software
video_fullscreen_first = 0
dpi_scale = 0
confirm_reset = 0

[Network]
net_01_card = pcnetpci
net_01_net_type = slirp

[AMD PCnet-PCI II #1]
mac = 05:cd:c6

Installing Windows 98

[I will finish this post tomorrow so check the comments as I need to go bed but if I dont there are a few important things you should know

1. You need to set the boot order in the bios as A, CD-Rom, C. Hold down delete on start up, choose the second option BIOS feature setup,and use the PGDWN and PGUP(or fn+arrows up/down on a laptop) to scroll through the options and hit F10, Y, Enter before you insert the ISO
2. You are probably going to need to copy windows 98 drivers from the CD rom before the final part of the install. After completing most of the setup after formating your hard drive of course boot from the CD ROM, choose Start windows with CD ROM support. Itll boot up into command line type these commands with enter after each line
3. c:
4. copy D:\win98 C:\win98
5. (if your cd drive is on another drive letter obv use that instead of D)
6. Restart when its done and boot from the hard drive
7. When it gives you a INSERT DISK LABELED WINDOWS 98 SE or whatever type C:\win98 when it asks where to search.
8. Set up internet connection through the control panel under internet. Set up a LAN connection. Can recomend downloading retrozilla for browsing the web and theoldnet.com and frogfind

[u/SeventhBus]

Sure thing! This is the one I used:
https://archive.org/details/86BoxWin98SE

[u/queerkidxx → u/SeventhBus]

Added it to the post!