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How Windows 98 Works with Hardware

Windows 98 doesn't radically change the way things were handled under Windows 95, but it does include some useful new tools and tweaks. At the center of all hardware, however, is Windows 98's Plug and Play (PnP), the combination of software and hardware that allows the operating system to automatically manage devices.

For PnP to work, your peripherals, system BIOS, and operating system must all incorporate PnP technology. When Windows 98 starts, the operating system and the PC go through a series of steps to establish configurations, arbitrate conflicts, and record changes.

• System BIOS (basic input/output system): The system BIOS is the low-level code that boots your system, detects the hard disk, and manages basic operations. Plug and Play systems employ a specifically tuned BIOS that has the intelligence to detect hardware and manage configuration changes.
  

Note
To see if your BIOS is PnP-compliant, look for the BIOS information on your monitor at the beginning of the boot process. A text message identifying the BIOS version should include mention of PnP. You can also check the Windows 98 Device Manager for a PnP BIOS listing.


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• Operating system: Windows 98 interacts with the system BIOS and the installed hardware and keeps track of hardware resources.
• Hardware peripherals: Adapter cards and other peripherals must incorporate PnP circuitry in order to provide automated configuration. PCI add-in cards, by definition, are PnP-compliant, whereas ISA cards must be specifically designed for the feature. External peripherals such as modems and printers can be PnP as well.
• Device drivers: The final piece of the PnP puzzle is the device driver. Peripherals must use dynamic drivers (called VxDs) that allow configurations to be changed on-the-fly. You can usually get the latest driver versions from the peripheral manufacturer.

Note
The best place to find the latest 32-bit device drivers for your peripherals is from the vendor. Often, the driver available from a vendor's web site will be more up-to-date than those found on the Windows 98 CD-ROM disc.

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These components all come together to eliminate the need for the user to tell each peripheral exactly which resources it can access. IRQ, DMA, and I/O address settings are all assigned by Windows 98 based on the overall picture that PnP provides.

While Windows 98 makes things easier, you need to be knowledgeable about the resources your devices need. This enables you to diagnose and fix simple conflicts without having to resort to time-consuming or costly repair services. IRQs, or interrupt requests, are the most critical of the system resources, if only because nearly all devices need them.

IRQ numbers enable hardware devices to get the CPU's attention. A PC has 14 IRQs, but not all those are actually available to your peripherals. In fact, as PCs incorporate more and more devices, IRQs have become increasingly scarce, which sometimes results in failed installations and conflicts. Table 21.1 lists the IRQs and their most common uses. As you can see, only about a third of these may be available, and often even those are occupied.