"Error reading from file" error message when you install <product> on Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows Millennium Edition (Me)

When you try to install one of the programs listed In the "Applies to" section, on a computer that is running Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows 98, or Microsoft Windows Millennium (Me) you may receive the following error message: Depending on the product and the version of Installer, the "Error 1305" may or may not appear.

This issue may occur if one of the following conditions are true:

• There is a configuration issue with the CD-ROM drive.
• The MDAC (Microsoft Data Access Components) is damaged or is not installed properly.
• There is an issue with the CD-ROM media. For example, the program CD-ROM is damaged or dirty.

To resolve this issue, use the following methods in the order in that they appear in.

Examine the CD-ROM or DVD Disc

Examine the disc for visible deformation or substantial scratches.

If you experience issues with a DVD disc, make sure that you insert the DVD into a DVD drive instead of a CD-ROM drive.

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Clean the Program CD-ROM or DVD

Clean the program CD-ROM or DVD. To do this, use a CD-ROM cleaning kit, or gently wipe the silver side of the CD-ROM with a soft, lint-free cotton cloth from the center of the CD-ROM outward.

Note Do not use paper cloth which can scratch the plastic and leave streaks, and do not use a circular motion when you wipe the CD-ROM.

If the issue continues to occur, clean the CD-ROM with a damp cloth or a commercial CD cleaning solution. Dry the CD-ROM thoroughly before you insert it into the CD-ROM drive.

Test the CD-ROM or DVD in another Drive

Try the CD-ROM or DVD in another drive. For DVDs, make sure that the drive has a DVD logo on the front of the drive. If the disc works in this test, then the issue may be with the original drive not properly reading the disc. Contact your computer or disc drive manufacturer. If your computer has multiple CD-ROM, CD-R, CD/RW or DVD drives, test the disc in the other drive.

If after you clean the disc, the disc does not work on another computer then it is likely that the disc is bad and must be replaced. If you see the same issues with a replacement disc as with the original disc or if the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Clean the Drive

If cleaning the CD-ROM or DVD does not resolve the issue, clean the disc drive by using a CD-ROM or DVD drive cleaning disc if you have one. If you do not have one, obtain one after all of the other steps in this article have failed to resolve the issue. Drive cleaning discs are available in most computer or home electronics stores.

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Quit Unnecessary Software

Other applications may interfere with the reading of the disc, for example, antivirus, firewall or anti-crash software. To quit all visible programs:

1. On the Taskbar, right-click each icon, and then click Exit, Quit, Close or Disable (if these options are available).
2. Press CTRL+ALT+DEL to display the Close Program window. If any program other than Microsoft Explorer is listed, click the program, and then click Remove. Repeat this step until all programs except Explorer have been removed.Note Explorer is the Windows user interface.

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Look for Known Issues with the Drive or Recording Software

Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base for your brand and model of CD-ROM or DVD drive. Known issues with specific drives may be found in the Knowledge Base.

If your computer includes CD-R or CD/RW recording (burning) software or packet-writing software, search the Microsoft Knowledge Base for known issues with the software. Occasionally, there are conflicts, which depends on the version of the software or with specific drives.

The Microsoft Knowledge Base is available at the following Microsoft Web site:

Check for Drive Firmware Updates

Contact the manufacturer of your computer or disc drive to see if software updates for your drive are available. Often these are called "firmware" updates. Occasionally updates are issued that can resolve issues where the drive can read most, but not all, discs.

Make Sure That You Are Using Protected Mode CD-ROM Drivers

Make sure that you are using protected mode (32-bit) drivers for your CD-ROM drive. To do this:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System.
3. Click the Performance tab, and then confirm that the File System entry is 32-bit. If the File System entry is Some drives are using MS-DOS compatibility, you may be using real mode (16-bit) CD-ROM drivers. If this is the case, you may be unable to read certain files on the compact disc.
   
   Contact the manufacturer of your CD-ROM drive to obtain an updated, protected mode driver for your CD-ROM drive. For information about how to contact your CD-ROM manufacturer, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
   http://support.microsoft.com/gp/vendors (http://support.microsoft.com/gp/vendors)
4. Click OK, and then close Control Panel.

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Enable and Disable UDF Support

If you are using Microsoft Windows 98 or Microsoft Windows Millennium (Me), change the Universal Disk Format (UDF) setting. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. In the Open box, type msconfig, and then click OK.
3. Click Advanced,click Disable UDF File System, and then click OK.
4. When you are prompted to restart your computer, click OK, and then click Yes.

When your computer restarts, UDF support has changed. If this does not make a difference, change the setting back. Note Typically, UDF should be enabled. However, some drives do not support UDF. For these drives, UDF should remain disabled. These drives cannot read discs that only use the UDF file system.

Note DVD-ROMs require the UDF file system, unless they are a UDF Bridge disc (mastered for both ISO 9660 and UDF).

To disable Direct Memory Access (DMA) for the CD-ROM or DVD drive, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System, and then on the Device Manager tab, click View Devices By Type.
3. Click the plus sign (+) next to CDROM to expand the branch.
4. Click the CD-ROM or DVD drive that you want to change, and then click Properties.
5. Click the Settings tab.
6. Click to clear the DMA check box, and then click Close.
7. Close Control Panel , and then restart the computer.

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Reduce Drive Caching

To reduce CD-ROM or DVD drive caching:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System and then on the Performance tab, click File System .
3. On the CD-ROM or DVD tab, move the Supplemental Cache Size slider to Small.
4. In the Optimize Access Pattern For box, click No Read-Ahead.
5. Click OK, and then click Close.
6. When you are prompted to restart your computer, click Yes.

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method. For additional information about how to install programs from compact disks on Office 2000, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Disable Auto-Insert Notification

Note If you disable Auto-Insert Notification, your programs can no longer start automatically.

To disable Auto-Insert Notification:

1. Click Start, and then point to Settings.
2. Click Control Panel and then double-click System.
3. On the Device Manager tab, click the Plus sign (+) next to CDROM to expand the branch.
4. Click your CD-ROM or DVD drive, and then click Properties.
5. On the Settings tab, click to clear the Auto Insert Notification check box.
6. Click OK, and then click OK again.
7. Close Control Panel, and then restart the computer.

Remove Duplicate Drives

Remove any duplicate CD-ROM or DVD drives being loaded by Windows. To do this:

1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System.
3. On the Device Manager tab, click View Devices By Type.Double-click the CDROM or DVD branch to expand it.
4. Note the properties for each device listed in the branch. To do this:
   1. Click a device, and then click Properties.
   2. Click each tab in the device properties dialog box, and then record the device information and settings.
   3. Click OK.
   4. Click OK, and then close Control Panel.

Restart Windows in Safe Mode

To restart Windows in Safe Mode, use the appropriate method for your version of Microsoft Windows.

Microsoft Windows 95

Restart the computer. When you see the "Starting Windows 95" message, press the F8 key, and then select Safe Mode on the Startup menu.

1. When Windows starts in Safe mode, click OK.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click System.
4. On the Device Manager tab, click View Devices By Type.
5. Double-click the CDROM branch to expand it. Verify that there are no changes in the list of devices in the branch. If you see a device that is not in the list of devices you noted in step 5, click the new device, and then click Remove. Repeat this step for each device in the branch that is not in the list of devices you noted in step 5.
   
   Note If you see new copies of a device that is in the list of devices that you noted in step 5, verify the properties of each copy of the device. If the properties for the device match the properties you recorded, keep the device. If the properties for the device do not match the properties you recorded, remove the device.
   
   
6. Click OK.
7. When you are prompted to restart the computer, click OK.

Windows 98 and Windows Millennium Edition

Restart your computer, press and hold down the CTRL key when your computer completes the Power On Self Test (POST), and then select Safe Mode on the Startup menu.

1. When Windows starts in Safe mode, click OK.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click System.
4. On the Device Manager tab, click View Devices By Type.
5. Double-click the CDROM branch to expand it. Verify that there are no changes in the list of devices in the branch. If you see a device that is not in the list of devices you noted in step 5, click the new device, and then click Remove. Repeat this step for each device in the branch that is not in the list of devices you noted in step 5.
   
   Note If you see new copies of a device that is in the list of devices that you noted in step 5, verify the properties of each copy of the device. If the properties for the device match the properties you recorded, keep the device. If the properties for the device do not match the properties you recorded, remove the device.
6. Click OK.
7. When you are prompted to restart the computer, click OK.

Clean Boot Your Computer

Use a clean boot to restart your computer and see if the issue persists. A clean boot is a way to create a clean environment. When you start your computer with a clean boot, Microsoft Windows starts and loads only basic devices and services. For more information about how to use a clean boot, see the "Reference" section later in this article.

To restart your computer with a clean boot, follow the steps that are appropriate to your operating system.

Microsoft Windows XP

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type msconfig in the Open box, and then click OK.
3. Click the General tab, and then click Selective Startup.
4. Click to clear the following check boxes under Selective Startup:
   Process SYSTEM.INI file
   Process WIN.INI file
   Load Startup Items
5. Click the Services tab, click to select the Hide All Microsoft Services check box, and then click Disable All.
6. Click OK, and then click Restart to restart the computer.

Note To restore the computer to use a normal startup, click Normal Startup - load all device drivers and services on the General tab in the System Configuration Utility, click OK, and then click Restart to restart the computer.

Windows Me

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type msconfig in the Open box, and then click OK.
3. Click the General tab, and then click Selective Startup.
4. Click to clear all of the check boxes under Selective Startup.
5. On the Startup tab, click to select the *StateMgr check box, click OK, and then click Yes when you receive a prompt to restart the computer.
6. After the computer restarts, click Start, click Run, type msconfig in the Open box, and then click OK.

Important Make sure that the check boxes you cleared in the General tab are still cleared. If you see a check box that is selected but unavailable (it is dimmed and has a check mark in it), your computer is not clean-booted, and you may require assistance from the manufacturer of the program that is listed next to the selected, unavailable check box.

Note To restore the computer to use a normal startup, click Normal Startup on the General tab in the System Configuration Utility, click OK, and then restart the computer.

Windows 98

1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click System Information.
2. On the Tools menu, click System Configuration Utility.
3. Click the General tab, click Selective Startup, and then click to clear the following check boxes:
   Process Config.sys file
   Process Autoexec.bat file
   Process Winstart.bat file (if available)
   Process Win.ini file
   Load Startup group items
4. Click OK, and then restart the computer.

Note To restore the computer to use a normal startup, click Normal Startup on the General tab in the System Configuration Utility, click OK, and then restart the computer. For additional information about cookies and privacy settings in Internet Explorer, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Install the MDAC Update

Note If you are getting the above symptoms with Encarta products, you may skip this section.

To install the MDAC update for all the products listed in the "Applies to" section except Office 2000:

1. Insert the installation CD-ROM for your program into the CD-ROM drive. Press and hold down the SHIFT key as you insert the CD-ROM to prevent Setup from starting automatically.
2. Click Start, point to Find, and then click Files or Folders.
3. In the Named box, type mdac_typ.exe.
4. In the Look in box, click the CD-ROM drive, and then click Find Now.
5. In the list of found files, double-click the Mdac_typ.exe file.
6. Follow the instructions on the screen to install the MDAC 2.1 update.NOTE: For information about how to install the latest version of MDAC when you install Office 2000, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

If the issue continues to occur, proceed to the next method.

Check for Alternate Installation Locations

If your computer contains more than one CD-ROM-compatible drive (for example, another CD-ROM drive, or a DVD-ROM drive, or a CD-RW drive), and if you receive either of the error messages in the "Symptoms" section, cancel Setup (using the steps shown in the "If the Error Message Is Still on the Screen" section) and then run Setup by inserting the compact disc into the secondary drive. In most cases, the problem does not occur when you run Setup using the secondary drive.

Or, if your computer is connected to a network, you may be able to share the Microsoft product's compact disc in another computer's CD-ROM drive. If you are able to share another computer's CD-ROM drive, insert the product's compact disc into that drive, and from your workstation, connect to the other computer and run Setup.

For example, if the other computer's name is "server" and its CD-ROM drive is shared as "cdrom", run Setup from your computer. To do this, click Start, click Run, type \\server\cdrom\setup.exe in the Open, and then click OK.

If you are still unable to install any of the programs listed at the beginning of this article, please click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

For additional information about how to perform a clean-boot in Windows, click the following article numbers to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: For additional information about troubleshooting CD-ROM issues in Windows 2000, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: For additional information about troubleshooting CD ROM issues in Windows XP, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: For additional information about how to troubleshoot CD-ROM issues in Windows 95,98 or Windows Millenium (Me), click the following article numbers to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: