Microsoft Fax Installation for Windows 98

If you have difficulties using Microsoft Fax on Windows 98, the problem may be due to installation and configuration. If you have problems using Microsoft Fax, follow these detailed step-by-step installation instructions before reporting bugs in Microsoft Fax.

Step-By-Step Installation Instructions for Microsoft Fax

After a successful upgrade or installation of Windows 98, open the "Control Panel" by clicking on the Start button, then the Settings menu option and then the Control Panel option.

Double click on the "Add / Remove Programs" icon.

Click on the "Windows Setup" tab, and install all the options concerning the "accessories", "communications", "disk tools", and "Microsoft Fax" components.

Click "OK" to any message boxes that appear.

When the "Inbox Setup Wizard" dialog asks, "Have you used Windows Messaging before?" click on "NO" and then "Next".

When asked, "Select the information service(s) that you want to use with Windows Messaging" – make sure that the Microsoft Fax option is checked.

Next, at the prompt for "Location Information" enter your telephone area code and optionally, fill in the other fields. Click "Close" when done.

The "Dialing Properties" dialog appears with a "My Location" tab. Fill in the appropriate fields then click "OK".

The "Inbox Setup Wizard" window will then ask, "What do you want to use to send and receive faxes?" Choose "Modem connected to my computer" and click the "Next" button.

The "Install New Modem" dialog appears. Allow the system to automatically detect your modem; do not check on the "Don’t detect my modem; I will select from list" feature. Click on "Next".

Verify that modem has been correctly detected. Click "Next", then "Finish"

The "Inbox Setup Wizard" appears without the detected modem in the list. Click "Next".

The Setup Wizard will display "You have not selected a fax modem. That’s OK, but you will only be able to work offline. Do you want to select a fax modem?" Select "No".

The "Inbox Setup Wizard" will ask you to enter a name and fax number. Fill in the fields and then click on "Next" and "Finish".

An error message box may appear describing an error in MLSET32 (i.e.: MLSET32 caused an invalid page fault in module KERNEL32.DLL at 0157:bff7a020). If this occurs, click on the "Close" button and proceed to the next step.

At this step, the Microsoft Fax feature is installed. To finish, right-click (right mouse button) on the Inbox icon located on the desktop.

Click on Microsoft Fax in the "Services" box.

Click on "Properties" button.

Click on the "Modem" tab

Click on "Set as Active Fax Modem"

Click on "OK"

Click on "OK"

Microsoft Fax should now be operational now.

NB: Another method of getting Microsoft Fax operational, is to do a hardware detection on modem first (via control panel / hardware detect), reboot, and then add on Microsoft Fax (via control panel / "Add Remove Programs" icon).

Updated awfxcg32.dll

With Microsoft fax installed as a MAPI service provider, you may encounter a page fault on exiting a MAPI client such as exchange or outlook. This has been corrected with a new version of the awfxcg32.dll binary. You can copy this file from betaonly\fax\awfxcg32.dll to your windows\system directory, copying over the old awfxcg32.dll file.

Microsoft Fax and Exchange 5.0

There are problems with the installation order of Microsoft Fax and Exchange 5.0. We recommend installing Microsoft Fax before upgrading to Exchange 5.0. However, if Exchange 5.0 is installed prior to Microsoft Fax, you will need to edit the c:\windows\system\mapisvc.inf file.

In the mapisvc.inf, file; add the following line to the sections indicated:

[Services]

AWFAX=Microsoft Fax

[Default Services]

AWFAX=Microsoft Fax

Then, add the following statements:

[AWFAX]

PR_DISPLAY_NAME=Microsoft Fax Messaging Service

PR_SERVICE_DLL_NAME=awfaxp.dll

PR_SERVICE_ENTRY_NAME=ServiceEntry

WIZARD_ENTRY_NAME=WizardInformation

Providers=AWFAX_AB, AWFAX_XP

PR_RESOURCE_FLAGS=SERVICE_SINGLE_COPY|SERVICE_NO_PRIMARY_IDENTITY

PR_SERVICE_SUPPORT_FILES=awfaxp,awfxab,awcl1_,awdevl,awrndr,awfxcg

[AWFAX_AB]

PR_PROVIDER_DISPLAY=Microsoft Fax Address Book

PR_DISPLAY_NAME=Microsoft Fax Address Book

PR_PROVIDER_DLL_NAME=awfxab.dll

PR_RESOURCE_TYPE=MAPI_AB_PROVIDER

PR_RESOURCE_FLAGS=00000000

[AWFAX_XP]

PR_PROVIDER_DISPLAY=Microsoft Fax Transport

PR_PROVIDER_DLL_NAME=awfaxp.dll

PR_RESOURCE_TYPE=MAPI_TRANSPORT_PROVIDER

PR_RESOURCE_FLAGS=00000000

Microsoft Fax and Outlook Express

Microsoft Fax is not supported in Outlook Express

By William.Cook, Systems Engineer
Thanks William.

Hi Bud,
This is the only way I could get it to work.

Windows 95 came with fax software. Where's Microsoft Fax for Windows 98?
Microsoft Fax is included on the Windows 98 CD-ROM. You must also install Windows Messaging (the updated version of the Exchange Inbox client) to use Microsoft Fax. To install Messaging and Fax:

* Insert your Windows 98 CD-ROM into your drive
* Click the Browse button from the Windows 98 Autorun menu
* Navigate to the folder \Tools\OldWin95\Message\US
* Double-click on WMS.EXE to install Windows Messaging
* Double-click on AWFAX.EXE to install Microsoft Fax
* Restart your computer when prompted

Then I had to re-install Outlook 98 which got converted to Exchange 5.0.