New mobo/CPU/RAM...

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Guest

Hi
I have read through a few similar posts, and it seems that I can upgrade my
PC, but I will need to re-install XP on a formatted HD to be safe. I want to
move from an old P4 system to a new AMD dual-core system with more RAM. This
obviously involves a complete rip-out of my main PC bits, but I want to keep
my HD's if possible along with my DVD writer and case/PSU.

However, I have an OEM version of Windows XP Home, but I do have an XP
installation disc to hand. Over the years, I have wiped my HDs a few times
and done a fresh install, but always with the same PC.

Can I do a fresh install with a new mobo/CPU/RAM combination with what I have?

Thanks,

Neil.
 
The safest way is to save all your personal data, including data on other
partitions and onboard hard drives as image files to either an USB or
Firewire drive, or a hard drive connected to an ide card first. These have
their own bios, independent of the PC or motherboard used. DVD may work,
but may take way to much DVD writing media.

Secondly, wipe the two hard drives while connected to the new motherboard by
writing zeroes to both with software from the hard drive mfr(s).

Install XP anew on the now clean hard drive with the same or less partition
size. Install drivers from the mobo CD. Turn off system restore in XP.
Restore the imaged partitions. Reboot after XP "sees" the restored
partitions. Turn on XP system restore afterwards if desired.

There may be more to it if SATA and/or RAID is involved on the new
motherboard vs the former one. But, neither was provided as info regarding
your question. Am assuming you have ATA spec ide drives vs SATA.

Whether you can use the XP OEM CD depends which OEM you're speaking of. OEM
specific or generic. If specific, no it won't work ever. Generic is
possible. A newly purchased generic XP OEM CD is legal with the motherboard
purchase.

A fresh/clean install of XP is highly suggested with any motherboard swap
per my experiences with XP.

All of the above is my opinion derived from my own experiences.
 
Neil said:
Hi
I have read through a few similar posts, and it seems that I can upgrade my
PC, but I will need to re-install XP on a formatted HD to be safe.
Click to expand...


That's not usually necessary; a repair installation is normally sufficient.

I want to
move from an old P4 system to a new AMD dual-core system with more RAM. This
obviously involves a complete rip-out of my main PC bits, but I want to keep
my HD's if possible along with my DVD writer and case/PSU.

However, I have an OEM version of Windows XP Home, but I do have an XP
installation disc to hand. Over the years, I have wiped my HDs a few times
and done a fresh install, but always with the same PC.

Can I do a fresh install with a new mobo/CPU/RAM combination with what I have?
Click to expand...


Normally, and assuming a retail license (many factory-installed OEM
installations are BIOS-locked to a specific chipset and therefore *not*
transferable to a new motherboard - check yours before starting), unless
the new motherboard is virtually identical (same chipset, same IDE
controllers, same BIOS version, etc.) to the one on which the WinXP
installation was originally performed, you'll need to perform a repair
(a.k.a. in-place upgrade) installation, at the very least:

How to Perform an In-Place Upgrade of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=KB;EN-US;Q315341

Changing a Motherboard or Moving a Hard Drive with WinXP Installed
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/moving_xp.html

The "why" is quite simple, really, and has nothing to do with
licensing issues, per se; it's a purely technical matter, at this point.
You've pulled the proverbial hardware rug out from under the OS. (If
you don't like -- or get -- the rug analogy, think of it as picking up a
Cape Cod style home and then setting it down onto a Ranch style
foundation. It just isn't going to fit.) WinXP, like Win2K before it,
is not nearly as "promiscuous" as Win9x when it comes to accepting any
old hardware configuration you throw at it. On installation it
"tailors" itself to the specific hardware found. This is one of the
reasons that the entire WinNT/2K/XP OS family is so much more stable
than the Win9x group.

As always when undertaking such a significant change, back up any
important data before starting.

This will also probably require re-activation, unless you have a
Volume Licensed version of WinXP Pro installed. If it's been more than
120 days since you last activated that specific Product Key, you'll most
likely be able to activate via the Internet without problem. If it's
been less, you might have to make a 5 minute phone call.


--

Bruce Chambers

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