Ok here is my situation. I am wanting to move my HDD to a new computer. The new one will not be significantly different from the old one, but it will have a different mobo and RAM. I have read several posts and the opinions are mixed. Some say it goes seamless with Windows 7 and some so you might as well do a clean install. I have a lot of programs that I would haft to reconfigure, so I would really like to avoid a clean install if possible. Anybody have any suggestions on this?
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Moving OS to a new computer
- Thread starter Siryak
- Start date
With Win 7, it will probably go fine - and if the chipsets are the same or similar (p45 to P55 or X58, for example, it'll almost certainly be fine). Really can't hurt to try it. Not sure how asking to reactivate is any kind of a consideration, since a clean install would also require activation.
Do it right, do a clean install. Cutting corners like that is going to cause you hours of headaches down the line. I have a friend who does shit like this and he's always surprised when he finds weird issues later. I even offer to do it for him but he just can't be bothered. Again though, do a clean install.
The problem is this computer is set up to do video editing / audio editing / PVR through Windows Media Center / Gaming / The list goes on and on of how much I would haft to reconfigure in order to do a clean install. So I would haft to reconfigure all of my codecs, editing programs, recording settings(I record a lot of shows), games and their settings and saves, etc. On top of all of that I have it configured for certain things to use my HDD and the main things to use my SSD drive. If it gives me any trouble I will do a clean install, but it can't hurt anything to try if it might have any chance at all of working. My computer is a nightmare to reconfigure.
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2006
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Yah also I have a practically unlimited license since I get Windows 7 Pro free through MSDNAA. It is the same chipset. I am just moving to a board with more features and using the old board to build my dad a computer.
You may find that MSDNAA sucks. I got Win7 Pro through my school and got to use it exactly once. Went to reinstall a while later and got "This product key is used" or whatever. Called MS, and they wouldn't activate it over the phone and told me to contact my school to get another key. So I did, and they wouldn't give me another key.
That said, I've changed a few motherboards (both with different and similar chipsets as the originals) on other machines with absolutely no problems. Windows picked up the new hardware right away and installed what drivers is had available. Try it out and see, if you have problems, there's no reason you can't reinstall. Just make sure anything important is backed up.
You may find that MSDNAA sucks. I got Win7 Pro through my school and got to use it exactly once. Went to reinstall a while later and got "This product key is used" or whatever. Called MS, and they wouldn't activate it over the phone and told me to contact my school to get another key. So I did, and they wouldn't give me another key.
I have used the same key several times without any problems. My school doesn't use the main MSDNAA site though for some reason. It is a proprietary site for my school. Even if I did have problems though I know the lady in charge of MSDNAA at my school, so getting another key would not be a problem for me.
Thanks for all of the help everybody.