new hardware = reinstall os?

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AP2

[H]ard|Gawd
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Jun 25, 2007
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so i built a little cheap computer for the garage and had a quick question... my previous setup was a dell dimension 4600 motherboard, 2.8 (skt478), 2gb ddr400 kingston hyper-x ram, and x1600 pro (agp) and my new hardware is a msi k9mm-v motherboard. amd am2 4000 x2, 2gb mushkin ram, and the same x1600 ago card. can i just plug in the harddrive from my old setup with xp installed on it or do i have to reinstall everything?

thanks
 
You might get away with it by booting in safe mode and uninstalling the previous motherboard drivers etc.
If its quite an old windows install, I wouldnt bother keeping it though.
 
If it's an entirely new computer, reinstalling the OS is preferable. Especially if you have SATA/IDE drivers for the old board set up in Windows, it may refuse to boot entirely (Windows 2000 did for me, even in Safe Mode; not sure if XP is better). I'm skeptical about the "old drivers" that people sometimes claim are lying around and slowing down the computer, but that's a pretty big change.
 
You could either do a fresh install, or read the sticky on upgrading your motherboard.
 
darn.... i was hoping i wouldnt have to reinstall everything. thanks everyone for confirming.
 
Start from scratch. Any time you save will be quickly eaten up by constant, nagging problems.
 
well, i read the the sticky but i just dont understand it just yet. it says that i need to extract the sysprep from the cd and run it, then install your new hardware, etc..only thing is, is that my old hardware is no longer available besides the old harddrive. the other problem is, is that im not even sure where my xp disc/coa is.

any other ideas?
 
If all you have is the hard disk, you can't sysprep Windows. You need to run Sysprep from within the Windows install you're moving before you move it.

At this point, you'll need your Windows CD to go any farther no matter what you do.
 
Unknown-One said:
At this point, you'll need your Windows CD to go any farther no matter what you do.
Click to expand...
Yes, without the CD, you aren't able to do much, if anything. Those CDs should be in some kind of binder or storage device, and should never be lost, especially for someone who's working on their own computer, and responsible for their own support.
 
well i found the cd and key so im good to go. i guess i have to reinstall. thanks.
 
Does anyone know how Vista deals with new hardware such as mobo/cpu? Is a reinstall or Sysprep required?
does Sysprep even work with Vista?
 
Yeah, the way I deal with it is to stick the vista disk in and install.
Seems to work a treat :)
 
well ran into a problem yesterday putting together the system. heres the problem... computer will not boot with a usb mouse/keyboard plugged in. it will only boot with ps/2 mouse/keyboard plugged in. after it boots into windows i can then plug in the usb items, but if i leave them in and restart the computer it will not post.

any ideas?

motherboard: MSI K9MM-V AM2 VIA K8M800
cpu: AMD AM2 64x2 4000+
ram: Mushkin ddr2 800
psu: rosewill 450w
harddrive: maxtor 150gb sata3
gpu: ATI x1650 512mb AGP
OS: windows xp home with sp2 (fresh install)
 
ok ill give that a shot when i get home. thanks deacon.
 
i checked the bios and usb support is enabled and its still working correctly. move the computer from the work bench to the garage and gave it a boot. it booted up fine with usb items connected. reseted the computer with usb attached, but this time it wouldnt post. i have to revert back to ps/2 keyboard until windows boots up to input the usb devices. any other ideas?
 
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