Re: Can you change a M/Board & Graphics card without reinstalling XP ?

["Andy Davies" <dajdavies@xxxxxxxxx>]

Just swapped a pentium 4 motherboard for a Asus P5E-VM without any
problems - has to repair my current installation, and it activated
fine over the web.

Andy

2008/11/17 Paul Gordon <paul@xxxxxxx>:
> Theoretically, yes you can... however...
>
> If the installed version of windows used product activation, that
level o=
f hardware change will almost certainly cause it to "de-activate"
and requi=
re reactivation, most probably it will demand phoning Microsoft to get
them=
to allow it, since it will likely think it is a copy installed on a new co=
mputer... - I believe there are also EULA restrictions on OEM versions
that=
actually prohibit some of these changes...
>
> You should be able to have Windows re-detect all the hardware changes
aut=
omatically and update all the drivers for the new bits on the new mobo.
I'v=
e never done this "deliberately" - i.e. as a planned way to
upgrade a criti=
cal machine, but I have done it numerous times "accidentally"
when testing =
out old hard disks and so on.
>
> I personally don't like the idea of doing it this way, - best case
scenar=
io is that the Windows build starts up OK, goes straight into the
"Found ne=
w hardware" wizard, updates all the drivers & everything is
hunky-dory. - E=
ven then, you send up with a load of old redundant drivers left behind for
=
hardware that no longer exists, and you may end up with less than optimal
d=
rivers installed for some devices..
>
> Worst case is that some items are *so* different that Windows won't
even =
start up successfully on the new hardware... - I've seen this happen many
t=
imes too, - windows will for example BSOD during the boot up, or perhaps
re=
fuse to "see" the disk it is installed on...
>
> I'd much prefer to do a new clean install on the new hardware, then
spend=
some time transferring all the (required) files & settings over. It's a
bi=
t more work, but there are some tools out there to make it a little less
pa=
inful, and I think you tend to end up with a much leaner, cleaner and
hopef=
ully more stable machine at the end of it as a result.
>
> Just my =A30.02
>
> Paul G.
>
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx] On Behalf O=
f
>> Dean Barrett
>> Sent: 17 November 2008 14:05
>> To: UKHA Group
>> Subject: [ukha_d] Can you change a M/Board & Graphics card
without
>> reinstalling XP ?
>>
>> My HTPC needs speeding up as i cant get BluRay playback properly -
all a
>> bit
>> too jerky.
>>
>> Its also my server for CQC and other bits, so dont really want to
scrap
>> everything and start again.
>>
>> So the big question is - can i replace the Mobo/Graphics and RAM
without
>> windows having to start again ?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Dean.
>>
>>
>>
>> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>>
>>
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