Greetings --
It depends entirely on the type of WinXP license you currently
have on the Dell. If it's an OEM license that came pre-installed on
the computer when you purchased it, it may not be transferred to any
other computer. You may still be able to preserve your settings and
applications by purchasing a full retail version of WinXP and using it
to perform a repair installation, but there's no guarantee that this
will work.
If you have a retail license that you purchased and installed on
the Dell yourself, than you may transfer it to a new computer, once
it's removed from the old PC. (Which will obviously occur if you take
the entire hard drive.)
Normally, and assuming a retail license (many OEM licenses are not
transferable to a new motherboard), unless your motherboard is
virtually identical (same chipset, same IDE controllers, same BIOS
version, etc.) to the one on which the other 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
As always when undertaking such a significant change, back up any
important data before starting.
This will also require re-activation. 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
--
Help us help you:
You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH
