New motherboard..XP won't boot!

[KT]

I installed a new motherboard, a new cpu, and new memory, kept all the same
drives, and now XP SP2 won't boot, safe or normal,saying due to hardware
change; it just keeps rebooting after that screen. Bios sees all the drives
properly, and I went over all the settings in the new bios, and I can access
the C: drive and read files from it. I can pull out the C: drive and put it
in another computer that I built using the old motherboard,cpu and memory in
and it boots fine! I really don't want to format and reinstall windows if I
can avoid it! Any ideas?

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I installed a new motherboard, a new cpu, and new memory, kept all
the same drives, and now XP SP2 won't boot, safe or normal,saying due

Unless the new motherboard is identical to the original one, you can't just
do this. At the very least you need to do a repair installation--see "How to
Perform a Windows XP Repair Install"
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

It's rare, but sometimes even that is not enough, and you will need to a
clean reinstallation.

 

[Larry Samuels]

You will need to perform a repair install to install the correct HAL for
your current hardware to avoid losing everything.

How to do a repair install on Windows XP
http://michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

--
Larry Samuels Associate Expert
MS-MVP (2001-2005)
Unofficial FAQ for Windows Server 2003 at
http://pelos.us/SERVER.htm
Expert Zone-

 

[kurttrail]

I installed a new motherboard, a new cpu, and new memory, kept all
the same drives, and now XP SP2 won't boot, safe or normal,saying due
to hardware change; it just keeps rebooting after that screen. Bios
sees all the drives properly, and I went over all the settings in the
new bios, and I can access the C: drive and read files from it. I can
pull out the C: drive and put it in another computer that I built
using the old motherboard,cpu and memory in and it boots fine! I
really don't want to format and reinstall windows if I can avoid it!
Any ideas?

Repair install.

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

--
Peace!
Kurt Kirsch
Self-anointed Moderator
http://microscum.com
"It'll soon shake your Windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'."

 

[Rock]

I installed a new motherboard, a new cpu, and new memory, kept all the same
drives, and now XP SP2 won't boot, safe or normal,saying due to hardware
change; it just keeps rebooting after that screen. Bios sees all the drives
properly, and I went over all the settings in the new bios, and I can access
the C: drive and read files from it. I can pull out the C: drive and put it
in another computer that I built using the old motherboard,cpu and memory in
and it boots fine! I really don't want to format and reinstall windows if I
can avoid it! Any ideas?

Do a repair install. You can't change the hardware like that and expect
XP to boot. See this link.

http://michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I installed a new motherboard, a new cpu, and new memory, kept all the same
drives, and now XP SP2 won't boot, safe or normal,saying due to hardware
change; it just keeps rebooting after that screen. Bios sees all the drives
properly, and I went over all the settings in the new bios, and I can access
the C: drive and read files from it. I can pull out the C: drive and put it
in another computer that I built using the old motherboard,cpu and memory in
and it boots fine! I really don't want to format and reinstall windows if I
can avoid it! Any ideas?

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

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

 

[Jonny]

I installed a new motherboard, a new cpu, and new memory, kept all the same
drives, and now XP SP2 won't boot, safe or normal,saying due to hardware
change; it just keeps rebooting after that screen. Bios sees all the drives
properly, and I went over all the settings in the new bios, and I can
access the C: drive and read files from it. I can pull out the C: drive and
put it in another computer that I built using the old motherboard,cpu and
memory in and it boots fine! I really don't want to format and reinstall
windows if I can avoid it! Any ideas?

Reading the files on a hard drive partition is one thing. Booting XP is
another with changed mobo/cpu/RAM.
Repair XP installs may or may not work. Clean installs seem to always work
for me with XP.
So, based on that, I always save any personal data to removable media before
changing out the noted hardware. Then, clean install XP on a new partition.

 

[TK]

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 do you know if a computer is BIOS-locked?

 

[Bruce Chambers]

How do you know if a computer is BIOS-locked?

Examine the CD. If it's a Recovery or Restore CD, it won't work on
anything but the original hardware. If it's a Branded OEM CD, it's
something of a crap shoot. Ask the computer manufacturer. A generic,
unbranded CD won't be BIOS-locked.

Or trying the installation and finding out the hard way.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

 

[Richard]

Examine the CD. If it's a Recovery or Restore CD, it won't work on
anything but the original hardware. If it's a Branded OEM CD, it's
something of a crap shoot. Ask the computer manufacturer. A generic,
unbranded CD won't be BIOS-locked.

If it is bios locked can you start the install with the old hardware and
when it reboots move the hard drive over to the new hardware? [license
restrictions notwithstanding].

Richard.

 

[kurttrail]

Examine the CD. If it's a Recovery or Restore CD, it won't work on
anything but the original hardware. If it's a Branded OEM CD, it's
something of a crap shoot. Ask the computer manufacturer. A
generic, unbranded CD won't be BIOS-locked.

If it is bios locked can you start the install with the old hardware
and when it reboots move the hard drive over to the new hardware?
[license restrictions notwithstanding].

Richard.

Yeah, but that will trigger activation, and phone activation at that.

--
Peace!
Kurt Kirsch
Self-anointed Moderator
http://microscum.com
"It'll soon shake your Windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'."

 

[NotMe]

When I replace HP Motherboards, many times I have to 'tattoo' them as HP (in
BIOS) before the recovery CD will work.
It depends on the brand/model.
--
A Professional Amateur...If anyone knew it all, none of would be here!
(e-mail address removed)
Change Alpha to Numeric to reply

If it is bios locked can you start the install with the old hardware and
when it reboots move the hard drive over to the new hardware? [license
restrictions notwithstanding].
Richard.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

If it is bios locked can you start the install with the old hardware and
when it reboots move the hard drive over to the new hardware? [license
restrictions notwithstanding].

Richard.

You could try, but it would be an exercise in futility. Once you place
the install the hard drive on the new motherboard, you'll still have to
perform the repair installation, and the CD will again halt the process.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin