upgrading motherboard, cpu and ram

[dmw]

Hi,

I have an old p2 machine running windows xp and I want to
upgrade the motherboard, cpu (to p4) and ram.

What will i need to do after fitting the new hardware?
will xp just ask for the drivers or will I need to
uninstall the old stuff before I shut down or will I need
to format and start fresh?

If the answer is a format are there any quick ways to
reinstall all my programs and documents? I have heard of
someway in which you can make a copy of the entire hard
drive before the format, i think it was called an image.

Many thanks

 

[Jon_Hildrum]

Typically a repair install will work. It has for me a few times when I have
tried it following the type of changes your making.
A repair install will not affect installed applications and programs. Here
is a link for how to

http://michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

PS: There is no substitute for backing up important data if something should
go wrong.

 

[Bob Harris]

It is sometimes possible to attach the old hard drive (old installation) to
a new motherboard, then do a "repair" installation of XP, meaning let XP
install new drivers for all the things associated with the motherboard. A
repair can be done if you have the retail version of XP. It can not be done
with an OEM copy (e.g., Dell, Gateway, Compaq), since those are bound to one
PC (i.e., one motherboard).

Here are some links to repairing:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;315341



http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repair_xp.htm



http://www.extremetech.com/print_article/0,3998,a=23979,00.asp



After the repair, it is likely that you will need to re-activate. This is
not a big deal, just expect it. Try the on-line activation first. If that
fails, an 800 number should popup and yu need to call that.



Of course, given the magnitude of this upgade, it would be very wise to have
a backup copy of all personal data off the PC.



On the other hand, ther is a lot to be said about a "clean install", meaning
foramt the hard drive, then install XP. Or, let XP format it as step one in
regular installation.



Finally, a P2 machine probably has slow disks, maybe ATA33 or 66. On the
same scale modern disks are ATA100 or 133, or SATA 150. Thus, you might
want to invest in a new, larger, faster hard drive.

 

[Petebert]

you will need to format, the hard drive will be looking for the old
motherboard on bootup.

I dont know about the HD backup, I always just copy over stuff I want to
keep to another HD and reinstall the programs I want later.

 

[Guest]

Thank you for your reply.
Will the XP backup be ok? Will it backup programs and "my
documents"?
I do have the option to network to another pc if that
gives me better options for backup.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Hi,

I have an old p2 machine running windows xp and I want to
upgrade the motherboard, cpu (to p4) and ram.

What will i need to do after fitting the new hardware?
will xp just ask for the drivers or will I need to
uninstall the old stuff before I shut down or will I need
to format and start fresh?

If the answer is a format are there any quick ways to
reinstall all my programs and documents? I have heard of
someway in which you can make a copy of the entire hard
drive before the format, i think it was called an image.

Many thanks

Normally, and assuming a retail license (many OEM installations
and licenses are 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

As always when undertaking such a significant change, back up any
important data before starting.

This will also 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:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever
count on having both at once. - RAH

 

[Jon_Hildrum]

XPbackup should be ok.

My preferences for backup is to use an image program and an additional
harddrive (those are cheap these days).

 

[Jim Macklin]

It may be too expensive to upgrade the old PII machine to a
P4. The power supply will need to be replaced, your hard
drive is probably too small and certainly will be slow. A
new power supply may not fit in the available space in your
old case meaning you need a new case. Other hardware may
not make the switch well.

If you look at the cost of buying an upgrade copy of XP
($100 for Home-$170 for Pro), a new mobo and CPU $200-$300+,
a new hard drive $100 and new RAM $100 and the PSU/case
$100-150+ you have exceeded the cost of a new Dell. You can
keep the old system working for testing beta software or use
it as a server/firewall for your network.


--
The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.


| Hi,
|
| I have an old p2 machine running windows xp and I want to
| upgrade the motherboard, cpu (to p4) and ram.
|
| What will i need to do after fitting the new hardware?
| will xp just ask for the drivers or will I need to
| uninstall the old stuff before I shut down or will I need
| to format and start fresh?
|
| If the answer is a format are there any quick ways to
| reinstall all my programs and documents? I have heard of
| someway in which you can make a copy of the entire hard
| drive before the format, i think it was called an image.
|
| Many thanks

 

[Nathan McNulty]

Both upgrade versions and OEM versions can be had for around $75 for
Home and $125 for Pro (or even less if you can get a student/teacher
discount). I picked up an upgrade copy of XP Home for a friend from
OfficeMax a while back for $60 after rebate. That was a decent deal in
my opinion

What you do is look online at places like OfficeMax and Office Depot,
find the price for their OS, say $100, then you use a $20 off if you
spend $100 coupon or something like that, and if you are lucky, they may
even have a rebate to pair with it