Upgrading mobo and cpu

[frankierx]

I am thinking of upgrading mobo and cpu from barton 2500+ to A64 3000+. Do I need to reinstall the os? Can I avoid this by running win xp cdrom fix and reinstalling drivers?

 

[superkdogg]

Re-installing is probably a matter of best practice. I have done a mobo/cpu switch without re-install and it didn't cause any problems. The potential is certainly there, though. IMHO it comes down to your own desire to gamble and how much stuff you have to back up before the re-install.

 

[CraigRT]

The way I look at it is, if you prepare for a format, do the hardware swap, and it turns out a format is not necessary, bonus. If it ain't broke dont fix it. :thumbsup:

 

[Fern]

HERE'S an article on how to do w/o a reformat/reinstall.

Personally, I nuke the HD and reinstall.

Fern

 

[Ike0069]

I have replace the MB and the CPU at seperate times without reformatting. I would guess that you will likely be okay.
But saying that, if it's been a while since you have reformatted, it's a good idea to go ahead and do it. Nothing beats a reformat or improving perforamnce.

 

[meltdown75]

a while back i switched my old ECS mobo for a newer Asus board. Also switched was the ram, due to the old board only using pc133 and the new one using pc3200 DDR ram.
i am trying to remember what happened when i tried to boot from the same install... oh well all i know is i had to reinstall xp pro, but it was worth it with the performance gains etc. even with the old cpu, the new mobo & ram provided a huge performance increase (duh - nforce2 + faster ram, etc etc).

think of it this way... if you do a fresh install with your new gear, you won't have to worry about all the old crap being in your system (files, device drivers, etc) and plus you have the added benefit of knowing your rig is utilizing all the great new features of your mobo.
go for the freshie.

 

[StrangerGuy]

Preferably yes, even if the OS works right after the upgrade.

 

[Atrye]

I say you should format. A format will be preferable for your OS to run best.

 

[Matthias99]

Toally unnecessary in most cases. See the guide linked above.

If you take care of a WinXP/Win2K install, you rarely if ever need to reformat it.

 

[frankierx]

Originally posted by: Fern
HERE'S an article on how to do w/o a reformat/reinstall.

Personally, I nuke the HD and reinstall.

Fern

Thank you for the article.

 

[stevty2889]

You may be able to get away with a repair install, but such a drastic change in chipsets may not work.

 

[frankierx]

Originally posted by: Matthias99
Toally unnecessary in most cases. See the guide linked above.

If you take care of a WinXP/Win2K install, you rarely if ever need to reformat it.

What about this statement in the above forementioned faq :

"Reportedly, Windows 2000 and XP can be tricked into doing this stuff for you. The procedure is this: Shut down, install your new hardware, power on, and enter your system BIOS. Make sure your First Boot Device is set to CDROM. Insert the Windows 2000/XP setup CD and boot from this disk. (You may have to "press a key to boot from CD" as the prompt says.) Skip the initial prompt asking to repair your existing installation. Then proceed to the screen where you select a partition, and choose your existing Windows partition. Setup will detect your existing installation and ask you to repair. Say yes. When Windows Setup is complete, you should have a fully working installation with all your old user and application profiles. Everything should be intact, except your hardware and driver settings, leaving it fresh for your new motherboard."

Does that mean that we can run the xp cdrom and avoid having to manually uninstall the drivers?

 

[Matthias99]

Originally posted by: frankierx

Originally posted by: Matthias99
Toally unnecessary in most cases. See the guide linked above.

If you take care of a WinXP/Win2K install, you rarely if ever need to reformat it.

What about this statement in the above forementioned faq :

"Reportedly, Windows 2000 and XP can be tricked into doing this stuff for you. The procedure is this: Shut down, install your new hardware, power on, and enter your system BIOS. Make sure your First Boot Device is set to CDROM. Insert the Windows 2000/XP setup CD and boot from this disk. (You may have to "press a key to boot from CD" as the prompt says.) Skip the initial prompt asking to repair your existing installation. Then proceed to the screen where you select a partition, and choose your existing Windows partition. Setup will detect your existing installation and ask you to repair. Say yes. When Windows Setup is complete, you should have a fully working installation with all your old user and application profiles. Everything should be intact, except your hardware and driver settings, leaving it fresh for your new motherboard."

Does that mean that we can run the xp cdrom and avoid having to manually uninstall the drivers?

Yes; that's exactly what I did when I upgraded my MB/CPU (a "Repair Installation"). AFAIK, all it does is to remove all the hardware drivers and registry information (which is, in theory, what the first part of that guide tells you how to do manually). When it next boots up, it will re-detect all your hardware and install appropriate default drivers. You will need to reinstall the latest drivers for your motherboard/chipset and all your other hardware (graphics card, sound card, etc.)

 

[frankierx]

Thank you Mathias, but what does AFAIK mean? I think it means 'as forementioned and I know'?

 

[Matthias99]

Originally posted by: frankierx
Thank you Mathias, but what does AFAIK mean? I think it means 'as forementioned and I know'?

LOL (ie, laughing out loud).

AFAIK = As Far As I Know. Welcome to the intarweb.

Edit: also, 'forementioned' is not a word. At least not a very common one; 'aforementioned' is usually used.