changing m/b

hi al maybe some one can advise me. I want to upgrade my motherboard and processor but as im running winXP will i need to reinstall everything or will winXP sort itself out.
thanks in advance
graham

 

I can only testify to earlier versions of Windows, in particular 3.1, 95B and 98SE, where my machine has gone through at least eight motherboard upgrades without a re-installation. IMO Windows handles hardware upgrades remarkably well as long as it has been set up correctly and you have the correct drivers ready.

The only time I ever had to abort a hardware upgrade was moving to a VIA chipset, I had McAfee AV installed and it refused to scan the boot sector, once I discovered this I removed McAfee and continued with the upgrade successfully.

Sorry I can attest to XP, not got round to installing that one yet, unfortunately my 98SE is far too stable to warrant an upgrade.

 

hi xane
thanks I have not had problems before like you in changing m/b etc but xp is a bit of a unknown. I sometimes wonder whether it was worth upgrading from 98se. I 'll let u know if it crashes.
graham

 

xp

I changed a mobo to different brand mobo & xp pro handled it ok

 

The standard wisdom is that if you're using anything before XP, don't even consider swapping out mobos without a reinstall. Even if you're upgrading to a mobo with a similar chipset to your original one. And I agree wholeheartedly with that strategy. And I highly recommend that you when moving to a new OS that you do a full install from scratch and not do an OS upgrade - this will save you major headaches.

I've heard that WinXP should re-detect all your motherboard devices and work correctly though I have heard of people having problems even with XP.

 

yep/nope

Chiles4, you are rite to the main point, winxp rules when ya change mobo & most stuff works first pop! Most probs are created by problem people not problem winxp. I deal with them everyday, & love it too