Replace Mobo in XP??

"jim" wrote:

I'd like to ask some questions about replacing/changing a mobo in an XP pro
system. I've done some research on this issue and have come to the following
conclusions.

XP is not quite as Plug & Play as 98[SE] was in this regard. One can not
just take the OS HD and put it in another box and expect it to boot and
re-find everything and install all the appropriate drivers etc. like it
would in 98SE.


Not true. Windows 95/98/Me required specific detailed steps in order
to *successfully* replace a motherboard. Usually this involved at
least manually deleting all relevant items from Device Manager or
(even better) deleting the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Enum key from the
registry. Otherwise there would be a proliferation of obsolete and
duplicated items in Device Manager which could adversely affect
performance.


The limitations appear to be in two areas. The first is the HAL which is a
function of the CPU and number thereof and presence/absence of ACPI mobo
BIOS. The second is the HD drivers.

I've found all sorts of site/articles regarding how to do this and fix these
issues for the mobo ATA controller case. Other HD cases seem to be
tractable using the F6 install drivers(SCSI technique). One that seems to
be similar to many others regarding the mobo ATA HD issue is:
www.mostlycreativeworkshop.com/article11.html

My conclusion is that one should make the registry and file additions on any
XP system so that failure recovery on new hardware is more convenient at a
later time. Am I missing something here or is that about right.

The second issue is that HAL. If the old and new systems are single CPU
ACPI mobos then everything works. It makes no difference is one is a VIA
chipset and Athlon and the other an Intel chipset and an Intel CPU. Do I
have this right so far?


Nope. Totally wrong. Can you fix a Ford with Chev parts?

If one is going from a single CPU case to a new P4 supporting HT then one
must force in a new HAL for multiprocessor ACPI. Apparently that can be
done in Recovery console or by putting the HD in another system where files
may be manipulated before attempting a boot on the new mobo. Right so far?

Are the above the only two issues? Will all the other gadgets and chipsets
etc. be redetected and appropriate drivers installed? Will one be able to
boot and move forward in most all cases if the above two issues are dealt
with?

See http://michaelstevenstech.com/moving_xp.html for factual
information about how to do this in Windows XP.



Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

"The reason computer chips are so small is computers don't eat much."