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Can I put my old HDD into my new rig?

Aurora

Hi guys

 

I'm going to be building a new rig and was wondering.

Can I just put the HDD that is in my current system and put it into my new build?

 

please for the love of god help me with this one, because I have been reading that apparently that's impossible without a fresh install of Windows.

 

Please prove me wrong, because I've already gone through my budget and don't exactly have time to wait for new parts to arrive.

 

Thanks in advance

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If the HDD is the only hard drive and has the OS it should be possible (You need driver reinstall at least though) but some people report requiring a fresh install when swapping out motherboards. 

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Yes you can.. Be sure to uninstall the old drivers since they may cause some conflicts with other software...

 

If it doesn't work you can always do a fresh install...

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When I swapped out motherboards with 8.1, it only required a little bit of set up and a re entry of my product key, but other than that, everything worked fine. It may, however, depend on the OS that you're using. My suggestion would be to back up all your important data and make sure to write down your product key just in case you do need a fresh install.

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Yes you can.. Be sure to uninstall the old drivers since they may cause some conflicts with other software...

 

If it doesn't work you can always do a fresh install...

Will the Fresh install completely Wipe my drive? because I can't risk that.

And how could I un-install old drivers?

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Will the Fresh install completely Wipe my drive? because I can't risk that.

And how could I un-install old drivers?

 

You can look for the drivers in Add/Remove Programs...

 

Also on the fresh install, I think there's an option to keep your data... I haven't personally done a fresh install other than after a reformat...

 

It's best to backup your data before you do a fresh install...

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Generally Windows allows as many system changes as you like until you switch then your motherboard, and even then with 8.1 I think it's going to just be a matter of re-entering your product key to clarify that that's the only machine that OS is installed on.

I'm switching to Linux next year or whenever display drivers are natively supported for Linux, so I'm not too worried about that, but I'm currently stuck with Windows 7 and so have had a couple of dealings with the whole Product Key BS that they have held on to for the past age...

Not fun is it?

If you end up having to do a fresh install, I would recommend (if space allows) partitioning your hard drive, moving your stuff onto the empty partition, reinstalling Windows onto the original partition, moving your stuff back into windows, delete the partition and then reconfigure your settings.

...Still not fun, is it? Welcome to Microsoft.

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Will the Fresh install completely Wipe my drive? because I can't risk that.

And how could I un-install old drivers?

Make a backup copy of your important data

The most common result of insufficient wattage is a paperweight that looks like a PC

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Looks like I am going to have to buy a completely new HDD.

 

A retail copy (disc) of windows 7 is usually good for up to three systems right?

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A retail copy of Windows 7 can be reinstall as many time as needed. It can only be on one system at a time if its a single license. OEM copy of Windows 7 can be install as many times as you want but only on the original system, original motherboard

 

If your changing motherboard a fresh install and complete wipe is the only correct way. Not that it wont work without a fresh install its just not advisable Back you data up

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