[Eltocliousus]

im upgrading many parts of my computer but im keeping the hard drive and DvD-Drive the same ( taking them out of the one i have now )

But will i have to buy windows XP again or install all my games again?

Thanks. I thought the harddrive, since remaining the same will keep all my files still on it.

Have a great evening.

P.S: To all those who saw my custom rig post the other day, im not skimping on the PSU now and im spending £50 on a new THERMALTAKE 650w. Thanks ^^

[Macmac508]

If you put the old hard drive in your new computer all the files and the OS will stay on it. Is the HDD SATA or IDE, the motherboard you get will have compatability for both so this shouldn't be a problem.

[Gazmondo]

You might have to re-activate windows, but apart from that you should be fine.

[link590o]

if you're changing motherboards, then you have to be concerned with one major question with the operating system:

did i get my copy of windows separately, or did it come preinstalled with the computer, and just gave a recovery disc?

if it came with the computer, it's a big no-no. you'll need another copy.

if it was purchased separately, then you're fine as long as you're using that copy on more than 1 physical processor at a time.

the problem with keeping your old hard drive is you MAY need to format it before the install. i'm not sure if the file transfer option will work after that or not.

and you're also going to be installing different drivers because it's a different motherboard.

you may want to double check those issues first before you give the go-ahead.

[philthomas]

If you are expecting to just put the HDD in the new machine and carry on where you left off ...... then this is unlikely to happen.
As link59oo said above, the drive/OS is configurded for the mobo and hardware from your old box and has all the old drivers for graphics car, mobo chipset etc. and as such, it is very likely that it wont boot up.
It's possivle that a Windows Repair (not recovery) may work, but no guarantees.

As you are building a brand new box, it will make a lot of sense to install a new OS as well, assuming you have an XP or Vista disk.
In the long run it will save you lots of hassel.

[Eltocliousus]

Already got my stuff and didn't get an OS.