Moving a hard drive containing the WinXP OS from one computer to another is a very desirable alternative to reinstalling all of the programs, transferring data, and getting Outlook data moved (which can be problematic if the versions are too far apart).
However, when moving a hard drive containing the WinXP OS from one computer to another, a Windows reinstallation seems to be necessary UNLESS the two mainboards have the same chipset. Otherwise, I've found that Windows will start to load until it gets to the chipset drivers and then it locks up. It seems to be completely impossible if one computer is running an AMD cpu and the other Intel.
I've noticed that when I install a new copy of WinXP, the chipset drivers are not required for it to initially load and run, and they are loaded from the mainboard's utilty CD after XP is up and running.
Since the problem seems to be in the chipset drivers, it would seem that I should be able to use Device Manager to uninstall the hard drive controllers, transfer the hard drive, then bring up WinXP on the new machine without the chipset drivers, and then install the drivers?
Has anyone had experience doing this? Will it work?
If not, does anyone know of a reliable means to transfer hard drives from Intel to AMD machines, or the other way around?
Thanks,
Phil
However, when moving a hard drive containing the WinXP OS from one computer to another, a Windows reinstallation seems to be necessary UNLESS the two mainboards have the same chipset. Otherwise, I've found that Windows will start to load until it gets to the chipset drivers and then it locks up. It seems to be completely impossible if one computer is running an AMD cpu and the other Intel.
I've noticed that when I install a new copy of WinXP, the chipset drivers are not required for it to initially load and run, and they are loaded from the mainboard's utilty CD after XP is up and running.
Since the problem seems to be in the chipset drivers, it would seem that I should be able to use Device Manager to uninstall the hard drive controllers, transfer the hard drive, then bring up WinXP on the new machine without the chipset drivers, and then install the drivers?
Has anyone had experience doing this? Will it work?
If not, does anyone know of a reliable means to transfer hard drives from Intel to AMD machines, or the other way around?
Thanks,
Phil