Changing My Motherboard, Worried About Windows

[GlasgowBhoy]

Hi guys, im looking to upgrade my pc in the near future from the Z97 to the new Z170 Chipset, the only worry is my ssd and my hdd that i will lose the data (4tb hdd hard to backup) and i dont think windows will work on the pc, any help is appreciated thanks.

 

[CelicaGT]

Your Windows license is tied to the mainboard, you may be able to transfer if you get on the phone with MS. You will have to reinstall still. For what reason do you want to upgrade? CPU performance is basically nil.

 

[USAFRet]

With a new motherboard, it is quite likely you will need to reinstall the OS.
Depending on the OS license you have, you may need to buy another Windows license.

You can stave off a lot of heartache by preparing beforehand. Expect to have to reinstall, and prepare for that.

 

[John_234]

You will have to reinstall Windows fresh if your are changing your mobo for a different chipset. You could backup all your files before you change the motherboard so you do not loose anything

 

[geofelt]

I successfully booted a new Z170 motherboard using the windows ssd from a previous z97 motherboard.
You then only need to install the chipset drivers from your new driver cd.
That was some relief because I had no appetite to reinstall all mu games and apps.
The Z170 motherboard will need usb drivers, so you need to find them on a sata attached device, not a usb attached dvd drive.

My windows 7 license was considered as retail(it was a upgrade package) so I had no activation issues.

If your windows was oem, go ahead anyway. MS may let you activate if you convince them that you are not a pirate and this copy of windows is used nowhere else.
Your fall back plan would be to buy a new license from the activation link.

 

[GlasgowBhoy]

Your Windows license is tied to the mainboard, you may be able to transfer if you get on the phone with MS. You will have to reinstall still. For what reason do you want to upgrade? CPU performance is basically nil.

I still have my windows case with the reference key on it , I want to upgrade my mobo especially because the one i have has rubbish audio quality and is cheap and since i'm doing that i was gonna go up a tier and get a 2nd graphics card.

 

[USAFRet]

Your Windows license is tied to the mainboard, you may be able to transfer if you get on the phone with MS. You will have to reinstall still. For what reason do you want to upgrade? CPU performance is basically nil.

I still have my windows case with the reference key on it , I want to upgrade my mobo especially because the one i have has rubbish audio quality and is cheap and since i'm doing that i was gonna go up a tier and get a 2nd graphics card.

That points to an OEM license. Meaning that license is tied to that original motherboard.
You may get lucky, and MS will allow that license to be used on a different system. But they are under no obligation to do so.

 

[geofelt]

Having a windows key affixed to your pc means that it is oem and you may have an activation issue.
Be prepared for that.

FWIW, I do not like planning for dual gpu unless there is no single card that will do the job.

Here is my canned rant on planning for dual cards:
-----------------------------Start of rant----------------------------------------------------
Dual graphics cards vs. a good single card.

a) How good do you really need to be?
A single GTX750t1 or R7-265 can give you decent performance at 1920 x 1200 in many games.
Yes, you may need to be satisfied with less than high settings.

A single GTX970 or R9-390X will give you excellent performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.
Even 2560 x 1600 will be OK with lowered detail.
A single GTX980ti is about as good as it gets for a single card.

If you are looking at triple monitor gaming, or a 4k monitor, sli/cf will be needed for excellent frame rates.
A single GTX980ti or Furyx will give good frame rates in many games.
Next year, it looks like single card performance will go up by 50%

b) The support costs for a single card are lower.
You require a less expensive motherboard; no need for sli/cf or multiple pci-e slots.
Even a ITX motherboard will do.

Your psu costs are less.
A card as good as a R9-FURY or a GTX980ti will need only a 620w psu.
When you add another card to the mix, plan on adding 200w to your psu requirements.
75w for the slot, 75w for an extra 6 pin connector or possibly more.
Here is a chart:
http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm

Case cooling becomes more of an issue with dual cards.
That means a larger and possibly expensive case with more and stronger fans.
You will also look at more noise.

c) Dual gpu's do not always render their half of the display in sync, causing microstuttering or screen tearing. It is an annoying effect.
The benefit of higher benchmark fps can be offset, particularly with lower tier cards.
Read this: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

d) dual gpu support is dependent on the driver. Not all games can benefit from dual cards.

e) dual cards up front reduces your option to get another card for an upgrade. Not that I suggest you plan for that.
It will often be the case that replacing your current card with a newer gen card will offer a better upgrade path.
-------------------------------End of rant-----------------------------------------------------------

 

[CelicaGT]

Your Windows license is tied to the mainboard, you may be able to transfer if you get on the phone with MS. You will have to reinstall still. For what reason do you want to upgrade? CPU performance is basically nil.

I still have my windows case with the reference key on it , I want to upgrade my mobo especially because the one i have has rubbish audio quality and is cheap and since i'm doing that i was gonna go up a tier and get a 2nd graphics card.

Ahh, understood. Try the swap, and get that license sorted. After that I would still reinstall, your registry and drivers will be a mess if you don't. Even if it runs semi decent you will still see performance and possible future stability issues which will be made harder to diagnose. Put all your data on that backup drive, make sure it's all set up beforehand.

 

[GlasgowBhoy]

Having a windows key affixed to your pc means that it is oem and you may have an activation issue.
Be prepared for that.

FWIW, I do not like planning for dual gpu unless there is no single card that will do the job.

Here is my canned rant on planning for dual cards:
-----------------------------Start of rant----------------------------------------------------
Dual graphics cards vs. a good single card.

a) How good do you really need to be?
A single GTX750t1 or R7-265 can give you decent performance at 1920 x 1200 in many games.
Yes, you may need to be satisfied with less than high settings.

A single GTX970 or R9-390X will give you excellent performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.
Even 2560 x 1600 will be OK with lowered detail.
A single GTX980ti is about as good as it gets for a single card.

If you are looking at triple monitor gaming, or a 4k monitor, sli/cf will be needed for excellent frame rates.
A single GTX980ti or Furyx will give good frame rates in many games.
Next year, it looks like single card performance will go up by 50%

b) The support costs for a single card are lower.
You require a less expensive motherboard; no need for sli/cf or multiple pci-e slots.
Even a ITX motherboard will do.

Your psu costs are less.
A card as good as a R9-FURY or a GTX980ti will need only a 620w psu.
When you add another card to the mix, plan on adding 200w to your psu requirements.
75w for the slot, 75w for an extra 6 pin connector or possibly more.
Here is a chart:
http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm

Case cooling becomes more of an issue with dual cards.
That means a larger and possibly expensive case with more and stronger fans.
You will also look at more noise.

c) Dual gpu's do not always render their half of the display in sync, causing microstuttering or screen tearing. It is an annoying effect.
The benefit of higher benchmark fps can be offset, particularly with lower tier cards.
Read this: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

d) dual gpu support is dependent on the driver. Not all games can benefit from dual cards.

e) dual cards up front reduces your option to get another card for an upgrade. Not that I suggest you plan for that.
It will often be the case that replacing your current card with a newer gen card will offer a better upgrade path.
-------------------------------End of rant-----------------------------------------------------------

so all in all i'm gonna have to phone mc to re active windows on my pc thanks everyone, when you put it that was it does make more sense as i'm only using a 1080p monitor with a gtx 970 and the cost will be lowered by £300 if i get a 2nd i think i might wait till i have plenty of money which wont be until gta VI comes out lmao and more demanding games come out which wont be until gta VI comes out lmao