Hard drive format after mobo replacement?

[theskinnypig10]

I now have a micro atx case and i want to get an atx case so i can get and atx mobo. the motherboard i have now is by MSI and the new one that i want to get is also from MSI and it has the same chipset as the mobo i have now. Do i still have to format my drive?

 

[boggen]

swap things out and see what happens. be ready to have all the stuff on hand though, registration keys, passwords, usernames, emails, etc... major change in hardware will cause many software to cough up a few parts and not allow you to use them until situation is resolved through the given software registration. normally easy peasy, but still one most go through it.

driver conflicts might be an issue, some software might install certain things for certain hardware vs another, larger games for example.

swap the drive in and run stuff to see if the hardware is working, and then setup a time to format and reinstall. stage it out vs all at once.

to note it, you might come into some issues if for example microsoft windows, and your version came from a manufactured computer say, dell, gateway, etc... and you might have issues when format / reinstall happens.