Question New MOBO, what happens to my OS?

athguy

Honorable
May 7, 2015
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Hello all,

I'm considering upgrading my lg1150 z97x gaming 5 mobo because my i5 4690k is now struggling in many games and I also want to switch out my 1070ti for an RTX 2080 and I don't want a cpu bottleneck.

My question is, what happens to all my data...games files etc which are currently spread over 7 HDDs if I simply swap out the Mobo? More importantly what happens to my operating system? Will the computer boot like normal???

My windows CD is windows 8....I got upgraded digitally so if for some reason I need to reinstall the OS, would I have to rebuy windows 10?
 
1 - it will work with no problems
2 - it will work and develop problems
3 - it will not work.

If you have important data, i recommend saving it to the cloud or to another hard disk for now.
Then install the drive and see what happens. If option 3 happens then all your data is saved and you just need to reinstall windows 10 again.
 

athguy

Honorable
May 7, 2015
58
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10,535
1 - it will work with no problems
2 - it will work and develop problems
3 - it will not work.

If you have important data, i recommend saving it to the cloud or to another hard disk for now.
Then install the drive and see what happens. If option 3 happens then all your data is saved and you just need to reinstall windows 10 again.

Hmm I'm not following. So I swap out the Mobo and see what happens. Let's see it doesn't boot, then I buy windows 10 and boot from that... Where do I install that? On top of my existing install?
 
D

Deleted member 14196

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i would back up all your data, then install the os fresh. you haven't got a chance of it working right if it isn't the exact same mobo
How To Do A Clean Installation Of Windows 10

you don't need to even buy windows 10 unless you want to activate it, use the Windows Media Creation tool to create a bootable DVD or USB. install with that, activate when you actually buy a license.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hmm I'm not following. So I swap out the Mobo and see what happens. Let's see it doesn't boot, then I buy windows 10 and boot from that... Where do I install that? On top of my existing install?
You download Windows 10 for free from MS website, install to a USB
But backup everything first then try. If you don't try you will never know
The best solution nothing happens
the worst you have to install windows 10...
 

athguy

Honorable
May 7, 2015
58
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10,535
You download Windows 10 for free from MS website, install to a USB
But backup everything first then try. If you don't try you will never know
The best solution nothing happens
the worst you have to install windows 10...


I see. So when you say backup your data you mean clone my primary HD that has windows on it correct? How do I do that?

Let's say I do have to install Windows... Where do I put that -on my original primary HD that didn't work? What happens to for instance programs that are installed on my primary hard drive but store their data on my secondary hard drives (like my steam account which is installed on my primary HD but the games are on other HDs).

Sorry for the questions but I do feel a little it of my league when it comes to software. Don't feel that way about hardware lol.
 
what files are important to you on your hard disk? Ones that you can't get anymore, like photos or work documents. Games and software can be reloaded, so that is not what you call important. Maybe your save files are important.
If they are on a secondary drive, nothing will happen to them at all.
 
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USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
For the OS activation, read and do this before you change any parts:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/20530/windows-10-reactivating-after-hardware-change


Secondly, will your system simply boot up with the new hardware? That is a complete maybe.
Possibilities:
  1. It boots up just fine
  2. It fails completely
  3. It boots up, but you're chasing issues for weeks.

Prepare for if it fails and you need to do a full reinstall.
 
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