[Windows 10] Upgrading Mobo + CPU


Recommended Posts

Hi,

 

I was wondering if anyone knows if I can just replace the motherboard and CPU in my PC whilst keeping the same Windows 10 installation or would I have to re-install Windows?

 

Basically would the PC even boot properly after doing this? (using same hard drive from previous set up)

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1385870-windows-10-upgrading-mobo-cpu/
Share on other sites

You may find you are OK.  My friend recently switched CPU, motherboard and RAM.  He plugged his SATA SSD in and Windows booted up with no problem and stayed activated.

 

I was very surprised when this happened.  His upgrade was from an intel CPU and mobo, to another newer intel CPU and mobo.

 

He told me he wasn't prompted to re-activate etc.  He was signed into Windows with his Microsoft account however, so not sure if this 'allowed' his copy of Windows to stay active.

I'm not too worried about the licensing side of things - I know that can be sorted.

 

My main concern is ensuring the PC still boots after the upgrade. Ideally I would like a way of keeping my current Windows installation without having to format the hard drive and re-install Windows. I know in the "olden" days that was the only way.

 

I'll look into the sysprep option mentioned above.

 

I get my CPU+Mobo/RAM tomorrow, so I need to know if anything has to be done to the Windows install prior to the upgrade or not i.e. it will "just work".

Hello,


If this is an OEM license of Windows 10 that came with the computer (i.e., has the license information embedded in the motherboard) and you are replacing the motherboard with one from the same manufacturer, then the switchover should be fairly painless. One thing you need to make sure of is that the new motherboard has the same type of license as the old motherboard.  You would not want to downgrade from Windows 10 Pro to Windows 10 Home, for example.

 

If the Windows 10 license was a retail, store-purchased copy (what Microsoft sometimes calls FPP, or fully-packaged product), you should probably be able to replace the motherboard and CPU, but you would want to re-use as much of the existing hardware which has serial numbers or similar manufacturing information embedded in it (GPU, drives, and perhaps RAM).  Ideally, the replacement motherboard should be the same brand and model as the old one so that there are no issues with the device drivers when the system boots up.  @Riva mentioned a way to handle things if the motherboard architecture is different.  Personally, I prefer to wipe the OS drive and reinstall Windows if I am switching to different hardware, just to avoid issues with device drivers and weird system behavior.

 

Regards,

 

Aryeh Goretsky

 

  On 13/08/2019 at 15:41, Riva said:

Also a good idea to uninstall any device drivers via add/remove programs if they will be incompatible with your new hardware.

Expand  

easier idea; launch sysprep.exe and do a generalize before switching hardware :)

was also mentioned above

 

generalize will remove all drivers so it detects them again at next boot

  On 13/08/2019 at 16:04, Riva said:

It also removes user profile data and most installed apps. I talked about sysprep without generalisation

Expand  

no it doesn't; Sysprep does not delete existing user accounts except for the local Administrator account. It doesn't remove apps either; the entire actual point of sysprep is to setup the image with needed apps for image rollouts. it just happens you can use it for switching hardware too thanks to the generalize option.

 

you're talking about sysprep with almost all setting selected. just a generalize only will only affect drivers. trust me I've done before.

 

https://community.spiceworks.com/topic/278818-sysprep-oobe

 

 

for OP you only need to select the generalize option; don't touch the OOBE or anything else and you will be good :)

 

edit: the full sysprep tech guide from Microsoft if anyone wants it https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/manufacture/desktop/sysprep--system-preparation--overview

generalize section: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/manufacture/desktop/sysprep--generalize--a-windows-installation

  On 12/08/2019 at 19:29, RATiO said:

I'm not too worried about the licensing side of things - I know that can be sorted.

 

My main concern is ensuring the PC still boots after the upgrade. Ideally I would like a way of keeping my current Windows installation without having to format the hard drive and re-install Windows. I know in the "olden" days that was the only way.

 

I'll look into the sysprep option mentioned above.

 

I get my CPU+Mobo/RAM tomorrow, so I need to know if anything has to be done to the Windows install prior to the upgrade or not i.e. it will "just work".

Expand  

If you contact MS they will ask for evidence that you bought a new MB and CPU and then they will likely provide a new key as they did with me when either my MB or CPU died.

 

Always best to clean install.

Posting from my upgraded machine - all went well.

 

Common sense got the better of me and I decided to do a clean install in the end. It felt the right thing to do.

 

Had a retail license tied to my Microsoft account so Windows is activated fine.

 

Thanks to all ;)

  • Like 2
This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • only the copilot pc version went rtm in june. I think rtm was in september, so probably 2 months away.
    • 26200 25H2 is shaping up to be a very solid and stable release, hardly any issues with it here on 3 different configurations of computers
    • Samsung Galaxy S25+ 512GB is $220 off for powerful AI and a pro-grade camera by Paul Hill Are you in the market for a premium Samsung phone? If so, check out the Samsung Galaxy S25+ with 512GB of storage. It’s on Amazon right now for just $899, down 20% from its $1,199.99 list price, representing a significant $220.99 saving. This unlocked device is marked as the number 1 new release by Amazon in the Cell Phones category. If you’re interested, act fast as it’s a limited-time deal. The Galaxy S25+ comes packed with AI features under the umbrella of Galaxy AI. Capabilities include Multiple Tasks with One Ask which brings Google Gemini integration for multi-app commands, Now Brief which proactively gives you information you need to start the day, Audio Eraser to remove distracting sounds from your videos, and advanced portrait features. Powering these features is the Qualcomm SM8750-AB Snapdragon 8 Elite (3 nm) processor which handles all sorts of tasks efficiently including gaming, translation, and photo editing. Alongside the processor is 512GB of storage and 12GB of RAM. The S25+ uses a 6.7-inch QHD+ ProScaler Display which delivers vibrant visuals thanks to its use of Dynamic AMOLED 2X with 3,120 x 1,440 resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. Regarding camera setup, the S25+ has an AI camera with 50MP main sensor, 12MP ultrawide, and 10MP telephoto with OIS. There is also a 12MP front camera. This camera setup is capable of 8K video recording, which is impressive. Finally, you get long battery life with the 4,900 mAh and 45W fast charging support so you don’t need to wait long for it to recharge. If you’re an Android user looking to upgrade to a flagship phone without paying the full price, this deal is for you. If you have an eligible phone to trade in, there is an option to do so to claim up to $725 on the upgrade with Amazon.com Gift Card credit. If you’re excited by AI, but your current phone doesn’t support many AI features, this phone could also be a smart choice. Its display is also great for media consumption, and the processor is robust. Finally, if you have a lot of files to store, the 512GB of storage should be ample. Samsung Galaxy S25+ (Icyblue): $899 (Amazon US) / MSRP $1,199.99 This Amazon deal is US-specific and not available in other regions unless specified. If you don't like it or want to look at more options, check out the Amazon US deals page here. Get Prime (SNAP), Prime Video, Audible Plus or Kindle / Music Unlimited. Free for 30 days. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
    • Sniffnet 1.4.0 by Razvan Serea Sniffnet is a network monitoring tool to help you easily keep track of your Internet traffic. Whether you want to gather statistics, or you need to inspect more in depth what's going on in your network, this app will get you covered. Sniffnet is a technical tool, but at the same time it strongly focuses on the overall user experience: most of the network analyzers out there are cumbersome to use, while one of Sniffnet's cornerstones is to be usable with ease by everyone. Furthermore, Sniffnet is completely free and open-source, dual-licensed under MIT or Apache-2.0: if you are interested you can find the full source code on GitHub. Last but not least, this application is totally developed in Rust: a modern programming language to build efficient and reliable software, emphasizing performance and safety. Sniffnet key features choose a network adapter of your PC to inspect select a set of filters to apply to the observed traffic view overall statistics about your Internet traffic view real-time charts about traffic intensity keep an eye on your network even when the application is minimized export comprehensive capture reports as PCAP files identify 6000+ upper layer services, protocols, trojans, and worms find out domain name and ASN of the hosts you are exchanging traffic with identify connections in your local network discover the geographical location of the remote hosts save your favorite network hosts inspect each of your network connections in real time set custom notifications to inform you when defined network events occur choose the style that fits you the most, including custom themes support ... and more! Sniffnet 1.4.0 changelog: New features Import PCAP files (#795 — fixes #283) Enhanced notifications (#830 — fixes #637) Donut chart reporting overall traffic statistics (#756 — fixes #687) Added support for ARP protocol (#759 — fixes #680) Identify and tag unassigned/reserved "bogon" IP addresses (#678 — fixes #209) Show data agglomerates in Inspect page table (#684 — fixes #601) Added Traditional Chinese (Taiwan) translation 🇹🇼 (#774) Added Indonesian translation 🇮🇩 (#611) A Docker image of Sniffnet is now available (#735) Improvements Added new themes A11y (Night) and A11y (Day) based on palettes optimized for Accessibility (#785 — fixes #786) Do not apply new notification thresholds while user is typing them (#777 — fixes #658) Show more information when domain name is short (#720 — fixes #696) Avoid directory traversal when selecting file name for PCAP exports (#776 — fixes #767) Add icon to window title bar (#719 — fixes #715) Update footer buttons and links (#755 — fixes #553) Handle errors to reduce the number of possible crash occurrences (#784) Updated some of the existing translations to v1.3: Portuguese (#690) Ukrainian (#692) Spanish (#805) Fixes Fix crates.io package for Windows (#718 — fixes #681) Fix crash when inserting characters longer than one byte in the text input for byte threshold notification setting (#747 — fixes #744) Remove pre-uninstall script on Linux (fixes #644) Fix typo in Russian translation (fixes #730) Minor fix to service determination algorithm in case of multicast and broadcast traffic Download: Sniffnet 64-bit | Sniffnet 32-bit ~15.0 MB (Open Source) Link: Sniffnet Home Page | Other operating systems | Screenshot Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
    • Anker announces global recall of five power bank models over fire safety risks by Aditya Tiwari The Chinese electronics brand, Anker Innovations, known for its mobile accessories and power banks has announced a voluntary global recall of five power bank models. The decision comes after the company spotted a potential fire hazard issue with lithium-ion battery cells from a particular vendor. Anker said that it put up a series of quality checks to detect manufacturing issues early in the production cycle, which include component level-audits and supplier testing. The company assured that "while the likelihood of malfunction is considered minimal, out of an abundance of caution, we have decided to initiate a voluntary global recall of several Anker power bank models." Here's the list of the Anker Power Bank models chosen for the global recall: Model A1257 - Anker Power Bank (10K, 22.5W) Model A1647 - Anker Power Bank (20,000mAh, 22.5W, Built-In USB-C Cable) Model A1652 - Anker MagGo Power Bank (10,000mAh, 7.5W) Model A1681 - Anker Zolo Power Bank (20K, 30W, Built-In USB-C and Lightning Cable) Model A1689 - Anker Zolo Power Bank (20K, 30W, Built-In USB-C Cable) If you think you own one of the affected power banks, you can check the model number located on the back or side of your power bank. After that, you can fill out the recall form to start the process and verify the serial number of your affected device. If your power bank is eligible for the recall, you can either get a replacement or receive a gift card for use on the Anker website. It's not offering any refunds in the US at the moment. Anker advises that you should stop using an impacted power bank immediately even if the device functions normally right now. A unit confirmed for the recall could pose the risk of overheating, melting, smoke, or fire. This is the second major recall from Anker in the same month after more than a dozen reports of fires and explosions. The company previously recalled over one million Anker PowerCore 10000 (A1263) power bank units, citing fire safety risks due to a potential issue with the Lithium-ion battery. These power banks were sold in the US from January 1, 2016 through December 31, 2022.
  • Recent Achievements

    • Collaborator
      Mighty Pen went up a rank
      Collaborator
    • Week One Done
      emptyother earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Week One Done
      DarkWun earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Very Popular
      valkyr09 earned a badge
      Very Popular
    • Week One Done
      suprememobiles earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      567
    2. 2
      +FloatingFatMan
      189
    3. 3
      ATLien_0
      176
    4. 4
      Skyfrog
      112
    5. 5
      Xenon
      110
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!