Time for a new motherboard

[steelth]

My motherboard has over heated and i need a new 1 but i want to use the old hardware which is a Pentium e6600,Ocz ddr2 PC2-6400 Ram , i also need 1 pci-e port for my old video card,and must be Atx or Atx mini. I'm looking for the cheap as i can go since it is my daughters and she doesn't do anything but check e-mail and play lil kids games on it. So if anyone knows of a good cheap MoBo, i would be very greatful to hear about it. Also have a question may sound noobish but if i install a new board do i have to do anything different with my hdd,, like reinstall windows or anything? i have alot of data on it and would hate to lose it. thank you for all your help .

 

[Buckshot420]

if i install a new board do i have to do anything different with my hdd,, like reinstall windows or anything?.

YES!!!! What OS? Although it is possible if you remove all drivers and back them up on a flash drive. Be prepared to loose all info as you will have a 50/50 shot this way. I would backup files (do you have an old IDE drive?) and do a fresh install if it were me. Do you have an OEM Windows cd or is it a cd that came with your computer?

"When you swap the HD into new hardware and start up, it will switch out all of the drivers requesting several restarts. I have experienced no performance hit doing this about a dozen times. Some say it will not work on a different number of cores, but I haven't tried it yet.

I always immediately go to Computer>Properties and reinstall the product key, although several others have said that isn't necessary. I just assume it requires reactivation on new hardware. If activation fails, you can always run a Repair Install which resets activation."

 

[steelth]

I have windows xp and yes it is an OEM type.I think it is an IDE drive or maybe Sata sry i should check it out . I have no other comp. at my home so i have had to travel to another comp. I plan on getting another as soon as i can but it wil be awhile. Any ideas on a motherboard that would work with my hardware all the ones i have found so far take ddr3 or they are ITX

 

[cliffordcooley]

newegg search for socket LGA775 Micro ATX motherboard with DDR2

I have personally used MSI G31TM-P21 motherboard without issues.

Are you sure you can't find the same motherboard that has crapped out on you?

 

[dmill89]

I'd probably either go with the MSI cliffordcooley recommended or this ASROCK G31M-S R2.0 LGA Micro ATX board. They are both similar in price and specs however the ASROCk has a PCI Express X1 slot as well as 2 PCI slots and an X16 slot the MSI only has PCI slots and an X16 slot. I like having the X1 slot for future upgrades as many expansion cards are now X1 and difficult to find in PCI (especially USB 3.0 cards).

So long as you have an actual windows XP CD or DVD you should be able to do a repair install to get your current OS to work with a new board. A fresh install is better but a repair should work and save you from having to restore all your files/settings (I would still back them up in case the install fails). If you don't have an actual windows CD things may become difficult.

 

[steelth]

I wouldd love to get the same mobo as i have but it s a evga 680i sli and i cant afford another one . For what it is used for there is no reason to spend that much