OEM Vista Install onto replacement HDD.

[d0mj4y]

Hello all,

First post, so I hope you're all well.

Basically, I've managed to kill my old XP install. I didn't partition the hard-drive (absolutely schoolboy error) so now I've got drive with lots of documentation on which I want to keep, but no working PC.

So... my question is, can I kill two birds with one stone? Remove the hard-drive which is currently out of action, replace it, and do a clean install Vista onto the replacement? Obviously then I would hook up the second drive and transfer the relevant docs over, or just remove the XP files from the original.

The product I'm looking at states "System Builders only" - ebuyer.com product number 123067 - does the replacement of the hard drive allow me to use this product? Is there any additional course of action I would need to take?

Your help would be appreciated!

Thanks.

 

[SNGX1275]

Not sure I understand what you did to break XP. If you deleted the partition then your data is going to not just be viewable without help from some other program, some recovery type program.

But regardless of what you did, yes, you can install Vista to another hard drive. The System Builders version of Vista is just an OEM copy, which is intended to mean that the first time you install it it is tied to that hardware forever, meaning you can't install it on a different PC later, even if the original one is dead. In reality thats not quite the case, but thats what it is supposed to mean.

 

[d0mj4y]

Thanks, that's what I thought.

The problem has nothing to do with partitioning or formatting the hard drive... Basically, the system has stopped working, won't boot properly, due to several actions which appear to have FUBARed it! I haven't attempted a re-install or anything along those lines, my planned remedy is to replace the hard-drive, install Vista and go from there (either remove XP from the first HD, or transfer the precious files to the new HD, and format the old).

Thanks again.