Old HDD with New PC Build???

[Shivas]

This seems like a straight forward question, but can I use my old HDD with a new PC build without having to reformat it? It would be nice to be able to boot up and have it detect the new PC components, without having to reinstall all the software. Anyone try this succesfully? Thanks for your help.

[glc]

Before removing it, open up device manager, right click on the IDE controller and select properties. On the driver tab, update driver. Show a list of compatible hardware and choose standard dual IDE controller. Shut down and pull the drive.

[ScoJan]

Its worth a try but a lot depends on how old your current HDD is, I tried that with a new build Im doing now, but the HDD was too old and too slow for the new build, Windows loaded, but it took forever, even after a reformat.
so Im going to pick up a new Sata Hard Drive

[Kiwi]

What the answer depends on is the OS you want to transfer (and the suggestion to upgrade to a newer, larger and faster Hdd is worth considering, so I'll come back to that). The Microsoft NT-based OS's have a "Repair Install" that is more or less ideal for your purposes. In all cases, if the new system has a similar chip set to the old MB's, there will be fewer glitches -- as in two different NF4 based systems, for instance.

With a Win9X OS, it was necessary to prepare the OS before ending the last run with the old system. By this, I mean you use the Device Manager to remove all of the hardware items that you aren't transferring or don't know will have an exact duplicate in the new system. There are many devices in there that are built into your MB's chip set.

Next, if there was matching software for any of the devices, go into Add/Remove software and uninstall the programs. If you didn't follow those two steps with Windows98, you had driver conflicts and might never get the OS running right again. I never tried it with Win95 or WinME, however.

(Never tried it with Linux, either.)

Getting back to old hard drives vs. new: if you purchase a retail package for a new Hdd, you get a CD that will include software for copying the old drive's contents straight across onto the new one. If you prepared the old drive in the old system correctly, the copy would work the same way, and after the POST, the New Hardware Wizard would start on finding stuff. When it finished its first round, and finally loaded the desktop, your first action is to first run the CD for the new MB's driver install, and then run the video card CD.

With either of the current NT-based OS', the Repair option would handle much more of the process automatically. You still need to run the installs on the MB CD and video CD as soon as the desktop finally loads.

[MaxRat]

What OS are you using...? If 98 then use the Enum trick...it's in the 98 forum..If XP do As glc said... If XP and it doesn't boot....boot to the XP cd and do a repair...which will work UNLESS you have a H/D from a HP, Compaq or Dell or the like...

[Carl Price]

Originally Posted by Shivas This seems like a straight forward question, but can I use my old HDD with a new PC build without having to reformat it? It would be nice to be able to boot up and have it detect the new PC components, without having to reinstall all the software. Anyone try this succesfully? Thanks for your help.

I can see two problems with that senario. First all your programs will be looking to load from the c: drive and your registry for the old harddrive will not load from the d: drive. To do what you suggest I recommend you leave the old harddirve as is.

[glc]

Carl, I don't see where that's the issue - I interpret the post as wanting to use an old hard drive as THE hard drive in the new build, not as an additional drive with a new drive.