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Upgrading CPU, same HD possible?

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livinginiraqw00t Posts 3 Registration date Saturday March 13, 2010 Status Member Last seen March 16, 2010 - Mar 13, 2010 at 09:01 PM
sharpman Posts 1021 Registration date Saturday May 23, 2009 Status Contributor Last seen October 20, 2010 - Mar 14, 2010 at 10:44 AM
Hello,
I am looking into upgrading my CPU and motherboard(5-6 years old).
Current CPU: AMD Athlon 64x2 Socket AM2
Motherboard: ASUS M2N-SLI wireless edition
Pretty old stuff. Something in my computer died yesterday(either mobo or vid card) and so I figured I might as well upgrade my CPU and mobo. My vid cards/RAM/Hard drive are still intact, so if I get a new CPU, would I need to reformat my HD? Using Windows XP Professional SP3.
For instance:
I switch from current AMD dual-core to AMD quad-core and compatible mobo, would I need to format hard drive or would the transition be smooth and windows would be able to do everything?
Another instance:
I switch from current AMD dual-core to Intel processor(one of those i-series things) and Intel compatible mobo, would I need to format hard drive or would windows do everything for me?
Don't want to start a war, but any suggestions as to which one I should switch to(mind you, if one of these doesn't require me to format hard drive, that wins hands down)? I play computer games pretty often and with my current setup, its impossible to play on medium/high(not max) settings. I've gotten used to playing on low settings, but I would like to experience no lag with good graphics =D.
Current video cards: 2 x PNY GeForce 8600 GTS (maybe its video cards that are holding me back?)
RAM: 2 x 2gigs Patriot DDR2 (800 I think).
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sharpman Posts 1021 Registration date Saturday May 23, 2009 Status Contributor Last seen October 20, 2010 183
Mar 14, 2010 at 10:44 AM
as you are replacing your mobo, you would be better off with a clean install.

due to the change, there are drivers for chipsets. processors etc that will need to be changed.

You may get away with a fix install, where you install over the top of the hardrive in question, but you will still need to reinstall the software that is already on there.

Far better to do a clean install, less trouble in the long run.

if your worried about the data for your game saves etc, you can copy the save data to another location and put it back after reinstallation has completed.
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