Need help with using old hard drive.
I just recently purchased a new system and am waiting on the motherboard to come in the mail tomorrow but I was wondering what are the complications of using my old hard drive, with Windows Vista on it, with my new system I'm building?
The old hard drive is a 250 gb SATA drive.
Posted Feb 27, 2011, 10:45 PM UTC · edited
26
Unfortunately, yes. Windows has a system in place where it looks at the registration number of all your hardware. If too much changes, it starts to consider it a new computer. With a whole new system, this is sure to happen.
Depending on the license, it can mean a number of things. If its an OEM license (if you bought a computer with vista on it, its an oem license), it will not allow you to continue to use the system unless you pay for another license. If it is a home or business license, you will either just get a warning or have to call MS on the phone and have the old set of hardware deactivated from your license.
Just saying, OP could call Microsoft claiming his old motherboard died and he needed to get a new one, and if I read correctly, Microsoft will give you a new activation code for your OS.
I would argue it is a bigger crime to use Vista than to use a Win7 activator.
Haha, good point. I'd strongly advice upgrading to Windows 7, OP.
I ended up buying the full version of Windows 7 off the Microsoft site and downloading it to a USB drive for when my motherboard arrives tomorrow. :)