Well i posted the problem with my motherboard here http://www.computing.net/hardware/wwwboard/forum/35079.html
and here
http://www.computing.net/hardware/wwwboard/forum/35474.html

but to no avail. (Abit recon a hardware controller has gone a bit funny)Cant afford a new PC so i need a new motherboard. Question is what do i have to do to not have to reinstall win xp (cos i know it dont like hardware changes).

Motherboard at the mo is a Abit BEII-6
It has 168 Dimm SDRAM, and an Intel 440BX chipset and has a pIII 700 CPU. So i know i need a motherboard that supports all these.
Im gonna take all the hardware off the old motherboard and stick it on the new one.

How will XP react and like i said how do i make sure i dont need to do a reinstall.

cheers

Jules

http://episteme.arstechnica.com/eve/ubb.x/a/tpc/f/77909774/m/1400925745

Please keep us updated so we know if we helped you or not.

"Question is what do i have to do to not have to reinstall win xp (cos i know it dont like hardware changes)."
First of all XP is software not hardware.
Saying something like this, is really annoying to anyone who understands anyting about computers and I have to believe you do not value your time at all because while it can be done, your pc will never run right, and trying to do what you want to do, will undoubtedly take more time than installing XP fresh where your pc will run right.
But beyond that foolishness, why on earth would you plan to rebuild an old slow pc that will most likely cost you more than a new efficient P4 anyway. If you buy a P III motherboard used, good luck. If you find one new, it either will be worthless at am inordinately high price, or complete crap, because that is what is left from that era.
I'm sorry and I really don't be mean, but what you are saying makes me want to ask if you drive a really old Yugo that you keep buying rebuilt engines for, because that is what you seem to want to compute on.

Rich M
www.kickenhardware.net

im sure you could have put that in a nicer way

Well Mr Mentzel the fact assume everyone to be as rich as u doesn't do u credit. I have very little money, so tbh i cant afford a brand new P4 (Oh god yes im poor!! and he uses a computer :-o ) Do u think i like haveing a slow computer?? No but its the best i can do at the moment. So thank u for ur imput

Jules,
I know I sounded cruel but I could not edit how that came out...what I was trying to say is you probably can buy P4 and motherboard for less than you may have to pay for older setup, as the old ones are either used (and at this point that would mean "well used") or in short supply therefore expensive. And prices have come down allot as well.
I just put one of these together for a client includes, mb, ram, and cpu for $117 (includes freight)
http://www.compu-terra.com/store/product1751.html

Oh, and for the record, I am neither "rich" nor famous!

Rich M
www.kickenhardware.net

one of the biggest reasons you will want/need is the new motherboard/CPU will be on a new chipset (I assume) and thus will need to install it's own software/drivers/etc. This means you'll have duplicate sets of chipset drivers all over the PC and not only will it not perform anywhere you would want it to, it will not be all tat stable Expect alot of BSOD's if yoyu do it that way as the registry will be a big mess. I understand budget constraints, but, it will cost you more time in the long time with the extra time and frustration you'll spend on trying to get it running the way it should and after all of that, you'll end up doing a clean install after all of the work...Just a thought trying to help. MAybe you could wait/save a while and get more money and really uprade a little later?