I have been advised against this as it is like supercharging a pinto, but I need advice anyhow. I want to swap mobo to have an agp slot. I found one for $60 new and want to see if it will boot my system. I currently have a 845gv chipset and this new mobo has an 845pe. Are they close enough? I would like to build a decent gaming pc this year, so I can practice on this system. Thanks for the advice. Merry Christmas :)

Close enough for what? If you're running the Compaq version of WinXP, I doubt it will work after the board swap. Compaq software can only be used on the system it shipped with & will be useless for a "repair install" because it will recognize the hardware change & the installation will halt.

Would I be able to swap boards if I can get ahold of a copy of an XP retail cd and use the key from my oem version? If I installed basic drivers to boot from the hdd and the chipsets are the same, shouldn't it boot as is? There is info I have found that says you can swap boards without a reinstall of windows. I can understand that the repair install may not work, but if there is no need to reinstall xp, it should boot, right? I am trying to salvage this pc without buying a copy of XP. I have heard that the oem version is useless with other systems AND that it would work if I had a cd and a valid key (oem or not). Needless to say I am confused. I have seen this question asked all over the place and there are different answers out there. I supose it may work, but on a case by case basis.

You should be able to install a new motherboard and then use the cd key on the COA tag that is on your computer to install Windows, if you know someone has a Retail or OEM cd. I have done it before and know that it will work. I am not sure though about matching the CD key to a version of Windows that has a different Service pack.If your computer loads with service pack one, then the OEM or Retail version may need to be the same.

This pc has sp2, so that shouldn't be a problem. If I can get a cd and reinstall with my current key, I would get a better mobo/processor. The only reason I wanted to match chipsets is I had heard you could literally swap and boot up with no issues.

"The only reason I wanted to match chipsets is I had heard you could literally swap and boot up with no issues" That may be the case with a "real" computer using a "real" Windows CD, but on an HP/Compaq system, I don't believe it's true, especially if the new board is a non-HP/Compaq model.

If I can use my key with a burned copy of xp pro, I am going to upgrade the whole pc. After thinking o it today, I would be beter off getting a barebones AMD. Thanks for the replies.