NotebookForums.com › Forums › Notebook Manufacturers › Dell Notebook Forums › Dell Notebooks - General › Take hard drive from 1100, install in 5100. Instant upgrade? Or catastrope?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Take hard drive from 1100, install in 5100. Instant upgrade? Or catastrope?

post #1 of 11
7/11/04 at 2:58am
Thread Starter 
Hi, all. Quick question...

If I want to "upgrade" my 1100 to a 5100, can it be as simple as removing the hard drive from the 1100 and installing it in a 5100? The software that came with those two models was identical...sure, different drivers were used for video (on-board vs. dedicated card) and firewire (non-existent on the 1100), but that would seem to be nearly the extent of it. On boot, I expect XP Home would recognize the new hardware, automatically install drivers, and that would be that.

Anyone else done this? Cautionary tales, anyone?

--Chris
Reply
Reply
post #2 of 11
7/11/04 at 3:01am
It could potentially work so long as all drivers are removed before installing it in the i5100.... but it's a bit iffy I think.
stu
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 11
7/11/04 at 3:11am
Thread Starter 
Are you saying I should "remove" (using Device Manager) anything that's not going to be in the 5100 (like the Intel Graphics Controller)?

--Chris
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 11
7/11/04 at 3:18am
i dont think it should be a problem. I used to do that on desktops all the time, and it just detected the new hardware.
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 11
7/11/04 at 3:27am
Chances are you are going to need your Install cd. XP does not move from one pc to another without problems. You may have to do a repair on the windows on that HDD to get it to work.

Flounder
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 11
7/11/04 at 1:13pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks, all. I've done the HD swap in a desktop before, and it took a reboot or two and some foul language to get everything right, but it worked.

I do still have the XP disks (as well as the driver disks), so I think it will be okay.

--Chris
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 11
7/11/04 at 9:19pm
Yeah, absolutely... if it does not go as planned you can always use the discs to restore but I think it should be fine so long as you uninstall the main conflicting drivers first.
stu
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 11
7/12/04 at 12:45am
I dont even think XP allows it something about protecting the OS from theft and not letting more than 5 major components to be installed without locking up or a problem creeping up
Reply
Reply
post #9 of 11
7/12/04 at 5:25am
Regularly yeah. But I have been able to do it a couple of times by removing all drivers first.... I have tried it without uninstalling one or two of the drivers as well (such as similar sound, etc) and on one of those occasions Windows had a dummy spit, so it should hopefully be safe if they are removed.
stu
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 11
7/12/04 at 11:18am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DELL-Machina
I dont even think XP allows it something about protecting the OS from theft and not letting more than 5 major components to be installed without locking up or a problem creeping up
I thought it went by a sort of points system, where, say, the hard drive's serial number got assigned a value of, I dunno, two points. I remember the points assigned to the unique MAC address of the LAN card had a higher value than I expected. And if a certain number of points changed from one boot to another, it would prompt you for a key which could only be provided by Microsoft. You have to call MS and tell them what you're doing. I had to once or twice; it's not a big deal, but some people consider it to be a great invasion of both their privacy and their right to pirate software.

Ah, I found the link. The NIC card is worth three points, and you need at least seven to avoid the MS call. XP Home SP1 makes things easier. But anyway...

Here's one tech's advice on how to upgrade, which links to a comprehensive look at Windows Product Activation. There's a link on that page to a program that lets you view your computer's current status.

I have some more reading to do, as it looks like you can't move an OEM copy from one computer to another without incurring The Wrath. Looks like I have to boot from the XP CD and do a repair.

--Chris
Reply
Reply
post #11 of 11
7/12/04 at 11:24am
Thread Starter 
Bah! XPInfo utility does not work on OEM installations.

Sample from my non-OEM copy, installed on a toaster PC:

Those check marks make sense; since XP was installed (over Win98), I've changed the hard drive (and therefore the volume serial number), RAM, video card and optical drive. The processor is the same as it was when XP was installed, and the IDE controller and MAC address are on-board, so they wouldn't change.

Neat-O.

--Chris
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Dell Notebooks - General
NotebookForums.com › Forums › Notebook Manufacturers › Dell Notebook Forums › Dell Notebooks - General › Take hard drive from 1100, install in 5100. Instant upgrade? Or catastrope?