Wireless xbox controller works without issues.
Gaming Building a gaming PC
- Thread starter Igor Drefljak
- Start date
@Paxi The same week I was leaving, my desktop's 5 year old Gpu died (an xfx r9 280). It had lifetime warranty so I open an RMA case and brought it with me to the US and mailed it to XfX.
Yesterday I received the replacement Gpu. An 8gb RX470. Was expecting something newer, but it's not too bad. Might put it back into the desktop or maybe just sell it.
PS. The laptop is a beast but haven't really test it properly as of yet. My brother has been playing with it more than me. The screen is gorgeous.
I would say it is probably better to sell it whilst the prices are still high, but who is to say that GPU prices will ever come back down again?
I’m sure the screen is gorgeous. Does it need calibrating? It’s a preference thing but I prefer everything lifelike.@Paxi The same week I was leaving, my desktop's 5 year old Gpu died (an xfx r9 280). It had lifetime warranty so I open an RMA case and brought it with me to the US and mailed it to XfX.
Yesterday I received the replacement Gpu. An 8gb RX470. Was expecting something newer, but it's not too bad. Might put it back into the desktop or maybe just sell it.
PS. The laptop is a beast but haven't really test it properly as of yet. My brother has been playing with it more than me. The screen is gorgeous.
My cooler died and I had to replace it, in doing so, I had to remove the CPU for isopropyl clean. I reseated the CPU and put the new cooler in, but since doing so my bios settings have been wiped and my computer will only see 16gb of ram at 2133mhz instead of the 64gb ram at 2666mhz.
Both the bios and cpu-z detect the full 64gb, but when I XMP for initialisation of all the RAM, I'm getting b7 errors and the machine will not post...
If the RAM was damaged, could CPU-Z see or recognise it?
Weirdly, when I test the individual sticks of RAM, I get error 53 and not a single stick will boot the machine in any slot? When I put all the sticks back in, the machine will boot, but just not have 3/4's of the memory that's supposed to be there.
Anyone have an idea on what's going on and a fix for it?
Both the bios and cpu-z detect the full 64gb, but when I XMP for initialisation of all the RAM, I'm getting b7 errors and the machine will not post...
If the RAM was damaged, could CPU-Z see or recognise it?
Weirdly, when I test the individual sticks of RAM, I get error 53 and not a single stick will boot the machine in any slot? When I put all the sticks back in, the machine will boot, but just not have 3/4's of the memory that's supposed to be there.
Anyone have an idea on what's going on and a fix for it?
If this has happened since reseating the CPU, I'd take it back out and do it again whilst checking the pins. B7 errors can happen if it's not seated correctly and considering that's the only thing that's changed it is the first thing to check.
It's very unlikely it is the memory and even less so that every stick has gone at the same time. I know you're not supposed to do it, but you could try single sticks in a different slot to see what you get then as if the CPU is not seated correctly it could be affecting only some of the slots.
Edit - I see you've tried different slots, so I would try and reseat the CPU as a first step.
I'd go with @Balljy suggestion, if it was faulty ram you would expect it to boot fine with 2/3 sticks when trying them on their own.
Thanks for the reply.
Any reason why when I put all the sticks back in the system will boot, but only see 16gb despite CPU-Z stating all are there?
I don't mind reseating the CPU, but would prefer that asa last resort as I've bought some mega thermal paste I have no real clue how to apply!
I've been toying with the idea, but post above was why I haven’t gone through with it, but also trying to understand why the RAM is seen in bios and via CPU-Z, but inaccessible?
Could always run memtest on the ram sticks just to be sure, but it sound unlikely.
CPU-Z reads the RAM module for the info, whereas Windows will try and use it. It does seem strange, but a quick Google seems to show up quite a few people getting the issue - although normally it appears it doesn't show in the BIOS either if it doesn't show in Windows but does show in CPU-Z.
I guess if your BIOS has been reset you could have something really weird going on with the settings - maybe check the RAM voltages and timings in the BIOS?
I'd still say that the CPU is the most likely culprit but if you have somebody who is happy to test the RAM in another machine that would be a quick check before doing the CPU.
Ah, I'll give that a go. Good old memtest!
Do you have any experience with Thermal Grizzly paste, at all?
Yes, this is what's confusing me, as if they weren't showing in the bios, I could at least work from the ground up, so to speak. I'm also completely baffled as to why any stick in any slot won't detect, but when I put all 8 back in, they are all recognised immediately?
Are these symptoms of a mobo dying?
I think it's probably less the motherboard dying and more either the CPU is struggling to contact the memory or settings in the BIOS are not allowing the memory to function correctly.
Thinking about it if the BIOS is set to 2166 and the memory is rated higher the SPD profile is very likely to be wrong which will cause memory issues. Higher rated memory doesn't always play nice with lower frequencies. An easy test would be to google the speed settings for your memory and manually enter them in the BIOS - you could do that for one stick initially and test in a single slot.
I initially manually entered the 15, 15, 15, 35 and the machine booted but didn't see the 64gb, only 16gb, so I went back to XMP and didn't try it again.
I have 32gb of 2666mhz and 32gb of 2800mhz, btw, but it has never been an issue previously as all sticks then just ran at the lower speed.
The b7 error also comes up when I put the system to XMP and I've had to memOK to get beyond it a few times now.
the ram will clock at the lowest speed no matter what the other two use try setting them all the same, also are the same 2 in the correct dual channel slots (1/3 2/4)
Yeah as they are all seated how they were before I cleaned the CPU.
I'll give these things a go later and report back, hopefully saying thank you, it worked!
I’ve spent about 16 hours today trying to fix my PC. Originally I kept getting the “100% disk” issue and tried every solution under the sun to no avail.
So I decided it was probably time to do a full reinstall so downloaded the os to a flash drive, wiped my SSD and reinstalled. But when I boot now I get the Blue Screen Of Death with error message “PAGE FAULT IN NONPAGED AREA”. It won’t even boot in safe mode.
Spent the whole day googling and troubleshooting and nothing is working.I have tried these so far;
1. Used the CMD function to fix issues with SSD, none found.
2. Installed windows on old HDD I had and same blue screen error so doesn’t look like the SSD is the issue
3. I have 4 sticks of RAM, tried pretty much every combination of using 1 to 4 at a time in different slots and none work
4. My PSU is about 12 years old so was thinking it could be that. Went to shop to get a replacement SATA power cable in case it was that but they said they don’t even make them anymore as it’s such an old model
5. Said feck it, it’s 12 years old so may as well buy a new one as it will probably fail soon anyway. Set up the new PSU with brand new cables, same error
6. Changed the SATA data cables with new ones, didn’t work
7. Removed my GPU and tried to boot without it to see if that was causing the issue, nope
8. Reset CMOS on motherboard by removing battery for an hour and putting it back in again. BIOS restored to factory settings but still the same issue
9. Tried lots of other cmd functions I’ve googled and none have worked
I think I’m just going to pour petrol over the whole thing and burn it now, I’m exhausted. The one thing I can’t test is updating drivers because I can’t bloody boot even in safe mode. And I think the only thing it could be hardware wise from the process of elimination is the motherboard. It’s a MSI Z97 and it’s only about 4/5 years old.
Can someone please put me out of my misery and just tell me how to fix it please?
So I decided it was probably time to do a full reinstall so downloaded the os to a flash drive, wiped my SSD and reinstalled. But when I boot now I get the Blue Screen Of Death with error message “PAGE FAULT IN NONPAGED AREA”. It won’t even boot in safe mode.
Spent the whole day googling and troubleshooting and nothing is working.I have tried these so far;
1. Used the CMD function to fix issues with SSD, none found.
2. Installed windows on old HDD I had and same blue screen error so doesn’t look like the SSD is the issue
3. I have 4 sticks of RAM, tried pretty much every combination of using 1 to 4 at a time in different slots and none work
4. My PSU is about 12 years old so was thinking it could be that. Went to shop to get a replacement SATA power cable in case it was that but they said they don’t even make them anymore as it’s such an old model
5. Said feck it, it’s 12 years old so may as well buy a new one as it will probably fail soon anyway. Set up the new PSU with brand new cables, same error
6. Changed the SATA data cables with new ones, didn’t work
7. Removed my GPU and tried to boot without it to see if that was causing the issue, nope
8. Reset CMOS on motherboard by removing battery for an hour and putting it back in again. BIOS restored to factory settings but still the same issue
9. Tried lots of other cmd functions I’ve googled and none have worked
I think I’m just going to pour petrol over the whole thing and burn it now, I’m exhausted. The one thing I can’t test is updating drivers because I can’t bloody boot even in safe mode. And I think the only thing it could be hardware wise from the process of elimination is the motherboard. It’s a MSI Z97 and it’s only about 4/5 years old.
Can someone please put me out of my misery and just tell me how to fix it please?
I’ve spent about 16 hours today trying to fix my PC. Originally I kept getting the “100% disk” issue and tried every solution under the sun to no avail.
So I decided it was probably time to do a full reinstall so downloaded the os to a flash drive, wiped my SSD and reinstalled. But when I boot now I get the Blue Screen Of Death with error message “PAGE FAULT IN NONPAGED AREA”. It won’t even boot in safe mode.
Spent the whole day googling and troubleshooting and nothing is working.I have tried these so far;
1. Used the CMD function to fix issues with SSD, none found.
2. Installed windows on old HDD I had and same blue screen error so doesn’t look like the SSD is the issue
3. I have 4 sticks of RAM, tried pretty much every combination of using 1 to 4 at a time in different slots and none work
4. My PSU is about 12 years old so was thinking it could be that. Went to shop to get a replacement SATA power cable in case it was that but they said they don’t even make them anymore as it’s such an old model
5. Said feck it, it’s 12 years old so may as well buy a new one as it will probably fail soon anyway. Set up the new PSU with brand new cables, same error
6. Changed the SATA data cables with new ones, didn’t work
7. Removed my GPU and tried to boot without it to see if that was causing the issue, nope
8. Reset CMOS on motherboard by removing battery for an hour and putting it back in again. BIOS restored to factory settings but still the same issue
9. Tried lots of other cmd functions I’ve googled and none have worked
I think I’m just going to pour petrol over the whole thing and burn it now, I’m exhausted. The one thing I can’t test is updating drivers because I can’t bloody boot even in safe mode. And I think the only thing it could be hardware wise from the process of elimination is the motherboard. It’s a MSI Z97 and it’s only about 4/5 years old.
Can someone please put me out of my misery and just tell me how to fix it please?
Obviously it's a bad PC day today
You've tried a lot of what I'd do and have pretty much ruled out the RAM, GPU and PSU. It could be an issue with the W10 drivers and a conflict with a piece of hardware you've got, but to solve that you would need to get into Windows to update the drivers which you obviously can't do.
Is the drive formatted to UEFI or legacy mode? If the latter I'd try to reinstall UEFI. I'd also disable what you can in the BIOS temporarily - even WIFI and LAN as if the conflict is with something like that you may be able to get into Windows with it disabled then update drivers via USB. You could also try WintoUSB to get Windows installed onto a flash drive and try and boot from that.
I think you're right that it probably is your motherboard. But in the meantime, try tuning down your RAM frequency to draw less voltage.I’ve spent about 16 hours today trying to fix my PC. Originally I kept getting the “100% disk” issue and tried every solution under the sun to no avail.
So I decided it was probably time to do a full reinstall so downloaded the os to a flash drive, wiped my SSD and reinstalled. But when I boot now I get the Blue Screen Of Death with error message “PAGE FAULT IN NONPAGED AREA”. It won’t even boot in safe mode.
Spent the whole day googling and troubleshooting and nothing is working.I have tried these so far;
1. Used the CMD function to fix issues with SSD, none found.
2. Installed windows on old HDD I had and same blue screen error so doesn’t look like the SSD is the issue
3. I have 4 sticks of RAM, tried pretty much every combination of using 1 to 4 at a time in different slots and none work
4. My PSU is about 12 years old so was thinking it could be that. Went to shop to get a replacement SATA power cable in case it was that but they said they don’t even make them anymore as it’s such an old model
5. Said feck it, it’s 12 years old so may as well buy a new one as it will probably fail soon anyway. Set up the new PSU with brand new cables, same error
6. Changed the SATA data cables with new ones, didn’t work
7. Removed my GPU and tried to boot without it to see if that was causing the issue, nope
8. Reset CMOS on motherboard by removing battery for an hour and putting it back in again. BIOS restored to factory settings but still the same issue
9. Tried lots of other cmd functions I’ve googled and none have worked
I think I’m just going to pour petrol over the whole thing and burn it now, I’m exhausted. The one thing I can’t test is updating drivers because I can’t bloody boot even in safe mode. And I think the only thing it could be hardware wise from the process of elimination is the motherboard. It’s a MSI Z97 and it’s only about 4/5 years old.
Can someone please put me out of my misery and just tell me how to fix it please?
Okay, so I reinstalled windows again with no Ethernet cable connected and it works. As soon as I insert the Ethernet cable and connect to the internet I get the blue screen boot loop again. Any ideas on where to go from here?Obviously it's a bad PC day today
You've tried a lot of what I'd do and have pretty much ruled out the RAM, GPU and PSU. It could be an issue with the W10 drivers and a conflict with a piece of hardware you've got, but to solve that you would need to get into Windows to update the drivers which you obviously can't do.
Is the drive formatted to UEFI or legacy mode? If the latter I'd try to reinstall UEFI. I'd also disable what you can in the BIOS temporarily - even WIFI and LAN as if the conflict is with something like that you may be able to get into Windows with it disabled then update drivers via USB. You could also try WintoUSB to get Windows installed onto a flash drive and try and boot from that.
It's probably the LAN drivers if I was going to take a guess. Google the name of your LAN card from device manager and search for the latest drivers. You can download them on another PC, put them on a USB stick and install them on your PC with LAN disconnected. Then reboot and cross your fingers.
Can't really get my hands on the PC until weekend, think I'm going to have to take it to pieces and start again as a whole host of errors have manifested since I last posted here and I can't get the RAM to go above 16gb.
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I have a question for anyone who might know: If you have a very powerful laptop, something with a really strong GPU, say a 3080, but you're using it for normal things outside of the times you're calling upon the GPU (gaming, rendering etc.) will the battery drain when unplugged be as awful as I've heard it tends to be for these kind of laptops?
Menial, day-to-day stuff (web browsing and so on), do they function like normal laptops do, or does the GPU always take a huge draw even when, for the most part, idol?
---
I have a question for anyone who might know: If you have a very powerful laptop, something with a really strong GPU, say a 3080, but you're using it for normal things outside of the times you're calling upon the GPU (gaming, rendering etc.) will the battery drain when unplugged be as awful as I've heard it tends to be for these kind of laptops?
Menial, day-to-day stuff (web browsing and so on), do they function like normal laptops do, or does the GPU always take a huge draw even when, for the most part, idol?
Can't really get my hands on the PC until weekend, think I'm going to have to take it to pieces and start again as a whole host of errors have manifested since I last posted here and I can't get the RAM to go above 16gb.
---
I have a question for anyone who might know: If you have a very powerful laptop, something with a really strong GPU, say a 3080, but you're using it for normal things outside of the times you're calling upon the GPU (gaming, rendering etc.) will the battery drain when unplugged be as awful as I've heard it tends to be for these kind of laptops?
Menial, day-to-day stuff (web browsing and so on), do they function like normal laptops do, or does the GPU always take a huge draw even when, for the most part, idol?
Nope. Laptops have 2 graphic cards and a hybrid mode, so when the discrete GPU is not needed, they will only use the integrated GPU.
So even a powerful laptop will run for a solid period of time when the powerful GPU is not being called into action?
I only ever hear nightmare stories about these kind of laptops lasting an hour or so or needing to be permanently plugged into the mains, but I'm guessing that's when they're effectively maxxed out and being pushed by a graphically intensive game or program?
Thanks for the reply, I've been thinking about getting a laptop of this type for a while, but the stories about battery life have put me off.
Yes, but you also have to take into consideration that the CPU from a gaming laptop will be much more powerful and powerhungry than a typical office laptop cpu.
So it's not only the discrete GPU that will draw more power, but every component of the gaming laptop as well (a better, brighter screen will consume more power, for example).
So maybe if the office laptop can go 6 hours doing office stuff, your gaming laptop will go 4 1/2 hours doing the same office stuff.
I don't mind that kind of reduction as it's still within a normal range for a laptop doing a moderate amount of tasks (for me).
Definitely going to be on the look out this upcoming Black Friday/Cyber Monday etc. period.
Thank for your input. Never had a personal laptop; always shitty work ones, or borrowing the mrs'.
When you find some you like, post it here so you can get some feedback before pulling the trigger.
What's the consensus on this ? I can't find any reviews on youtube for this particular model (MSI GP66 11UH-032). I originally intended to get the model (MSI GP66 11UG-018) having 3070 ($1899), but since that is out of stock this looks like a good alternative. Everything is the same except it has a 3080 and costs $2099. My only concern would be its thermals.
For the laptop crowd:
- has anyone in here ever used PCspecialist and had a build made for them?
- What are the differences between getting a flagshop model from a recognised brand instead of an equivalent build made for you for seemingly a lot less money? Is this the same as building a rig yourself vis-a-vis one of those all-in-one jobby's people get for multiples of the self-build price?
- What are the thoughts on using a desktop CPU in a laptop? This causes a lot more power drain of a battery, right? Which is probably where my perception of a powerful laptop rinsing a battery initially came from.
- Don't company builds have a different kind of shelf life to a custom laptop build where you, like a desktop, just upgrade the components as and when needed?
- Are there any companies to rival PCSpecialist in making bespoke builds?
- Lastly, are there any top tier laptop sites that aren't easily found? I usually just get the components I want from whichever site has them cheapest and build myself, so this laptop world (and sites) is something entirely new to me.
I've looked at this:
Product Category Product Description
Chassis & Display Recoil Series: 17.3" Matte QHD 165Hz 100% sRGB LED Widescreen
(2560x1440) + G-Sync
Processor (CPU) Intel® Core™ i9 Eight-Core Processor i9-11900K (3.5GHz) 16MB Cache
Memory (RAM) 64GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 32GB)
Graphics Card NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 3080 - 16.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX®
12.1
1st M.2 SSD Drive 1TB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 7000MB/R, 5000MB/W)
2nd M.2 SSD Drive 2TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R,
3300MB/W)
Memory Card Reader Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC /
RSMMC)
AC Adaptor 2 x 280W AC Adaptor
Power Cable 2 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Battery 2 x Recoil Series Battery Pack, 97WH (One Spare)
Thermal Paste STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card 2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Atlas & Super X-Fi
Bluetooth & Wireless GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ Wi-Fi 6 AX1650 M.2 GAMING + BLUETOOTH 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options 2 x THUNDERBOLT 4 + 1 x USB 3.2 (TYPE C) + 3 x USB 3.2
Which is quoted at around £3.5k, what's an equivalent brand-build to this? And wouldn't it cost a lot more?
Input would be great as personal laptops aren't my forte at all, but I need one to supplement/interchange with my rig.
- has anyone in here ever used PCspecialist and had a build made for them?
- What are the differences between getting a flagshop model from a recognised brand instead of an equivalent build made for you for seemingly a lot less money? Is this the same as building a rig yourself vis-a-vis one of those all-in-one jobby's people get for multiples of the self-build price?
- What are the thoughts on using a desktop CPU in a laptop? This causes a lot more power drain of a battery, right? Which is probably where my perception of a powerful laptop rinsing a battery initially came from.
- Don't company builds have a different kind of shelf life to a custom laptop build where you, like a desktop, just upgrade the components as and when needed?
- Are there any companies to rival PCSpecialist in making bespoke builds?
- Lastly, are there any top tier laptop sites that aren't easily found? I usually just get the components I want from whichever site has them cheapest and build myself, so this laptop world (and sites) is something entirely new to me.
I've looked at this:
Product Category Product Description
Chassis & Display Recoil Series: 17.3" Matte QHD 165Hz 100% sRGB LED Widescreen
(2560x1440) + G-Sync
Processor (CPU) Intel® Core™ i9 Eight-Core Processor i9-11900K (3.5GHz) 16MB Cache
Memory (RAM) 64GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 32GB)
Graphics Card NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 3080 - 16.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX®
12.1
1st M.2 SSD Drive 1TB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 7000MB/R, 5000MB/W)
2nd M.2 SSD Drive 2TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R,
3300MB/W)
Memory Card Reader Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC /
RSMMC)
AC Adaptor 2 x 280W AC Adaptor
Power Cable 2 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Battery 2 x Recoil Series Battery Pack, 97WH (One Spare)
Thermal Paste STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card 2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Atlas & Super X-Fi
Bluetooth & Wireless GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ Wi-Fi 6 AX1650 M.2 GAMING + BLUETOOTH 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options 2 x THUNDERBOLT 4 + 1 x USB 3.2 (TYPE C) + 3 x USB 3.2
Which is quoted at around £3.5k, what's an equivalent brand-build to this? And wouldn't it cost a lot more?
Input would be great as personal laptops aren't my forte at all, but I need one to supplement/interchange with my rig.
^^ anyone?
I’m reading around and apparently the power draw of a 3080 in a laptop makes it 40%-50% less effective than a desktop? What actually is the point of one in a laptop at such a high level of disparity?
I’m reading around and apparently the power draw of a 3080 in a laptop makes it 40%-50% less effective than a desktop? What actually is the point of one in a laptop at such a high level of disparity?
I personally wouldn't bother with a gaming laptop full stop.
There is tons of companies which offer custom builds part by part but built by themselves, not sure how many of them do laptops along with desktops though.
I'm going to presume the battery life is gonna be pretty abysmal on any high spec laptop running modern triple AAA games at as high settings as possible.
There is tons of companies which offer custom builds part by part but built by themselves, not sure how many of them do laptops along with desktops though.
I'm going to presume the battery life is gonna be pretty abysmal on any high spec laptop running modern triple AAA games at as high settings as possible.
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Just to wade in on the laptop thing, I bought one for university work and some gaming, thought I may as well pay the extra if I'm shelling out for a decent laptop anyway.
They're a lot better than they were. The battery is good enough for routine tasks. Not as good as a specific office type laptop, no - but you can squeeze 3 hours out with the right settings and making sure it has a good size battery to start with. Maybe more, I haven't gone to town on trying it.
No they don't hold a charge gaming but that's kind of an unrealistic expectation at the current level of technology, they draw too much power to components. You can't ask it to simultaneously play games at a fidelity similar to a decent PC and then think it's going to hold charge when PCs and consoles are sat there with a power supply hooked up. My laptop doesn't even try without power, you lose frames, lots of frames.
I guess the overall point of them is they fulfil that niche of a mobile, PC based gaming device. So they don't necessarily have to match the equivalent desktop GPU. They just have to be fit for purpose. And they pretty much are now, especially the better ones of current gen GPUs. Also, while you do pay a premium for the form factor, this gap is narrowing due to the overpricing of desktop components.
They're a lot better than they were. The battery is good enough for routine tasks. Not as good as a specific office type laptop, no - but you can squeeze 3 hours out with the right settings and making sure it has a good size battery to start with. Maybe more, I haven't gone to town on trying it.
No they don't hold a charge gaming but that's kind of an unrealistic expectation at the current level of technology, they draw too much power to components. You can't ask it to simultaneously play games at a fidelity similar to a decent PC and then think it's going to hold charge when PCs and consoles are sat there with a power supply hooked up. My laptop doesn't even try without power, you lose frames, lots of frames.
I guess the overall point of them is they fulfil that niche of a mobile, PC based gaming device. So they don't necessarily have to match the equivalent desktop GPU. They just have to be fit for purpose. And they pretty much are now, especially the better ones of current gen GPUs. Also, while you do pay a premium for the form factor, this gap is narrowing due to the overpricing of desktop components.
Anyone got experience in replacing a like for like motherboard? Is it just a case of connecting everything as it was, fiddling in the bios to match the old settings, and everything is good to go, or is there more to do?
You'll possibly need to enter a new serial number for Windows. A hardware change as significant as a new motherboard is likely to be interpreted as though it's a completely different system so the OS could want another licence.
But other than that, yeah, it's a fairly plug-and-play process.
But other than that, yeah, it's a fairly plug-and-play process.
Thanks for reply. So, my current C: is aligned with the old motherboard; if I put the replacement in and try and boot up to windows, it'll just not do it without serial, or it'll request it after booting?
I've got the new mobo here now, but am loathe to get started because I just know it's not going to go smoothly. Want to at least be prepared for any eventuality as, and when, it arises.
Modern serial numbers align themselves to the motherboard and are validated in Windows so there's no need to enter anything if you're swapping it without reinstalling Windows first. I've never had a problem changing a motherboard, just relicence online and it's done.
If you do get a problem, you would have to give MS a call, so write down the number before doing anything. It's not an issue and they would just allow it to be relicenced against the new MB.
Edit - unless your licence was OEM, in which case it's tied to the one MB, but even then if you've replaced it due to an issue with the old one and it's like-for-like that would be OK.
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OK cheers. It's Win 7 Ultimate (I know!), so I'm a bit concerned if I hit that particular hiccup.
That issue I posted about some time ago with the RAM and various problems, turns out the bay where the CPU is seated has some thermal paste in it. I have no idea how it got under the CPU, but I'm pretty sure it's fecked the board and is preventing access to certain parts of it.