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I just purchased a barebones PC and want to re-use components from my old PC. There is a warning in the instructions that came with the new PC not to boot up from the old hard drive. It says you must boot up from the Microsoft Windows 2000 CD. If you don't, it is "possible" to destroy the BIOS. Beyond that, the instructions aren't very clear. What do I need to do after booting up from the CD? Will I eventually be able to boot from the old hard drive as currently configured? Or, do I have to do a fresh install of the O/S on the old drive and then reinstall all of the applications I have on the old drive?

From browsing the internet, I think I have determined that there is a "hardware abstraction layer - HAL" that is stored on the hard drive, and that is what would prevent booting the new PC from the old drive. Is there a way to 'update' this HAL without having to reinstall the O/S?

Thanks, in advance, for any help you can offer.

With Windows 2000 as well as XP a reinstall is necessary on a new motherboard.

You might be able to get away with a Repair Install but a Clean Install is generally advised for best results and performance.

Originally Posted by jephree

With Windows 2000 as well as XP a reinstall is necessary on a new motherboard.

You might be able to get away with a Repair Install but a Clean Install is generally advised for best results and performance.

Not what I wanted to hear!! Ok, thanks!! Guess while I'm at it, I should upgrade to XP too.

If you have the 2K CD you might want to wait and upgrade next year to Vista.

All of these OS's (post '98) actually install components on the motherboard is why you just can't move them around. Sorry I don't know the real technical details.

NormBross, it sounds like you actually know more than the manufacturer. Windows 2000 will READ from the BIOS but it won't WRITE to it and, therefore, booting from the old hard disk won't destroy the BIOS. However, Windows 2000 won't boot up because, as you've said, the HAL that is stored in the Windows 2000 installation on the hard disk is specific to certain components within the original PC that the hard disk came from. The primary component that affects this is the motherboard.

There is a process that some members have used to clear the HAL on a Windows XP machine in order to move the hard disk to a new system without having to re-install but I don't know whether it works on 2000. If you want to try it, are you able to put the hard disk back into the original system that it came from?