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Recovery after replacing motherboard

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I may have to replace my motherboard. I have saved all my system and data files to an external hard drive, and I have created a boot media to both a USB flash drive and a CD disk. Am I correct to state that I will need to use my boot media to replace all my files after the motherboard is replace.?

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If your primary hard disk drive is still in working condition, you MAY be fine installing a new system board. The problem is the installed copy of Windows has drivers installed for your current hardware setup. That could (and probably will) change when replacing the motherboard. If you get everything in place and the system boots to Windows, you will be one of the lucky ones. Even then some devices will not work until the correct drivers are installed/updated. The biggest problem will be the hard disk controller drivers. If the correct drivers are not included in your current installation of Windows, it may not boot, but your data will still be on the drive. You possibly could add the drivers for the new motherboard before replacement. Some drivers will install even if the hardware is not presently in the system, but not always. If the system does not boot, there are ways to correct a non-bootable Windows installation after a hardware change, but it can be difficult and time consuming. I personally always install a new copy of my operating system and any programs I need, then just restore data files from my backups when replacing a system board. This gives me a new clean install to work with.
Be sure you have a full backup and that you validate it before starting. Good luck.

Ron,

James is right.
If you cannot reinstall Windows and your apps, you best alternative is to buy Acronis Plus Pack, install it, create a new recovery CD, and then use this CD for "Universal Restore". This process is not for the faint of heart, and might not be much fast than a clean install, move the files.

Thanks to all. I did buy Acronis Plus Pack and did include it in my 'create bootable media'. Will this be sufficient to boot all my system and data files to a new motherboard?

You will need to follow the instructions of the Universal Restore kb http://kb.acronis.com/content/5410