Gigabyte GA-G41M-ES2L failed

Mother board is dead. Is there any possible way to use the good hard with XP Pro installed to boot up on another board/computer?

I installed the drive as a slave in another machine and have much of the data copied but there are still some files and emails that I can't get to.

I've had crashes before but this is the first time for a motherboard failure. Somewhere I found, on the net, instructions to re-install XP and retaining the original configuration and programs. I believe the author's name could have been White. It took you deep into the bowels of Windows but worked flawlessly if you followed the instructions. The recovery process required the original discs. Even printed it out and saved it but for the life of me can't find it now nor on the internet.

Perhaps someone can point me to that link. I've not been able to find it yet.

TIA

 

I hope the instructions for a non-destructive re-install of XP on this page are (or at least similar to) the ones you referred to.

 

Sorry for the delay in getting back on this issue. Unfortunately none of the links are the one I was hoping to track down. The article was hoping tofind may have been removed from the net?? As I recall that method required renaming certain key files in Windows so they wouldn't get over written by the re-install process, and later renaming them back to the original.

I've set the hard drive aside for the present. I don't know if this computer I've replaced it with, running Windows7 Pro has anything to do with it but I can't access several directories and files. Others I was able to change to adminstrator to access. I have most of the files salvaged but can't get to Outlook's emails. I use Winamp and can't access those installation files either. I prefer to lock winamp configuration by making this files as read only. This computer with 7 on it probably was a business unit in it's previous life. Perhaps that's what's limiting my access.

 

Some progress

D/L Hirens BootCD. It has a great little program that allows changing access to files. Was able to navigate to C:\Documents and Settings\PC\Application Data\Winamp.

Therein lies studio.xnf.

Change properties to read only and Hallelujah! Now Winamp always starts with the same settings.

Buggers. What a struggle. Why store the settings in such an obscure place? What's wrong with Winamp directory?

 

Another idea which has worked well for me in the past, buy the exact same MB as the one that died. I have done that a couple of times with total success using the processor from the old boards.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw...eo_id=10232&keyword=gigabyte+g31m-es2l&crdt=0

 

Thanks

Yes I've read that. Have been browsing Ebay.

 

Update: SUCCESS


D\L'ed Hiren's BootCD. Burned the ISO to CD. It comes with a mess of utilities too. One is change access to files, which I was after on the old XP HD.

Connected the XP drive. Started the system and Hiren's began to load. While browsing all the options it booted from the old XP drive, perhaps automatically or unintentionally selected, I don't know. Happened fairly quickly. I believe it was MiniXP that loaded.

Entered password and it loaded the old desktop, loaded a ton of drivers and everything was just like my old XP system. Exported addresses and emails to a safe location on the new Win 7 drive, then shut down.

Removed XP drive, re-booted normally with Win 7 and imported all the emails and address book.

The whole process was actually way faster than any recovery I've undertaken before with XP Pro.

Unbelievable.

Huge kudu to Hiren's. Must send a donation.

 

http://www.hiren.info/