Hardware upgrade necessitates a fresh installation of Windows?
Hardware upgrade necessitates a fresh installation of Windows?
Hey guys, I had a question that I can't seem to find a concrete answer to very easily. I'm thinking about upgrading my hardware soon - more specifically, changing my motherboard, CPU and RAM to something modern. What I'm not sure of is if I need to reinstall Windows 10 on my boot drive, and if so, whether I'll need to purchase a new copy of the OS along with the new hardware. I don't know if the operating system is tied to your hardware in any way, but if so then I will need to add the cost of a new copy of Windows to the budget here. More specifically, I'm upgrading from an AMD Fx 9590 on a Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 R5 motherboard, to an Intel core i5 7600K on an as-of-yet undecided Z270 chipset motherboard. Please let me know whether I'm worrying about nothing, or if I need to spend an extra $100. Thanks!
Thank you for removing the 9590. Follow these steps before setting up Windows: https://www.howtogeek.com/226510/how-to-...ng-your-pc Then perform a clean install from a USB drive: https://www.howtogeek.com/224342/how-to-...windows-10
It's been quite the headache with this CPU—frequent freezes lasting just a few seconds, mainly because of poor power handling. I didn’t manage to resolve it in the BIOS, which is frustrating. Still, it’s reassuring I don’t have to purchase another Windows version. Appreciate your support!