i just recently purchased an xps 420 and i was wondering if the motherboard could just be swapped out, im not exactly sure i should try and buy one now to overclock my q6600 and go for an sli setup but i dont even know if this is possible with my computer if anyone knows anything about this any help would be appreciated thanks

The 420 has a BTX mobo not an ATX so your choices are severely limited. Why why why would you have bought the Dell in the first place if you were going to swap out the mobo anyway?

Dude you got a Dell!.....Sorry, I had to say it.

you have embarked on a silly journey.
here a quote concerning the proprietary nature of dell cases:

A friend of mine tried putting a new motherboard into his Dell-non-XPS tower and discovered that Dell used proprietary plugs for the on/off and reset switches.
Since it's a non ATX compliant case, theres a good chance that a Dell motherboard might have a weird socket for those switches.
Even his power and HDD activity leds had different plugs.

Yeah I've had to re-wire many Dell cases when customers motherboards have died in them and had to be swapped out for a new one. I had to use a multi-meter to find the pin layout and it was a total pain in the ass.

The best way to go about it, is buy a case and a new motherboard, then take all of the other parts out of the Dell and put them in your nice new shiny, non-proprietary case.

I have to agree with what Zorg. WHY did you buy the Dell knowing that you wanted a Q6600/SLI setup to begin with? Should have spent the money on parts, not the Dell.

dells are a dead end for upgrading. non-standard connections and locked bioses make them effectively useless for wanting to upgrade or overclock.

Don't forget HP and Gateway.

So I did my homework on this system. I was wanting the new E8500 cuz its so bad azzz. I built a sytem trough dell and NewEgg. Dell was only $60 higher, so I figured what the hell. I spoke with Dell Tech and they answered all my questions without a hitch. SO now I am using a manufactured puter for the first time in my life. I was able to overclock to 4.2 without a problem and keep nice and cool. The BIOS may be a little bit of a pain but with some brains OCing is possible. Good luck to you all. As for the question at hand A DFI LP LT X38-T2R LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard $250 and a NZXT Apollo case $70 with all the insides from your XPS and you got your self a sick machine. There are many 775 boards on the market if that is out of your price range but that is the baddist board I can recommend.