CPU/Hard Drive Question

[ryankn852]

Hey guys hows everyyyoneee doinnn happy holidays and new year soon to be... I have a quick question that may sound extremely stupid but i've had a laptop for years now and lost my knowledge on desktops. Ok so here it goes... I'm building an i7 computer from scratch and just was thinking... If I wanna upgrade my CPU or Harddrive... Or maybe even motherboard (that might be a hassle though)... Am I going to lose everything on my computer if I dont save it to an external drive? I mean if I replace the CPU... or Harddrive I'm going to have to do a complete reformat right? If anyone could respond in a sort of detailed way to clear the air pleasseee do...
Thanks
Ryan N

 

[IH8U]

Install your OS onto the new HDD, then set it as the primary boot device. Put the old HDD in (jumper set to slave mode) boot up, and transfer any data. If you are just replacing the CPU, there will be no issues. If replacing the MB, back up any data you need to keep. (recommend backing up data frequently)

 

[leo2kp]

You have a laptop. Do you have a desktop too? If you're building a Core i7 from scratch, how do you plan on doing that without replacing your motherboard (which you say might be a hassle)? If you have a desktop and the HDD has a SATA interface, don't worry about jumpers. Also, you CAN install Windows on a used drive without losing all of your information. Just don't format it (Keep the current file structure). Windows will install over the current installation but everything outside of the Windows directory will remain intact.

If you don't have a desktop, you won't be able to plug in your laptop drive without a converter, but you can save everything on to a disk and move it to another drive.

Can you post a list of parts you plan on putting in this Core i7 system?

 

[zodiacfml]

I suggest saving your important files somewhere before using your old hard disk and building a new/upgraded system.
it seems too complicated for you to install a new or upgrade a system without formatting the old drive.

regarding upgrading or replacing the CPU only, it won't affect your files.

 

[ryankn852]

Hey guys. Thanks for the answers... Concerning the laptop/desktop... I'm building a new i7 have all the parts picked out... This question was more based for the future... As I might not get as expensive stuff now and upgrade in the future... Most of the parts now is through xmas presents and so...

OCZ Gold 6 mb

i7 2.66

EVGA Geforce 216 Core 260 896mb 448 bit

Antec 850

WD 1tb 7200 RPM

Windows Home Premium

Thanks again everyone