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General discussion

Another twist on moving XP. . .

Jan 26, 2004 9:42AM PST

After reading the post below (chipset) I'm planning about the same. I have a two year old Compaq 5102US:

1 Gig AMD Anthlon
40 Gig HD with XP Home
20 Gig slave HD
DVD-ROM
CR-RW
various other add-ons

I have purchased:

Shuttle AN35N Ultra v1.1 system board with nVidia nForce2 400 Ultra w/5.1 channel Audio, 6 USB 2 ports, 2 monitor ports, on-board NIC, all the other ports
AMD Anthlon 2400 processor - 2 GHz
Arcade FX 64 Mb video card
Tower case with 6 fans, (4 front, 1 side, 1 rear), 350 Watt power supply.
512 Meg RAM (expandable to 3 Gig)

I plan to move everything to the new case.

Would I be better served if I just formatted the HD and reinstalled XP Home? Call MS if needed and get my new numbers?

Discussion is locked

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Yes, but ....
Jan 26, 2004 10:14AM PST

back up to an external media first.

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Re:Yes, but .... Oh, yeah. . .
Jan 26, 2004 10:18AM PST

Took three CDs for all my junk. I have all programs to reinstall.

My only concern is installing and activating and avoiding worms. I'll keep my cable unplugged until that time.

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I could be wrong...
Jan 26, 2004 12:32PM PST

....and I'm not afraid to admit I have been. Worms like the msblast cannot penetrate a router. Still got the D-Link?
I'd download SP1a ahead of time too and slap it on a CD with some other must haves for a fresh install.
Have fun with that new 2ghz...I'm doing the same soon.

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Re:I could be wrong...
Jan 26, 2004 10:13PM PST

You are wrong on this one, I have a few clients that got MSBLAST even though they have routers. The router doesn't prevent you from getting on the web and that's all you need with an unprotected system. To avoid MSBLAST you either need to have updated Anti Virus software or the Microsoft fix (and preferably both).

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MSBLAST. Just grinding it finely.
Jan 26, 2004 10:25PM PST

I've yet to see any antivirus stop MSBLAST from invading a system. I have seen it stop it from running, but removal was still required.

To stop it, apply the patches so it can't get in, in the first place.

With all due respect, this is one annoying set of worms. I'm still finding Windows 2000 machines with less than latest service packs and patches because...

"Our company supported configuration is..."

I often stop them right there and ask if they can afford another MS-Blaster event...

Bob

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I couldn't tell..
Jan 27, 2004 8:14AM PST

If you disagree with me Bob. Does a router help out with these worms?

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Re:I couldn't tell.. I will tell this.
Jan 27, 2004 8:37AM PST

The router may deflect most sources, but not all.

Everyonce in awhile, someone trys to run without AntiVirus, or without other protections if they need such (varies with the OS in question.)

Its best not to enter into any heated discussion, but yes, a router if configured proper, does help avoid a lot of problems.

Bob

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Wrong I may be...
Jan 27, 2004 8:11AM PST

My informants led me to believe that the hardware firewall prevents this worm into my system. Do I keep my system up to date? Yes...well sort of. I don't run anti-virus and run WUpdate once a month. Guess...I'm just lucky.
But, I do go to Trend once in a while when I'm bored.

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Exactly the issue.
Jan 27, 2004 8:42AM PST

I wish you the best of luck, but given the current state of affairs, if a machine on your LAN caught the worm via the new DOOM e-mail, your machine may be defenseless. This scenario has been witnessed first hand at a business as some machines had virus protection and some didn't. The e-mail server didn't so the results were not funny.

In short, one time it was some employee opening email from another ISP (not company approved) and another time it was carried in on a Software Install CD from a vendor (thanks!)

Your choice on the matter and all we can do is wish you luck.

Bob

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Re:Re:Yes, but .... Oh, yeah. . .
Jan 26, 2004 10:14PM PST

Unfortunately you need to install software from the web to avoid worms, even Anti Virus software doesn't come with the latest updates. You could download the Blaster fix before switching systems and then get it up and running and installed before plugging in the web.

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Update. . .
Jan 27, 2004 12:14PM PST

Well, hmmmmm.

Got it to boot, finally got the HD jumpers set properly (Master/Slave). Floppy failed, got the cable terminated correctly.

Now it boots, shows 512 Meg RAM, BIOS is good I guess, 2 HDs, 2 optical drives, floppy, then I get the XP screen asking how to load. I pick normally and it reboots to the BIOS again.

Looks like a format and reinstall is in order.

At least I didn't let any smoke out.

Shutting down tonight, off tomorrow, will need all day probably to install XP, drivers for the video card, all the software, etc.