One Foot in Dell? Changing Dell Mobos.

[megad0x]

Hi All,

Hoping someone can give me whatever crucial caveates exist on swapping out a Dell 4600i for a regular 4600 motherboard.

The socket is the same for the processor on the new board, and all that. And I'm told it WILL fit in Dell's special case, too.

Any links to 'How to Change a Motherboard' would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks much

[EXreaction]

That sure is some rant for a system released over 5 years ago.

The 4600 uses the standard micro-ATX layout. However, using any non-4600 motherboard would require hacking the front panel connectors.

I am having a hard time stopping myself from telling you to just toss that old pile of crap. The performance you have with a 4600 is a tiny fraction of what you can have for a few hundred dollars.

[megad0x]

Thanks. I rant - a lot. A side effect of my 'mental-illness.' At least you didn't say it was impossible to change a Dell mobo out for another. It's old, but I'm on Disability, and I actually just finished paying it off. I WILL put the next one together myself.I like your quote, btw, and I just have to throw one back at ya - 'Forgiveness is an attribute of the strong. The weak can never forgive.' - Gandhi. I'm always fond of that one.Thanks

[EXreaction]

Nope, it is definitely possible to swap out motherboards.

I am not certain about XP being locked to your motherboard or if it will work on another 4600 motherboard. Even if online activation didn't work, you should be able to activate your copy of XP by calling in the number.

Also, another dell motherboard should mean that you can keep the front panel wiring as it is.

To swap out the motherboard you just have to disconnect everything attached to it that comes off, unscrew it and take it out, then do the opposite to install the new one. The CPU is probably the most difficult thing to remove as the thermal paste is probably hardened pretty badly. The heatsink will probably need to be twisted to break the bond, then should come off without the cpu attached (if the cpu sticks to it and you pull too hard the pins could actually break). I am not sure of any articles which explain how to do it.