hello!
i have a few questions about hardware and linux mandrake 10.
in fact, i recently had trouble with my computer.
i had one hard drive western digital 20Gb (WD200) with windows 98 on
it.
i put another hard drive (same model) with linux mandrake 10.
it took me some time to install everything and to make it run ok.
but, unfortunatly, a little time after, my computer crashed.
the motherboard is now dead.
so, here are my questions :

- do you think there is a link beetween the fact i installed a
second WD200 hard drive with linux on it, and the fact that the
motherboard died?
- anyway, now i plan to buy an Asus P4P800 deluxe motherboard. is
this motherboard supported by linux mandrake 10?
- moreover, what will happen when i will boot linux ( and windows 98
too) as the hardware has changed ( new motherboard, memory, video
card and processor..)? what's going to happen? if possible, i want to
use the installed linux and windows 98 on my hard drives without
reinstalling everything again.
thank you for your help.

1. I think the mobo failure was a coincidence, but I'd also ask if you are really sure the mobo is dead. Is the machine not booting at all, or is it starting up and then hanging? If it is truly dead, then I would suspect that the power supply unit may have been the culprit. It's possible that your system was already drawing the max power it could, and the addition of the second drive put it over the limit. That's just a guess though.

2. Check the Hardware Compatibility List (aka "HCL") here at LQ for reviews about how well a given piece of equipment works in Linux.

3. If all you are doing is transferring the hard drives to a new box, everything ought to work just fine, and no re-installation should be necessary. I've done this same thing myself a couple of times, and it basically went A-OK.

Good luck with the project and welcome to LQ -- J.W.

chil326 & J.W.; suggestion for chil326 make a check list of all components (as suggested in howto,s preinstall) then double check all config,s ; connections, (as J.W. suggested )check powersupply out put. follow recommended formula match pwrsupply with each device,s wattage output,
some thing like 12+12+12+12+12+12+ 150=220w. 12w each device +150w mobo= 220w pwrsply minimum. check all u r devices w needs against powersupply. if it is not under pwrsply but over u need larger pwrsply.