Think MB has gone / can I replace with different MB?

[fetster]

Hi. I own a dvd rental machine which has an NEC PC powering it. A few weeks ago the display went and all I could see was a load of lines on the screen. I turned machine off and back on and now it won't POST.

I have removed the pc from the dvd machine and tried it in a standard monitor & keyboard / mouse. It still won;t POST and I can not hear any HDD activity. The power light comes on, fans start and thats about it.

Could the mother board have gone pop?

I'm going to clone the HDD as it has all the dvd machine software on which I would be stuffed if I lost it.

If it is the MB, could I simply buy a common board and connect everything back to it inc the existing HDD? Would it work? Or would I need to buy the same model board (its a 945G-M4 RevB)

Unfortunately Tech support for the dvd machine is based in Italy (the franchise I bought it off in UK has gone bust!!)

Any other suggestions?

My main concern is that I don't lose the drivers / data on the HDD as the PC controls robotic arms & conveyors/ credit card reader / touch screen along with the DVD database and server settings etc.

thanks in advance

 

[Donkeyfumbler]

Chances are if you replace the motherboard with a different one, even if it has the right socket for your CPU, you will either have to re-install the OS or at least do a repair install (which should at least keep your programs and data intact). If you can find exactly the same model then everything should just plug back in and work.