Install windows 7 on a new HDD with just the old (dead) HDD's COA key?

RebeccaValentin said:

Is there any special procedure to actually get to know if any drivers are missing, apart from testing every functionality one by one?

And thanks for the information :)

Look for the yellow exclamation points ("bangs") in Device Manager. They typically refer to missing drivers.

Even if you see one or more, you may not have any problems with the hardware you actually use. I wouldn't expect to see more than 1 or 2 on a fresh install. Maybe none.

Or you might.

Some people are obsessed with removing all of the bangs, even though they have no problems doing whatever they want on the PC.

Other people are obsessed with always having the "latest drivers", even though they have no issues at all--the current drivers are doing the job.

I tend to leave well enough alone. If I need to do X, Y, and Z and can in fact do X, Y, and Z, I don't get in a lather over getting the latest drivers. New drivers can have unintended and unfortunate consequences.

The standard advice is to install the INF (aka "chipset") driver first, but I'm not sure how critical that is--I'll bet it's not installed first in many many cases and probably not installed at all quite often. It's hard to get definitive info on it's importance in the last few years.

The LAN driver is the most important. Without it, you aren't getting on the Internet. Normally, Windows will install it, but since it's so critical, I'd download it and have it available just in case.

RebeccaValentin said:

Sorry, I know this is something which is off topic. But got some doubts.. :)

So these are the drivers from the Sony website ( I have a Sony Vaio S series laptop). When I finish installing Windows 7, I should just check for any missing drivers and install ONLY them? What if I miss something? (Im just a beginner and I have never tried anything like reinstalling Win before)
And does the Windows disk usually contain every driver mentioned here?
So if that is the case, then I should only go for driver updates?
Thanks in advance.

There's no harm done in downloading ALL of them.

Whether you need to install them is another question.

If you need the functionality, you need a driver, but Windows will supply many, most, or all.

Evaluate after your install.

Get the Ethernet driver now, for sure. You can get the others now or later, if you need them.

With reasonable luck, you won't even need to use the downloaded Ethernet driver.

RebeccaValentin said:

ignatzatsonic said:

There's no harm done in downloading ALL of them.

Whether you need to install them is another question.

If you need the functionality, you need a driver, but Windows will supply many, most, or all.

Evaluate after your install.

Get the Ethernet driver now, for sure. You can get the others now or later, if you need them.

With reasonable luck, you won't even need to use the downloaded Ethernet driver.

Thanks a ton again :)
So probably its enough if I have the chipset, LAN & Ethernet drivers, just in case I need any of them.. right? :)

Yeah, I'd get wireless LAN and Ethernet. I'd get them and the chipset driver now. You might eventually need some of those oddball drivers like fingerprint, etc. I'm not sure how many of the oddball drivers Windows might install as I don't use that stuff.