Trying to resurrect "dead" PC

MRTULES

So I found a computer in work that was "broken" and deiced to open it up and have a look at what the problem is/was.
What I have is a mzn7b-la mobo
3 x 1gb ram
AMD Athlon II X3 435 CPU
and some bog standard HP PSU, DVD drive and case.
Now, I have no spare HDD so what is my cheapest option to run this machine as a web browser?
Is it possible to run ubuntu from a usb stick?
after taking out heatsink, cpu, ram and cables and putting it all back in I have managed to get it to bios screen (mini win for me).
The budget is €0 and no spare HDDs lying around unfortunately. I do have laptop thats on its way out. Is it possible to pull the HDD from this? If so will windows come with it or is it tied to mobo? Its a dell lap top
Mobo has no ide (is that what its called?) connection only sata.

All help is much appreciated

ED E

Yep, you could boot that off USB

If the laptop is anyway modern its drive will be sata and could be used in the PC you're reclaiming, but it would need a fresh windows installation. If the sticker with the key is still on the case you could grab an OEM disk and reinstall.

If you can get your hands on a fast USB key that'll make a big difference going the live boot route. Also making a ramdisk that way will eat memory.

MRTULES

Thanks for the quick response.
Is all that info about windows oem disk in mono's sig?
Think I was reading a bit about it before.

ED E

Basically if you have the sticker you should be able to grab an XP(I assume) disk and install windows fresh on the drive from the laptop. Get what you want off it first though and format it.

MRTULES

Hmmmmm.
I want everything off it! Im sure there is nothing too important on it but Im a compulsive hoarder. I have two older Hdds from previous laptops, stored away in a box along with sd cards from phones with 10sec videos of nights out from 10+ years ago :D.
Would I have to format it or could I just "slap it in"?
Thanks again.

ED E

You'll have to format to install windows.

If you have a current working PC grab the drive and copy all the data you might want onto thats drive(presumably far larger).

MRTULES

No PC at all. The dying laptop is all I have hence my reluctance to mess with it. Tbh, my phone is nearly faster for browsing, which is a joke really. If I was to put a few bob towards this, what would you suggest? Like a cheap HDD >€50 and bang a free OS on it? Or could I run it off something like this?
Is Ubuntu the best free OS?
Sorry for all the questions. By all means tell me to F off :cool:

ED E

No worries man.

If its going to be your primary machine then I'd grab a cheap drive. You can get laptop drives as low as about €35 and that'd do you fine. Small bit slower than a 7200rpm full size drive, but a lot faster than a USB key.

Ubuntu isnt the only choice, its just a lot easier to set up than more enthusiast based linux distros. Maybe burn an Ubuntu disk(If you go back to 12.04 it fits on a CD) and a Mint(another distribution of linux) one and see what you like.