repainting a balcony

hello all,
I have a covered balcony with wood boards. The boards on the perimeter have some damage due to water.
I plan to cut them at the joist and replace them with new boards. I have a few questions:
1) What is the best way to remove the paint that is partially peeled off on the boards?
2) The paint is still holding well in the area that is further from the perimeter. Do I need to strip to bare wood before painting or just paint over them
3) The outermost board has the most damage. However, the post holding up the roof is resting on it. How can I repair it?
Thanks much

 

There is no need to remove sound paint - you can paint over it once it's clean.
Is the post sitting on top of the decking or does it extend down to the ground?

 

Thanks Marksr. The posts sit on top of the floor boards. The floor boards rest on top of the trusses. I am attaching a 3rd picture taken from under the balcony which is kind of suspended and not supported by posts. The 4th picture shows the joint at the bottom of the posts.