Copying Old Hard Drive to New PC
"When I buy a new computer, how do I transfer everything from the hard drive on my old computer? I enjoy the Tourbus and appreciate all the information you provide."
If you bought a new computer, or just a new hard drive for your old computer, you'll need to transfer the files. Here's how...
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Do You Really Want To Do That...?
There are several options, but first let's talk about NOT copying everything from the old hard drive to the new one. When you use a computer for a couple of years, it tends to build up what I call Cyber Sludge, and you really don't want that nasty old sludge on your shiny new hard drive.
In most cases, all you really need to copy are the personal files you have created, such as word processor documents, spreadsheets, photos, etc. You can use File/Export to dump your web browser favorites into a plain-text file, and the same applies to your emails and address book.
Various Ways to Transfer Files
To transfer to the new computer, you can burn a CD containing those files, or copy them to one of those nifty USB-connected portable hard drives (also called Flash Drives or Memory Sticks), or attach the files to an email and send them to yourself.
If you have a home network, it's even easier. Just make the hard drive in the old computer a shared drive, and you'll be able to copy the files to the new drive with drag and drop. Without a network, you can install the old hard drive in your new computer, and just access the files on it as your D: drive. If you're timid about popping the hood on your PC, you can take both to a computer repair shop and ask them to install the old drive in the new machine.
Copying the Entire Drive
Since that's what you asked about, yes... there are ways to copy your old hard drive, lock, stock and bearings, to a new hard drive. In the old days, you could use the XCOPY command from a DOS prompt to copy everything in one swell foop, but modern operating systems make this impossible. I recommend you use software specifically written to deal with all the intricacies of dealing with partitions, copying the Windows registry, and handling locked, hidden & system files. Two programs I recommend for this purpose are VCOM Copy Commander and Partition Magic.
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Check out other articles in this category:Posted by Bob Rankin on August 4, 2005 02:30 PM
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Most recent comments on "Copying Old Hard Drive to New PC"
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My old PC died recently, it still gets power but gets as far as the windows start up and powers out so I bought a new laptop and was wondering how I would go about transfering files(music, photos etc) from the old desktop to the new laptop. EDITOR'S NOTE: You can buy a kit to convert an internal hard drive to an external hard drive, and plug it into your laptop's USB port. One company that makes these kits is Addonics. |
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my motherboard died can i put the Hard drive from that computer into another computer that i have so i will not lose the files that i have? EDITOR'S NOTE: Yes, if the hard drive is not damaged, it should work fine in another computer. |
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My old PC is running Windows XP and my new one will be running Vista. Will Copy Commander take this into account and not move my old OS with everything else? EDITOR'S NOTE: I'm not familiar with Copy Commander, but Vista does have a data migration tool. |
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Hi, I have given my old pc away to my mum to replace her old one. If I clone her xp harddrive using spotmua or hdclone to a new one will it work in the new pc? would I have to install the old drive in the new pc to clone it or vise versa? Will this work or will I need to reinstall xp and all her settings and programs? EDITOR'S NOTE: Why do you want to clone the old drive? Why not just install it in the new PC as a second drive? |
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I saw a ad on TV about Comcast free software, so I download it off the Mcafee website. I installed it, everything seen OK until the spyware took out important programs that make the PC run, and when I turned on the PC it took a long time to start and the task bar would not come on, programs wouldn't start. Now I will have to copy everything to another hard drive and restore my PC. I want to know how I can copy all my data from my old hard drive to my new external hard drive without losing it?
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My old PC freezes as soon as the desktop appears. What can I do to repair or recover my documents from the computer... Will reinstalling windows help... windows 95 to XP.. EDITOR'S NOTE: It might help. But going into Safe Mode during startup may also get you in to recover your documents. You can also consider removing the drive and putting it in an external enclosure. See http://askbobrankin.com/convert_internal_hard_drive_to_external.html |
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i have a hard drive that came out of my old HP computer and when i hook it up its tells me it dosent recognizes it. The hp had a celeron processer and the newer one has a AMD what do i do ? EDITOR'S NOTE: The processor type is not relevant. You may have better luck if you hook up the drive as an external USB connected drive. |
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i recently got a new computer and i want to put my old hard drive in it and use the new one that came with it as a slave. it worked great in the old computer but in the new one it ask if i want to start in safe mode or normal. no matter which one i choose it starts over and does the same thing. i have even tried to use ghost and copy the old harddrive over to the new one. it still does the same thing. it still works fine in the old computer.do you have any ideas. EDITOR'S NOTE: Here's the problem... your old hard drive is telling Windows to load all the hardware drivers for the old system, but your new system requires different drivers. You can probably boot into Safe Mode, then find and install the correct drivers. You probably got the drivers on CDs wth your new system. If not, some Googling will help you find them. |
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Hi, I have a Quantum Fireball CX 6.8 AT 3.5 Series Hard Drive from my Pentium III Gateeway PC. I've takent he hard drive out and would like to connect it to my Dell Laptop to retrieve all the old files. How can I do this? 40 pin to USB? EDITOR'S NOTE: The easiest way is with a USB enclosure kit to turn it into an external drive. You connect the 40-pin cable inside the kit, and connect the drive via USB. |
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Okay, if I get a new hard drive with a bigger capacity and copy everything from my old hard drive to a new one, my OS will still run like my original one right? EDITOR'S NOTE: Yes, your OS should run the same, maybe better with the extra space! |
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Article information: AskBobRankin -- Copying Old Hard Drive to New PC (Posted: August 4, 2005 02:30 PM)
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