Transferring data to another computer

[Tim Sutor]

I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of my
present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both are running
legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this task is completed
then it is my intention to format the hard drive of my original machine and
dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer possible and, if so, is it a
relatively straight forward task that a novice could undertake or will I
need to engage a computer technician? As a pensioner I would naturally
prefer to avoid the expense of the latter course.

[Xandros]

Do you have a Windows XP Pro CD? If so you should be able to do a drive
to drive copy of the old drive to your new system. To do this you will
need hard drive cloning software. It isn't that hard to do with the
right software, a phillips screw driver and a few hours of your time.
The drive to drive copy will wipe out all the content fo the new drive
and replace it witht he exact replica of the contents of the old. YOu
will then do a Repair Install of Widnows XP Pro on the new system. This
will rewrite the essential system files onto the new system without
losing the data, installed applications and the majority of settings you
have. You should be able to boot the new system and have it look and
feel just like the old setup.

There are many types of Drive Copy software. One of the best (which
comes with a price tag) is Acronis TrueImage. It works very well and is
very easy to use. There is also other good products bought at a price.
Often hard drive manufacturer's supply them free of cost by downloading
from their sites. Tehre are also third party free drive copy programs
such as this one Clonemaxx
http://www.pcinspector.de/clone-maxx/uk/welcome.htm

You remove the drive from the old system and move the little jumper plug
on the back of it to the Slave position (see here for and example
http://www.harddriveupgrade.com/jumper_pins.shtml )

Run the drive copy software being very careful to copy in the correct
direction from the old to the new as there is no going back if you make
a mistake. If the drives are of different size it is easy to do. Once
the drive is copied to the new computer shut down and remove the old
drive. Set the jumper back to Master to replace int he old computer.
Boot the new computer using your Windows XP CD and do a Repair Install
(see How to Run a Repair Installation
http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repair_xp.htm )

Once the Repair Install is finished remove the XP Cd and boot the computer.

Xandros

Tim Sutor wrote:
> I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of my
> present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both are running
> legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this task is completed
> then it is my intention to format the hard drive of my original machine and
> dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer possible and, if so, is it a
> relatively straight forward task that a novice could undertake or will I
> need to engage a computer technician? As a pensioner I would naturally
> prefer to avoid the expense of the latter course.
>
>
>
>

[Shenan Stanley]

Tim Sutor wrote:
> I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of
> my present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both
> are running legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this
> task is completed then it is my intention to format the hard drive
> of my original machine and dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer
> possible and, if so, is it a relatively straight forward task that
> a novice could undertake or will I need to engage a computer
> technician? As a pensioner I would naturally prefer to avoid the
> expense of the latter course.

The only method I can think of that would work 99% of the time...

1) Make an image (backup) of the 'new' machine - store this on DVD or some
permanent media in case you ever need to go back to it in the future. You
can use an application like Ghost, TrueImage, BootItNG, etc to make said
image.
2) Make an image (backup) of the 'old' machine - store it however you wish -
but putting it on some permanent media as well is a good idea. You can use
an application like Ghost, TrueImage, BootItNG, etc to make said image.
3) Apply the image of the 'old' mcahine to the 'new' machine - but do NOT
boot it.
4) Using the ACTUAL Windows XP Installation CD that came with the 'new'
system (this has to be an ACTUAL Windows XP Installation CD - not a
restoration/recovery CD...) perform a repair installation on the 'new'
system.

How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

How to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315341

5) If it does not ask for a Product Key during the repair installation, you
should change the key that is in use on the machine after the repair
installation is done and you log into it the first time. You can use the
following tool to do so:

The Genuine Advantage Product Key Update Tool is only valid for
users attempting to change their current non-genuine Product
Key to a genuine COA sticker orgenuineProduct Key - all without
a reinstall!

http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=50346&clcid=0x409

Then you should have the same install with all your profiles, settings and
applications from the old system on your new system with the correct product
key for the new machine.

This all assumes you have an actual Windows XP CD, valid Product Keys, the
ability to make the images and the hardware/software to utilize for that.
If so - it will be time consuming, but this method is very likely to get you
what you want legitimately and everything actual function when you are done.

--
Shenan Stanley
MS-MVP
--
How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

[Poprivet]

Tim Sutor wrote:
> I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of my
> present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both are
> running legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this task
> is completed then it is my intention to format the hard drive of my
> original machine and dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer
> possible and, if so, is it a relatively straight forward task that a
> novice could undertake or will I need to engage a computer
> technician?

Proposed transfer of what; the data or the computer to someone else?
Assuming you mean the data, I see a couple of responses that are a little
wordy, but mostly reasonable to do.

Since XP Pro is on both machines, the easiest way to do this is probably
with XP's plain old ntbackup.exe (Start; Programs; Accessories; System
Tools; Backup).
Back the files up to any location on any hard drive where you have the
room for them; you cannot backup to CDs or DVDs. If you don't have enough
room, you could back it up in sections at a time.
Then use your CD/DVD software to copy/burn the backups to CD or DVD.
Take the disc to the other machine and start backup again, and this time
use Restore to put the files back on the disk.

A problem with things like disk cloning and Acronis, Ghost, etc., is that
you have to have the same size partitions on both machines (same drive
letters and drive sizes). If not, those apps will give you some real
headaches until you learn the ins and outs of them. It can be a lot more
work; that's why I suggest ntbackup instead. It's already present and will
do the job nicely without having to purchase anything.

Also, just for info: Regular "copy" operations will NOT work for this
purpose because files that are in-use (system files in particular), hidden,
readonly, system, etc., are not necessarily copyable. This is very
important for the C drive you boot from. Thus, you need something that uses
"shadow copy" features, which ntbackup does of course. It doesnt' care
whether a file is in use, hidden, readonly, etc etc.

As a pensioner I would naturally prefer to avoid the
> expense of the latter course.

I can understand that! No, you shouldn't need a technician but you might
need some outside assistance. It really depends on what "you" can do and
understand of the requirements; in other words, how savvy you are with what
needs to be done <g>.
In reality, you've given little information to go on here so if none of
the advice to date seems to be usable, come back and explain as much as you
can about the disk structure on both machines, whether you can burn CDs or
DVDs, do you have Roxio or some such for burning them, or do you need to use
XP's native abilities, what do you use now for backing up, things like that.

As for selling the old computer, its XP is probably OEM, meaning it came
with the computer, preinstalled and you did not buy XP separately at a
store. If so, then XP will only run on that or another identical
brand/configured computer most likely. So technically the COA and XP CD
should go with that computer since chances are it's not going to be useful
on any other computer. Technically: Per the licenses, only THAT specific
computer can use that particular XP CD. That might be good; you can add a
few dollars to the price for XP on the old computer.

Feel free to come back with questions and be sure to add as much detail as
you can.

HTH
Pop`

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Tim Sutor wrote:

> I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of my
> present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both are
> running legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this task
> is completed then it is my intention to format the hard drive of my
> original machine and dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer
> possible and, if so, is it a relatively straight forward task that a
> novice could undertake or will I need to engage a computer
> technician? As a pensioner I would naturally prefer to avoid the
> expense of the latter course.


It *may* be possible, but it may not. And it's not completely
straightforward.

First, note that transferring data is easy, but transferring applications is
not possible, unless you also transfer the operating system. So you would
need to clone the entire contents of the drive to the new
computer--applications, files, *and* Windows.

However, that's just the first step. The old copy of Wndows won't simply run
on the new hardware. At the very least you will then need to do a Repair
Installation. See "How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install" at
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

That usually works, but If the new motherboard is different enough, it may
not, and you will need to reinstall cleanly, losing all your data and
everything else on the drive.

So make sure you have a backup of anything you can't afford to lose before
starting.


--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup

[Tim Sutor]

Very many thanks for your response to my recent query "Transferring Data to
Another Computer". What you have suggested will be of enormous help to me
and I am most grateful for your taking the time to assist me.

Tim Sutor



"Poprivet" > wrote in message
...
> Tim Sutor wrote:
>> I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of my
>> present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both are
>> running legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this task
>> is completed then it is my intention to format the hard drive of my
>> original machine and dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer
>> possible and, if so, is it a relatively straight forward task that a
>> novice could undertake or will I need to engage a computer
>> technician?
>
> Proposed transfer of what; the data or the computer to someone else?
> Assuming you mean the data, I see a couple of responses that are a little
> wordy, but mostly reasonable to do.
>
> Since XP Pro is on both machines, the easiest way to do this is probably
> with XP's plain old ntbackup.exe (Start; Programs; Accessories; System
> Tools; Backup).
> Back the files up to any location on any hard drive where you have the
> room for them; you cannot backup to CDs or DVDs. If you don't have enough
> room, you could back it up in sections at a time.
> Then use your CD/DVD software to copy/burn the backups to CD or DVD.
> Take the disc to the other machine and start backup again, and this time
> use Restore to put the files back on the disk.
>
> A problem with things like disk cloning and Acronis, Ghost, etc., is that
> you have to have the same size partitions on both machines (same drive
> letters and drive sizes). If not, those apps will give you some real
> headaches until you learn the ins and outs of them. It can be a lot more
> work; that's why I suggest ntbackup instead. It's already present and
> will do the job nicely without having to purchase anything.
>
> Also, just for info: Regular "copy" operations will NOT work for this
> purpose because files that are in-use (system files in particular),
> hidden, readonly, system, etc., are not necessarily copyable. This is
> very important for the C drive you boot from. Thus, you need something
> that uses "shadow copy" features, which ntbackup does of course. It
> doesnt' care whether a file is in use, hidden, readonly, etc etc.
>
> As a pensioner I would naturally prefer to avoid the
>> expense of the latter course.
>
> I can understand that! No, you shouldn't need a technician but you might
> need some outside assistance. It really depends on what "you" can do and
> understand of the requirements; in other words, how savvy you are with
> what needs to be done <g>.
> In reality, you've given little information to go on here so if none of
> the advice to date seems to be usable, come back and explain as much as
> you can about the disk structure on both machines, whether you can burn
> CDs or DVDs, do you have Roxio or some such for burning them, or do you
> need to use XP's native abilities, what do you use now for backing up,
> things like that.
>
> As for selling the old computer, its XP is probably OEM, meaning it came
> with the computer, preinstalled and you did not buy XP separately at a
> store. If so, then XP will only run on that or another identical
> brand/configured computer most likely. So technically the COA and XP CD
> should go with that computer since chances are it's not going to be useful
> on any other computer. Technically: Per the licenses, only THAT specific
> computer can use that particular XP CD. That might be good; you can add a
> few dollars to the price for XP on the old computer.
>
> Feel free to come back with questions and be sure to add as much detail as
> you can.
>
> HTH
> Pop`
>
>
>
>
>

[Tim Sutor]

Very many thanks for your response to my recent query "Transferring Data to
Another Computer". What you have suggested will be of enormous help to me
and I am most grateful for your taking the time to assist me.

Tim Sutor



"Ken Blake, MVP" > wrote in message
...
> Tim Sutor wrote:
>
>> I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of my
>> present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both are
>> running legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this task
>> is completed then it is my intention to format the hard drive of my
>> original machine and dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer
>> possible and, if so, is it a relatively straight forward task that a
>> novice could undertake or will I need to engage a computer
>> technician? As a pensioner I would naturally prefer to avoid the
>> expense of the latter course.
>
>
> It *may* be possible, but it may not. And it's not completely
> straightforward.
>
> First, note that transferring data is easy, but transferring applications
> is not possible, unless you also transfer the operating system. So you
> would need to clone the entire contents of the drive to the new
> computer--applications, files, *and* Windows.
>
> However, that's just the first step. The old copy of Wndows won't simply
> run on the new hardware. At the very least you will then need to do a
> Repair Installation. See "How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install" at
> http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm
>
> That usually works, but If the new motherboard is different enough, it may
> not, and you will need to reinstall cleanly, losing all your data and
> everything else on the drive.
>
> So make sure you have a backup of anything you can't afford to lose before
> starting.
>
>
> --
> Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
> Please reply to the newsgroup
>
>

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Tim Sutor wrote:

> Very many thanks for your response to my recent query "Transferring
> Data to Another Computer". What you have suggested will be of
> enormous help to me and I am most grateful for your taking the time
> to assist me.


You're welcome. Glad to help.

--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup


> "Ken Blake, MVP" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Tim Sutor wrote:
>>
>>> I wish to transfer the entire contents (applications and files) of
>>> my present computer to another machine that I have been given. Both
>>> are running legitimate copies of Windows XP Professional. When this
>>> task is completed then it is my intention to format the hard drive
>>> of my original machine and dispose of it. Is the proposed transfer
>>> possible and, if so, is it a relatively straight forward task that
>>> a novice could undertake or will I need to engage a computer
>>> technician? As a pensioner I would naturally prefer to avoid the
>>> expense of the latter course.
>>
>>
>> It *may* be possible, but it may not. And it's not completely
>> straightforward.
>>
>> First, note that transferring data is easy, but transferring
>> applications is not possible, unless you also transfer the operating
>> system. So you would need to clone the entire contents of the drive
>> to the new computer--applications, files, *and* Windows.
>>
>> However, that's just the first step. The old copy of Wndows won't
>> simply run on the new hardware. At the very least you will then need
>> to do a Repair Installation. See "How to Perform a Windows XP Repair
>> Install" at http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm
>>
>> That usually works, but If the new motherboard is different enough,
>> it may not, and you will need to reinstall cleanly, losing all your
>> data and everything else on the drive.
>>
>> So make sure you have a backup of anything you can't afford to lose
>> before starting.
>>
>>
>> --
>> Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
>> Please reply to the newsgroup