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Nutshell summary: old Windows 7 PC no longer stays running for more than a few minutes, but the hard disk still works. We obtained a new Windows 7 PC, and I'm trying to move user files, settings and applications over to the new machine. I thought this would have an easy solution, and I searched around and examined many answers on SuperUser and elsewhere, but everything I've found seems to assume one of the following scenarios:

  1. the old PC still runs (e.g., to use Windows Easy Transfer [per this answer at SuperUser]), or
  2. I want to boot the old drive in the new PC as the new PC's drive, or
  3. I want to clone the old drive to the new drive.

None of these are my case: the old PC doesn't run long enough to use Windows Easy Transfer, I want to use the new disk in the new PC, and I "just" want to copy/transfer/migrate user files & applications (and associated registry settings and miscellaneous files and whatnot).

What is a good option to migrate the user settings, email, data, etc. from the old disk to the new one, preserving the new Windows copy on the new disk? Since I can install the old disk in the new machine, to have both available, and since both systems are running Windows 7, I hope this will be easier than in other situations. Yet I can't find a straightforward solution. I must be missing something obvious.

The old PC is not worth trying to repair. I don't want to use the old disk in the new computer because the disk is old enough that eventually it will fail too. If reinstalling all the software is necessary, then that's doable, but I'm not a Windows expert and don't know how to transfer the settings and other files that the various software packages might need – so I'd appreciate pointers in the right direction.

3 Answers 3

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Try

  1. Norton Ghost or other tools avaialble in the Hiren Boot CD package for copying HD as a image and burning it to the new disk with Hiren. I have been using this for quite a few years and seems to be very reliable to me. Saved a few days of work often.
  2. SyncToy to move all files(including application files, PSTs etc... But cant move aplications)
  3. Shadow Protect for Desktops, which will help restore only what you require. Worth the bugs spent
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As a free, but more time consuming option, I'd slave the HDD. It also depends on what user settings you want to move.

However, to slave, you simply connect both hard drives to the motherboard. When booting up, in in the BIOS, you can choose the primary disc.

At this stage, you will have access to your old hard drive. It could be worth while taking ownership of all the folders on the 'old' hard drive and then copy the lot. This means you have a back up etc. However, the key thing is, you simply copy and paste the files / config files to your new hard drive.

As for software, you would have to re-install it manually. This may be good or bad, depending on the license of the software.

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A potential issue might be the claim that "I'm trying to move user files, settings and applications over to the new machine" is too ambitious. The user files are fine, but preserving the setting and applications gets a bit tricky. With out getting into too much detail, you'd have to preserve the file system layout, windows registry, etc... It's a bit of a pain which is why most suggestions involve some kind of cloning to get an exact copy of the file system state.

It might make more sense to go after a much easier problem. Install the applications and tweak the settings on the new machine and then just copy the user data. From there the suggestion of using the slave disk is a pretty good one, but I usually prefer to use a piece of disk to usb hardware. They come in many flavors, but here is a reference for the common case of sata:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2036718/why-its-a-good-idea-to-own-a-usb-to-sata-adapter.html

If the file system is still in tact, great, just copy the stuff you need from one windows file system to another. You may need to "take ownership of the files":

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc753659(v=ws.11).aspx

This is basically some flavor of windows files permissions (Linux has a similar construct). If it's not, you may need to do some unpleasant tricks with file system recovery. Windows comes with some tools for "recovering a file system":

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/929833/use-the-system-file-checker-tool-to-repair-missing-or-corrupted-system-files

but lets hope you're not in that universe. Finally, if your disk is having physical issues and it's a platter disk, the most common reason for that is the drive bearings (the little things the disk spins around on) dry out. If you happen to be using one of those Sata to USB interfaces then stick you disk in a ziplock bag, include a desiccant pack if you have one, wrap your disk in towel and then run your disk from the freezer:

https://www.thetechmentor.com/posts/put-your-hard-drive-in-the-freezer-to-recover-data/

I've saved many a families' photos by copying them from disks that were sitting in a icebox. Just make sure to baby sit it so that it doesn't get wet.

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