Transferring Programs, Games And Data - From one hard drive to another...

Transfer Data Between Hard Drives
written by Michelle VonWald on Thursday, December 26, 2002
You have many options for transferring your hard drive's data from one computer to another.

Have you ever purchased a new computer and wondered how you were going to transfer all the files from the old hard drive to the new one? Come join us on today's episode of "Call for Help" as we go over a few different techniques for transferring all those files to the new drive.

Moving your data is not the big deal. It's the applications you have to worry about. Windows uses a Registry system to keep track of all the programs on your system. If you were to try and copy a program over to a new hard drive, some of the key registry settings wouldn't make it. For this reason, you're better off reinstalling all the programs on the new drive

Remember, the key is to move only settings and data, and not programs. There are several ways to transfer data from one hard drive to another.

Beginner

Create a backup of all of your data and restore it on the new hard drive. By data, we mean the contents of the My Document folder, any network settings, bookmarks, saved games, and anything else you can't live without. You can even move the contents of the cookies file if you want. Copy the data from the backup into the appropriate folder on the new hard drive. Although this approach is the easiest, it takes the longest.

Read this article on backing up your hard drive.

Intermediate

A relocator program merges data from your old hard drive onto the new hard drive. It leaves the new operating system intact but moves your network settings, programs, and other data. Even though I said not to move programs over to the new drive, a relocator will move all the necessary registry keys for you. If you find that the programs don't operate as intended after transferring them over, just install a fresh copy on the new drive. We recommend Alohabob's PC Relocator.

Alohabob PC Relocator ($29.95) helps you transfer all your data and programs without overwriting your operating system. Just connect the PCs with the provided cable and launch Alohabob's software to transfer the data. If your PCs are already on a network, you won't need to connect anything.

If you have Windows XP configured on a new computer or hard drive, then you don't need to buy anything. XP comes with the Files and Settings Transfer program, which migrates data from your old PC or hard drive. However, you won't be able to move programs with this program.

Advanced

Connect the two computers using a direct cable connection (DCC). You can use either a special parallel cable -- called a null modem cable -- or a special USB cable. Read this article for detailed instructions on how to configure two PCs via DCC.

Parallel Technologies can help you find direct connection cables.

Geek

The most advanced method is to remove the hard drive from the old computer and install it in the new computer. We recommend this approach only for geeky computer users. Don't try this if you're a newbie.

Read this story for a detailed explanation on how to add a second hard drive to your computer. Because your old hard drive should already be partitioned and formatted, you can skip the steps detailing how to do this for a new hard drive.

All you need to focus on is adjusting the jumper settings for both drives. Then you attach the IDE ribbon and you should be ready to transfer files and settings.

Alohabob PC Relocator