nitetroll Posted August 12, 2008 Share Posted August 12, 2008 Hi Everyone..Im wondering if some kindly person(s) could help or advise me on a matter.Its got to the point in these times of ever changing technology that I need to upgrade my PC.. Ive decided as in past to go for a self build.However the new will be totally different ie mainboard , chipset etc etc... and Im wanting to know is there any way possible to transfer installed programmes from old to new ..without actually having to go through any setup / installs again??? As ive several that would take weeks to install and have running as they are now.So please any thoughts on this would be apprecaited. Just to clarify things Im not worried about reinstalling a OS .. just the need to copy over from my old PC to new PC some certain programmes.ThanksNitetroll http://www.nitetroll.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JedMeister Posted August 12, 2008 Share Posted August 12, 2008 (edited) XP has a "Files and Settings Transfer Wizard" which has varying levels of success. I'm sure Vista has a similar tool (which I would hope would be a little more successful). I wouldn't recommend trying to get your current OS to run on your new hardware. Whilst its possible, my personal experience has been a fairly unstable PC. Someone else on here may know of some tool or something that will allow you to do it (although there could be legal issues if its an OEM OS).The programs themselves may have some way of exporting their config and settings, if its not obvious then perhaps you can contact the vendor for hints.For the cleanest install and with maximum chances of everything working ok, I would suggest you bite the bullet and just do a clean install of the lot.[edit] Another option I just thought of that may be acceptable is converting your current PCs OS to a virtual machine and run that inside your new OS? Edited August 12, 2008 by JedMeister Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitetroll Posted August 12, 2008 Author Share Posted August 12, 2008 Many thanks for your reply. Yes I was aware of XPs "Files and Settings Transfer Wizard" and not impressed with it much.It seems to forget ones installed progs also have registry files that are needed for them to function when transfered to wherever!!No I wasnt going to run my current OS on my new build PC... though Ive had no problem with doing that previously. I just call Microsoft which is toll free wow! And have explained Im reinstalling a new board etc and they give a new code without question.Hmmmmm your post note.. converting your current PCs OS to a virtual machine , Ive no idea where to start on that one, but it maybe an option and one I will look up, thanks.Oh a last Q please, windows registry... it may sound crazy but if I was able to transfer the progs I really wish not to install afresh due to the laborious task of the conetent I also need to install after setup...zzzzzzzzzzzzz Could I back up the windows reg on the old PC they are installed on... and copy that to my new one??? Therefore saving the reg and prog associations!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R4tt3xx Posted August 12, 2008 Share Posted August 12, 2008 (edited) It's very easy to do actually, On the Windows XP PRO CD there is an application called SYSPREP. Its located in the DEPLOY.CAB file in the SUPPORT\TOOLS folder. SYSPREP basically strips all drivers and unique identifiers from the system. Essentially it's the same tool most OEMs use to "Repackage" a PC for redistribution.If that fails simply perform a windows repair using the XP CD when your old hard drive is transfered to the new one. I have performed many "upgrades", the easiest and most basic was just to perform a repair. Keep the old casing as you will need the XP license on it...This is my 1st post so please be gentle Edited August 12, 2008 by R4tt3xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitetroll Posted August 12, 2008 Author Share Posted August 12, 2008 Hi R4tt3xx.I have only just joined ths great group to , but welcome.And Great info you have gave me.and one Im going to look into ... so no need to be gentle Im very thankful for your input and what seems to be the answer to my posed question.Well Im off to hunt for some detailed info on the how to! in follow up to the tool you stae.Again thanks and wishing you well.RegardsNitetrollhttp://www.nitetroll.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JedMeister Posted August 12, 2008 Share Posted August 12, 2008 (edited) Hmm good idea R4tt3xx. I hadn't considered Sysprep and I haven't actually used it before (I have heard of it but never really got my head around how to use it - you make it sound pretty easy, maybe I'll have to play.....)As for the virtual machine. VMWare have a free virtual machine converter (converts a physical machine into a virtual machine). You can download it from their website (sorry have to google it, don't have the address handy). Once you have converted your machine then copy the file to your new PC and load it using the VMWare free VM Player. I personally prefer a clean install so I often use that when setting up a clean machine (or a new PC) so there is never any chance of forgetting something important. If I haven't started the virtual machine for a few months then I delete it.Good luck Edited August 12, 2008 by JedMeister Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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