Is it possible to clone a HDD from an old pc to a new one?
- Thread starter subbass
- Start date
In my recent build I cloned my old hard drive with a Windows 7 install and just put it in the new PC. I didn't even do a repair install.
It updated all the drivers quickly and without a hitch. I installed the motherboard drivers and updated any others that needed doing and it all seems to be running fine. I've been playing games at high frame rates, I've run Prime95 overnight and it's all stable so far. Performance seems fine.
I would normally do a re-install but in these days of PC game DRM systems I wanted to make sure that I kept as many licenses as possible without having the hassle of reactivating or revoking them. (Mainly GFWL keys, which you can't revoke and which have unknown activation limits).
It updated all the drivers quickly and without a hitch. I installed the motherboard drivers and updated any others that needed doing and it all seems to be running fine. I've been playing games at high frame rates, I've run Prime95 overnight and it's all stable so far. Performance seems fine.
I would normally do a re-install but in these days of PC game DRM systems I wanted to make sure that I kept as many licenses as possible without having the hassle of reactivating or revoking them. (Mainly GFWL keys, which you can't revoke and which have unknown activation limits).
It can be done
1. Boot up olde system and uninstall any chipset/lan etc drivers that are specific to that
PC
2. shutdown olde PC and transfer HD to new PC
3. Boot new PC and when it gets into windows install chipset/lan etc drivers for the mobo.
1. Boot up olde system and uninstall any chipset/lan etc drivers that are specific to that
PC
2. shutdown olde PC and transfer HD to new PC
3. Boot new PC and when it gets into windows install chipset/lan etc drivers for the mobo.
Probably the biggest hassle was having to phone Microsoft to reactivate Windows three days later, after I was sure it was running OK, and that wasn't too bad.
I managed to spot the trick question: 'How many PCs do you have this software installed on? Press 1 for a single PC, 2 for more than one PC."
Oh, and I went from an Intel CPU and chipset to a newer Intel CPU and chipset, which I imagine is easier for Windows to cope with compared to going from an AMD to an Intel system or vice-versa.
I managed to spot the trick question: 'How many PCs do you have this software installed on? Press 1 for a single PC, 2 for more than one PC."
Oh, and I went from an Intel CPU and chipset to a newer Intel CPU and chipset, which I imagine is easier for Windows to cope with compared to going from an AMD to an Intel system or vice-versa.
It can be an issue on rare occasions but I mix between Intel and AMD all the time. I find the chipsets more often bugger it up.