How do I copy C: to another disk?

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barnett25

Member
Aug 29, 2004
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I want to replace the hard drive in my parent's computer. What is the easiest way to copy over everything (including system files) to a second mounted drive in Windows XP? Am I corect in assuming that I can't just drag the contents of C: onto the other drive and expect it to be able to boot from that drive? Would running fixmbr and fixboot after copying all the other stuff work?
Thanks.

 
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nealh

Diamond Member
Nov 21, 1999
7,078
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you would be best to use Norton Ghost or Acronis True image that will allow to make a backup image and copy it to another drive
 
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barnett25

Member
Aug 29, 2004
171
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Well, I don't have, nor can I afford either of those. So does that leave me up a creek, or is there another option?
 
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Ike0069

Diamond Member
Apr 28, 2003
4,276
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Can't you just install XP on the new HD, then transfer everything else onto the new HD from the other by using a Master/Slave setup?
 
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DanDaMan315

Golden Member
Oct 25, 2004
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Doesn't Windows XP have a transfer feature? I remember when I first loaded Windows onto my computer it said something to the effect of, "Do you have an old computer you need to transfer data from?" If you have another computer put your old hard drive in it, then use this transfer feature. This is the best advice I can offer if you don't want to buy Norton Ghost.
 
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Matthias99

Diamond Member
Oct 7, 2003
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Originally posted by: barnett25
Will that (installing on a new HD and then copying your files over) allow all the programs to still work, or will I have to reinstall all of them?
Click to expand...

No, your programs will not work if you just copy the directories over, because they will be missing all the information from the system registry. This will work just fine for data files, obviously, but you will have to reinstall programs.

Some hard drive manufacturers include basic drive imaging software with their drives -- you might want to look into that. Or get a copy of Ghost (it's not that expensive).
 
ronach

ronach

Senior member
Oct 9, 1999
485
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Go to the website of their hard drive manufacturer, they have free utilities for that, and for hard drive troubleshooting/maintenance. ronach

Beaten to the punch again, by 1 min mind you. M99, you real rapid man. Sure hope your around when I need help again.
 
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LED

Diamond Member
Oct 12, 1999
6,127
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Am I corect in assuming that I can't just drag the contents of C: onto the other drive and expect it to be able to boot from that drive?
Click to expand...

No
 
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Ike0069

Diamond Member
Apr 28, 2003
4,276
2
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Originally posted by: ronach
Go to the website of their hard drive manufacturer, they have free utilities for that, and for hard drive troubleshooting/maintenance. ronach
Click to expand...
Ahh yes, I completely forgot about this. :eek: I do know that WD has a free utility that will allow you to completey copy everything over to a new drive, including the OS, and everything will work without having to reinstall it. A friend of mine just did this recently and has had no problems. The only requirement was he had to reactivate XP which takes about 30 seconds. :)
 
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barnett25

Member
Aug 29, 2004
171
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What is the best tool to use to see if the old hard drive is bad? The sytem runs very slowly, especially when starting programs. And we've also been having mysterious problems with things like my sister's iPod being recognized one day, and not the next, and the dial-up internet (earthlink) working at first, then saying that there are files missing. Does this sound like a bad HD to you?
 
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LED

Diamond Member
Oct 12, 1999
6,127
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No it won't boot nor copy everything...Use a utility tool for the HD fond on it's website
 
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Ike0069

Diamond Member
Apr 28, 2003
4,276
2
76
Originally posted by: barnett25
What is the best tool to use to see if the old hard drive is bad? The sytem runs very slowly, especially when starting programs. And we've also been having mysterious problems with things like my sister's iPod being recognized one day, and not the next, and the dial-up internet (earthlink) working at first, then saying that there are files missing. Does this sound like a bad HD to you?
Click to expand...

That sounds more software relted than hardware. Have you checked for spyware/adware lately? Anti-virus up-to date? All latest XP patches installed?
 
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barnett25

Member
Aug 29, 2004
171
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It's a fresh install of XP with all updates, Symantic AV, Spybot S&D run regularly. Had the same type of problems before reinstalling Windows, so it must be some kind of hardware problem. My sister's iPod worked fine when she first installed it, but then iTunes stopped recognizing it (windows does see it though). I thought the problem might be that Windows was upgraded from a messy Windows ME factory installation to Windows XP, so I did a format and install. The iPod still didn't work though. Dial-up (Earthlink) worked fine untill a few days ago when it would act as if it were connected, but couldn't load anything. Now the Earthlink dialer says that there is a missing file when you try to connect. The whole time (before and after the Windows reinstall) the computer ran much slower than it should, especially when it came to starting programs. This lead me to believe that maybe the HD had bad spots which might cause data loss and performance issues. I bought a USB 2.0 pci card (it only had onboard 1.1) to install hoping it would help the iPod problem. If anyone can think of what might be causing this I'd love to know. The computer is a HP Pavillion XE793 with a 700Mhz Celeron, 192MB ram, and a 30GB HD.
Thanks
 
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barnett25

Member
Aug 29, 2004
171
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That would cause the iPod to suddenly not be recognized, and cause the dialer to report missing files? I can understand the memory causing bad performance, but the rest of it doesn't sound like a RAM problem to me. Am I wrong?
 
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