Please suggest most painless way of moving HD data

[JatZilla]

Hi Guys, I just finished my first build. Finished, as in put all the hardware together. System started up without a problem and right now, I'm formatting my 250gb SATA drive. I plan to do a clean XP install on the new disk. How do I move my program files from the old computer's HD to the new one? Please suggest the most pain-free way of doing this. I'll transfer my large audio/video/data files over ethernet but how do I just pick my program files - QuickBooks, Outlook etc - so that they work seamlessly in my new computer?

TIA

I'll post some pics once I button up everything, clean the huge mess of packing material etc..

 

[mechBgon]

You will want to reinstall your programs from scratch. After doing so, you might want to try the Files And Settings Transfer Wizard. info.

 

[JatZilla]

related question: once the OS is installed, do I really need to install programs/drivers for the video card, sound card etc or should I just let Windows install everything and forget about it?

ASUS A8N-E board, EVGA 6600 GT video, AMD 64 x2 Dual Core 3800, Antec SmartPower PSU, Audigy2 ZS Soundcard, 250gb WD SATA drive, Cooler Master case, Dell 2005FPW monitor, Saitek keyboard, Klipsch 2.1 speakers, Sony DVD R/W.

For a first time build, this has been quite easy so far.....

 

[iRONic]

Reinstall the programs from scratch using the original discs. You can put your backed up data[you *did* back up your data, right?] into the correct folders later.

Why kludge up a clean OS install with crappy dll's, whacked registry entries, and goofy short cuts...?

 

[JatZilla]

mechbgon, thanks for that tip. Are the same person who has that installation guide up for newbies? I used that as reference and it was really helpful and easy to follow. Thanks!

 

[cpacini]

Originally posted by: JatZilla
related question: once the OS is installed, do I really need to install programs/drivers for the video card, sound card etc or should I just let Windows install everything and forget about it?

ASUS A8N-E board, EVGA 6600 GT video, AMD 64 x2 Dual Core 3800, Antec SmartPower PSU, Audigy2 ZS Soundcard, 250gb WD SATA drive, Cooler Master case, Dell 2005FPW monitor, Saitek keyboard, Klipsch 2.1 speakers, Sony DVD R/W.

For a first time build, this has been quite easy so far.....

yes, deffinatly install the latest chipset and video drivers. download them here.

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: JatZilla
related question: once the OS is installed, do I really need to install programs/drivers for the video card, sound card etc or should I just let Windows install everything and forget about it?

ASUS A8N-E board, EVGA 6600 GT video, AMD 64 x2 Dual Core 3800, Antec SmartPower PSU, Audigy2 ZS Soundcard, 250gb WD SATA drive, Cooler Master case, Dell 2005FPW monitor, Saitek keyboard, Klipsch 2.1 speakers, Sony DVD R/W.

For a first time build, this has been quite easy so far.....

For an A8N-E,

1) install the OS

2) before installing any drivers, install Service Pack 2 if it isn't already in your WinXP CD itself, and reboot

3) only after you have Service Pack 2, now install the nVidia 6.70 chipset drivers for nForce4. I would decline the nVidia SW IDE drivers if it were me.

4) after rebooting from that, now install nVidia 81.98 video drivers and reboot.

5) now install your Audigy2 drivers and whatever else.

6) because your new system has hardware DEP support, fully enable DEP by right-clicking My Computer, choose Properties, and do like in this pic.

7) because your new system has a dual-core processor, install the dual-core AMD driver for 32-bit WinXP from AMD's page (note that it's the second one, the first one's for 64-bit WinXP).

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: JatZilla
mechbgon, thanks for that tip. Are the same person who has that installation guide up for newbies? I used that as reference and it was really helpful and easy to follow. Thanks!

Cool, glad it was helpful I have an A8N-E myself. Here's a tip: put the Audigy 2 in one of the bottom two PCI slots if possible, since the top one shares its chipset IRQ with some other stuff like the USB 2.0 controllers.

 

[JatZilla]

thank you very much for your comments. unfortunately, i gotta go meet some social obligations...i'll be back in 4-5 hrs to restart this process.

 

[JatZilla]

lol i can't believe my mobo doesn't have an oboard ethernet port. I saw an rj-45 port and assumed it's ethernet. After installing XP, it shows up as a 1394 Network Connection. I still tried for 20 mins to make it work with my router. lol too funny...thankfully I have an ethernet PCI card that I'll grab now and get this working.....

Funny, when I was putting my pc parts list together, nobody on Anandtech told me, "hey dufus, did you order an ethernet card??"

 

[mechBgon]

The RJ-45 port on an A8N-E is a Gigabit Ethernet port, so your initial expectation was correct. Your Audigy2 has a Firewire (1394a) port on it, that's what you're seeing in Device Manager.

The A8N-E's ethernet port goes online when you install the nVidia nForce4 AMD chipset drivers. If you've installed them, and it still isn't showing up, then maybe it's disabled in the motherboard's BIOS (you want to enable the Onboard NV LAN item that's found in Advanced > Onboard Devices Configuration). See if it's turned off.

 

[JatZilla]

wow thanks mechBgon. no i haven't installed the nvidia drivers yet. i'm starting to do all that now. meanwhile i did throw an eth card on a pci slot and i'm now connected to the internet. should i update the mobo bios also?

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: JatZilla
wow thanks mechBgon. no i haven't installed the nvidia drivers yet. i'm starting to do all that now. meanwhile i did throw an eth card on a pci slot and i'm now connected to the internet. should i update the mobo bios also?

If you are connected to the Internet, then first of all I hope you have Service Pack 2 installed and the Windows Firewall enabled, so you're at low risk of worm infection. Or else a router If you had neither SP2 nor a router, and just plugged right into the Internet with a pre-SP2 installation of WinXP, then your computer may already have worms just from being plugged in.

Updating the BIOS is probably not necessary right at this point. I'd just go down that 7-step routine I mentioned above and then see how it goes.

 

[JatZilla]

yeah i'm connected to a router and i'm firewalled on it. i'll start your 7-step plan in teh morning it's almost midnight and i gotta get some zzzzzz

thanks again, you're a big help.

 

[JatZilla]

mechBgon et al,
After I completed Steps 1-7 above, the speakers were clicking and popping intermittently. I reloaded the drivers and that didn't help. For other reasons, I decided to load XP Pro consumer/regular edition and after I got done downloading SP2 and steps 1-7 above, the clicking/popping sound has vanished. That's good news. I think I'm having some issues with USB2.0 ports on the machine. It recognizes the ports on the mobo as 2.0 but thinks that the others are 1.0. I'm also getting "unknown device" in the hardware manager. I admit that I haven't been able to work on the PC much. I'll try to do a couple of hours tonight.

One major issue that the pc isn't as quiet as I had hoped it would be. I'm not happy with the computer case (Coolmaster) but I'll just have to manage. The noise is from the fans I'd imagine. I added a 120mm fan in the rear of the case. Do you think I should knock off a fan? Maybe replace the fan that came with the case with the Thermaltake fan I purchased?

 

[JatZilla]

any help? I just measured the noise level 6 inches from teh computer case with a sound level meter. I'm registering 50-51 decibels. does that sound normal?