Windows Easy Tranfer - What does it transfer?

[IamDavid]

Swapping from a Yoga running 8.1 to a Surface Pro 3 and need to know what all it transfers over.

Internet settings? Including passwords? Work/home network access with Keys?

Outlook settings if installed on both PC's?


Thanks in advance. I can't find specifics on the MS website.

 

[denis280]

Windows easy transfer.all it did for me was transfer me to HELL.maybe i did something wrong.

 

[Fardringle]

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/transferring-files-settings-faq#1TC=windows-7

What can I transfer to my new computer?

You can transfer most files and program settings. Specifically:

Files and folders. Everything within the Documents, Music, Pictures, and Shared Documents folders. Using advanced options, you can select additional files and folders to transfer from other locations.

E‑mail settings, contacts, and messages.

Program settings. Settings that keep your programs configured as you had them on your old computer. Windows Easy Transfer doesn't transfer the programs themselves. Some programs might not work in this version of Windows, including security programs, antivirus programs, firewall programs (your new computer should already have a firewall running to help ensure safety during the transfer), and programs with software drivers.

User accounts and settings. Desktop backgrounds, network connections, screen savers, Start menu options, taskbar options, folders, specific files, network printers and drives, and accessibility options.

Internet settings and favorites. Internet connection settings, favorites, and cookies.

Pictures and video. Pictures—which includes any visual format (for example, .jpg, .bmp, and .gif files)—and personal videos.

Music. Electronic music files, playlists, and album art.

Note:
Windows Easy Transfer moves your music and video files, including files protected by digital rights management (DRM), but it doesn't move the licenses for these types of files. To re-obtain rights to the files, you'll need to contact the provider of the files. Some online stores offer this and might refer to it in different ways, such as computer activation, computer authorization, library restoration, or license synchronization. The procedure for restoring your digital rights varies from store to store. A store might limit the number of times that you can restore your rights, or it might limit the number of computers on which you can use the songs or videos that you've obtained from them. Some stores don't permit you to restore rights to protected files at all. For details about store policies, refer to your store's customer support or Help information. If your music or video was obtained from a store that's no longer in business, you won't be able to restore your rights to that content.


Can I transfer programs?

No. Windows Easy Transfer transfers only program settings, not the programs themselves. To use the programs from your old computer, install them on your new computer, and then transfer files and settings for those programs. It's possible that some kinds of programs, such as security and antivirus programs, might not work with this version of Windows.

 

[Mushkins]

The answer you're looking for is: it depends.

It transfers windows profile settings (desktop background, folder settings, etc).

Beyond that, it does a 1 to 1 transfer of the folders you specify. By default, this includes the AppData folder and the folders within. If your application keeps its configuration information in these folders, your settings will transfer over with these folders. Likewise if settings are stored in My Documents in some form. If your application keeps its settings somewhere else, you need to make sure the folder it uses is also selected to transfer.

Also be aware that many applications do a combination of both. For instance, active projects for a video editing program might be in something like My Documents/Projects while actual settings for the application itself are in an INI file in the program directory.

Note: When using WET, and it says do not touch either computer during the transfer, it absolutely means it. If you do anything on either machine beyond unlocking the lock screen, it will look like its still going but stop actually transferring anything beyond when you touched it. Then it tells you it was successful anyway but half your stuff is missing. Don't touch it until its done.

 

[IamDavid]

Thanks guys, huge help!

 

[jkauff]

Although WET doesn't transfer applications, it does generate a handy list of all your installed applications so you can decide what you want to install on the new machine.