Upgrade from Win7 - Keeping files and programs

iAMsmartacuss

New Member
Messages
3
Hi, I am thinking about upgrading my PC from windows 7 to the newer 8.1 Pro when i buy a new SSD drive.

I am concerned that if I upgrade; I may not lose my files, but will i lose the programs already installed on my HDD?

I will load the new OS on my SSD with the HDD disconnected and then connect my HDD once installed, so i have my files etc.

Once I then connect my HDD, will I still be able to acces the programs installed on it?

And also, how would i then delete windows 7 off of the HDD? I am going to invest in an external HDD for a secondary back up and

trasnfering data - so i could copy the files to there, wipe the Internal HDD and copy the files back.

Thank you in advance, I appreciate all the help :) may be simple but i'm not an expert and like doing my research
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell
    CPU
    Intel i5 @2.8ghz
    Memory
    8gb
Once I then connect my HDD, will I still be able to acces the programs installed on it?

Yes you can...in essence you'll have a dual boot setup. To access the 7 system, when booting up just keep tapping the F12 key to select what drive you want to boot from, providing that your mobo is capable of doing this. Most modern mobo's will.

And also, how would i then delete windows 7 off of the HDD? I am going to invest in an external HDD for a secondary back up and

trasnfering data - so i could copy the files to there, wipe the Internal HDD and copy the files back.


Once you have the both drives installed all you have to do is select the drive with 7 on it, right click and select format to erase the drive or use some 3rd party software to wipe the drive clean. But back up and save any thing you want before doing so.

Personally, I would keep it and just dual boot.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom build
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X 4 965 BE
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-MA790X-DS4
    Memory
    G-Skill 8 GB PC 8500
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD XFX HD Radeon 6790D
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2l Samsung SyncMaster S20B300
    Screen Resolution
    1600 X 900
    Hard Drives
    Seagate Barracuda 320 GB w/OS
    Seagate Barracuda 1 TB data storage
    PSU
    Ultra X4 750 watt fully modular
    Case
    Thermaltake OverSeer RX 1 fulltower
    Cooling
    Cooler Master Hyper212 120mm
    Keyboard
    Logitech G510
    Mouse
    Razor DeathAdder 3.5
You will have to reinstall all the programs you installed under Windows7. There is just too much stuff that gets written to teh registry and AppData folders to successfully copy programs from the Windows 7 drive to the new SSD. You might get lucky and some will still work but most wont.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaCenter K450
    CPU
    Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Integrated HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP h2207
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050@59Hz
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD;
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2;
    1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
    PSU
    500W
    Keyboard
    Wired USB
    Mouse
    Wired USB
    Internet Speed
    3GB Up, 30GB Down
    Browser
    SeaMonkey
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender; MBAM Pro
    Other Info
    UEFI/GPT
    PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
You will have to reinstall all the programs you installed under Windows7. There is just too much stuff that gets written to teh registry and AppData folders to successfully copy programs from the Windows 7 drive to the new SSD. You might get lucky and some will still work but most wont.

I dont want the files to be installed on the SSD, only windows 8; will the programs still just load from the HDD? - OR did you mean that I would have to install the programs FROM the HDD, ONTO the windows 8 installed on the SSD ?

Also, what does 'mobo' mean? I have heard it alot the last couple days and dont know what it means.

Thanks for the help, makes me feel alot better about win8 - I just want to buy my SSD and download it now!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell
    CPU
    Intel i5 @2.8ghz
    Memory
    8gb
You will have to reinstall the programs the same way you did the first time.

mobo = motherboard / system board.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaCenter K450
    CPU
    Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Integrated HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP h2207
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050@59Hz
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD;
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2;
    1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
    PSU
    500W
    Keyboard
    Wired USB
    Mouse
    Wired USB
    Internet Speed
    3GB Up, 30GB Down
    Browser
    SeaMonkey
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender; MBAM Pro
    Other Info
    UEFI/GPT
    PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
You can use the SSD as the primary (only) drive just for the OS. Then you'll need to change the settings to install any software onto the HDD. This is done through the browser. A lot of people have it set up this way. Like Ztruker stated, this will have to be done manually.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom build
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X 4 965 BE
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-MA790X-DS4
    Memory
    G-Skill 8 GB PC 8500
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD XFX HD Radeon 6790D
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2l Samsung SyncMaster S20B300
    Screen Resolution
    1600 X 900
    Hard Drives
    Seagate Barracuda 320 GB w/OS
    Seagate Barracuda 1 TB data storage
    PSU
    Ultra X4 750 watt fully modular
    Case
    Thermaltake OverSeer RX 1 fulltower
    Cooling
    Cooler Master Hyper212 120mm
    Keyboard
    Logitech G510
    Mouse
    Razor DeathAdder 3.5
I followed these instructions to move the Users directory tree from C: (my SSD) to D:, a 2TB SATA spinner.

Move the Users Directory in Windows 7

Works with Windows 8, which is what I have.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaCenter K450
    CPU
    Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Integrated HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP h2207
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050@59Hz
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD;
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2;
    1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
    PSU
    500W
    Keyboard
    Wired USB
    Mouse
    Wired USB
    Internet Speed
    3GB Up, 30GB Down
    Browser
    SeaMonkey
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender; MBAM Pro
    Other Info
    UEFI/GPT
    PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
You should be able to update straight to 8 (Use 8 first, not 8.1) and not lose a single program or it's data. I did it on this computer, I have every single Application I had installed under 7 still in here, and all of my docs and pics and everything else.

You can even repair Problems you had under iOS 7, er, I mean Windows 7, using the DISM /online /restore-health command- I had Dot Net problems, and DISM fixed all of them.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro with Media Center/Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus § DualCore AMD Athlon 64 X2, 2300 MHz (11.5 x 200) 4400+ § Corsair Value Select
    CPU
    AMD 4400+/4200+
    Motherboard
    Asus M2N-MX SE Plus/Asus A8M2N-LA (NodusM)
    Memory
    2 GB/3GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce 8400 GS/GeForce 210
    Sound Card
    nVIDIA GT218 - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Hitachi 40" LCD HDTV
    Screen Resolution
    "1842 x 1036"
    Hard Drives
    WDC WD50 00AAKS-007AA SCSI Disk Device
    ST1000DL 002-9TT153 SCSI Disk Device
    WDC WD3200AAJB-00J3A0 ATA Device
    WDC WD32 WD-WCAPZ2942630 USB Device
    WD My Book 1140 USB Device
    PSU
    Works 550w
    Case
    MSI "M-Box"
    Cooling
    Water Cooled
    Keyboard
    Dell Keyboard
    Mouse
    Microsoft Intellimouse
    Internet Speed
    Cable Medium Speed
    Browser
    Chrome/IE 10
    Antivirus
    Eset NOD32 6.x/Win Defend
    Other Info
    Recently lost my Windows 8 on my main PC, had to go back to Windows 7.
Okay, i know what i need to do now, thank you all for your help :)

why did you say '(Use 8 first, not 8.1)'?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell
    CPU
    Intel i5 @2.8ghz
    Memory
    8gb
why did you say '(Use 8 first, not 8.1)'?
Because:

  • Update from Windows 7 to Windows 8.1: You lose your programs.
  • Update from Windows 7 to Windows 8: You keep your programs.
  • Update from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1: You keep your programs.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
Okay, i know what i need to do now, thank you all for your help :)

why did you say '(Use 8 first, not 8.1)'?
If you don't want to use the upgrade path, leave your win 7 hard drive installed and just install win 8.1 to your SSD, this will automatically set up a dual boot which will boot to Win 8 from where you can either continue to boot into Win 8 or boot to win 7. I went this way for one of my Work Stations Advantage you can still continue to work with your win 7 set up. And at the same time you can be learning the Win 8 System and installing all your software either to your SSD or your old Hard Drive. Once your Win 8 is set up and you are comfortable with it you can turn your win 7 OS off and delete that windows file???? Some one else will have to tell you how to get rid of the Win 7 OS as on my set up I got rid of the Win 8 and kept my win 7 OS I had some software that would not run on win 8 due to my MOBO being older. The Sevenforum has several guides on setting up a win 7 win 8 dual boot. I was very glad to have saved my win 7 OS set up.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro MC
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus G75VW / Z97 Pro
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3610QM / I7-4790K
    Motherboard
    Z97 Pro
    Memory
    16 GB Hyundai HTM315156CFR8C-PB PC3-12800
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M (GF114M)
    Sound Card
    VIA 6.0.10.1600
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 Pro 256, Samsung 850 Pro 1TB
    Internet Speed
    30 down 3 up
    Browser
    Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    NIS and Malwarebytes
Back
Top