Help moving OS from HDD to new SSD

[jack031700]

I currently have a 1TB HDD with all of my data on one partition and have recently bought a 250gb Samsung SSD so I can have fast start times. As of the moment, I can not find my old Windows install disk that I used for this computer. However, I have a Windows install disk for another computer. Any guidance would be helpful. Thank you

 

[thx1138v2]

If the disc you have is the same version (7, 8, etc and 32/64 bit) as the one you are missing you will only need the Product Key that goes with the missing disc. If you don't have the Product Key written down there is probably a way to retrieve it as long as the HDD is still bootable. Search for "Windows <version> find product key".

If they aren't the same version you'll need to find the missing disc or buy a new one. It will probably install OK but you won't be able to activate it.

 

[jack031700]

If the disc you have is the same version (7, 8, etc and 32/64 bit) as the one you are missing you will only need the Product Key that goes with the missing disc. If you don't have the Product Key written down there is probably a way to retrieve it as long as the HDD is still bootable. Search for "Windows <version> find product key".

If they aren't the same version you'll need to find the missing disc or buy a new one. It will probably install OK but you won't be able to activate it.

Okay well that might solve that problem. Is there a way to see if it is the same disc or not because I can't remember.
But other than the windows problem. What steps do I do for the installing of the actual SSD itself. Its a Samsung 850 evo

 

[SammChisnall]

Once you have your product code and installation disk you simply disconnect the old drive, connect up the SSD, make the Windows installation disk the primary boot drive in the bios let the installation run through, making sure to enter the required information when asked.

 

[jack031700]

Once you have your product code and installation disk you simply disconnect the old drive, connect up the SSD, make the Windows installation disk the primary boot drive in the bios let the installation run through, making sure to enter the required information when asked.

And how do I set up the old HDD as mass storage since it already as another copy of windows on it

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Hi Jack.

@Samm's suggestions are pretty good. However, I'd like to add something regarding the "Windows install disk for another computer". Everything that Samm mentioned is correct, but if that disk is OEM (original equipment manufacturer - it came with that "other computer"), you won't be able to use its key to activate Windows on this computer. This will be possible if that Windows versions is a retail one.

Another option for you would be to clone the OS over to the SSD. However, since the SSD's capacity is a lot smaller than that of the HDD, this can happen only if you have the OS on a separate partition, so that you can clone just the OS associated partitions, as there won't be enough space available for the whole HDD to be cloned. You can check out this tutorial: http://lifehacker.com/5837543/how-to-migrate-to-a-solid-state-drive-without-reinstalling-windows.

Fresh install is usually recommended, so if you end up going with that option, in order to use your HDD simply as secondary storage, all you need to do is boot from the SSD (change the boot priority from the BIOS' boot priority menu). It doesn't really matter that there's an OS on the HDD, however, it's advisable that you remove it. The best case scenario would be to backup you important data, format the HDD and then put back everything you've backed up.

Hope that helps. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Boogieman_WD

 

[jack031700]

Hi Jack.

@Samm's suggestions are pretty good. However, I'd like to add something regarding the "Windows install disk for another computer". Everything that Samm mentioned is correct, but if that disk is OEM (original equipment manufacturer - it came with that "other computer"), you won't be able to use its key to activate Windows on this computer. This will be possible if that Windows versions is a retail one.

Another option for you would be to clone the OS over to the SSD. However, since the SSD's capacity is a lot smaller than that of the HDD, this can happen only if you have the OS on a separate partition, so that you can clone just the OS associated partitions, as there won't be enough space available for the whole HDD to be cloned. You can check out this tutorial: http://lifehacker.com/5837543/how-to-migrate-to-a-solid-state-drive-without-reinstalling-windows.

Fresh install is usually recommended, so if you end up going with that option, in order to use your HDD simply as secondary storage, all you need to do is boot from the SSD (change the boot priority from the BIOS' boot priority menu). It doesn't really matter that there's an OS on the HDD, however, it's advisable that you remove it. The best case scenario would be to backup you important data, format the HDD and then put back everything you've backed up.

Hope that helps. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Boogieman_WD

Thanks this helps a lot. However, sadly I am fairly certain that there is not separate partitions for the OS on my HDD. However, just to be certain, how would I check.

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Well, you can open Disk Management by following this guide: How to access Disk Management in Windows to manage hard drives and check the partitions of the SSD. If you're not sure what you're looking at, you could post a screenshot here: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/faq/id-2176231/guide-posting-screenshot-forum.html.

Basically besides the C: drive, you should see another partition with a letter, e.g. D:, E:, F: etc.

 

[jack031700]

Well, you can open Disk Management by following this guide: How to access Disk Management in Windows to manage hard drives and check the partitions of the SSD. If you're not sure what you're looking at, you could post a screenshot here: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/faq/id-2176231/guide-posting-screenshot-forum.html.

Basically besides the C: drive, you should see another partition with a letter, e.g. D:, E:, F: etc.

yeah everything is on one partition 🙁

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Unfortunately if this is the case, you'd have to slim down the HDD's data to less than 250GB, or make a fresh install of Windows. Unfortunately there's no way around it. 🙁
However, if you have a lot of media, or other personal files taking up a lot of space, you could transfer that data to an external drive, uninstall large games, or other programs and so on, until you get to the desired capacity if you want to go with the migration option.