How do I back up personal files before getting a new drive?

endermanslayer24

Reputable
Dec 10, 2015
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I've been researching/asking for a while now, and I've come to the conclusion that my current HDD is too old and is in need of replacement (probably with a similarly sized HDD and a smaller SSD for system/frequent files).
Anyways. I am getting a new drive, and I want make sure that I get rid of any bugs, viruses, etc that have snuck their way into my computer over the past 5 years... So how would I be able to back up all my personal files and paid programs exclusively onto my new drives, and then just get rid of the rest? Is there some program/service I can use?

PS: How reliable are the dual drives such as this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236642
Would something like this be effective for a high-performance desktop for things like 3D animation, gaming, etc?
 
Solution
Manual saving is the key here.

1. Obtain another drive. Either internal or external
2. Create a few top level folders on this new drive.
3. Find all your personal files. Save them...NOT, the folders/Libraries they are in
4. Find all your username/passwords. Save these in a text file, word file, excel, whatever
5. Find all your application install files, and the serial numbers that go with them
6. Drivers. Find all the drivers for your hardware, and save those to a USB stick. Primarily, just the LAn driver. But all the other ones can't hurt.

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
Manual saving is the key here.

1. Obtain another drive. Either internal or external
2. Create a few top level folders on this new drive.
3. Find all your personal files. Save them...NOT, the folders/Libraries they are in
4. Find all your username/passwords. Save these in a text file, word file, excel, whatever
5. Find all your application install files, and the serial numbers that go with them
6. Drivers. Find all the drivers for your hardware, and save those to a USB stick. Primarily, just the LAn driver. But all the other ones can't hurt.
 
Solution

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator


Those dual drives are just a gimmick.
A regular SSD and a regular HDD, but in one 2.5" package.
If one dies, you have to send the whole thing in. Losing the functionality of both.

And at $448 for a 120GB SSD and a 1TB HDD is WAY too much.
2 individual drives, that would be ~$110.