How do I set up boot drive and work drive to function the way I want?

[bjsdtl]

I have a fully built system that currently only has one storage drive installed (180GB Corsair Force3 SSD). Today I got my HDD from Newegg (1TB WD Caviar Black SATA3 HDD).

I would like to set them up so that the SSD handles the following:
*Booting up the OS (Windows 7 64-bit)
*Loading programs that are most frequently used and/or take too long to load from the HDD (i.e. Pro Tools, Photoshop)

I would like the HDD to handle the following:
*General file storage (a lot of music, video, and other miscellaneous files)
*Loading programs that are less frequently used and/or load quickly from any drive
*ALL of the file management that comes with normal use / saving / etc.

So, in a perfect world, I will have loaded my SSD up with all the OS files and software that I want quick access to, and I would use it to boot the system from. The HDD would then be responsible for storing ALL the new files I will create, while the SSD would never increase in size unless it was used to save mandatory system files (during updates, or editing the host file for example). I'm not sure if setting disk quotas is the best way to do this, simply because I want my SSD to not take on any more data unless I specifically want it to.

How is it possible to do this? Also, I have not yet installed my HDD into the system. I just want to check with the community to see if there's any configuration or preventative measures I should go through before physically installing the HDD.

If you need more information, please ask. I'd be happy to give more info about system specs, etc. but too lazy to type it up right now

 

[tomatthe]

Here is some info on moving your profile,
http://www.starkeith.net/coredump/2009/05/18/how-to-move-your-windows-user-profile-to-another-drive/

If you search the forums here there are many post asking this same question. I would suggest using the MS approved method which is mentioned in the above post although I believe he goes on to say they don't like using that method.

In regards to installing, just make sure your controller is set to AHCI or raid if you ever plan on using raid. Connect only the SSD, then install Windows. Connect your 2nd drive then go about moving your profile or however you want to setup things.

 

[jitpublisher]

I have a fully built system that currently only has one storage drive installed (180GB Corsair Force3 SSD). Today I got my HDD from Newegg (1TB WD Caviar Black SATA3 HDD).

I would like to set them up so that the SSD handles the following:
*Booting up the OS (Windows 7 64-bit)
*Loading programs that are most frequently used and/or take too long to load from the HDD (i.e. Pro Tools, Photoshop)

I would like the HDD to handle the following:
*General file storage (a lot of music, video, and other miscellaneous files)
*Loading programs that are less frequently used and/or load quickly from any drive
*ALL of the file management that comes with normal use / saving / etc.

So, in a perfect world, I will have loaded my SSD up with all the OS files and software that I want quick access to, and I would use it to boot the system from. The HDD would then be responsible for storing ALL the new files I will create, while the SSD would never increase in size unless it was used to save mandatory system files (during updates, or editing the host file for example). I'm not sure if setting disk quotas is the best way to do this, simply because I want my SSD to not take on any more data unless I specifically want it to.

How is it possible to do this? Also, I have not yet installed my HDD into the system. I just want to check with the community to see if there's any configuration or preventative measures I should go through before physically installing the HDD.

If you need more information, please ask. I'd be happy to give more info about system specs, etc. but too lazy to type it up right now

There is no perfect way to do this. You simply have to make sure when install a program, you choose custom install, and install the program to the mechanical hard drive, not the SSD. Same thing with saving files, you just have to make sure you save them to right place. Your web browser has options in the menus that allows you to choose where your downloads will be saved by default. You just have to be diligent to be sure your files are going where you want them. Kind of a pain at first, but after a bit it becomes easier to do as you get programs set the way you want them. I have had mine for about a year now set up this way, and it's really no problem at all now to make sure things go where I want them. A year later, I still have nearly half of my 60gig SSD left free.

I like to install things that work hand in hand with the OS, like your antivirus, and your browser to the SSD as these programs can really make using your PC more enjoyable by letting them have benefit of the SSD's speed.