[SOLVED] Install Windows 10 on New Drive and Keep Old Sys-Drive as Backup

[Leodan]

I would appreciate advice on how to install a new OS disk and repurpose the old drive for data only. But I do not want to remove the old OS until I know the new installation is working OK. My thought being that if I have serious issues, I can still boot back into the old drive. My system is ASUS M32, recently upgraded with Asus M450 MB, RAM and AMD Ryzen CPU. I have Windows 10 Pro installed on a 500GB SSD. This disk is partitioned into C: (OS) and D: (Data). I plan to install Windows 10 Pro on a new 1TB M2 SSD. I have been looking at the tutorials and plan to do the following:

Create a Windows 10 bootable USB using Media Creation Tool
Install the new M2 SSD drive and physically disconnect the current system drive
Boot with the USB and install Windows to the new M2 SSD
Partition the new M2 OS drive to C: (OS) & D: (Data)
Reinstall applications etc. (probably take a couple weeks)

Now - I want to reconnect the old drive to start moving work files to the new M2 data partition. But this drive will still have the old OS on it.
Will that be a problem - Will Windows automatically boot from the new M2?
How can I set BIOS to make sure it does?
Will Windows automatically rename the C: and D: partitions of the old drive or will there be some sort of conflict?

Once I am comfortable with the new installation, I will wipe and de-partition the old OS drive and turn it into a regular data drive.

Thanks in advance

 

[USAFRet]

That is mostly the wrong way to do this.
You don't want both drives and their OS actually connected. You can disconnect the old drive and leave it disconnected. But don't have both of them in there. Either during the install on the new drive or after.


Prepare:

1. Find all your personal files, and save them off to some other storage location.
2. Document all your username/passwords
3. Gather all the install files for whatever applications you use.

Install on the new drive. OS, drivers, applications.
Then, connect whatever storage thing you saved your personal files on, and copy them over as desired.

The old drive with the old OS is still disconnected and offline.

Once you've satisfied yourself that the new install on the new drive works, then you reconnect the old drive and wipe it clean. ALl partitions, not just a simple "format".

 

[USAFRet]

What is the make/model of all components in this?
Cloning from the old to the new might also be an option.

 

[Bob.B]

I would appreciate advice on how to install a new OS disk and repurpose the old drive for data only. But I do not want to remove the old OS until I know the new installation is working OK. My thought being that if I have serious issues, I can still boot back into the old drive. My system is ASUS M32, recently upgraded with Asus M450 MB, RAM and AMD Ryzen CPU. I have Windows 10 Pro installed on a 500GB SSD. This disk is partitioned into C: (OS) and D: (Data). I plan to install Windows 10 Pro on a new 1TB M2 SSD. I have been looking at the tutorials and plan to do the following:



Now - I want to reconnect the old drive to start moving work files to the new M2 data partition. But this drive will still have the old OS on it.
Will that be a problem - Will Windows automatically boot from the new M2?
How can I set BIOS to make sure it does?
Will Windows automatically rename the C: and D: partitions of the old drive or will there be some sort of conflict?

Once I am comfortable with the new installation, I will wipe and de-partition the old OS drive and turn it into a regular data drive.

Thanks in advance

Assuming your old disk is a sata 2.5 ssd.
Remove the old disk.
Install the new disk.
Load windows/drivers/apps/updates and test.
If ok get a usb to sata cable and connect the old disk to a usb port.....with the OS running.
Copy what you want to the new disk.
When done eject the old disk.

 

[Leodan]

Assuming your old disk is a sata 2.5 ssd.
Remove the old disk.
Install the new disk.
Load windows/drivers/apps/updates and test.
If ok get a usb to sata cable and connect the old disk to a usb port.....with the OS running.
Copy what you want to the new disk.
When done eject the old disk.

Thank you for that suggestion. I was wondering how I would reconnect the old drive to clean it up after booting up with only the new disk connected. I don't know if I can get such a cable here (I am in a very remote place) but I will try.

 

[Leodan]

What is the make/model of all components in this?
Cloning from the old to the new might also be an option.

Thanks - But I think I have to reinstall in any event as it has not been behaving too well since my recent MoBo and CPU swap.

 

[Bob.B]

Thank you for that suggestion. I was wondering how I would reconnect the old drive to clean it up after booting up with only the new disk connected. I don't know if I can get such a cable here (I am in a very remote place) but I will try.

Assuming you get mail check with newegg or amazon to see how they ship.

 

[USAFRet]

Thanks - But I think I have to reinstall in any event as it has not been behaving too well since my recent MoBo and CPU swap.

How To - Windows 10 clean install tutorial

If you are looking for the Windows 11 Clean install tutorial, you can find that here: Windows 11 Clean install tutorial (Click here) Otherwise, welcome to the Windows 10 Clean install tutorial This tutorial is intended to help you, step by step, to perform a clean install of Windows...

forums.tomshardware.com

 

[Leodan]

Assuming you get mail check with newegg or amazon to see how they ship.

Unfortunately, no mail here. Have to rely on occasional visits by friends, or shopping trips to continent. Thinking I'll just have to plug it in, carefully, while it's in the case.

 

[Krotow]

As guys above said, you can't move Intel CPU based Windows installation from previous system to AMD Zen2 CPU based system directly. Bluescreens and a ton of random glitches are guaranteed. Install Windows on SSD in new system with old drive disconnected. Then connect old SSD, move files that matter from old SDD to new drive and wipe out old drive - new partition table on it and put one partition for archive files here.

 

[Leodan]

As guys above said, you can't move Intel CPU based Windows installation from previous system to AMD Zen2 CPU based system directly. Bluescreens and a ton of random glitches are guaranteed. Install Windows on SSD in new system with old drive disconnected. Then connect old SSD, move files that matter from old SDD to new drive and wipe out old drive - new partition table on it and put one partition for archive files here.

I guess I've been lucky - Only intermittent lockups since I did the swap. But I will be doing the clean install on a new disk. I am just wondering if it will be OK to connect the old drive, in the case, after boot-up. No way I can get a Sata>USB adapter where I live.

 

[USAFRet]

Only intermittent lockups since I did the swap

And that is quite likely due to the disparity between old and new hardware, and the original OS.
#3 on my list of 'what happens' - "It "works", but you're chasing issues for weeks/months"

As for the old drive and OS?
It really needs to be wiped clean. Obviously, save all personal data from it.

Having 2x bootable OSs in the same box can lead to issues. Unless you really really need it that way for some reason.

 

[Krotow]

You must do a clean Windows install to avoid future glitches.

Copy files that matter from HDD to new SSD drive. Then clean out old HDD, make single partition on it and move saved files back on it.

If you don't have USB drive for backup, maybe you can borrow any spare SATA drive from someone around?

 

[Leodan]

You must do a clean Windows install to avoid future glitches.

Copy files that matter from HDD to new SSD drive. Then clean out old HDD, make single partition on it and move saved files back on it.

If you don't have USB drive for backup, maybe you can borrow any spare SATA drive from someone around?

Thanks, I have lots of USB backup capacity but eventually I will have to connect the old drive to format it and start using it again. And it seems I have to connect it after boot. I can't get a Sata\USB adapter where I am (and we have no mail). I would swap it into one of my external drives, but they are all pre-Sata so I don't think it would fit. So I'm thinking I'll leave it in the case with Sata connected only and connect the power after boot - If that's feasible and not completely crazy.

 

[Krotow]

I'll leave it in the case with Sata connected only and connect the power after boot - If that's feasible and not completely crazy.

SATA does support hot plugging by design. While drive is powered over SATA power connector and not Molex power connector, it should work fine. However you still must enable hot plugging in Windows device manager drive properties. And eject/disconnect drive from Windows before unplugging to avoid data corruption.

 

[Leodan]

SATA does support hot plugging by design. While drive is powered over SATA power connector and not Molex power connector, it should work fine. However you still must enable hot plugging in Windows device manager drive properties. And eject/disconnect drive from Windows before unplugging to avoid data corruption.

Thanks, and appreciate your caution to avoid issues when unplugging, but once I get the new drive setup and behaving, I will connect the old drive, move the user data, format it and then leave it connected.