Question Installing previously designated C: drive into new PC

[Derek Marquart]

Morning,

My computer is on it's last legs and I'm looking at getting a new one. My question is: Can I take the C: drive from the current computer and install it as a secondary drive on a new one for the purposes of moving data, without causing issue to the new PC? I've installed secondary hard drives before, but I know that things can get... wonky... when it comes to boot drives or the drives that Windows had been installed on. I have two hard drives on my current computer, and I know that if I take the secondary one out, I should be able to move it to a new one without any issues, it's just the boot/windows drive from said computer that concerns me.

Thanks in advance

 

[helpstar]

Do you wanna use the existing data on this drive?
If not, format it, if yes, install windows with the new system without the second drive, Afterwards you can put it in and check the boot order is correctly before booting in BIOS

 

[Derek Marquart]

Do you wanna use the existing data on this drive?
If not, format it, if yes, install windows with the new system without the second drive, Afterwards you can put it in and check the boot order is correctly before booting in BIOS

I would like to retrieve the data first, and then format it afterwards. I'm just not savvy enough to know if the new PC will give it a new designation if I plug it in (after Windows has been installed, of course) or if it will also thing it is the C: drive like it is on the current PC.

 

[Lafong]

The old drive should show up as D or E or whatever when moved to the new PC.

You need to first ensure that the new PC will boot without issues with just its own drive in it.

 

[Derek Marquart]

Absolutely. Thanks for all the input!

 

[DSzymborski]

I would like to retrieve the data first, and then format it afterwards. I'm just not savvy enough to know if the new PC will give it a new designation if I plug it in (after Windows has been installed, of course) or if it will also thing it is the C: drive like it is on the current PC.

I'm a little worried about "I would like to retrieve the data first." That has a strong implication that your data is not being properly backed up, else you'd already have it and not need to retrieve it from the drive before a format. That's a very serious problem for a PC and the time to put together a proper backup plan is now.

 

[popatim]

Depending on how the old drive was installed, it may not show up if installed internally since it will be detected as a foreign OS. I haven't played with win11 enough, hardly at all, to know for sure.

 

[geofelt]

So long as you boot to your new C drive first, you should have no issues attaching the old C drive later.
If you have any problems, attaching it via a powered usb to sata connection should work.
And... I hope that your new C drive is a ssd.