[SOLVED] Move *partitioned* secondary HDD to new PC

Feb 2, 2020
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I've bought a new PC with Windows 10 Pro to replace my oldish Windows 7 PC (onto which Windows 10 refused to install, possibly because it has some hardware attached/installed that it doesn't like and I have made some changes to the registry).

I want to set up the new machine like the old one, with Windows and software on the primary HDD (an SSD) and all data stored on a secondary drive, a 4gb HDD.

In an ideal world, I'd like simply to move the HDD from the Windows 7 PC to the Windows 10 machine — but as I store data for a variety of different projects, the HDD is divided into twelve partitions, and I'm not sure what the effect will be if I simply transfer the HDD into the new PC as it is. Will Windows 10 recognize and accept the HDD and its partitions (although I may need to reallocate drive letters) or do I need to back everything up from the partitions to an external drive, unpartition and reformat the HDD, move it and then start all over again? I'd really rather not do this (frankly I'd really rather not have Windows 10, which I loathe!), but I'd rather know now than discover halfway through the operation…

Advice would be very welcome!
 
Solution
I want to set up the new machine like the old one, with Windows and software on the primary HDD (an SSD) and all data stored on a secondary drive, a 4gb HDD. "
Install ssd into new pc, disconnect any other hdds/ssds;
install windows;
connect secondary hdd;
profit.

Having multiple partitions on hdd doesn't degrade/kill anything. That's just BS.

Lutfij

Titan
Moderator
FYI, an HDD is a hard disk drive while an SSD is a solid state drive. They cannot be interchanged to denote the other as they are both built out of very different components. You can however refer to them as a storage device.

To note, having 12 partitions on a 4TB will only degrade and/or kill the drive and eventually make you run around in circles trying to recover data from the ill stricken drive. If anything, reduce the number of partitions.

If you may, please restructure your post to denote which one should be an SSD and which one should be the HDD. Ideally, yes the OS should reside on the SSD while the HDD is left for storage. If the HDD has an OS installed on it, it should be ready to go on a donor system(albeit with a few hiccups).
 
Feb 2, 2020
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Sorry for the confusion, but I don't understand how I could have made it clearer: "I want to set up the new machine like the old one, with Windows and software on the primary HDD (an SSD) and all data stored on a secondary drive, a 4gb HDD. "

The PRIMARY hard drive will be a brand-new SSD containing only Windows 10 and applications.

The SECONDARY hard drive will be the partitioned 4gb HDD that I already possess and want to move from the old PC to the new PC. It contains only data, NOT any operating system. (The old PC has the operating system on a its own SDD as stated above.)

You refer to potential hiccups in parenthesis, but these are exactly what I want to find out about in detail.

(I understand the difference between SSD and HDD, but it's amazing how many people I've asked about this don't, which is why I referred to the primary drive in the way that I did — I should, however, have been more aware that the target reader on this forum would know the difference! I also note your comment about the number of partitions, but that's my problem, and managing without partitions would be hard enough in Windows 7; since Windows 10 has swept away Recent Places, working without really would be unbearably time-consuming/time-wasting. I do backup very regularly.)