Question Question about migrating to a new windows 10 pc

[sonama870]

I have a pc with windows 10 and am currently building a new pc which will also use windows 10. I've heard its best to do a fresh install of windows on a new build but i really want my program installations, settings, save files, etc. On my new build with minimal fuss. My internet isn't great so having to manually download and instal everything again would be a huge pain.

I have other drives which i am moving directly to the new build since they arent my boot drives but i really dont want to risk anything going wrong with the boot drive such as driver conflicts or windows issues. Like i said i really want to keep everything on the boot drive pretty much how it is. I want it to still recognize installations on the other drives, still have any save files or settings etc. But I want a clean windows and to not risk any driver conflicts or anything like that. Ive built a few pcs before but i am far from an expert.

Is what I'm asking for possible? Does anyone have any advice?

 

[little_me]

As far as I know, new computer, new windows install.

as for old programs, due to all the registry entries and such, re-installation of those is 99% mandatory.
games and save files are easy, just google where they are and move them over.
in case of steam, you can move installations to another folder and then add that to new install of steam as separate library or move them back to where you want after adding that as extra library.

program settings are trickier since some are on files, some are in registry and it varies by program.
in this case, google is yet again a friend.

so: Steam is easy
browsers (firefox, chrome, brave at least) are easy too, check where things are, copy to safety.
install on new computer, copy everything back. (the randomly generated profile folder will change but it's contents work 100% same.
I've done browser move that way multiple times, moves it all bookmarks, saved passwords, all of it.

so.. yeah, windows install requires pretty much reinstall of programs, games (if they are part of steam and possibly other platforms) have capability to be moved but platform itself will need to be reinstalled.

of course, if you have more specific questions about certain specific programs and/or apps, mentioning them helps in trying to help more.

 

[Lafong]

i really want my program installations, settings, save files, etc. On my new build with minimal fuss.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

I want a clean windows and to not risk any driver conflicts or anything like that.

Those 2 requirements may well conflict with each other.

No harm in trying. Hook up the old drive to the new hardware and fire it up. May or may not boot; may or may not run perfectly well for an unknown period.

Up to you to decide at what point issues would cause you to give up on the idea and do a clean install of Windows and all programs.

Windows 10 is more forgiving than earlier Windows, but there's no accurate way of predicting your results.

Suppose you boot OK, but soon have some issues. You fight them for 3 hours with minor progress. Would you then have any reason to believe you will have success in 30 hours? I doubt it, although it might happen. How would you evaluate your situation at that point?

There are applications that are said to help with the process of moving to dissimilar hardware. I have no personal experience with using them for that purpose.

 

[ex_bubblehead]

If you are actually brave enough to try the above make absolutely certain that you do this with a clone drive and NOT the original. If it doesn't work (and probability is very high that it won't) you may well find that the drive no longer works in the original system as well. There is no "Easy Button" here.

 

[dwd999]

I have a pc with windows 10 and am currently building a new pc which will also use windows 10. I've heard its best to do a fresh install of windows on a new build but i really want my program installations, settings, save files, etc. On my new build with minimal fuss. My internet isn't great so having to manually download and instal everything again would be a huge pain.

I have other drives which i am moving directly to the new build since they arent my boot drives but i really dont want to risk anything going wrong with the boot drive such as driver conflicts or windows issues. Like i said i really want to keep everything on the boot drive pretty much how it is. I want it to still recognize installations on the other drives, still have any save files or settings etc. But I want a clean windows and to not risk any driver conflicts or anything like that. Ive built a few pcs before but i am far from an expert.

Is what I'm asking for possible? Does anyone have any advice?

Note that if you move the boot drive, when you boot it up Windows will no longer be activated. Refer to the Microsoft website as to how to transfer a Windows license from one computer to another.

 

[USAFRet]

Moving a drive+OS between systems has 3 possible outcomes:
1. It works just fine
2. It fails completely
3. It "works", but you're chasing issues for weeks/months.

The greater the difference between the systems, the more likely the fail potential.
A fresh OS install is the absolute best practice.

 

[USAFRet]

I want it to still recognize installations on the other drives

Installations of what?

Games like Steam are generally no problem.
Applications? No...your new OS install will not know anything about them.