Replacing a Hard Drive, but Not All the Files

[Esteban_2]

So a few weeks ago my PSU exploded. Since then, I've been thinking of selling my PC with a new PSU and using that money to buy a new, better system.

For this, I thought it would be a better idea to plop in a new hard drive and sell the PC that way. However, when I search online to see how I can transfer solely the OS from my old hard drive to my new one (considering I want to keep the files on my current drive, and I want to prepare the new one for sale), every result tells me how to copy everything, files and all, from one drive to another.

Therefore, my question is if it is possible to copy only the essential files for the PC to actually work from one hard drive to another, all the while keeping my files on my old hard drive (which I plan to use on my new system when I get it).

Also, is it possible to do this without reinstalling Windows?

 

[RealBeast]

You cannot transfer only the OS to another drive.

And you cannot use a single Windows OS key on two machines, one machine per license. Upgrading 7 to 10 will not allow you to use 7 on a different machine.