HD cloning

Discussion in 'Off Topic Area' started by AuntiePink, Aug 24, 2006.

  1. AuntiePink

    AuntiePink Naughty Member

    HDD cloning

    My pc is on it's way out and crashes randomly and often if I don't have Media Player running constantly (and even sometimes if I do, more recently). I've done virus/malware scans etc and they're clear so I really do think it's down to age (4 years or so of pretty constant use) rather than something nasty.

    Anyway, I bought a new one, partitioned it and installed windows then started manually transferring stuff over the network but it's slow going and doesn't stop me having to re-install a load of programs so, better late than never, I had a thought. How easy is it to clone my old hd onto my new pc? Do I have to have them both in the same box or can I do it over my network? Any recommended programs I should check out or problems to be aware of?

    Any help appreciated :love:
     
    Last edited: Aug 24, 2006
  2. EndlessNerd

    EndlessNerd Valued Member

    You'd want to clone them on the same machine. Even with a gigabit network connection, it can take awhile to copy files over. A fresh install is better anyway. I personally reinstall everything on my main drive every few months to keep it running well.

    and just because I"m an old nerd, HDD (Hard Disk Drive) is the acronym, I clicked the subject thinking "High Definition Clone"? How odd! :p
     
  3. AuntiePink

    AuntiePink Naughty Member

    Thanks babe. I didn't think HD looked right but I was having a blonde moment so just went with it. I've edited the title, just for you ;)
     
  4. dbmasters

    dbmasters Valued Member

    It's quite possible if you clone the drive you'll just move the problem to your new computer...

    With XP (or any NTFS based OS) the need to reinstall semi-regularily isn't really as big of a problem as it was back in the FAT32/FAT16 days...but, happeniness is a clean PC...
     
  5. jsmith

    jsmith Valued Member

    If you do decide to clone your hard drive, drive image pro and norton ghost were the two standards about 3-4 years ago when I last did it. If I recall correctly Drive Image Pro was a little more user friendly. I'd recommend reinstalling though, just giving you the options.
     
  6. TKDragon

    TKDragon Valued Member

    Pink,

    Though it will take a while, here is what you can do:

    On the new PC have a fresh new install. Install all the apps you know you will be keeping on the system no matter what. Make sure the OS and all the apps are updated to the latest (security patches, etc). Once this is done and before you move your user data over, make a drive image. Now you will have a clean sysyem with all the updated essential apps already loaded and up to date to when you created the image. After that you can load your user data.

    The best thng to do is to have all the user data on a different partition. If you need to back up just the user files they are all on one partition and easily backed up. With the OS and apps on the main C:\ partition if you find your PC is screwed and need to reload the OS you can reformat the C:\ and drop the image onto it and you are ready to go in a fraction of the time without the hassle of finding and moving the user files off the c:\ before you can reformat it. All you have to do after that is to update the OS apps to current and install any "at the time" apps you had loaded besides the "tried and true" apps you had on the image.

    Hope this helps.

    Cheers,
     
  7. prowla

    prowla Valued Member

    There's a computer magazine out now that has a cloning tool - I think it's called Laplink PC Mover or something like that. I've never tried it, but it might be worth checking out.
    I've got Ghost on 5 machines, and have found it very awkward to get to work.
     
  8. AuntiePink

    AuntiePink Naughty Member

    Thanks guys, I think I will go with the fresh re-install then clone the drive as a backup before I put anything else on. But probably not using ghost ;)
     
  9. Lord Spooky

    Lord Spooky Banned Banned

    You could always call your friendly IT Ninja ;)
     
  10. AuntiePink

    AuntiePink Naughty Member

    Call him what? ;)
     

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