Moving w2k Hard Drive From One Machine To Another

13 Mar 2005 5:48 PM

soinie

I have a scsi drive in one computer with W2k installed on it and would
like to move it to another machine and use it as the OS drive and
would like to keep 2k installed without needing to reformat and
reinstall- I basically want to plug in the drive and use it as is. Is
there anyway I can do this?

24 Mar 2005 6:14 AM

Warren C. E. Austin

soinie wrote:

> I have a scsi drive in one computer with W2k installed on it and would
> like to move it to another machine and use it as the OS drive and
> would like to keep 2k installed without needing to reformat and
> reinstall- I basically want to plug in the drive and use it as is. Is
> there anyway I can do this?

IT IS POSSIBLE; but, in my opinion unless you have very specific needs
regarding previously installed legacy 16-bit applications that were
migrated upon your original upgrade to Windows'2000 from whatever prior
version(s) of Windows you may have been using (and which cannot ever be
re-installed under Windows'2000 because of OS-centric code in the
application's installer routines), then it's simply easier to move the
drive, reformat, re-install your Windows'2000 and go from there.

To move a working existing Windows'2000 install (and it's hard-drive)
from one machine to another involves a rather convoluted process
somewhat in the manner of this:

1) Prior to moving the hard-drive, the backing up the Windows Registry
(and writing editable text versions of the Registry top-level Keys) both
in its' current state and after your having prepared the original
drive's hardware profile (for the subsequent migration) by removing all
entries from the Hardware Device Manager prior to last shut-down

2) a "dummy" install of Windows'2000 on a suitable blank temporary
hard-drive in the machine where you propose using the original
hard-drive (using the precise naming conventions USED for all "Profiles"
and folders found under Documents and Settings on the original drive,
and your using the same CD-Key)

3) the attendant backing up of the "dummy" installs' Windows Registry
(and writing of top-level Keys)

4) the manipulation of the files from the "dummy" drive to the original
using a third drive booted with any "basic" Windows 3.xx, Windows'95 or
Windows'98 installation running in "safe" mode

5) booting for the first time in the new machine using the original
drive, and

6) the restoration of the original Windows Registry files written
specifically for the new machine.

None of this is for the faint-hearted, and seriously I could only ever
recommend it where it is absolutely imperative to retain some esoteric
application for which either the original media is no longer available,
or the application itself cannot be installed under Windows'2000, even
though it may, and does, continue to run under Windows'2000.

I have just gone through this myself ... it having taken just over a
week to move (and upgrade) from one motherboard and CPU to another ...
and trust me, if it were not for two applications that required my
retaining them, I would not have even entertained the thought.

In retrospect, as I still retain all the original media for the two
applications, that it might have been more cost-effective (time-wise) to
have rebuilt the new system starting from Windows'95 (and the attendant
install of those two errant progammes), migrating on upward through
Windows'98 et al (and my installing sundry legacy appellations along the
way) until I had a fully working Windows'2000 install on the new
motherboard and CPU.

Warren C. E. Austin
Toronto, Canada