Swapping `main` pc's

[george]

Jeez, just were did I get all these small (but handy) programmes from?

And where's all my discs as well?

Stressful times indeed.

[Dave Fisher]

George,

We purchased an external 160GB hard disk drive to backup our pc onto using some software called Acronis which can be found at
http://www.acronis.com/

It takes about 12 minutes to backup our 112GB. It takes an exact mirror image of your pc including data, programmes, operating system, registry entries etc etc

You also create a recovery cd.

As I understand it if we have a new pc we connect the USB external hard disk, load the recovery CD and restore.

This maybe or maybe not of interest to you !

[george]

Could well be the best way to transfer everything over. Haven't actually started yet, so unsure if I should transfer everything, or just the most common stuff that I use. As you'd know the actual hard-drive space is kinda irrelevant nowadays but a number of things like to check online, ie epson, nero, etc so maybe a wee spring clean wouldn't go amiss. Excuse my ingorance, but that method would copy over all network prog/settings and bt broadband connection/settings etc wouldn't it?

[NormanRouxel]

Unfortunately you can't simply resore a disk image from one computer onto another (unless they're almost identical). That way would replace all your device drivers, and other hardware dependent things with those of the wrong system. You'd also have Windows Validation popping up as it would see this as a new computer. You'd have erased and replaced the valid installation of Windows and would need to re-install that to recover.

There's no real substitite for laboriously installing all the required programs onto a new system and copying over any data they need.

[jont]

where's all my discs as well?

Have you checked whats underneath the beer glass on the edge of the desk?

[george]

Have you checked whats underneath the beer glass on the edge of the desk?

I wish it was as easy as that fella.

Just how do you transfer a bit of software that you cannot download, don't (seem) to have a disc for, and don't really want to buy (again) as you hardly ever seem to use it (handy category)?

Magazine discs..... grrrr

[pinbrook]

if you have bought the software you should be able to contact the vendor, most companys will have the email address you bought with and can send keys etc using this.

[george]

Handy wee item...

http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html

[jont]

Magazine discs..... grrrr

The stuff on there can often be found at somewhere like www.download.com for the freebies - for the free versions of their older software check out the suppliers main site or even the last remaining P2P networks (obviously checking you are not downloading cracked and malware versions of the the latest full products). The magazine sites often keep a catalogue of the free disks they offered with permanent links to downloads from the suppliers.

I now keep all my valuable magazine disks at the end of the desk weighted down with a beer glass