Upgrading Office Computer. How Do I Keep My Software?

[Ravenas]

Hey all,

Currently I have a very out dated office computer and it needs to be upgraded. However, my problem is that all of the software and files are extremely important. For most of the software, I don't have the CDs or install files for them any longer. This is primarily due to the length that I have had the computer.

So my question to anyone who can help is this, how can I transfer everything on my old computers harddrive (including the software) to my new upgraded computer?


Would it be possible that I could just remove the harddrive from the current computer and place it as a secondary harddrive in my new one. The only problem I could see is that windows xp pro is installed on the old harddrive.

 

[Sasqui]

If you have any data on the hard drive, back that up FIRST!

Does the new computer have a hard drive with OS installed (like Win 7)? For the majority of programs out there, there is no way to "move" programs from one drive to another, you'll need to install from scratch. One option is to install the new OS over the XP drive install (upgrade path)... it'll typically keep the previous programs intact but it completely depends on what you are upgrading to from XP.

And yes, you should be able to put the old harddrive as a secondary in the new computer, but that's not going to help with the programs. Also make sure you're data files are in a location that is not user-logon dependant in XP like "My Documents" that's tied to a specific logon. Note that also depends on the priveledges you have on the old XP machine.

 

[Radical_Edward]

You'll need the disks for the software. So you have two legal options which are.... Find your disks, or borrow a friends disk and use your CD key when installing the software.