Do I need to do anything special when reinstalling my old HDD with Windows 7 on it, if I just want to format it and use it as storage?

JohnJSal

JohnJSal

Active Member
Currently I just have my new SSD installed with Windows 10. If I reconnect my HDD with Windows 7 still on it (I found the spare screws!), will it try to boot from that drive or do anything weird, or will it boot into Windows 10 normally since the SSD is the C: drive now?

Also, how do I format it? Does Windows 10 come with something that is good enough to use, or should I get third-party software to do it?

Thanks!

(I appreciate all the help with this process. I think my questions might be winding down now!) :)
 
You might want to double check the boot order in BIOS/UEFI on next boot once you install it.

Otherwise you can wipe the partitions in disk management from within the Windows 10 environment and create a new one, assuming you have all the data you want off of it.
 
You need to check the boot order after you reconnect the hdd. If you check it with only the ssd attached it won't detect another drive to try and boot from. Usually it will boot from the new drive but I have seen it boot the old one first too.
 
johnb35 said:
You need to check the boot order after you reconnect the hdd. If you check it with only the ssd attached it won't detect another drive to try and boot from. Usually it will boot from the new drive but I have seen it boot the old one first too.
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Thanks! I'm guessing that even if it happens to boot from the old drive, it won't hurt anything, right? I'll just be back in my old Windows 7 environment until I change the boot order?
 
JohnJSal said:
Thanks! I'm guessing that even if it happens to boot from the old drive, it won't hurt anything, right? I'll just be back in my old Windows 7 environment until I change the boot order?
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Correct. And if it boots and fails it'll likely just bluescreen and reboot.
 
Ok, one final weird question.

Since I probably don't really need the HDD that much (I just figure, why not use it if I have it), will it hurt anything to just have it plugged into the system and not get much (or any) use?

"Hurt" isn't the right word, though. I know it isn't a big deal, but what I mean is, it will be plugged into a SATA connector and also a power connector. Will that be detrimental in any way to the rest of the system for a hard drive to be constantly receiving power but not get much use?

I assume it won't be active until I actually access data from it, but even when it's inactive, it's still constantly "running," right?

Hopefully this makes sense! I guess I'm thinking about it like leaving a light bulb on in a room that you never go into. Is it better to just not do it at all?
 
I'm not at my pc right now but it won't hurt anything to leave it plugged in. However it will reduce the lifespan of the drive. But you can always go into power setting and have the system shut the drive down when not used. Once set amd you access that drive, it will take a second to spin up and go to where you want. When I get to my pc, I can show you where the setting is at.
 
johnb35 said:
I'm not at my pc right now but it won't hurt anything to leave it plugged in. However it will reduce the lifespan of the drive. But you can always go into power setting and have the system shut the drive down when not used. Once set amd you access that drive, it will take a second to spin up and go to where you want. When I get to my pc, I can show you where the setting is at.
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Thanks so much! That's kind of the thing I had in mind (without actually knowing it explicitly!).

But it won't affect the performance of anything else running in the PC?
 
JohnJSal said:
But it won't affect the performance of anything else running in the PC?
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Not really, although if you adjust the sleep setting then it usually takes a few seconds when accessing the drive for it to spin up and come back online, which feels like the system is just hanging while you're sitting there.

Crap that is already running or comes off of the SSD won't care.
 
Thanks guys! The drive is already about 14 years old (part of why I decided to replace it), but it's still hanging in there! It's been really good!
 
Here are screenshots of where you need to go.

1. Go into power options in control panel.

power options.jpg

2. Click on change plan settings for whichever plan is checked.

plan options.jpg

3. Click on change advanced power settings

turn off drive.jpg

4. Change the setting to whatever you wish for the "turn off hard disk after" option.

As I said, it will take a second or two for the drive to spin up and get access to it.
 
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