Windows 11 Resetting windows PC, while keeping apps

[PhenomBird]

I had to reset my pc because it lagged very much, so I reset it while keeping the apps, which is not an option on windows reset.
So I think I have created a solution to the problem, but will require another computer.
Either way, I had a linux pc that I used.

So what you need is:
Your windows hard drive.
And another pc with at least a terabyte. (A terabyte is not really required, but is recommended)
You could use an external hard drive if you have one.


So you first you have to take your windows drive and mount it onto the other pc.
Copy the "Program Files", "Program Files (x86)", "Program Data", and "Users/{Your name}/AppData" to a folder on the desktop (or anywhere, including your external drive), just remember to copy the files, not move them.
Then take the drive and put it back in your pc, and do the reset.
I recommend to create a restore point after the reset.
Then plug the drive back into your other pc, and replace the files shown on top, and it should work.
Only transfer the apps with files, bigger important ones, but small tools like cpuidz can just be reinstalled.
After that, put your drive back in, and check the apps, if every thing works, then great, if not just go back to the restore point you created.

And do it at your own risk.
And I am not responsible for any issues.

 

[johnb35]

This will not work correctly in most cases since when installing programs, it also creates registry entries and other files needed to work correctly. In order to reset windows while keeping all the programs intact then you must do an in place upgrade of windows using the windows creation tool.

But I bet you really didn't have to do all that just because your pc was lagging. You probably had adware/malware that was causing issues.

 

[PhenomBird]

This will not work correctly in most cases since when installing programs, it also creates registry entries and other files needed to work correctly. In order to reset windows while keeping all the programs intact then you must do an in place upgrade of windows using the windows creation tool.

But I bet you really didn't have to do all that just because your pc was lagging. You probably had adware/malware that was causing issues.

It did work, I just had reinstall MC and blender, and steam had some issues, but the were resolved. Also I checked for malware, it was totally clean.

 

[johnb35]

I'm glad it worked for you but I did say in most cases it won't. You may find later on that you come across some issues because of it.

 

[beers]

'Working' can have various meanings, a lot of apps won't function without the installation dependencies or registry entries. You also aren't installing other underlying items when doing this like redistributable libraries.

It 'can function', but it's hacky and you end up chasing weird issues since you have no idea what's missing underneath, like you said yourself when you had to reinstall some of them.

I think I have created a solution to the problem

Glad to see you're learning about basic file structures.

A good bridge between the two is to back up bulk asset data, install the app on the new Windows environment and then dump the data into the same folder path. I back up things like iRacing that way for cars and tracks which are a couple hundred GB of data and then copy pasta the assets back over after the installer finishes.