Windows 7, 32 or 64 bit?

[Okedokey]

Im personally with John, its always a better idea to reinstall everything. I will bet money that this install will be a dog. There are many better ways that are free that aren't any harder (e.g. using Windows own easy transfer, image copy and back up routines).

Reinstall windows and applications, import settings and preferences.
Put all files on a separate partition.
Create backup baseline disk image.
Create incremental backup of settings, preference and files.

All using Windows.

Sounds hard, its not. Once you have it set, as I do, it automatically reinstalls the baseline windows image every fortnight at 3AM. Files and settings aren't touched.

Every so often or when you get performance issues, you reinstall the Windows and applications image and re-import settings and preferences. Would take 20 minutes and you can automate it.

Good security and excellent performance.

 

[AdamJ]

Thanks for the feedback. 12 Hours to transfer everything? I could re-install everything in less time than that. I keep my install disks and such but many people misplace their disks so something like this might be the only way for them to transfer some of their applications.

What's your verdict, are you satisfied with well it performed? Would you do it again on another machine or recommend it to a friend?

Overall I'm satisfied with it. But had I known the transfer would take 12 hours I probably would have installed everything myself. I also keep all my disks together.

 

[AdamJ]

Im personally with John, its always a better idea to reinstall everything. I will bet money that this install will be a dog. There are many better ways that are free that aren't any harder (e.g. using Windows own easy transfer, image copy and back up routines).

Reinstall windows and applications, import settings and preferences.
Put all files on a separate partition.
Create backup baseline disk image.
Create incremental backup of settings, preference and files.

All using Windows.

Sounds hard, its not. Once you have it set, as I do, it automatically reinstalls the baseline windows image every fortnight at 3AM. Files and settings aren't touched.

Every so often or when you get performance issues, you reinstall the Windows and applications image and re-import settings and preferences. Would take 20 minutes and you can automate it.

Good security and excellent performance.

I value John's opinion big time, but wanted to try pcmover just for the heck of it. I was prepared to reformat and fresh install everything. So far, everythings working fine now after fixing a few things.

I almost used windows easy transfer but decided to try pcmover after recommended by a friend.

I have a seagate external harddrive that came with backup plus on it and will be backing up with it. It's so easy to use even a caveman could do it.

 

[AdamJ]

Turbo tax would have been an easy migration if you backed up the tax files from the user directory and reinstalled, moving the tax files into the user directory under windows 7 after the reinstall was complete.

Well now I know

 

[johnb35]

I wouldn't be surprised if you still end up having some program issues down the road and would have to end up reinstalling anyway. You could have had windows 7 installed, all programs installed and data copied over in less than 3 hours I bet.

 

[AdamJ]

I wouldn't be surprised if you still end up having some program issues down the road and would have to end up reinstalling anyway. You could have had windows 7 installed, all programs installed and data copied over in less than 3 hours I bet.

Easily under 3 hours. I was shocked it took 12 hours for the transfer.

 

[Okedokey]

Try 30 minutes.

 

[spirit]

I wouldn't be surprised if you still end up having some program issues down the road and would have to end up reinstalling anyway. You could have had windows 7 installed, all programs installed and data copied over in less than 3 hours I bet.

Takes me less than 3 hours usually to get everything reinstalled.

@Okedokey, your idea sounds perfect for me - that incremental backup thing. How do you do it? Do I need to install third-party software or is it built into Windows 7? I have backups of my system which I have done with Windows Image Backup in Windows 7, could I use those? (PM me if you don't want to thread hijack).

 

[Okedokey]

At its simplest form, you create a 2 partition drive.

• On the first partition (OS) you install Windows 7 and get it with all applications exactly how you want it. This includes all drivers, mapped network drivers. Everything.
• On the second partition (FILES) you have all your files including games (Steam Folder) and important OS settings (registry, and personal preferences etc).
• It is important that you install all applications on the FILES partition.
• It is also important that you copy your games folders to the FILES partition too. Steam will automatically sort everything, Origin needs the pathways to each folder in games.
  That way you can use Windows Easy Transfer to bring back all shortcuts etc linking to non-OS drives and import the registry back up by evoking regedit .
  
  
• Create a copy of the OS partition using bit-to-bit like True Image
• Have it reinstall every fortnight on the OS partition
• Back up files partition using whatever method you want
• Every fortnight it reinstalls windows - you just need to transfer from the files partition, registry import and EasyTransfer settings and preferences.

I use a NAS to store everything and back up both another copy of the files incrementally and the disk image, but I also use its internal Linux to do the 3AM every second Tue OS reimage.

To the OP, Windows 7 64bit is the answer really. Its been answered.

 

[spirit]

Excellent thanks for that. I'll take a look into it.