Computer advice needed

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Gibbo2286
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Computer advice needed

Post by Gibbo2286 »

My computer died, so I bought a refurb HP to replace it.

So I've got the new one up and running but I have a lot of stuff on the SSD from the old one, my Microsoft Money e.g.

The new comp is 64 bit, the old one 32 bit, how do I get the stuff from one to the other?

I have a usb adaptor for the SSD but I'm a bit unsure if I can just plug it in to transfer from it.

The new comp has a 500Gb old style hdd.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by mickthemaverick »

I had to do a similar transfer for my mate in Spain when he bought a new 64bit laptop. I used a USB -SATA lead and connected his old 32 bit machine's hdd to the new machine. I was able to copy over all his data files without a problem. The new machine had his programs already loaded by the supplier so he was up and running. I believe you will have to install any software you have straight onto the new machine from whatever source you got it but there are far more advanced people on here than me who will be able to give you the necessary info on that Gibbo. Good luck!! :)
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by white exec »

I will have the same job to do here in about a week's time.

We have two Dell Inspiron full-size desktops. One is still running Win7 and is fine. It qualifies as Win10 capable, but when I tried updating 7 to 10 (when this was f.o.c.) there were dreadful display issues, to do with text sharpness, which MS acknowledged but couldn't then resolve, so it has stayed on Win7.

T'other Inspiron is - don't mock - running Vista. I said No Laughter in the back row, there! It does its stuff, but is now not accepting software updates (eg to the Foxit PhantomPDF professional package used on the Mechanics' booklets).
Time to call it a day, and to the 15" monitor - Philips, high quality, but too small now for dealing with lots of tiny text. A 22" will replace it, along with a new Inspiron 3671, due in about a week's time. Must say, the Dell kit has been terrific, so no hesitation in going with it again.
And so the fun will soon begin... :juggle:
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by Hell Razor5543 »

If the old SSD is SATA compliant (and you have not encrypted it) you certainly can use a SATA/USB adaptor to recover the files. Some of our clients need this to be available to them (so, for example, if a till system needed a replacement drive to be fitted it was, the system was then imaged and configured, and the old drive connected via a USB port to allow the client helpdesk to try and recover any data trapped on the old drive). This is the sort of equipment we use;

https://www.amazon.co.uk/StarTech-com-S ... 568&sr=8-7

I have one of these specific adaptors on my van at the moment, and it is very useful.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by GiveMeABreak »

Gibbo2286 wrote: 23 Jun 2020, 16:53 My computer died, so I bought a refurb HP to replace it.

So I've got the new one up and running but I have a lot of stuff on the SSD from the old one, my Microsoft Money e.g.

The new comp is 64 bit, the old one 32 bit, how do I get the stuff from one to the other?

I have a usb adaptor for the SSD but I'm a bit unsure if I can just plug it in to transfer from it.

The new comp has a 500Gb old style hdd.
Hi Eric

Just so you are aware as nobody has mentioned it: You can easily copy your documents and files over from the old PC to the new one - but you can't do that for the programmes and applications. These will need reinstalling from scratch on the new PC, so make sure you have any licence or activation keys to hand when reinstalling.

On that note, be aware that some programmes require you to deactivate the software on one PC before you can reinstall it on another. Adobe is one , but many companies allow only a single copy to be active at any one time, so if you forget to deactivate it on the old one, it may not allow you to reactivate it on the new one with the same licence.

Best thing to do is if you are only worried about your personal files is to copy them to a USB memory key or other storage media, including anything from your My Documents, Pictures or other custom folders before you do anything to the old system. They can them always be copied back at leisure to the new PC.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by Gibbo2286 »

I had thought that about the data being transferable but not the programmes that was my worry, I think I have the original discs for the most important ones.
I only have the SSD left from the dead computer I binned the rest.

I have the usb adaptor that came with the SSD when I first installed it in the old comp.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by Hell Razor5543 »

You should be OK, Crucial is a decent name where it comes to SSDs.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by GiveMeABreak »

Gibbo2286 wrote: 23 Jun 2020, 21:01 I had thought that about the data being transferable but not the programmes that was my worry, I think I have the original discs for the most important ones.
I only have the SSD left from the dead computer I binned the rest.

I have the usb adaptor that came with the SSD when I first installed it in the old comp.
Image
So slightly different scenario here then as you have the drive and no access to the files from the old PC.

When you hook up the SSD to your new PC, you may have a permissions issue. It may not let you access the folders on the old SSD to get your files - this is specifically on any files stored under the user account name you used on your old computer.

Example:
C:\Users\(User_Name)\Documents
C:\Users\(User_Name)\Pictures
C:\Users\(User_Name)\Videos

You may be ok, along with any other files you have created on the hard drive, but if you run into permissions issues, shout and I can show you how to get round it.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by Gibbo2286 »

Thanks Marc I'll come back when I've had a play later.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by Gibbo2286 »

Well I got most of it sorted but there are a couple of weird bits still to fix.

The most important programme I wanted back on was Microsoft Money, the UK version ended in 2005 but I had the original disk, installed it from that and tried to restore the file from back up (external HDD), it wouldn't do it, kept telling me the file name wasn't right.

Ended up going to the Microsoft website and downloading the latest UK version from there, now it works and all my file is back on, but, when I'm running Money and click on the 'investing' tab instead of going to my portfolio it brings up the MSN News home page :shock: Must be some sort of conflict between the two programmes.

I've found a work around for that but would like to have it work properly.

The other problem, the computer has six usb ports on the back, all work ok but it has four on the front that make the ding dong noise when I plug anything in but don't actually see what connected. Is that a setting problem or are they buggered?
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by white exec »

Today, the new Dell desktop arrived, Win10, to replace the still working 12-year-old (!) Vista'd Dell down in the office.

My last experience with Win10 was a good while back, when attempting to do the free upgrade from Win7 on our other desktop. This did not go well, and after hours of work I was left with illegible screen fonts, which no amount of resizing or font choice could resolve. MS had no answer for it either, so I gave up, and reverted to 7, which still soldiers on robustly on the same machine. IMHO, XP and 7 have been outstandingly good; no wonder they're still used.

The good news was that new machine has been a delight to commission, and has sailed though file copying (via portable HDD) from the old PC. Actually managed to copy across all personal Documents (10,400 files) in one wallop: 30 mins to put on the HDD, and half that for the new PC to copy them.

Apps were individually re-downloaded, except for a couple of real oldies (Picasa3 and ArtMasterSilver) which were scrounged from the old machine. FoxitPhantomPDF and VueScan (both used on the recent mechanics' handbooks) both seem to benefit from Win10, as they load and open really fast.

Also appreciated not having to fiddle around with monitor resolution and screen format: the temporary 17" 5:4 monitor was just recognised and worked without fuss.

Am waiting for a Philips 22" 16:9 monitor to arrive. Amazon.uk have not covered themselves in glory with this. The monitor was clearly shown as "Dispatched and sold by Amazon", so I am a bit miffed to find that my order to them was switched to a marketplace outfit in Riga, Latvia. Having taken four days to get it into the hands of DPD, the thing is now showing as somewhere in Poland. More worrying is the discovery that the seller has clocked up 50% unfavourable ratings in the past 30 days, with complaints of incorrect goods, damaged items, wrong mains leads, etc etc. A web-chat with Amazon tonight revealed that no-one at Amazon is allowed to switch an order from one supplier to another, without customer consent, even if there is a stock problem (which there was for a couple of days). Not impressed at all. Hopefully, the item should arrive not later than 9 July, and in one unopened and working piece. I am starting to sound like Simon here, I know. :roll:
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by mickthemaverick »

Glad to see that you have had a smooth changeover too Chris. I bought a new refurbed laptop last week with 10 Pro the same as my old machine and the swap was seemless and quick. I simply booted up the new machine onto my local network and copied everything over the network, whole job done in about 20 minutes! I have had a seperate issue with getting MS office going but that is now sorted and I have my old laptop upstairs in the study replacing the very old desktop, but it will only be used now by SWMBO for her email and photo archive. Again swapping the files from the old dell to the laptop was a straightforward copy over the network and sorted in 20 minutes also. I upgraded my laptop from 750Gig HDD with 6gig Ram to 2T HDD with 8gig Ram both using same i5 processor so mainly gained storage and a bit of performance. The actual catalyst was a failing, worn out keyboard on the old laptop, so it is now using the wireless keyboard and mouse from the Dell as well as the 17" monitor she has always had and SWMBO is pleased with her improved performance too! A win/win for once :-D
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by Gibbo2286 »

For anyone who might be interested the free upgrade from Win7 to Win 10 still works, the time limit seems to have been abandoned by Microsoft, I did one on a laptop the other day.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by GiveMeABreak »

The W10 free upgrade officially ended 29th July 2016.

However if you have a W7 licence key you can still upgrade for free - there is a loophole around it that MS are turning a blind eye to as they would rather see users on W10 than sticking with older, now unsupported operating systems like W7.

W10 is also mainly activated with a digital key linked to a Microsoft account, so that will allow activation if it needs reinstalling in future.

However trying to install W10 without an existing OS installed or a W7 key will require a W10 key.
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Re: Computer advice needed

Post by Gibbo2286 »

When I upped the laptop from Win 7 to Win 10 last week it just went ahead, didn't ask for any input from me.
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