Cable for data transfer?

[Terry Pinnell]

I will need to transfer most of the data on my present ageing PC (XP
Home under SP1) to my new one (XP Pro, SP2). Do I just need to buy a 5
metre USB to USB cable please?

 

[sandy58]

I will need to transfer most of the data on my present ageing PC (XP
Home under SP1) to my new one (XP Pro, SP2). Do I just need to buy a 5
metre USB to USB cable please?

Make your old hard drive a slave in your new box. If it's IDE the old
hdd goes in the middle of the IDE ribbon with jumper set at "slave" or
"CS" (Cable Select) & new hdd jumper at MS (Master) or CS on the end
of the ribbon. Swapping your stuff over then is as usual. Good luck,
Terry.

 

[Brian Cryer]

I will need to transfer most of the data on my present ageing PC (XP
Home under SP1) to my new one (XP Pro, SP2). Do I just need to buy a 5
metre USB to USB cable please?

There are USB "cables" you can buy which are specifically for connecting up
two pcs. These aren't a straight cable but have a logical device in the
middle. (For example:
http://www.misco.co.uk/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=15704&CatId=912.)
Don't be fooled into thinking this is networking your two pcs, it isn't (or
at least the usb transfer cable I does doesn't create what XP regards as a
network.)

Is your old PC on the network, because if it is then copying files via the
network would be quicker and easier.

Failing that, then go With the suggestion of "sandy58" and take the disk out
of your old pc and add it to your new one - just be sure that you don't end
up booting from it instead of the disk in your new pc.

 

[kony]

I will need to transfer most of the data on my present ageing PC (XP
Home under SP1) to my new one (XP Pro, SP2). Do I just need to buy a 5
metre USB to USB cable please?

If both of them already have a network adapter (which is
common, typical for systems of this era) just put a
crossover ethernet cable between the two systems. A bit
more about networking configuration can be found on many
websites with a Google search including terms like
networking, file sharing.

If the new system has a gigabit ethernet port instead of
100Mb, you can use a straight (standard) ethernet cable
instead of a crossover cable. If you already have a router
with integral switch or a standalone switch you don't need
to connect the two directly together, can instead just
connect them to that router or switch.

If one of the systems doesn't have a network adapter it
could still be cost effective to buy a network adapter and
cable for that - it may cost no more than a more proprietary
USB cable and having both able to be networked they are both
more versatile in the long run.

 

[DaveW]

No; wrong cable. You need to buy a Cat. 5 "Crossover Cable." It's a
special cable for doing just what you want to do. A normal Cat. 5 cable
will NOT work.

 

[kony]

No; wrong cable. You need to buy a Cat. 5 "Crossover Cable." It's a
special cable for doing just what you want to do. A normal Cat. 5 cable
will NOT work.

.... assuming both systems have NICs.

Also, a normal CAT5 cable WILL work if either of them (not
necessarily both) have a gigabit network adapter, that is
one of the features of gigabit over 100Mb.

 

[sandy58]

I will need to transfer most of the data on my present ageing PC (XP
Home under SP1) to my new one (XP Pro, SP2). Do I just need to buy a 5
metre USB to USB cable please?

I just remembered LapLink. I used it a few years ago. Had a cable made
up with a crossed over wire at one end. Did it run from com port to
com port? I know there was something odd about it...apart from the
fact that it was about 20metres long (I told my "lecky" mate that I
needed a "bit of length"!!!) But it did work, & at that time, that
alone was a great thing.
How fast? No idea.

 

[Sjouke Burry]

I just remembered LapLink. I used it a few years ago. Had a cable made
up with a crossed over wire at one end. Did it run from com port to
com port? I know there was something odd about it...apart from the
fact that it was about 20metres long (I told my "lecky" mate that I
needed a "bit of length"!!!) But it did work, & at that time, that
alone was a great thing.
How fast? No idea.

Check out a homemade program from me at location

http://home.planet.nl/~burry004/laplink.zip

You need a cable between parallel printerports,
wiring:
connector1 connector2
2 15
3 13
4 12
5 10
6 11

10 5
11 6
12 4
13 3
15 2

18 18
19 19
20 20
21 21
22 22
23 23
24 24
25 25

2---6 cross over to 10---15,
and 18--25 are ground wires, use them all to get
some shielding inside the cable.
Also if your cable has shielding, connect that to
the plug case, so that both computer chassis are
connected that way.
I have used this on lots of computers and gigabytes,
however its 6.3 short filenames only.
Feel free to modify source code if you feel the need.
Email me,if you need more info, demunge my address,
figures are figures, the last part has doubled letters.

 

[Sjouke Burry]

I just remembered LapLink. I used it a few years ago. Had a cable made
up with a crossed over wire at one end. Did it run from com port to
com port? I know there was something odd about it...apart from the
fact that it was about 20metres long (I told my "lecky" mate that I
needed a "bit of length"!!!) But it did work, & at that time, that
alone was a great thing.
How fast? No idea.

I forgot to mention: for pentium 200Mhz , transmission speed
50 Kbytes/s.
That depends also on the cable length.
I have used lengths up to 20 meters.

 

[Brian Cryer]

I just remembered LapLink. I used it a few years ago. Had a cable made
up with a crossed over wire at one end. Did it run from com port to
com port? I know there was something odd about it...apart from the
fact that it was about 20metres long (I told my "lecky" mate that I
needed a "bit of length"!!!) But it did work, & at that time, that
alone was a great thing.
How fast? No idea.

Many years ago LapLink was almost a standard for transfer between two local
pcs, but that was before pcs were networked. (It was a lovely product back
in those days ...) It was also in the days when serial and parallel ports
were fast enough. Sjouke has already hinted at this, but even using the
parallel port for data transfer will be very slow by modern standards.

If the OP doesn't have LapLink and a suitable serial or parallel cable to
hand then its not something I would source. A dedicated usb transfer cable
or network would be much faster and both should be relatively cheap.

 

[GT]

I just remembered LapLink. I used it a few years ago. Had a cable made
up with a crossed over wire at one end. Did it run from com port to
com port? I know there was something odd about it...apart from the
fact that it was about 20metres long (I told my "lecky" mate that I
needed a "bit of length"!!!) But it did work, & at that time, that
alone was a great thing.
How fast? No idea.

They are still going - http://www.laplink.com/ - but I wouldn't attempt
anything with a serial cable - slower than a slow thing, on his day off!

 

[jameshanley39]

No; wrong cable.  You need to buy a Cat. 5 "Crossover Cable."  It's a
special cable for doing just what you want to do.  A normal Cat. 5 cable
will NOT work.

there are straight through, to cross-over adaptors, and vice versa.
Haven't tried them. they are cheap plastic things.

Incase it isn't clear.

If connecting computers to a router - and thus networking and
transferring that way. Computers and Routers have "unlike" interfaces,
so you use a straight through cable

For computers to computers, you use a crossover cable.

And once you buy the cable, label it! straight through or crossover.

There may be cases that network adaptors / thing behind the socket /
whatever you call it, can adjust and so it doesn't matter which type
you use.