Moving all data from one hard drive to another.

[Aamir]

OK, quick question. Can you move all data, including the OS (WinXP),
from the master hard drive to the slave drive? If so, How do you go
about doing this?

 

[Uncle Grumpy]

OK, quick question. Can you move all data, including the OS (WinXP),
from the master hard drive to the slave drive?

Yes I can

If so, How do you go about doing this?

Me? I clone the drive using Acronis True Image.

 

[Timothy Daniels]

OK, quick question. Can you move all data, including the
OS (WinXP), from the master hard drive to the slave drive?
If so, How do you go about doing this?

Most hard drive makers have a downloadable utility on their
websites that will clone the contents of a hard drive. Since
they're usually used in upgrading to a larger HD, they will
fill up the new HD (make a new larger partition) with the
contents of the old HD. All cloning utilities will also do this.
The biggies are Symantec's Ghost and Acronis' True Image.
If you you can do with the new partition being the same size
as the old one, the downloadable free-trial version of
Casper XP will do that.
(See www.FSSdev.com/products/casperxp/ )

In cloning, it doesn't matter whether it's from Master to
Slave or Slave to Master or Master on ch. 0 to Master
on ch.1. The important thing, though, is to disconnect
the "parent" HD before booting up the clone HD for its
very 1st run. This is to keep the virgin clone OS from
seeing its "parent" OS when it's started for the 1st time.
Thereafter, it's OK for the clone to see its "parent" OS
at any time. It's also OK at any time for the "parent" OS
to start up and see its clone.

*TimDaniels*

 

[Pop]

Most hard drive makers have a downloadable utility on their
websites that will clone the contents of a hard drive. Since
they're usually used in upgrading to a larger HD, they will
fill up the new HD (make a new larger partition) with the
contents of the old HD. All cloning utilities will also do this.
The biggies are Symantec's Ghost and Acronis' True Image.
If you you can do with the new partition being the same size
as the old one, the downloadable free-trial version of
Casper XP will do that.
(See www.FSSdev.com/products/casperxp/ )

In cloning, it doesn't matter whether it's from Master to
Slave or Slave to Master or Master on ch. 0 to Master
on ch.1. The important thing, though, is to disconnect
the "parent" HD before booting up the clone HD for its
very 1st run. This is to keep the virgin clone OS from
seeing its "parent" OS when it's started for the 1st time.
Thereafter, it's OK for the clone to see its "parent" OS
at any time. It's also OK at any time for the "parent" OS
to start up and see its clone.

*TimDaniels*

If one has already screwed this up because it was unknown at the time of the procedure, is there any way to undo that
"damage"? WHat is that damage?

 

[Anna]

If one has already screwed this up because it was unknown at the time of
the procedure, is there any way to > undo that "damage"? WHat is that
damage?

As Tim points out it is good practice that immediately following a
disk-to-disk cloning operation using a disk imaging program such as Ghost,
Acronis, et al., it is advisable to make the initial boot to the cloned HDD
with *only* that HDD connected - not the source disk. If this is not done
there is a *potential* problem in that there will be subsequent boot
problems with the cloned HDD in that that drive will not boot straightaway
if the original source HDD is not connected at the time of bootup of the
cloned HDD. In that latter instance, with both drives connected the system
*will* boot to the cloned HDD under those circumstances but that cloned HDD
will carry a drive assignment other than C:. Booting with *only* the cloned
HDD connected will be unsuccessful. On the other hand if that initial boot
to the cloned HDD *immediately* following the disk-cloning operation is
undertaken with *only* the cloned HDD connected in the system (as is
recommended), then there will be no further boot problems at some future
date involving either HDD.

Note I said "potential" problem. In many cases (indeed, a majority in our
experience), there is *no* problem along the lines I've described even when
both HDDs (the source & destination disks) are connected immediately
following the disk-cloning operation and an initial boot is made. In those
cases the system will boot to the C: drive (the source disk) and the cloned
(destination) drive will have (at that point) a drive assignment letter
other than C:. But when the cloned HDD is later booted either alone or
designated in the BIOS as first in the boot priority order, there will be no
boot problems affecting that drive and it will be designated as the C:
drive.

There have been a number of reports that should the problem arise one can
modify the registry to overcome the problem. It has never worked for us.
Recently I notice a poster mentioned he or she had some success when the
problem arose by using a DOS boot disk with the fdisk /mbr command. Since we
haven't run into the problem recently we haven't had a chance try that one
out.
Anna

 

[Noncompliant]

The method I use occurs within the boot manager confines of my PC. I copy
one partition at time. When done, hide all those copied primary partitions
if the slave hard drive is to remain onboard after copying.

If the slave is to become the boot drive, I move the slave to master and
boot from that. Remove the original master hard drive. No hiding
partitions in that case.

If the original hard drive is to be retained for other purposes, I wipe all
the original partitions, create new ones and format them. Again within the
boot manager confines. Of course it would be jumpered slave.

Boot manager is system commander.