Windows 7: Moving program files from XP to new Win 7 pc

Last night we purchased a new pc with Win 7 loaded. We have an old and dying XP. It has been backed up using the Win backup facility to an external hard drive (assesories/system/backup). I imagine that restoring the data files will not be a big problem, but: She does not have all the original "program" CD's.

It is a home pc and NOT networked. I read that a parallel cable could be attached between the two pc's and then programs "transferred" in this manner.

Is there another way?

If a parallel cable (get one at computer store?) is needed, then what is the procedure?

Take a look here:

Windows Easy Transfer - Transfer To & From Computers

For the most part, you can't transfer programs. Sorry, for the bad news.

ccatlett1984 is correct you can't transfer programs for the most part. When you setup your new PC it can transfer all your MS Office files that have been saved, .doc's, .xml's, calendar info etc. Add to this if you use MS Outlook all you need do is supply your email address and password and it finalizes the setup for any and all accounts and loads all the email, saved, folders etc.

If your old PC and new PC are both on a home network it will do all that and grab your photos and such, mine transferred 75 Gb in under 3 hrs across my wireless network.

You will have to reload software packages and associate some things but all in all it does an excellent job. If you don't have a home network you can do this with a cable and the link theog supplied covers the steps needed.

I suggest you read about Windows Easy Transfer under "Help and Support" on the Windows 7 machine.

The Easy Transfer cable is a special USB cable. Best Buy lists it for $25US, which seems overpriced. (However, www.newegg.com doesn't do much better: $15 + $3 S&H for their cheapest.)

If you don't have an external USB backup drive, this might be a good time to buy one. You could use Easy Transfer off of the XP machine onto the drive, and then transfer from the drive to the Windows 7 machine. (I don't use Easy Transfer: I manually copy files, plus some additional stuff like my Outlook favorites and email archives.) When that's done, you'll still have the drive for backing up stuff. It costs more than the cable, but it has more residual value.

As others have remarked, you can't transfer any program that required an installer.(That's most programs.) I have seen third-party programs advertized that claim to do it, but no one has ever recommended one. I suspect that they don't actually work. Unless the program could copy all of the relevant registry keys, the copies program might not work properly.

You are wasting your time. Those XP program files are completely useless in Windows 7. There is a lot more to running a program than just the program files. I suggest you download the Windows 7 versions for the programs in question from the web.

All programs on the XP system? What about my MS Office (2003), Outlook, etc. Are they not compatible with Win 7?

Check all programs with the Upgrade Advisor:

Download details: Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor

It is not a matter of program compatibility but problem concerning the program installation. You have to make a proper installation of each program starting with the installation .exe so that all the pieces (also those apart from the program files like Registry entries, .dlls, etc) get properly intalled. I am not 100% certain about Office 2003, but since you could install it under Vista, I assume it would also work with Windows 7. Outlook is another matter. I don't believe that this will run. But again, I have never used either one of these programs, so wait for more comments to confirm or say otherwise.

Office 2003 works great on windows 7, including Outlook. You can get the serial numbers of some of your apps by running "magic jellybean" on the old computer. You will need to gain access to the install media though, to be able to install the software on your new computer.