Removed Win 7 drive- plugged into 3.0 USB but won't boot

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

  1. Posts : 3
    windows7 and 8 64 bit
       #1

    Removed Win 7 drive- plugged into 3.0 USB but won't boot


    My HP laptop died but the drive worked. I removed the drive, bought an adaptor to plug it into my USB 3.0 port on my new HP G7 2269wm laptop. It has Win 7 Home Premium but won't boot up on my new computer even though I change the bios to select the port. I don't want to install a new Win 7 over it as it will overwrite my info. I currently have a dual boot system now: Windows 8 and Windows 7. But the Windows 7 is a clean install and I want to run the Win 7 from my old laptop through my USB 3.0 port. Any ideas?
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 13,576
    Windows 10 Pro x64
       #2

    You can`t just swap a drive to a new system and expect it to boot.

    There are things you would have to do to it before you remove it from the old system, but in your case you can`t.

    You have to reinstall windows on the hard drive. Or use it as another storage drive.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 6,830
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32-Bit & Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit
       #3

    For you to boot off a USB 3.0 you would have to slipstream the driver to the drive . Windows 7 doesn't have USB 3.0 builtin drivers but windows 8 does .

    What exactly are you trying to do from the external hard drive ?
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 13,576
    Windows 10 Pro x64
       #4

    But you should be able to add it to the system and get your data off it.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 6,830
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32-Bit & Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit
       #5

    On the Hp when you press F9 for the boot options does the hard drive show up ? Could be under USB device
      My Computer


  6. whs
    Posts : 26,210
    Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
       #6

    It probably won't work. Once you solved the driver problem you will most likely run into an activation problem if that is an OEM installed system. I would get the user files off and reformat the HDD for additional storage.
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 13,576
    Windows 10 Pro x64
       #7

      My Computer


  8. Posts : 3
    windows7 and 8 64 bit
    Thread Starter
       #8

    Guys, thanks for the help. I was going to run it and try to install it on my new laptop as a dual boot. I did add a clean copy of Win 7 to my laptop and now have Win 8 and Win 7. I thought also if I could run it as a Win 7 drive through the USB 3.0 port, then I could use the Win 7 transfer tool to move my files. I probably can't transfer the operating system from my old laptop hard drive to my new partitioned hard drive because the new partitioned drive is labeled as: Windows 8 is C drive, Windows 7 is labeled F drive, my Windows 8 system restore is labeled D drive and the dvd drive is labeled E drive. My old Windows 7 laptop drive was labeled C drive and someone told me I'd have to use a program to relabel the old drive registry letters from "C" to "F" as the new system is labeled. I guess I'll just transfer my files the long way and use it for storage.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 3
    windows7 and 8 64 bit
    Thread Starter
       #9

    VistaKing said:
    On the Hp when you press F9 for the boot options does the hard drive show up ? Could be under USB device
    No, the only hard drive that shows up is the internal drive. I can see the drive once I've booted into Windows using diskmanager.
      My Computer


  10. whs
    Posts : 26,210
    Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
       #10

    I think you are doing the right thing by just copying your files. Then reformat it to NTFS (highlight andright click in Computer). Then you have a handy drive e.g. for images and non-essential data.
      My Computer


 
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

  Related Discussions
Our Sites
Site Links
About Us
Windows 7 Forums is an independent web site and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation. "Windows 7" and related materials are trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

© Designer Media Ltd
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 18:13.
Find Us