Solved Install Windows 7 on a new C: drive maintaining use of the computer

[nicholasm]

Hello forum - new poster here.

I want to upgrade my boot drive to a larger SSD, but I don't have the original media or product key. I want to use the machine as-is while I reinstall everything on the new drive. Even if I could, I don't want simply to clone the current drive to the new one. I've already purchased the drive and a copy of Win7/64.

I'm familiar with the fresh installation process detailed in another thread, and my MOBO allows me to select the boot drive at startup, but I don't know how to deal with the issue of two boot drives when I want the new drive to end up being the C: drive. All I can think to do at this point is physically connect only the drive that I want to use.

Is there a more elegant workflow that would allow me to continue to use my computer as I rebuild the new OS drive and have it end up as the C: drive?

Thanks in advance,
Nick

 

[ICIT2LOL]

Hello and welcome mate just have only the new drive installed when you install from that media - no big deal. You can then do what you will with the old drives.

Just a word to avoid the 10 upgrade update when you are running updates make sure you set to what is in my pic and check for KB3035533 and just right click on it and hide it - tedious but worth it if you want to stay clear of the 10 nonsense.

 

[nicholasm]

ICIT2LOL,

Thanks for the quick reply. I understand to have only the new drive connected when I install Windows, but what I really want is to be able to reconnect and use the current drive until the new drive is completely rebuilt, at which point I can use the old drive for something else.

If cable-swapping is a safe approach (I don't know if that would cause other problems) then that's what I'll do - it's pretty straightforward.

Thanks for the heads-up on the 10 update. You're right - I don't want to go there.

Nick

 

[SIW2]

Yes, you will be able to do that.

If you do as suggested, install with only new drive connected. Then reconnecting the old drive will work fine if you have it set as first in boot order in bios.

 

[ICIT2LOL]

There you go just watch for that update

 

[AddRAM]

There`s no cable swapping involved, just put the new drive on sata port 2, when done hook up the old drive how it was and just use the boot menu key to boot into the new drive whenever you want, simple logic.

All you are doing is unplugging the power cable from the older drive, that`s it nothing else, no need to touch it`s data cable at all.

 

[nicholasm]

AddRAM,

Sure, that makes sense: no power to the old drive (or any of the other 4) while installing Win7 on the new drive.

However, the current boot drive has a C: and D: partition, and I assume the new one would, too. If I were to then re-power the old drive and use the boot menu to select between them, wouldn't I end up with a drive letter conflict? Regardless of which drive I boot from, the other drive will still be visible. Or are you saying to use both the boot menu and the power cable to control booting?

I've never installed Windows on anything but C:. To avoid a conflict, am I supposed to assign the new drive a unique letter (I currently have C:, E:, F: G: and Q: drives) before installing Windows? If so, isn't that assignment permanent?

Nick

 

[AddRAM]

Whichever drive you boot into will be C, there is no conflict. Windows will see the partitions on the other drive as other letters.

There are no partitions on the new drive until YOU make them, if you don`t create more then 1 partition then there will only be 1 partition (C) not counting the System Reserved partition.

When you boot into the old drive, it will be C, when you boot into the new drive, it will be C, understand ??????


Once you connect the power cable back you will never touch it again, you just use the boot menu key to choose the new drive when you want to boot into it.

 

[nicholasm]

ICIT2LOL & SIW2,

Thanks for the help. SIW2 - I found another, similar thread to which you'd replied in greater detail. I get it now.

AddRAM - If you don't have the patience for newbie questions, simply ignore them. Understand???????

 

[AddRAM]

If I didn`t have patience for noobs I wouldn`t be writing out instructions in such detail.

What I don`t have patience for is people who don`t read and are rude !!

I only wrote Understand so you would get it !!!

Understand ????

Now lighten up

 

[nicholasm]

AddRAM,

I wanted a more thorough understanding of the solution and was simply asking for clarification of points that were not addressed in the previous responses. I don't see how that qualifies as a failure to read.

As for the question of rudeness, if your goal was simply to make sure I understood, you would have skipped the redundant (and condescending) question marks. I've seen far less informed questions than mine met with far more civil responses than yours in other threads.

What you (and the rest of the forum) don't realize is that your unedited response beginning with the three letter acronym of exasperation, Oscar-Mike-Golf, came through on my iPhone before the mods changed it. Now THAT was rude.

In retrospect, I should not have stooped to your level by adding "Understand?????" to my reply, and for that I apologize.