Use Windows Easy Transfer to migrate to SSD?

[preiius]

Unless anyone has inside knowledge that ssd prices are going to half in next few months, Crucial M4 64GB at around $100 is just too tempting to ignore.

In my current setup, user profiles are already on a different partition. I'm looking for the best way to migrate as much settings as possible. Among programs I have to reinstall and config are vs2010, sql server 2008, office 2003, quicken, vmware. Glad I made concious decision to use as much portable programs as possible.

 

[CreepinJesus]

Easy Transfer is for files and program settings (the AppData folder, basically), as well as any other folders you choose (if you go the 'Advanced' route). I used it when I transferred my system to an SSD and found it worked pretty well.

 

[Imperfect1]

I've had some glitches when using very similar transfer wizards (e.g. in Vista) in the past --- so just as a caution, before you do the transfer why don't you set a Restore Point? And if you’re extra cautious, you could back up your system before you do the transfer, just in case some things don’t transfer accurately.

There's some additional instructional information from Microsoft here: Windows Easy Transfer and an excellent tutorial by Orbital Shark here: Windows Easy Transfer - Transfer To & From Computers

 

[essenbe]

There are a couple of ways to do it, but the easiest and most simple is to use Paragon Migrate (19.95). It will transfer the entire OS to the SSD and align the SSD also. Read this tutorial about migrating the OS to SSD.

 

[preiius]

@CreepingJesus, does it migrate changes to registry and context menu?

@Imperfect1, I am an image junky! What glitches did you come across?

@essenbe, everywhere I read recommends reinstalling win7, so that features such as defrag and superfetch are disabled correctly. Does Paragon Migrate do this?

 

[essenbe]

I'm not convinced that superfetch should be disabled even though most recommend it. Once the transfer is made, run WEI and it will turn off defrag. But, to answer your question, it will transfer the entire OS, Programs and settings exactly the way it was on the original hard drive. You can turn off defrag manually in about 5 seconds if necessary.

 

[CreepinJesus]

@CreepinJesus, does it migrate changes to registry and context menu?

No, only files/folders, I'm afraid. It is aimed at people who have just bought a new computer and want to transfer their files over as quickly and easily as possible.

 

[DeaconFrost]

I would also recommend a clean install, while following our SSD tutorial to make sure the drive is set up properly before Windows 7 is installed. As for SuperFetch, don't disable it. It's one of the primary reasons why Windows 7 would outperform older OSes on recent hardware.

When I switched to an SSD, I did a clean install just so I could be sure everything was setup properly. I have the clean install process down under 2 hours now, so it wouldn't be a big deal.

 

[Imperfect1]

@Imperfect1, I am an image junky! What glitches did you come across?

Sorry preiius, it was quite a while ago so I don't remember specifically. But there were a number of corruptions in the transferred settings/folders/programs, and some didn't transfer at all.

 

[preiius]

I have a brain fart, what if I

1. Format ssd with proper alignment
2. Clone hd to ssd, using something like Backup & Restore which supports alignment.
3. Disable defrag & superfetch as required.

What did I miss? I'm happy with my win7 setup, which is running for 3 months now. Really don't want to reinstall and config if I can help it.

 

[essenbe]

Many of those programs will not maintain alignment. It will be aligned as the drive you are cloning is aligned.