Removing Windows Vista from an old HDD

[douglasb]

I recently installed a SSD and Windows 7 (no idea why I persisted with Vista for so long!) and am now left with a 500GB HDD with a copy of Vista I am no longer using on it. I have other stuff on the drive I'd like to keep so I don't want to just wipe the whole thing but I do want to remove Vista. Can I just select all the Vista files through 7 and delete them?

(Also I'm unsure if this should be storage or software, if it should be in software than can a mod please move it, thanks!)

Thanks

Douglas

[Hamy144]

Just remove the files that vista uses and you should be fine, and save that important space.

[matts-uk]

If you are sure the files are not being used by Windows 7, then yes it is safe to delete them. For instance, Windows 7 was installed on the new C: (SSD) and you have not installed any applications on D: (the old vista drive).

You might want to enable show hidden and OS files to reveal system files in the root of the old Vista drive. Old paging and hibernation files can be pretty big and might as well be deleted.

[simontompkins]

Warning: Please do some more digging on this. I seem to remember just deleting form the drive and having all kinds of problems with the hard drive. If memory serves there is a boot loader on vista that needs to be removed by the vista installation disc. It's probably not an issue if you intend to use the disc for storage but even so I'd do it properly. Again, it's been a while since I did it but I seem to remember that vista alters the MBR of the hard disk and if you just delete files it does, but doesn't alter the changes to the MBR. Even running fix MBR at a command prompt didn't solve the problem.
As it's been a while I think it may have been when I put win 7 on the disc as well as xp and then tried to just delete the win 7 files from xp. Still I seem to remember that vista has a similar boot loader.
All in all please do some more digging.
If anyone can add to these thoughts please do.

[cam1986]

Open up the drive in Win7, select and save all files you want to keep then format the drive. Simples

[brookheather]

Some Windows system files can be stubborn to remove - you may need to reset the file permissions and owner to your Windows user before they can be removed.

[Agent]

Some Windows system files can be stubborn to remove - you may need to reset the file permissions and owner to your Windows user before they can be removed.

I wouldn't even mess about doing that to be honestg. I'd just back the stuff up, format it from the install disk, and then copy back. No worrying about permissions