New HDD, Fresh Install.

[craigtrap]

Hi

Getting a new HDD, and i want a fresh install!

So is the best way to do it...

to get new hdd set up, put stuff i want to keep on it and then format the other and reinstall windows?

Thanks
Craig.

[peterb]

way I would do it is remove old HDD, install new one, set up new OS, then install old HDD as slave and copy settings/data etc onto new drive. Keep the second drive installed for added capacity.

Lots of ways of skinning that particular cat though. I always use multoiple partitions for a windows system - one for OS, one for applications, one for user data. That way re-installing the OS is easier. You may want to consider using dynamic disks for the new install so that the two disks operate as one logical drive.

[speardane]

there's an argument for keeping the 2nd disk uninstalled for a while - especially if you hadn't adopted Peter's strategy previously - I always find (until I have re-installed a standard set of apps a number of times) that there's something I haven't transferred over I need later.

This is because apps store data in so many different places & I don't always transfer 100%. (eg in /program files; /application data; /my documents; cookies & stored passwords etc.)

regarding which is which I'd use the bigger for my data - I always seem to need more.

If I had the room, I'd also consider setting aside a spare OS partition - for later testing new o/s / or recovering OS when broken (eg Windows has eaten NTLDR again)