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Phuzzy4242, while file moves on the same partition are almost instantaneous, file copies are not. For best transfer speeds copy files from one physical hard drive to another. This is especially useful while encoding video and you have multiple physical hard drives at your disposal - source file on one, destination on another, and temp files on yet another.

Having a relatively small OS partition forces you to be more rigorous in backing up/ moving stuff to other, safer partitions. However, hard disks are so cheap now that most people can afford to have several.

I already have a partition for the OS.

Current setup:

A 300GB drive with a 50GB partition housing the OS, leaving 250GB which houses storage.

&

A 250GB slave just for storage.

So I assume I would “simply” reinstall the OS in the partition and replace the slave drive, job done.

Dell Dimension 5150 or 5150C? Go to www.dell.com, click the support tab, download drivers and apps based on your hardware (e.g. look in control panel> device manager to see which sound card you have, and get the drivers for it. Repeat for the other items.

IF you are going to go Windows 7 x64 (and I would highly recommend this), make sure you get a machine on which Virtual Technology is enabled - that way you can run anything incompatible in XP mode (separate download from Microsoft). You should also download and run the Windows 7 ready for upgrade app on your computer - it tells you very simple terms what is and is not compatible. Check the INTEL and AMD websites for which processors support this feature (INTEL is VT-Enabled, AMD is AMD-V), the INTEL implementation is a veritable minefield with sometimes the same FAMILY having no support for this. Also ensure you CAN enable this in BIOS - ACER (all AFAIK), HP (some), SONY (only newer models have enabled) do NOT enable this as a BIOS option. With AMD you are generally OK as long as you are not using either an older CPU, or the new cut-down one (SEMPRON). If you have Athlon or Turion you are golden.

You CANNOT upgrade a 32 bit OS to a 64 bit OS and so (in any case it is preferable) format and reinstall is the way to go. Remember to ensure you have downloaded all the necessary drivers and preinstalled apps you want to keep on the new one (HP have this to a tee on their website).

Windows 7 includes (built in) the option to create system images so no need to invest in separate software. Go for minimum 4GB RAM.

EBay has some excellent offers on both PCs and laptops (if you decide on this), and I am sure someone here will help out with specs if you need that.

Hang on a minute.......debaser has already explained he's not in the market for a new machine so discussions about Operating Systems are a waste of time. I wouldn't even bother running a compatibility check for Windows 7.......this is likely to be around about a 2003/4 manufacture machine. Nothing wrong with it but it's a Dell & probably a UK spec Dell which will make it very driver specific. It was designed around XP therefore that's the only sensible way to go. The bonus of course is that XP has come a very long way since the machine was built. The only way I would differ from the likely debaser/emuler clean install would be to install a later version of XP. Microsoft may have virtually stopped support/development of XP but others haven't with fresh releases appearing in the usual places on a very regular basis. These are excellent, very stable releases with the latest SP's & updates that remove the need to bother visiting the Windows update site. If you're running Firefox you'll not have a lot of need for that service as most updates are aimed at IE. And of course when the next format/clean install comes around you simply get an updated version! Most are able to be tailored & customized to your requirements including the Vista/7 interface if you so wish.
emuler is quite right........go get your latest drivers & Good Luck!

lb

From what I saw at the Dell website, DB's model is not 64 bit capable, so x64 versions are out. However, he should at least try Windows 7 32 bit. If it gives him trouble, he could go back to XP SP3 (another clean install), but AFAIK the driver support in Win 7 is quite good. In any case, a clean install is highly recommended.

I have to admit I am perpetually mystified why many people reinstall their OS just to increase performance a relatively small amount. A reinstall is a big deal! The more you do it the easier it gets, especially if all you are doing is using a prebuilt image, but any time you do something major on your system you are opening yourself up to creating problems. There are so many different details involved in reinstalling software and reconfiguring everything you need. It is not quick and easy unless you use little additional software, and I have lots of software tools I use. I bought my laptop (which I use for everything except eMule and torrents) in 2004 and have never reinstalled the operating system. I never even upgraded to XP SP3, I always ask myself: does the benefit in increased features/security/reliability outweigh the likelyhood that something will break or change in a way I don't like? I prefer my existing system, even though it is slower than it used to be (and at 1.6Ghz it wasn't super fast to begin with) because I know exactly where everything is and how it's supposed to work.

Sometime (maybe later this year) I will get a new machine and I will have to learn my way around Windows7 and reinstall everything (everything which is compatible, at least) and that will be a big project for a big gain. But until then the risks of making major system changes greatly outweigh the benefits.

One more thought: if you have only one machine at home (which is pretty typical though not as much for people here), think twice about a major reinstall if you are cut off from the net while doing it. At some point in the process it's quite possible you will need to look something up online or research a problem or find out the best way to do something.

A little late but as promised, the software we are using at work to mirror important PC.

Symantec Backup Exec System Recovery Desktop Edition

Symantec Backup Exec System Recovery 2010 Desktop Edition is a simple, cost-effective backup and recovery solution for small businesses that helps minimize downtime and avoid disaster by easily recovering individual data files/folders or complete Windows desktops or laptops in minutes – not hours or days – even to different hardware, virtual environments, or remote locations.


http://www.symantec.com/business/backup ... op-edition

FLL wrote:I have to admit I am perpetually mystified why many people reinstall their OS just to increase performance a relatively small amount. A reinstall is a big deal! The more you do it the easier it gets, especially if all you are doing is using a prebuilt image, but any time you do something major on your system you are opening yourself up to creating problems.

I used to reinstall all the time because I "experimented" alot - did stuff an ordinary person wouldn't try with a computer (c'mon, be nice, get your mind out of the gutter LOL) - and the OS got screwed up. Most reinstalls I do now are because of viruses, or because of teenagers in the house. A complete reinstall can be scary for people less geeky than me - I make alot of money off those geek-deprived people because many could do it themselves, but I don't mind sharing my experience here. If you'd rather I shut up, I don't doing mind that either.

A little bit of prep before starting makes everything go smoother. I recommend:

1) Download Double Driver (freeware) from http://www.boozet.org/dd.htm and make a backup of all your current drivers, even the "stock" Microsoft ones. Download Unknown Devices (freeware) from http://www.halfdone.com/ukd - I've seen Device Manager tell me "Unknown PCI Device" too many times with no clue which device it's talking about, and this standalone program will tell you what driver you really need. Get these programs before you start, because that unknown device might be your NIC and you won't get online until you install the driver.
2) Gather all the installs for the software you use. If you have room on the second drive, make a folder and put the installers for every program, utility, etc. there - reinstalls go a lot faster.
3) If you have room, copy the entire folders of programs that require extra setups (i.e. changed options like download folder, etc.) from Program Files to the other drive. Don't copy stuff like Acrobat Reader or Microsoft Office. After you've done a clean reinstall of a program, you can often copy the old folder's contents over the top of it and a lot of your settings "come back" - it saves a lot of time. Copying might also save you from losing data and registration keys you didn't realize were there. You can delete these copies later.
4) Don't forget your Favorites, Desktop, saved emails, .pst files (from Outlook), signature files, dictionaries, iPod downloads, DRM, etc.! Don't forget other users' data, if any. You really should look around everywhere for files that were "misplaced" - you might be surprised. If in doubt, copy it!

Now you're ready to reinstall. Install MS Office if you need to, THEN go to update.microsoft.com and get ALL the updates except the Windows Live crap. Also, I'd hesitate about letting MS install hardware driver updates - if it ain't broke, don't fix it, and I've seen these hardware updates break stuff more than once. When all the updates are done (I DO recommend XP SP3), go back and do it again... and again, until you get everything (there are updates to the updates). Expect to spend a couple hours running Windows updates, even if you're on a T1 or faster line - some installs take forever (SP3 and .NET especially), and if your Win install is fairly old, there'll be 90 or more updates, the first go-round. I've been using IE8 for a couple months, and it seems stable. I have to support it, so I use it on my work PCs, but I use Opera at home, but you still need IE for Win updates so you might as well install v8.

Go to www.adobe.com and install Flash and Shockwave. Install your firewall, antivirus, and antimalware programs, then start installing software. I don't recommend McAfee, though I used to be a fan (and knew the regional rep - ah, Amy, why'd you have to get promoted?? ). The last dozen or so viruses I had to get rid of, McAfee didn't stop them or even detect them with a full scan. I do recommend Malwarebytes (www.malwarebytes.org) - it's been doing the job excellently and there's a freeware version. Spybot is also freeware and pretty good. AdAware looks like they've stopped making a freeware version.

There... See, nothing to it! It's not that difficult, but it's definitely time consuming.

Oh, Phuzzy, I think your help is *great* for those like Debaser (and almost everyone sooner or later) with system problems, I was just commenting on reinstallations when there is no pressing need and the system is slow but otherwise Ok. Until you've done this before and get completely organized, it's much more likely you will forget something or be unable to locate a keyfile or license code or exactly what your config was for some piece of the system, causing you more time/pain/trouble than what you had hoped to gain.