The article describes ways in which you can transfer data from one computer to another with a guarantee of data safety and without much effort. Transfer files, settings and programs to new computer, can be difficult and intimidating for the user, especially if he does not know how to do it correctly and where to start.
Often it all comes down to the user copying the most necessary and important data from the old PC to an external storage device, and then copying it to HDD new computer. This method also exists, but it is associated with the risk of data loss during the process and/or as a result of information transfer. But what about applications and operating system settings?
In fact, there are several ways that will help you transfer data from one computer to another with better quality and with less effort, and, very importantly, with a guarantee of safety.
Content:There are many utilities for transferring data, settings and programs to a new computer. To use them, you just need to install such a program on both computers and use them to transfer your files, applications and settings.
A tool with such functionality is also provided free of charge by Microsoft - this Windows Easy Transfer. And although, starting with Windows 10, it is no longer available as a built-in utility in the operating system, Microsoft offers to use another third party application– PCmover Express.
The principle of operation of the program is as follows: connect an external storage device to your computer and launch the application; transfer your data from your computer to an external drive and then connect it to another PC to which you need to transfer the data; run this application on a new computer and transfer data from external media to this computer.
The system's built-in File Backup and Restore tool also allows you to transfer files and system settings to another computer.
By using of this instrument you can create a system image. This will be a complete image of the operating system, including system files, installed programs and personal files. It is enough to simply deploy the system image that was created from the old computer on a new computer.
Also, do not forget about the possibility of copying files manually, this way you can transfer personal files from computer to computer. To do this, connect an external storage medium of sufficient capacity to the computer (for example, external hard disk) and copy all the files that need to be transferred to it. After this, connect this disk to a new computer and transfer the necessary files.
If all your files on your computer are well organized and you know their location on your hard drive, then it will be difficult to implement this method you won't have it.
This way, you will be able to transfer files, but not settings. If you also need to transfer browser bookmarks, you will need to export/import them using the functions of the browser itself. Everyone has modern browsers There are also synchronization functions with which you can import all settings.
Services cloud storage can store user data, settings and other data, and do a good job of it. To do this, just install the service client on your computer and configure data saving with its help. On another computer, it will be enough to install the same client and log into the account you created earlier, and you will have access to all the data saved in it.
Such services on this moment many, the most popular of which are Dropbox and Google Drive, as well as Microsoft OneDrive integrated into Windows. You can use any one convenient for you.
If the transition to a new computer is due to the inoperability of the old one, then the user’s personal data can also be transferred from it.
To do this, connect the hard drive of the old computer to the new one and check how it is detected by the operating system (it all depends on the reasons for the failure of the old PC). If it is recognized by the computer as another hard drive and all files are available for use on it, then it is enough to carry out the actions described in paragraph "Just copy the files". You can only copy them directly to the hard drive of your new computer.
If hard files disks from the old computer are not displayed, then you can restore them using a hard drive data recovery program - Hetman Partition Recovery. To do this, launch it and scan your hard drive. Save all files detected by the program to a new computer hard drive.
Switching to a new computer should not be difficult for the user. Some tools even provide the ability to transfer installed programs and applications. But the most important factor in data transfer is the user's personal files, which should not be damaged or lost during the process or as a result of the data transfer. The methods described above should help the user avoid such unpleasant consequences.
Developers software They constantly make the programs easier to work with, but installing them takes a long time and is a very tedious process. That is why the question of how to transfer a program to a PC in working condition worries users.
Transferring programs from one computer to another can be useful in the following cases:
You need to reinstall Windows;
Do you want to buy a new PC and transfer previously used programs there;
You need to replace the hard drive (hard drive) without losing the necessary data.
The easiest way is to transfer the program to another computer through PickMeApp.
The easiest and most affordable product for transferring installed programs is this applicationPickMeApp.
1. The application can be downloaded from our website.
2. Installing the utility is quite easy. But there are a few buts, during installation, select installation in the C drive, the Program Files folder and, for example, the port folder (this is what the path C:\Program Files\Port will look like). Also during installation you will be asked to install 3 more programs that you may not need. In the gray text boxes, press the Decline button 3 times. If you do not do this, Opera, Uninstaller and RegCleaner will be installed!
3. PickMeApp only works on English language, but everything is clear as it is, when working withPickMeApp. If you have questions, just read carefully these instructions. The program will sort all applications that are installed on your computer into two folders: Qualified Applications and Nonqualified Applications (those that can be transferred and those that cannot). You can only migrate applications from the first Qualified Applications folder. The big disadvantage of the program is that not all programs can be transferred:
4. Put a tick next to the desired program and click “Capture” to move.
5. Wait until the copying is complete and click the “Save As Exe” button on the right side of the window:
6. All program files will be saved in the folderPickMeApp/TAPPS:
7. Copy them to a flash drive or hard drive. Install the utility on another computerPickMeApp and launch the selected programs:
8. That's it, the transfer is complete.
Programs can be transferred only as an administrator;
Even when using paid applications large type software Microsoft Office, will not work after moving;
Along with the files, you can move viruses and infected files located in the copied folder.
So you have moved all the programs you need to a new or different computer. But what should you do if you need programs that cannot be moved usingPickMeApp?
First, I’ll tell you what the portable version of the program is. This is a program that can run on any computer from any storage medium. Typically, programs are installed on a computer, and if, for example, you copy the program to another computer, it will not function correctly. The difference between the portable version is that it can work anywhere and is not tied to any computer. You can carry such a program with you on a flash drive and no matter what computer you run it on, it will work everywhere, naturally within the family of operating systems.
I won’t tell you how to create a portable program; for many it may seem complicated. You don’t have to create it, but simply download almost any program on the Internet in the portable version. Just write in the search “download program_name portable” - we find and download the program you need. If you have any questions, you can ask them on our forum.
Officially, installation is the process of installing a program on your computer. During installation, the program copies itself (most often) to the “Program Files” folder, writes the data it needs in the system registry, and sometimes places additional libraries or system files in the operating system itself.
Handles the installation process special program – installer. Most often, the installer includes the program itself and internal instructions for installing it.
This official explanation, as practice shows, is not clear to everyone.
Imagine your own kitchen. It will be like a computer. The food processor that you want to install in your kitchen is the program that you are going to install on your computer.
Now everything is simple. You bought a food processor. It is semi-assembled in a box, not connected to electricity. Of course, such a combine in a box is of no use. He does not work.
Now you, with a packed harvester in your hands, are an installer. What will you do as an installer? And there are instructions about this inside the box with the combine. You take it out, read it and do everything according to the instructions - remove the components and assemblies of the combine from the box, connect them in a certain sequence, and connect the combine to the power supply. You put away the attachments and spare parts from the combine that you don’t need right now, along with the box, in a special cupboard.
Now your food processor is ready for use (the program is installed on the computer).
Second question(Is it possible to simply copy the installed program to another computer), I think now it has become more clear to you. “Can an installed food processor be moved to another kitchen?” The answer is no.
In another kitchen, the food processor must first be connected to electricity (the program must be registered in the system registry). Unlike sticking a plug into a socket, manually writing a program in the registry is more complicated and more dangerous for the operating system. In addition, if you want to use some functions of the program (change the attachments in the food processor), you will find that they are not in the new place (the attachments remained in the cabinet in the old kitchen). And for the program, perhaps these files will be very necessary, and the program will completely refuse to start (and may even cause the operating system to crash).
Well, the third question(if I no longer need the program, why can’t I just erase it), I think it’s completely obvious to you now. Because garbage remains in the operating system. You threw out the combine, but the wire from it remained in the socket. And a box with now unnecessary attachments and spare parts takes up space in the closet.
To properly remove a program from your computer, you need a special program - an uninstaller. This program contains instructions on what and where it was copied, laid out, and installed. And the uninstaller correctly deletes all files, folders and keys system registry, which contained a program that you no longer needed.
In conclusion, I would like to say that not all programs are so complex. Some programs allow you to copy themselves from one computer to another, and each time they start, they check whether everything is in order with their files in the system and the keys in the registry, and, if necessary, carry out the installation themselves. As a rule, they do not perform uninstallation, and garbage accumulates in the system after them.
There are also programs that do not need installation at all. They do not install anything into the system and can be launched from a flash drive or CD.
Less experienced users Computers, when starting to get acquainted with new equipment, often make one mistake. They do not perform backups after installing the system and software, as well as periodically later during the operation of the computer. It is useful not only in situations where an accident occurs or problems arise with applications.
Recreating a flawlessly working system is very useful in a situation where we want to transfer the system to a new computer or a new hard drive, for example, a newly purchased SSD drive.
Benefits of AOMEI Backupper
License: freeware
Price: free
Backup files, folders and partitions, including the system one. Has the function of cloning and creating a system recovery disk.
Benefits of EaseUS Todo Backup Free
License: freeware
Price: free
Creates and returns a copy of a partition (also system) and disks. Backup can be saved as an image on local disk, USB device or on DVD.
Benefits of Macrium Reflect Free
License: freeware
Price: free
Creates and restores images, copies data from disk to disk, clones volumes. In the wizard, you can select the location, compression, and protect the image with a password.
Benefits of Active@ Disk Image
Flaws
License: freeware
Price: free
Creates and returns copies of individual partitions and entire disks. Craftsmen make maintenance easy. Backups can be saved on any media.
Benefits of Paragon Backup & Recovery Free
License: freeware
Price: free
The question posed in the title of this article has two possible options response, depending on what exactly the user needs at the moment.
The simplest of these options is when you just need to transfer a file of a program, for example, its installer, to a flash drive and nothing more. This can be done simply, using standard functions of the operating system, or some third-party tools. The easiest way to use this is Windows Explorer or some other file manager. In this case, you can copy the program to a flash drive in bulk in various ways. Naturally, the first thing you should do is connect the flash drive itself to the computer.
By the way, everything written here can equally apply to both regular USB flash drives and flash cards. In this matter there is no fundamental difference between them.
Next, you can select the file we need in Explorer and, depending on the version of the operating system, select it from the menu (standard menu; context menu, called right click mice; button on the panel, etc.) item " Copy to..." And in the window that opens, where you need to specify the destination for the copied file, find your flash drive.
Another way is to use drag and drop, the so-called “drag-n-drop” method. You just need to select the file with the left button and, without releasing it, drag it with the mouse to the desired location - folder, flash drive, etc. - and then let go. If you use Windows Explorer, then on the left it will show a tree of folders and computer devices, in which you can easily find the flash drive we need.
Another method possible in the Explorer of some Windows versions- This is to use the "Send" menu. Select the desired file with the right mouse button and in the context menu that appears, find the line “ Send..." If you hold the mouse cursor over this construction site, it will expand into a more detailed list, in which one of the options will include the flash drive to which we need to copy the file.
There is another, universal, copying method that works always and everywhere, regardless of the operating system versions or used file managers- “copy-paste” method.
The word “copy-paste” comes from the English combination “copy-paste”, which literally means “copy-paste”.
To use it, you need to select the file you are looking for and select “ Copy"(note: not "Copy to...", but simply "Copy"). Then go to the desired folder (in our case, a flash drive) and select the option “ Insert" That's it, the file will be copied to the location we need.
It is much more convenient to copy-paste using hotkey combinations rather than menu functions. In this case, the key combination “Ctrl+C” will correspond to the “Copy” command, and the “Ctrl+V” combination will correspond to the “Paste” command.
This is all that is needed if the user just needs to copy the program file to a flash drive.
But much more often, the answer to the question in the title requires something a little different. You need to not only copy the program there, but also make sure that this program can work from this flash drive. Purely theoretically, there is nothing complicated about this, but in practical application this will not always be possible, since several important points must be taken into account.
Let's say you have Windows already the required program or game is installed. Then you can try to simply copy its files and folders to a flash drive (by any of the methods described above). But it is far from a fact that it will work. Or another option - it will work, but only when the flash drive is connected to your computer. She will not want to work with any other PC.
There may be three reasons for this behavior. The first is that the files needed by the program were copied during its installation not only to its own folder, but also to other system directories. Therefore, when simply copying to a flash drive, you cannot copy everything that the program needs to work, and understanding the details is usually quite difficult and time-consuming. The second reason is that the program needs some system files to work, which your Windows has, but others, for example, your friend, may not have. And third, when installing the program, it is written too deeply into the operating system, and when you try to run it from a flash drive, its connections with the operating system are broken, and all sorts of errors occur, or the program refuses to work at all.
However, no one forbids you to try. Find it on system partition disk folder with the files of the desired program and copy it entirely to the USB flash drive. By any of the methods we described above. And you try to run it from a flash drive. It works, without glitches or failures - you are glad that everything turned out well. If not, think about other options.
Another compromise method that you can try. Connect your USB flash drive to your computer and run the installation program. Specify the USB flash drive as the destination folder, and the program will install on it. Now it will work from this flash drive, but, most likely, only when the flash drive is connected specifically to your computer; it may not work with other PCs. Again, no one forbids you to try.
In order for programs to be guaranteed to work from flash drives and other connected devices, you need to use their portable - so-called “portable” - versions ( Portable). These are versions that are specially adapted for such work. To install them, you just need to transfer the folder with such a program to a flash drive and find the start file in it to launch. Often such versions come packaged in an archive, which you simply need to unpack onto a flash drive.
It should be noted that portable versions programs can be used not only from flash drives, but also from a stationary hard drive. If such programs are placed in a separate folder on a partition different from the one where it is installed operating system, then you can seriously save time and effort during subsequent Windows reinstallations- in the future you will no longer have to install and configure these programs again. They will remain fully ready for use since the last installation of the system. All that remains is to drag out the shortcuts to their start files onto the Desktop (or any convenient place).
Unfortunately, not all programs now have portable versions. But many still have them. There are some in our software catalog. To find them, pay special attention to the word “ Portable» on the files page of any program.
