I am currently running Vista Home Basic x64 on an older Socket 754 machine but I am building a new but more modern system and will need to transfer all of my applications, audio, video and backups to it. Trouble is, I don't know where to begin. I've never done this before!

I should mention that my new motherboard will have SATA hard drive connectors, which I am going to use and two IDE headers, so they would be available.

I checked into using programs like Laplink PC Mover and Intellimover but neither one of those support migrating from x64 to x64. So I called the local computer shop and they suggested that I use a USB IDE enclosure or Caddy and transfer everything through USB.

That makes a lot of sense, but I don't know where to look for something like that on the Internet. I'm assuming this device will need to be powered somehow also, most hopefully that would be through AC/DC, but I bet there are other options. like just connecting a Molex, correct?

I also already own a removable IDE hard drive enclosure and it has a connector for a Molex and an IDE cable. I imagine I could also use that also, correct? But would my system recognize the drive so I'd be able to access files, then copy them to the new machine?

Please advise as to what you think the best (and preferably cheapest) method to go about this.


Thank you

Just to clarify, are you just wanting to copy personal files (videos, documents, music, etc) or are you wanting to copy the entire OS? To move just the personal files the cheapest thing to do would be to put the drive from the old computer into the new one & move them that way. You can also buy an external enclosure (which you might have but I can't tell). This will turn your internal drive into an external drive. I don't know about connecting the computers directly with Vista. Burnable dvds/cds will also work but don't delete the files from the old computer until you have tested the files out on the new one. I learned this the hard way. Another option is a portable usb memory stick. Its faster to put the files on this instead of a dvd & it is reusable. These only cost about 20-30 usd for a 2 gb drive.

If you are wanting to move both the OS & your files then you'll need special software like Norton Ghost to do this. As you can see ghost is quite expensive & I don't know of anything free or cheaper but this is suppose to be the best. If you are wanting to do this keep in mind that the drivers will no longer be correct so windows might freak out & it will be acting kind of strange until you install the correct drivers. I wouldn't be surprised if this causes a bsod. The best thing for you to do is to reinstall windows on the new computer instead of copying the OS over with ghost.