Need to put my XP drive on Vista computer

patannee · Nov 4, 2008

My laptop computer crashed, but the hard drive is still fine. I have many Adobe and MS programs that will not run on Vista. Can I add my old drive to the Vista computer and run it under XP so that I can continue to use my software along with all of the valuable files on this hard drive? Any advice on how to accomplish this task is much appreciated.

NormCameron · Nov 5, 2008

Vista will run most programs in XP Compatability Mode. See Brink's Tutorial on Dual Booting. If you install the Disk in an other system running Vista, without dual-booting the existing XP OS, you will be able to access all files, but not run any programs on that disk.

mansrm81 · Nov 5, 2008

I got vista and xp on 2 different drives and I use the bios boot option when I start my computer and select the drive for xp when I want to use xp and then just let my computer start when I want to run vista.

NormCameron · Nov 5, 2008

You need to read Brink's Tutorial as XP screws with the Vista System Restore files. He has a work around to fix this.

smarteyeball · Nov 5, 2008

Hi patannee, are you talking about using your Vista drive that has apps installed under Vista and running them as is in XP?

If so, you may have a low success rate with the apps working properly as the XP registry won't know where all the files / settings are located and they may not function correctly. Your best best would be to uninstall the apps in Vista and re-install them under XP.

You'll still be able to access files from the old HDD , just don't expect some of your apps to work correctly.

TheShadow · Nov 5, 2008

Windows 98 was the last OS for home use that could be 'moved' from one physical PC to another.
XP and Vista will not run at all if moved to a different PC than the one it was originally installed on.

In the topic example the simple answer is "NO".
If you had the adaptors to use that drive on another PC, you'd still have to RE-Install XP for it to run on a different motherboard. That's just the rules set up by Microsoft.

Good Luck,
The Shadow :cool:

NormCameron · Nov 5, 2008

Hi Smarty, He wants to go XP to Vista, I think. However the advice remains the same except that XP can't access any files in sub folders stored in the {My Computer}Vista folder. ie Documents, Pictures, Videos, etc as Vista locks these. If he wants access from Xp these folders must be stored outside that Main Folder.

NormCameron · Nov 5, 2008

Hi Shadow, You are wrong there. Both XP and Vista will happily migrate. Vista is better at it because it has a larger Driver Base. I do this regularly. When I test new systems I have one XP and one Vista harddrive that I use to test, rather than installing a new OS each time. I rebuild old systems, that's why XP, and also new ones which I would normally recommend Vista for. I don't supply any Software. Provided the drivers are handy it works fine, but you would then need to reactivate the install. I don't because I remove the drive for the next build.

You are right in that sometimes the changes are too drastic that they wont boot in XP. But not too often. And it saves an hour or so each time.

TheShadow · Nov 5, 2008

I run a dual-boot system with XP on my #1 SATA drive and Vista Ultimate on my #2 SATA drive.

Running XP, I can open up the Vista drive and access any file that is NOT in what might be called a "System" folder.
For instance, I can't open the "Documents and Settings" folder, but I can open "My Files" , a folder created by "Word Perfect".
If I click on one of those files, it opens with the Word Perfect program on the XP drive.
It's the first time I've tried to do that, so it's a learning experience for me too.

Thanks,
The Shadow :cool:

NormCameron · Nov 5, 2008

Hi TheShadow, Yes, it's the Permissions System in Vista. System folders are locked to programs not having the required permissions. Xp doesn't have this system so the folders remain locked. This also works in Vista when trying to modify many files created in XP. It is very hard to modify the permission to allow you to edit them. There is a work around for this problem, though none for the XP accessing Vista problem.

patannee · Nov 5, 2008

Wow, I am so impressed with the speedy replies....THANK YOU!!!

I thought I knew quite a bit about computers, but Vista is a different story! I want to access the added external xp drive and just run all of the software and documents from it, just like it was in the old computer. I have MS Publisher 2000 and hundreds of valuable documents on the old hard drive. I can't run Office 2000 or publisher on Vista and don't want to be forced to upgrade. (Makes me angry that MS has used this to force folks to buy upgrades) Is there a way to just make the laptop boot up on the XP drive that has all of my valuable files? THANKS!!

smarteyeball · Nov 5, 2008

I'm feeling a little dense today, so bare with me

"IF" I'm understanding you correctly, You have a laptop that currently has Vista installed. You also have an old HDD that has XP, all your files and apps installed and you wish to plug in the old XP HDD externally to the laptop and simply boot XP up from the external drive?

Which PC did the added external XP drive come from? Was it the same laptop or a completely different PC? If it was completely different PC, then it won't be possible to boot into XP on the laptop as all the configurations and settings will not be correct.

Your best bet would be to partition the non-external HDD in the laptop and dual-boot Vista and XP. Unfortunately this will require a fresh installation of XP and your apps.

Can you currently access your valuable files on the external HDD in Vista? If not, is it possible to put the old XP HDD in the old PC and copy your files into another folder.

If the XP HDD came from the same laptop, swap the Vista drive with XP drive and copy your valuable files to a another folder that can be accessed by Vista (as outlined by norm and the Shadow). Then go ahead with dual-booting.

If I've completely missed the point, I do apologise

patannee · Nov 10, 2008

The old hd is from the old laptop that crashed. Therefore, I do anything with it on that computer. I am purchasing the software programs that were lost. Hopefully, I will be able to get the documents from the old xp hard drive by putting it on as a slave to my Vista laptop. Any suggestions or assistance is much appreciated. Pat

NormCameron · Nov 11, 2008

I' recently got a laptop in from a guy who spilled red wine into it??? The Lappy is toast, but we put the HDD into a external USB case that he reads from the USB port on his new one. He got all his files back, including emails and also has an external backup drive.

patannee · Nov 11, 2008

So can I assume the old laptop was XP and the new one is Vista? I ordered the enclosure for the old hd and will give it a whirl...think I can do it!! THANKS!!

Need to put my XP drive on Vista computer

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