Need help getting installed program list and licenses keys before reinstall Windows.

[_Grid21]

I have run into a really serious issue with my Windows 10 installed. It seems that Windows update, and the DISM tool, are both corrupted and I am unable to repair my install of Windows 10. Even trying to do an "offline" install from a flash drive doesn't work, and up to this point, after consulting a few friends in IT field, they seem to believe that my Windows 10 install is pretty corrupted. I can't even manually install updates anymore.

 

So here is what I am trying to get around to asking. I use a really good backup imaging software called Macrium Reflect and what I was thinking of doing was make a VM in VMware Player 17, install Windows 11 to that, then look at the currently installed programs of my Windows 10 machine and install those same programs in Windows 11. Then use Macrium Reflect to create an image of that VM. Mraciuam makes a special file format called a .mrimg file. After making this special file, I was going to then boot my Windows 10 machine in the Windows PE environment that Macrium has built into it and literally drop that image from the VM of Windows 11 to my physical machine, and basically, I could pick up where I left off with everything installed. But I wanted to know 1, besides using Belarc, is there another way to get all my software license keys and a list of installed programs to help guide me in reinstalling? Also, does my above theory sound logical that it could work? 

 

Or is there another way to try to fix my Windows 10 install without going through this whole process? Let me know and thanks.

 

EDIT: actually something else that came across my mind is, when I went to go setup my Windows 11 VM, VMware Player 17 had me setup a password for the virtualized TPM, so am I going to run into programs transferring my Windows 11 VM to my physical box with my motherboard's own TPM? 

[thrasher_565]

w10 is outdated now and is soon to be un supported and things a can stop even before the do date. not saying thats the problem but just back up your stuff and format...

 

backup have never worked for me so i just dont bother...

Edited April 15 by thrasher_565

[_Grid21]

23 minutes ago, thrasher_565 said:

w10 is outdated now and is soon to be un supported and things a can stop even before the do date. not saying thats the problem but just back up your stuff and format...

 

backup have never worked for me so i just dont bother...

Well Macrium Reflect has always worked for me, so I want answers from people that understand what I am trying to do. Thanks for the reply, but that wasn't the answer or question I was proposing. I already image my desktop 3 times a week but this is asking about a theory and I wanted to know if others think this will work. 

[Alan G]

I don't think your proposed method will work.  App installers may put a number of different files on your PC and possibly create some registry changes also.  You might be able to save a copy of your user profile and transfer programs over that way but it could be hit or miss.  When I do a full windows install to a new build, I always do a fresh install of apps.  I keep a current copy of all the apps names, download sites, and passwords in 'txt' file and this lets me just paste in the passwords as needed.  Some apps auto configure if they are linked to the website such as Office 365 and Adobe Creative Cloud.  For others, you also need to know where the 'customizatioin file' is located.  For example, I use Atom for HTML and Python coding and I've put a lot of work into customizing it.

[_Grid21]

5 hours ago, Alan G said:

I don't think your proposed method will work.  App installers may put a number of different files on your PC and possibly create some registry changes also.  You might be able to save a copy of your user profile and transfer programs over that way but it could be hit or miss.  When I do a full windows install to a new build, I always do a fresh install of apps.  I keep a current copy of all the apps names, download sites, and passwords in 'txt' file and this lets me just paste in the passwords as needed.  Some apps auto configure if they are linked to the website such as Office 365 and Adobe Creative Cloud.  For others, you also need to know where the 'customizatioin file' is located.  For example, I use Atom for HTML and Python coding and I've put a lot of work into customizing it.

I don't see why it wouldn't work, as I understand it, Windows is pretty good about detecting hardware, and also since it already sees what Processor I am running too, it shouldn't notice a difference. I also don't need to "activate" all my software, just get it installed enough to not have too reinstall. When you've got a lot of VSTs and such, trying to track some of them down is pretty difficult. The worst case is it doesn't work, and I just redrop the old Windows 10 image Marcium made onto my PC. Also, I partition the virtual drive to be the same size as the actual SSD it's going on. Yes, I understand customized profiles can be an issue, but I feel like that would depend on the individual software. 

[Kid.Lazer]

I don't think I understand your thought process here. You're going to install Windows 11 fresh, then install all the programs you want, but all in a VM? And then try to image that to a drive later? Why not just install on bare metal to begin with and be done with it? You're adding a lot of extra steps for no reason.

23 hours ago, _Grid21 said:

is there another way to get all my software license keys and a list of installed programs to help guide me in reinstalling

Not trying to be a smartass here, but have you tried writing them down on a piece of paper? Surely you know what programs you use regularly. And if you can't remember, maybe you never use it and shouldn't bloat your computer with it anymore.