PLEASE HELP

[Freezanator]

Ok, I own a 1TB HDD and I recently bought a new 120GB SSD. All I want to do is reinstall Windows 10 to my laptop (and keep my personal important files) so that the boot files are in the SSD, not the HDD.I just want to use the HDD for mass storage and SSD for boot. I am willing to delete all other apps,games and programs. Someone please explain the steps in detail to me as I'm really bad at software 

[MrDrWho13]

16 minutes ago, Freezanator said:

Ok, I own a 1TB HDD and I recently bought a new 120GB SSD. All I want to do is reinstall Windows 10 to my laptop (and keep my personal important files) so that the boot files are in the SSD, not the HDD.I just want to use the HDD for mass storage and SSD for boot. I am willing to delete all other apps,games and programs. Someone please explain the steps in detail to me as I'm really bad at software 

You'll need a usb 3.0 to SATA cable or dock (A dock would be better) for this if you don't have a spare drive bay in your laptop to put the SSD/HDD in at the same time. If you have a Windows 10 installation disc or USB flash drive then use that. If not, then you need to either burn a DVD with Windows from here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10 or the same with a USB flash drive.

 

Now unplug your HDD from your laptop and plug in the SSD. Boot from the USB drive or DVD depending on which you create and install Windows 10 from that. You can skip the licence key part since it should auto-activate once connected to the internet. Now you can plug in your HDD into a spare drive bay in the laptop, or if you don't have one in your laptop then use a USB SATA drive dock. Follow my quick little guide if you want to keep your HDD attached for use as a storage drive: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/629590-windows-10-wont-reset/#comment-8131454

(That last bit may not be a good idea if you don't have space for 2 separate drives in your laptop and therefore will unplug the drive at any point)

 

Edit: Please note that you will need to re-install any software that was on your HDD and potentially need to activate things like Microsoft Office)

Edited September 14, 2016 by MrDrWho13

[HmmR]

Linus has made a video about this 

Make a bookable pendrive (search youtube for the tutorial) 

Reinstall windows on ssd

Your done easy

[Freezanator]

5 hours ago, MrDrWho13 said:

You'll need a usb 3.0 to SATA cable or dock (A dock would be better) for this if you don't have a spare drive bay in your laptop to put the SSD/HDD in at the same time. If you have a Windows 10 installation disc or USB flash drive then use that. If not, then you need to either burn a DVD with Windows from here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/software-download/windows10 or the same with a USB flash drive.

 

Now unplug your HDD from your laptop and plug in the SSD. Boot from the USB drive or DVD depending on which you create and install Windows 10 from that. You can skip the licence key part since it should auto-activate once connected to the internet. Now you can plug in your HDD into a spare drive bay in the laptop, or if you don't have one in your laptop then use a USB SATA drive dock. Follow my quick little guide if you want to keep your HDD attached for use as a storage drive: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/629590-windows-10-wont-reset/#comment-8131454

(That last bit may not be a good idea if you don't have space for 2 separate drives in your laptop and therefore will unplug the drive at any point)

 

Edit: Please note that you will need to re-install any software that was on your HDD and potentially need to activate things like Microsoft Office)

I have a DVD/CD drive which I replaced with a caddy which is now housing my HDD (my current main drive). My SSD is plugged into the main SATA port inside my laptop. Do I still need to unplug my HDD during installation? 

[MrDrWho13]

4 minutes ago, Freezanator said:

I have a DVD/CD drive which I replaced with a caddy which is now housing my HDD (my current main drive). My SSD is plugged into the main SATA port inside my laptop. Do I still need to unplug my HDD during installation? 

You don't need to unplug it, but it will probably make things easier so nothing goes wrong with replacing the MBR or accidentally choosing the wrong partition etc.

[Freezanator]

1 minute ago, MrDrWho13 said:

You don't need to unplug it, but it will probably make things easier so nothing goes wrong with replacing the MBR or accidentally choosing the wrong partition etc.

So how do I remove the current apps and settings on my HDD before I perform the installation?

[MrDrWho13]

4 minutes ago, Freezanator said:

So how do I remove the current apps and settings on my HDD before I perform the installation?

If you install Windows fresh on the SSD first before touching anything on the HDD then you can be sure the SSD will work before wiping your old OS. After that, you probably want to move your user files into HDD:\Your name\ and then delete the rest of the stuff like the program files folder on the HDD. Then you follow the little guide I linked earlier to set up Windows to use your HDD for storage by default.

 

Edit: If you don't want to keep your files, you don't have to move them, but I still suggest following the guide.

[Freezanator]

8 hours ago, MrDrWho13 said:

If you install Windows fresh on the SSD first before touching anything on the HDD then you can be sure the SSD will work before wiping your old OS. After that, you probably want to move your user files into HDD:\Your name\ and then delete the rest of the stuff like the program files folder on the HDD. Then you follow the little guide I linked earlier to set up Windows to use your HDD for storage by default.

 

Edit: If you don't want to keep your files, you don't have to move them, but I still suggest following the guide.

So how do I do a fresh install of my SSD? Do I need to leave my HDD in or take it out? After the reinstallation, I will still have to delete all my files on my HDD since they won't work anymore right? By the way, won't there be a conflict since the HDD and SSD both have boot files on them after I plug the HDD back in?

[MrDrWho13]

4 hours ago, Freezanator said:

So how do I do a fresh install of my SSD? Do I need to leave my HDD in or take it out? After the reinstallation, I will still have to delete all my files on my HDD since they won't work anymore right? By the way, won't there be a conflict since the HDD and SSD both have boot files on them after I plug the HDD back in?

Yeah you unplug the HDD then boot your computer from a Windows Installation disc or USB flash drive. You don't need to unplug the HDD, but it will avoid any potential problems later. Once you have Windows installed on the SSD then plug the HDD back in. The files on your HDD will still work but you can delete the Windows files from this drive since you'll be using the SSD for this. If you want to keep some files you had on your HDD, they'll be in C:\users\yourname. If you find it boots from the HDD rather than the SSD when you plug in the HDD, then either physically swap them around in the laptop, or change which drive has priority in the BIOS.

[Freezanator]

1 hour ago, MrDrWho13 said:

Yeah you unplug the HDD then boot your computer from a Windows Installation disc or USB flash drive. You don't need to unplug the HDD, but it will avoid any potential problems later. Once you have Windows installed on the SSD then plug the HDD back in. The files on your HDD will still work but you can delete the Windows files from this drive since you'll be using the SSD for this. If you want to keep some files you had on your HDD, they'll be in C:\users\yourname. If you find it boots from the HDD rather than the SSD when you plug in the HDD, then either physically swap them around in the laptop, or change which drive has priority in the BIOS.

So how do I install Windows onto my SSD from my USB drive? How do I get my PC to boot from the USB drive?

[Freezanator]

5 hours ago, MrDrWho13 said:

Yeah you unplug the HDD then boot your computer from a Windows Installation disc or USB flash drive. You don't need to unplug the HDD, but it will avoid any potential problems later. Once you have Windows installed on the SSD then plug the HDD back in. The files on your HDD will still work but you can delete the Windows files from this drive since you'll be using the SSD for this. If you want to keep some files you had on your HDD, they'll be in C:\users\yourname. If you find it boots from the HDD rather than the SSD when you plug in the HDD, then either physically swap them around in the laptop, or change which drive has priority in the BIOS.

Ok so this is a step-by-step 'instruction' on what I need to do. Please correct me if my procedures are incorrect.
1. Install Windows 10 using the Media Creation Tool into a USB drive.
2. Turn off the PC and remove the HDD inside the PC.
3. Leave the SSD inside the PC and insert the USB drive into one of the USB ports.
4. Turn on the PC and boot from the USB drive (How do I do this?)

5. (I am not sure what to do after Step 4)

[MrDrWho13]

4 hours ago, Freezanator said:

Ok so this is a step-by-step 'instruction' on what I need to do. Please correct me if my procedures are incorrect.
1. Install Windows 10 using the Media Creation Tool into a USB drive.
2. Turn off the PC and remove the HDD inside the PC.
3. Leave the SSD inside the PC and insert the USB drive into one of the USB ports.
4. Turn on the PC and boot from the USB drive (How do I do this?)

5. (I am not sure what to do after Step 4)

Yes this is how it should work so far. If you have problems at any step then report back here or make a new thread and someone will help you out.

So: 4. I assume there will be an option when you turn on your PC with the USB drive in to boot from it, or it may even do it automatically. If you find it comes up with a message saying there are no boot devices attached (or something along those lines) then have a look in your laptop's BIOS for an option to enable booting from USB.

5. The Windows installation process is fairly self-explanatory. The only bits where I can see you having problems are:

• You getting a warning about you needing to install drivers. If this happens I believe you may need to try using a 3rd party ISO to USB creator.
• You need to enter a product key. You can ignore this step since in theory any Windows 10 device that has connected to the internet has tied the licence key to the motherboard. If you find that Windows didn't activate even after skipping this step during installation and letting your laptop install any updates/drivers once Windows is installed, then you may need to phone Microsoft.
• Any options about partitioning. If you get to a point where it asks you to create or select a disk partition, just create a new NTFS partition that fills the drive (the number of GB to fill is probably calculated already and you just have to click ok.)

6. Install any updates and programs that are required. You can follow my guide on how to set up your HDD as a storage drive here: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/629590-windows-10-wont-reset/#comment-8131454 (This is much simpler than it was in Windows 7)

 

If you have any more questions or problems then feel free to ask.

[Freezanator]

7 hours ago, MrDrWho13 said:

Yes this is how it should work so far. If you have problems at any step then report back here or make a new thread and someone will help you out.

So: 4. I assume there will be an option when you turn on your PC with the USB drive in to boot from it, or it may even do it automatically. If you find it comes up with a message saying there are no boot devices attached (or something along those lines) then have a look in your laptop's BIOS for an option to enable booting from USB.

5. The Windows installation process is fairly self-explanatory. The only bits where I can see you having problems are:

• You getting a warning about you needing to install drivers. If this happens I believe you may need to try using a 3rd party ISO to USB creator.
• You need to enter a product key. You can ignore this step since in theory any Windows 10 device that has connected to the internet has tied the licence key to the motherboard. If you find that Windows didn't activate even after skipping this step during installation and letting your laptop install any updates/drivers once Windows is installed, then you may need to phone Microsoft.
• Any options about partitioning. If you get to a point where it asks you to create or select a disk partition, just create a new NTFS partition that fills the drive (the number of GB to fill is probably calculated already and you just have to click ok.)

6. Install any updates and programs that are required. You can follow my guide on how to set up your HDD as a storage drive here: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/629590-windows-10-wont-reset/#comment-8131454 (This is much simpler than it was in Windows 7)

 

If you have any more questions or problems then feel free to ask.

Thanks for spending your time to type that out. I've queried Microsoft and they took hours and even days to respond to each reply. By the way, could you estimate how long the download will take? I'm on a 1Mbps download speed (One of the most expensive in the world at 29USD/month)

[MrDrWho13]

6 hours ago, Freezanator said:

Thanks for spending your time to type that out. I've queried Microsoft and they took hours and even days to respond to each reply. By the way, could you estimate how long the download will take? I'm on a 1Mbps download speed (One of the most expensive in the world at 29USD/month)

That's going to take a while. I don't know the size of the file so I can't tell you how long it will take. If you are given how large the file is, then you can use this calculator to work out a rough estimate of the time. http://downloadtimecalculator.com/

[Freezanator]

4 hours ago, MrDrWho13 said:

That's going to take a while. I don't know the size of the file so I can't tell you how long it will take. If you are given how large the file is, then you can use this calculator to work out a rough estimate of the time. http://downloadtimecalculator.com/

I ran into one the problems you said in Step 4. I tried to access my BIOS by pressing F2 but nothing happened. So, I had to force shut down by pressing F12 + Power button since my power button was set to 'Do nothing' in my settings. Pic below.

 

[MrDrWho13]

On 16/09/2016 at 11:17 AM, Freezanator said:

I ran into one the problems you said in Step 4. I tried to access my BIOS by pressing F2 but nothing happened. So, I had to force shut down by pressing F12 + Power button since my power button was set to 'Do nothing' in my settings. Pic below.

 

Very sorry for the delay. Are you able to access the BIOS by spamming the delete key on when you turn on the laptop?