Adding another hard drive.

Howdy all, I have a question.....is it possible to add another of my old pc's hard drives to my new pc which has win xp 64, the other is win xp pro, same ntfs format. Win 64 does not like to many software packages and has been an issue. Anyone have info on this?

 

It sounds as if you want two operating systems and two sets of programs, which could be trouble if you just try plugging it in. Then you must have data on top of that (which I trust is backed up).

If you want to use those programs under the new system, then try installing them there to see if they'll work, and if they do then leave them there. You can add your saved data later.

If you want the older drive for more real estate, then there should be no problem (be sure you have an available bay first). Format it first (NTFS, on the old machine, presumably from CD), then install it in the new machine, making sure it's the slave and not the master. This normally just means making sure the present drive ends up with the same (end) connector. When you restart you should have one more drive letter, and you can then partition it further if you want.

 

Amendment:

It's hard to know what you mean when you say 'another' of my 'old' pc's hard drives. Is the drive redundant?

Win xp pro is about as good as it gets if you are using your computer for work; if you are using XP 64 then you are an 'early adopter', which is to say a guinea pig. I was a guinea pig for XP, and I swore I'd never become an early adopter again. It was beset with the very problems you describe for XP 64.

If all you want is storage, I suggest you buy or scavenge another hard drive (and if you scavenge it, wipe it and format it first). If you have a drive to spare on your 'old' pc then by all means use it. In the meantime, I suggest you take your 'old' pc more seriously than you seem to. It may be the more reliable of the two.

 

Hello all,

Thank you for using Acronis Disk Management Software

Please read this thread about Windows XP Professional and Windows XP 64 Professional.
If you will have any further questions about Acronis Disk Director please feel free to ask any in this thread.

Thank you
--
Alexander Gladkov