New hard drive questions

Hey all,

I have a few specific questions that I haven't been able to find the answers to. Hopefully someone can help.

I currently have an FE790p. After a few years of use, its getting a bit slow, and I would really like to upgrade to Windows 7 (currently running Vista Business). I get Windows 7 for free through my school, and rather than simply upgrading, I want to do a clean install. I also want to upgrade my current 120GB 5400RPM HDD to a new, bigger 7200RPM HDD.

Is it possible to simply buy a larger drive, install it, and then boot up the computer with windows 7 from a USB flash drive? I'm not sure if this would work, as there would be no drivers present, etc.

I would really like to be able to just keep my old hard drive and all of its contents, and possibly use it as sort of an external hard drive. Is this possible? Furthermore, if I can keep the old hard drive, is there a way to connect it as an external hard drive, and still boot from it?

Thanks for all the help. I've never done any sort of upgrade this major, so I want to make sure I get all the facts straight before I spend money and time. Plus I don't want to mess up my computer!

 

What are you asking, if you can clean install from USB, which is yes....

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/2432-usb-windows-7-installation-key-drive-create.html

....or if you can install and run Windows 7 from USB, which I'm going to say no.

Yes, but you will need to buy an external enclosure, which you simply plug your old H.D into, and then it will act as an external. You may need to take ownership of the drive, but that is easy enough.

Yes, but why not just dual-boot from your new drive?

 

Thanks for the response!

I guess the most important question is: If I download Windows 7 to a USB, then I get a new, bigger hard drive and install it, how will I boot up the machine and install Windows 7 from the USB? What is involved to get all of the drivers, and all of the hardware working flawlessly?

Also, excuse my ignorance, but how would I go about dual-booting? Would this mean that I could clone my Windows Vista harddrive to the new harddrive as well as have Windows 7 Installed?

Thank you so much for your help!

 

This is a great guide on how to go about it, so give it a good read...

USB Windows 7 Installation Key Drive

Another great guide...

Dual Boot Installation with Windows 7 and Vista

It does indeed, and you can dual-boot a combination of Linux and Windows systems. There are plenty of us Vaio users running Windows 7 as the drivers are there, if you know what to look for or where to ask, and this forum is a great place to start.

 

Thanks for those guides! They are definitely a great help!

Do you have, or know of where I could find all of the drivers that I need in one place?

I'm looking to get this done this weekend, so any time that you could save me would be awesome!

 

The Vista drivers for your model should work with the majority of the system, if not all, and you can find them on your models support page - FE790P

 

While you CAN do it that way, I'd say it's too much work. Once you get Windows 7, burn it to a DVD, then put the new HD in and install it from the DVD.
As for your old drive, simply buy an external USB drive enclosure to put it in. They're around $30 these days.

If you want a more elegant solution, dump your old HD to an image, and run it under VMware or similar.

 

I suggest the 500GB Hitachi 7K500. It's $89 at Tigerdirect and currently the fastest hard drive you can get.

WD3200BEKT is good too, if you want to save money.

 

Hey guys,

Thanks to your help, I have installed a new WD3200BEKT hard drive, and have successfully installed Windows 7! So far, I haven't had to install any additional drivers, and haven't had any functionality issues. I might find some as time goes on....

My question now: I have ordered an external usb enclosure for my old hard drive. Now, how would I go about creating a partition on my new, installed hard drive, and clone my old hard drive onto the partition? This way I would be able to dual boot from the installed drive.

Thanks again!!

 

I just got my external enclosure in the mail!

Can anyone point me in the right direction as far as how to clone my old hard drive to the new one as stated in my post above?

Thanks!