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    Cloning An Installed Program?

    Discussion in 'Windows OS and Software' started by chane, Jun 29, 2010.

  1. chane

    chane Notebook Enthusiast

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    I have a valuable program on my laptop that I want also want to have on my desktop pc. The problem is I don’t have the original installation CD and no downloads of it are available either.

    Is there any free or inexpensive software that allows me to make a clone of the program directly from my laptop’s hard drive so I can then copy of it onto a flash drive and then load it onto my desktop?
     
    chane, Jun 29, 2010
    #1
  2. Evaders99

    Evaders99 Notebook Consultant

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    Doubt it, unless it was designed as a portable program, it would have to know exactly what registry keys, DLLs, etc that each program used.

    You could try and copy the entire program's folder... and then see what happens. If you get "missing DLL" errors, you know why to copy. Registry keys are much harder, but you could try exporting any key with the program name.

    Could work... probably, but it'd be a big time sucker
     
    Evaders99, Jun 29, 2010
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  3. newsposter

    newsposter Notebook Virtuoso

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    Ah, an open piracy discussion, let the Mods sweep in with their Hammer of Moderation and a day or three ban for the OP.
     
    newsposter, Jun 29, 2010
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  4. kosti

    kosti Notebook Virtuoso

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    kosti, Jun 30, 2010
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  5. Greg

    Greg Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Bottom line is that it will not work. A program is more than just its files. We've got registry entries (all in various parts), system DLLs if needed, and environment variables that you'd have to worry about. Even if you got all of that there is probably something else still that will keep it from working.

    Since that is pretty much all there is to it, and this does seem to be going in the wrong direction....thread closed.
     
    Greg, Jun 30, 2010
    #5