New computer file transfer

Just got a new computer and I need to transfer 20gbs of music from the old to the new.... what is the best way to do that?

 

Which OS? I would just copy + paste (or cut + paste if you don't want to keep the existing copy) and wait for it to finish. There is really no need for a file-transfer program if you're in Vista or Windows 7, but if you want you can try TeraCopy.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, I think you mean how are you going to get the files off the old computer and on the new computer as in how physically is this going to happen? You can either
1. stick the drive from the old computer in to the new one, copy the files, then stick the drive back in the old computer
2. share the folder(s) on your home network and copy the files from there
3. use external media (USB drive, external HDD, etc) as interim storage for transferring files.

 

The old is Windows XP and the new is Windows 7. I have a external hard drive... you think that would be the best way to handle it?

 

Not necessarily the best way (because you'll need to copy twice, taking more time), but it's probably the easiest. It's what I would end up doing.

 

well I could just start it and let it run while im gone so the time issue wont be a problem

 

A 4GB flash drive is about $9.00. You could load it up 5 times and transfer your files that way.

Shouldn't take too much time.

 

Then yes, I recommend using the external drive. You may want to consider using TeraCopy in XP because it can check the copied files to make sure there are no errors. Vista does this pretty well, so I wouldn't worry about that. However, I will say that I've copied lots of data in both XP and Vista without any issues, so it's up to you whether or not to use extra software.

The OP already has an external drive, there is no reason for him to buy more stuff.

 

I tried moving 70 GB worth of photos - some of them saved twice due to seperate foldes (RAW; EDITS, JPEGs) and some process went crazy and crased explorer... 280 odd files went missing and I'm trying to get them of my WD passport using Recuva - I'm hopeful as the drive isn't to old and was at its fullest over 200GB empty.

I was sing explorer - before that I moved 40GB and 20GB odd with no problem.

So if its important - move using some software that makes sure your files are moved, or if you use the windows tool, copy over then compare file numbers/size.

I belonged to the "explorer works fine camp" - now I'm not so sure any more...

 

The best way (but not the easiest) is to use remote access software. Radmin or something like that.

 

Do you have a home network? If not, then just use an external or something.

 

Unfortunately, I cannot agree about your statement of Vista file transfer. My explorer crashed a few times when moving some gigabytes of files from my notebook to my external notebook hard drive. The files were ISO files like Visual Studio Express. I retried using FastCopy and it worked like charm. Ever since then, I just stick to FastCopy if I have to copy huge files to another drive.

 

Well, everybody has their own experiences, and mine is that I have copied hundreds of GB at a time just using explorer with no issues. It's unfortunate that it crashed for you.

 

In a way the same for me... worked well long enough... until a few days ago.

Thus: for important stuff, use a file mover.

 

As I said, that's unfortunate. Since I have all my files backed up and incremental backups set up, I don't think I'll be needing to do huge transfers anytime soon. But if I do and explorer crashes, I have a backup so I'm not too worried.

 

I actually like the file transfer of Vista (strictly Explorer), never had a hiccup myself with gigo of bytes from the Gateway to an USB cheapo 3.5" TB drive.

cheers ...