question...about windows.old file

S

surfbug

Limp Gawd
Joined
Feb 3, 2009
Messages
283
can I copy this and, save all my stuff?

i wll lepxlai

I will explain more, going to a meeting....

but I have to pull all my data off of a computer

allen
 
I really don't think there is remotely enough information to even begin to answer your question before your explanation.

Windows.old is most likely a folder leftover from a windows upgrade. If you don't use it, and don't intend on uninstalling, then delete it after you've gone through and made sure you've got no data in it. But that is ASSUMING this is the directory that you're talking about...
 
in theory yes. it seems like a reinstall of windows will throw all previous windows created folders into the .old directory. but there may be ownership/permission issues that make things difficult to copy. The folders are also littered with "link" files which confuse things.
 
The nice thing about windows.old is that it contains your user folders, including the hidden ones, so you can recover settings files and such if you forgot to back them up before you upgraded. Example - Firefox profiles.
 
Snowknight26 said:
Actually, it doesn't. It only contains the previous Windows folder contents.
Click to expand...

Uh no, it contains previous "users", "program files", "programdata" AND "windows" directories, so your settings will be saved in there, but as far as copying them out to your new Windows install well that's iffy, because some of the stuff may be specific to a certain Windows install.
 
Snowknight26 said:
Actually, it doesn't. It only contains the previous Windows folder contents.
Click to expand...

Really, because I rescued my wife's setting from her user folder in windows.old just a month or so ago. I did a custom install so maybe that creates a different folder than a regular upgrade - although I think that an upgrade just upgrades in place, so you wouldn't need a windows.old to recover those files.
 
Windows.old is essentially a copy of your entire old hard drive before you installed your current OS. Once you take out the user documents or files you need, you can delete it.
 
XP used to leave the existing directory structure intact, although it would wipe out the windows folder on new installs. Not sure about vista because I did not experiment with it. W7 will create a new folders for the files it creates, no doubt to prevent "pollution" type issues from the previous install.
 
The Windows.old folder contains everything that made up the previous installation; that includes the Documents/Settings folders, User folders, Program Files contents, ProgramData (if this is a Vista/Windows 7 thing), etc - pretty much everything that comprised the previous installation.

Very useful for recovering user data/files if it still exists, especially if a person neglected to back that stuff up prior to the "upgrade" that created the Windows.old folder.
 
I think that is what I want

I have been using the womans computer, and now the woman and I are splitting up.

I am going to leave her system with her, but I want my data....


So that is why I ask.


Sorry about before, I needed to run and I was qute cryptic.

So in a nutshell

--Al uses womans computer for over a year
--woman breaks up with AL
--Al doesnt want to lose all the work and data and infom wants to take it with him on a hard drive
--Al wants to erase all data after backing it up---all the Al data-- and leave her data intact


is this a feasable scenerio?

thanks for any input


I hav ea 640 GB caviar black hard drive waiting, and it is getting hungry!
 
windows will usually put your data in your documents folder. if so, you can just copy this folder from your profile and delete your profile. the windows.old folder gets generated on a reinstall, so I am not sure of the context of your question.
 
Basically look in the User\<your username on the machine> directory and back that up, the entire thing. That's pretty much all your data in that one folder, unless you specified some other place to put stuff, or you logged into her profile from time to time and saved info in her User\<same idea with the username> directory.

That's pretty much it. Wouldn't hurt to scan around just in case you have directories of data in the root folder(s) as well.

If you copy all that data out, and you clear off the machine of your data, all you have to do at that point is have her log in (or you can do it if you have the info I suppose) and delete your user profile under User Accounts in Control Panel. It'll ask if you want to save the data/etc, click No and then confirm the deletion of the account and wham... that's about it as well. Your profile and data folders will be deleted and, unless she's heavy into data recovery on the drive, she won't be able to access it anymore.
 
hmmmmmm...I am almost sure that I was singing into the machine thru a profile that we BOTH used.....

so I would have to "sort thru" and pick out what is mine, and what is hers.


and, I did save a lot of things to the desktop.....is that backed up under my profile?

( or her profile, I think I am using the same profile)


allen
 
bigdogchris said:
Windows.old is essentially a copy of your entire old hard drive before you installed your current OS. Once you take out the user documents or files you need, you can delete it.
Click to expand...

Yes, this... I just ended up doing this about a month ago and the entire contents of C: was in that folder except for the registry files (I couldn't find them anyway). I was pretty peeved because I forgot to backup my Outlook email accounts and had to set them all up over again - 13 accounts!. This is for Win7 anyway, not sure what XP does anymore.

Yes, your desktop is at "users\[your username]\Desktop" for Vista and 7, and "documents and settings\[your username]\Desktop" for XP.
 
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