Stump the PC Club is a free tech-advice column written by members of the North Orange County Computer Club, which has been in existence since 1976. Visit the club’s site at noccc.org.
QUESTION: We have an old XP PC that won’t boot up so we just bought a new Windows 7 PC. How can we retrieve our files from the old PC?
PC CLUB: Based on my experience, when a PC fails to boot, it’s still possible to retrieve the files from the hard drive. The main factor is having a few tools on hand which are all inexpensive. The first step in the process is to remove the hard drive which may require some small tools. You can watch a video of the process at http://bit.ly/removehd. The first drive that is removed in the video is an IDE drive and the second one is a SATA drive. If you have difficulty removing the drive you may be able to connect to it as described below. Also, you may be able to have the drive removed by a local computer store for a small fee. These stores include most Staples and Office Depot locations.
The next step is to acquire one of two devices, an external hard drive enclosure or USB to SATA/IDE Combo kit. They’re referred to as a Bridge Adapter kit and are available on line from many places including USB Gear at www.usbgear.com. The advantage of the adapter kit is that it works with SATA or IDE drives and is less expensive than an enclosure. Enclosures, especially ones that can handle both drive types can cost up to $69. The other advantage of the adapter kit is that you may be able to connect to the hard drive without removing it from the case.
Once you’re connected to the drive you can connect the USB cable to your new PC and access your old drive like any other drive. You may want to use a program called the Free Commander at http://www.freecommander.com/ for transferring files. Frequently, you have to start out using My Computer or Computer in Windows 7 to access the old drive to modify all of the file and folder permissions. It’s really quite easy, just navigate to the user files on the old drive and double click the folder to open it and the rest is virtually automatic. If the old drive is from an XP PC, the user files will be located at c:/documents and settings/user name/My Documents. Under this folder are the picture, video and music folders. For a second method see http://bit.ly/retrievefiles.
For pictures of both drive types see http://bit.ly/sataandide.
Ed Schwartz is a member of the North Orange County Computer Club. To send in a question, go to edwardns.com and click the Contact Me menu. Archives of previous columns are also on the website.