Windows 10: How to remove Windows system files from old hard drive

Discus and support How to remove Windows system files from old hard drive in Windows 10 Network and Sharing to solve the problem; I bought a new PC that has Windows 10 pre-installed. I'm using the old 1TB drive from the previous system as a data drive. Let's call it the D: drive.... Discussion in 'Windows 10 Network and Sharing' started by GregSteiner, Sep 26, 2020.

  1. How to remove Windows system files from old hard drive


    I bought a new PC that has Windows 10 pre-installed. I'm using the old 1TB drive from the previous system as a data drive. Let's call it the D: drive. The D: drive used to be the boot drive and has lots of Windows system files on it that I want to delete to free up space. However, many of the files require "TrustedInstaller" rights to remove them. I really don't want to wipe the drive...it would be a pain to copy all the data files to an external drive, wipe the drive, then copy them back. I'm also afraid of losing data, even though I have backups. How can I remove the files that have "TrustedInstaller" locks?

    :)
     
    GregSteiner, Sep 26, 2020
    #1
  2. xarzu Win User

    new system old hard drive...

    I have an old hard drive that has those old ribbon connections to transfer data to the mother board.

    I have a new computer that mostly uses those cool little ATA (I think that is what they are called) connections.

    The new computer has a Vista OS.

    I opened up the case and I was supprised to see on the motherboard a wide ribbon connection and so I connected the old hard drive and a free power connection.

    When I turned on the computer, the system started up like usual and did not notice the new hard drive.

    I went to the Control Pannel and did an automatic add hard drive call and it did not find the old hard drive.

    Any suggestions?
     
    xarzu, Sep 26, 2020
    #2
  3. dhdude Win User
    Replacing old hard drive, need way to copy Windows installation across

    Hey Guys,
    What would be the best way of copying/imaging the entire contents of an old system drive over to a replacement hard disk for the same machine? I need to copy the Windows installations and all other data to the new drive, and then format the old drive to use as a backup.

    Any suggestions? *Smile How to remove Windows system files from old hard drive :)
     
    dhdude, Sep 26, 2020
    #3
  4. Drone Win User

    How to remove Windows system files from old hard drive

    Stored files in Hard Drive

    You can use Windows search. Just search for *.* on a desired drive. When list is done just arrange them by size LOL.

    You can do it via command line as well and make an output text file showing files and their sizes (but without arrangement)
     
    Drone, Sep 26, 2020
    #4
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How to remove Windows system files from old hard drive

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