New PC, old storage?

[Deleted]

I'm planing to build a new system from scratch and using my old drives with it. One is the Crucial m4 256Gb and the other is a really old 640Gb HDD from Samsung. One thing I'm pretty sure about is I will have to reinstall the OS since im basically "replacing" everything and Windows won't recognize those new parts? If I'm already wrong on that part correct me please.

Now I'm not sure if I only have to wipe the SSD or also the HDD? As far as I can tell on the HDD I have some caches from applications that are on the SSD, browser download location and generally some programs to keep track of the system, biggest part being music/movies etc. I also moved things like Page file, Index file, hibernation and probably other stuff I can't remember to the HDD following an "SSD optimization" guide. Will I have to redo those aswell?

On the SSD I have all games, drivers and frequently used programs. My question is if those files on the HDD are somehow linked to the OS on the SSD and what will happen if I only reinstall/format the SSD? Do I have to reinstall my HDD programs one by one aswell after Windows or will they "connect" themselves with the new OS? (don't know how to explain this better, sorry)

Thanks for your help!

[n0cturnal]

Just wipe the SSD so you don't have to deal with any driver issues or such, the normal HDD you can just keep as it is. You will have to reinstall some of the programs of the HDD, not all programs rely on the registry to work.

[vesseblah]

You might be able to use the old windows installation with new motherboard but I would not bet on it. For system stability and performance it's better to wipe it and install clean windows on the SSD when you get the new computer.

There's no need to touch the HDD when you do it, but programs installed on D drive will not work, and you need to redo all cache and whatever settings. You can and should use the HDD for storing everything from the SSD you need to save.

Also forget the garbage about moving pagefile and hibernation out from SSD, it will only make your computer run slower. Hibernate you can completely disable on desktop unless you really use the hibernate feature, and with 8GB or more RAM you can force pagefile to fixed 2GB minimum 2GB maximum on the SSD and will take very little space there.

[Deleted]

Ok, thanks for the answers. Is there any way I can find out what I have to redo and what I can leave as is on the HDD?

[n0cturnal]

Ok, thanks for the answers. Is there any way I can find out what I have to redo and what I can leave as is on the HDD?

You will just have to try them.

[Deleted]

Ah try and error then, that'd be sorted. Thanks really appreciate your help.

[vesseblah]

What you can and should do is use the "easy transfer tool" that comes with windows vista/7/8 ... It will at least help you copy over settings and own files from the current installation even if it can't restore programs into working order.