Recovery to dissimilar hardware AND OS software
I have TI 2013 with Plus Pack, so I know I can Universal Restore to move the contents of old partition to new computer. Here is what I don't understand:
My current computer uses Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit. The new computer uses Windows 8, 64 bit. When I do the Universal Restore, does the old OS (Win 7) overwrite the Win 8 OS on new computer? If it does overwrite, is there a way to recover everything except the OS, so that Win 8 stays intact?
I've read the documents from Acronis about Universal Restore. Are there any other helpful URLs I should review before undertaking this project?
Many thanks for any help you can give.
Colin,
Thanks for your help.
I don't mind restoring an image made in Win 7 and have the new computer loaded with Win 7 instead of Win 8. I wonder if, after all is settled, I can upgrade to Win 8 from the master disk I receive with the computer.
I want to be able to restore programs and data from TI. So am I correct that if I restore a TI image, everything including programs and OS will get copied to the new computer?
David K
DavidK,
In reverse order.
Yes, you may need to use the Universal Restore to load the correct drivers for your new system to avoid a BSOD on reboot.
That depends on how the W8 is packaged if it is an OEM such as HP, Dell, IBM etc it is less likely as they don't always provide the OS in the same format as you would get with an actual Microsoft install DVD.
If the only way to install W8 is by using the manufacturers installer, it may well be an all or nothing. If you have an actual W8 DVD or ISO then there should be no problem installing over the top.
A couple of things to be aware of, if your PC is a brand name one, it might come with a UEFI firmware and Secure Boot. Secure Boot would need to be disabled for W7. I'm not sure if any preparation needs to be done to recover an MBR installed OS to an UEFI based system. If the BIOS has an option of BOTH or Legacy then make sure it is set to that before making a recovery.
There is another option you might want to consider, assuming you have disk space. Leave the W8 as it is, make a complete disk image of your old system, then convert it to VHD using the True Image convert tool. You can then copy the VHD over to your new machine, add it to the boot menu and then you'll be able to dual boot into either OS.
Now, you will hit the hardware problem again, but you can prepare your current system for this, by disabling the video, chipset and network card drivers, if you have a card reader this may also need to be disabled, then make your disk image and then copy the VHD across. On first boot Windows will now try to find drivers to match your new system. Windows 7 may or may not need to be reactivated.
Save yourself a lot of time, sweat, and tears and just use the installation files and product keys for the programs that you need to install them on your new Windows 8 pc. Then just copy the data from your old pc to the new one. Universal Restore is not going to work the way you want it to. If you decide to try Universal Restore please use the utilities installed by the manufacturer to create factory recovery media for your new PC. Your new computer most likely is using the new uefi boot and gpt partition scheme which will pose a nearly insurmountable roadblock to your goal. Windows 7 only functions on a very limited number of uefi systems, on most it will not load past the Windows is starting screen.
DISASTER! Thanks for your comment, Joey. It came a little late. I tried out a computer with Windows 8 and didn't like it, and replaced it with a Dell XPS with Windows 7 Home Premium. I first tried to transfer files and programs to the new computer, without moving the operating system. I thought that since they were the same on both computers, there was no need to copy the old OS to the new computer.
At the end of the transfer process, I start getting requests from TI for device drivers (Example: Device driver PC/Ven_80868Dev_8Co2&Subsys_05B71028&Rev04), which I did not understand. I got several of these messages, but I did not write down all of their information. Since I could not find these drivers, either on the new disc of drivers and utilities that accompanied the new computer, or on the old computer, I hit skip or ignore and the program ended. When I tried to restart my new computer, I got repeated error messages that said, MBR Error 3 (and MBR Error 2 and others). These error messages told me to boot to a floppy disk. I did not know what this meant. In short, after using True Image for many years through various versions, the one time I had to restore a hard disk, the program failed. I tried doing this several times, but the same error messages occurred. Fortunately, I was also trying out another image backup program called EaseUs Todo Backup Workstation, and was able to transfer the entire disk contents from the old computer to the new. There were only a few hitches about drivers that I could not find anywhere, so I called Dell support and an agent there corrected the problems, which took almost 90 minutes. My new computer is now working at all the programs are still in working order. But I am extremely disappointed that True Image failed me when I needed it the most. I had no idea -- and still don't -- where I would have found the items TI said were missing. The part of the manual that describes this is pretty vague. I've written to Acronis, but have not had a reply as yet. I've also told the folks at EaseUS; they responded by pointing out that some drivers would have to be added manually. I still do not know where I would find the drivers that were missing. EaseUS rep said they would try to make the recovery process better in the future. (I'm going to stick to daily Restore points and backing up files.) The Dell tech, who was quite knowledgeable, took a long time to find the drivers; as he had remote control of my computer, I could see which sites he had to visit to find them. I would NEVER have figured this out myself. Incidentally, I had to call Dell 3 times because of problems related to the transfer, and I must say I received the best technical help I've ever had. Two supervisors called me the next day to make sure I was satisfied and that everything worked. It does. All my programs are intact, and the computer works beautifully. I won't use TI Recovery again unless they make it a lot easier.
It sounds (not entirely clear from your dense post) that you restored your backup to new hardware. That always requires drivers, since the drivers contained in your backup supported the old hardware and not the new hardware. In the instructions for Universal Restore, it advises you to assemble required drivers before restoring, as you'll point True Image to them during restore. Some drivers, such as graphics, can wait until after the new system is running, but some like chipset are required immediately during restore.
That's not a True Image issue, it's a Windows/hardware issue, as you discovered since Easus also needs drivers. In fact, any universal restore product will need such drivers, as they're required by your different hardware.
As you now have a working system, you should spend some time ensuring that you have up-to-date drivers for each hardware component. I also have a Dell XPS, though mine is a laptop (not sure if yours is laptop or desktop). I found some drivers from Dell's site, but for most hardware components I obtained much more up-to-date drivers from component manufacturers' sites. You could try the same.