Transfering OS from Hard Drive to SSD

Blue_Max

My PC has 4GB DDR2 RAM and runs Windows 7 64-bit.
Motherboard is an LGA 775 modded to take Harpertown Xeons for the LGA 771. Currently using a Quad Core Xeon E5440 2.83 GHz.
PC runs fast but takes over six minutes to boot up as the HD grinds away loading up stuff.
Now that SSD prices have come down, I am thinking of buying a 240GB Crucial M500 for £78 or a Samsung 840 Evo for £84.
Would one of these SSDs get rid of the bottle neck?
As it takes too much time starting from scratch, how do I transfer the OS and apps from the HD to SSD?
Any good utilities that can do this for me?
Thanks!

I_have_spoken

PC runs fast but takes over six minutes

That's crazy slow with that rig even booting of a hard disk. Is it on IDE?

Any good utilities that can do this for me?

You can get SSD in a 'kit' which includes a bootable CD-ROM to clone your hard drive to the SSD. 99% of time it'll be Acronis tools to clone the disk and srink/expand partitions as needed.

googler

If the HDD takes ages to load up, surely the problem is with your start-up routine, rather than the drive?

If you move everything as is to the SSD, you'll still have the same bottleneck which will execute slightly quicker.

Get the SSD and install OS and Apps from scratch, from their install discs.

Blue_Max

Thanks both of you for your fast replies

@ I have spoken
Yes, it is crazy slow.
HD is a Samsung HD103SJ, 1TB, SATA-II Interface, 720 RPM Spin Speed, 8.9ms Average Seek Time, 32MB Cache
I installed the Win 7 from scratch about an year ago and all was well then.

@ googler
Quote, "If the HDD takes ages to load up, surely the problem is with your start-up routine, rather than the drive?"
I agree! This is something I have always suspected.
Have checked startup programes using CCleaner.
There a loads of utilities like Commodo, Advance System Cleaner, ALLupdate, IObit Malware Fighter, McAfee Security Scan, Raptr, CSR Harmony, etc in there but nothing I haven't heard of.
Could any of them be causing a conflict?!
One weird thing I noticed is with the svchost.exe. It takes up about 900,000K of memory at boot up. Then comes down to about 122,000K after sometime.
Any utilities out there to find and delete hidden junk?!
I agree that there is no point in getting an SSD without sorting out the fundamental problems.

enkoda

For starters, you are using too many security programs & system tuning utilities - they will all be conflicting with one another. CCleaner will clear out your junk just fine.

If you're thinking of cloning your existing hdd be aware of how much space you are using - I don't think you can clone a 1TB hdd onto a 240GB ssd.

A fresh install really is the best solution.

And don't forget to backup & backup your backup before starting!

Nodding_Donkey

No wonder it is slow with all that junk running (and fighting) in the background.

I'd do a clean install then pick one anti-virus (but not mcafee or norton, both system hogs).

Once you've installed you can clear everything off your other drive except maybe you My Documents folder. Then point the My Documents icon on the desktop at the old folder. That way all your documents and photo's etc are still there.

GunJack

very simple.... all those "security" and "tuning" utilities, uninstall them all (plus run mcafee removal tool, and if you've ever had norton and avg on it before, their removal tools also) and install avast free (custom install, remove all but the 3 basic shields) and it'll boot sooo much quicker..

why on earth you wanted all those bits of junk on your machine, I'll never know....

GunJack

tbh, I'd do this manually rather than look for a "cure-it-all" tool, you'll end up in the same boat as you are now. It may ytake an hour of your time, and once you've finished all the uninstalls and run the removal tools, run ccleaner (cleaner and registry parts), install and scan with malwarebytes., and you should see a big difference...

Blue_Max

Have had to format HDs and do clean installs many times in the past. But it took many days to re-install apps and configure them. Then found I missed some!
So though I agree that it is the best solution, it will have to be the last option.

I will try and do what GunJack suggested. May be I am paranoid but having only Avast Free and Malwarebytes is going to make me feel like wandering around the north pole, naked :think:

Cisco001

Do u really need 240GB for OS?
Intel 520 120GB is on sale at novatech at the moment.

Blue_Max

Cisco001 wrote: »

Do u really need 240GB for OS?
Intel 520 120GB is on sale at novatech at the moment.

If I copy all my stuff from the internal HD to external USB HDs, there is only 48GB needed for OS, programs and utilities.
Read reviews of SSDs at places like hardware.info
Seems as if 240GB SSDs such as Crucial M500 and Samsung 840 Evo give the best bang for the buck in terms of price per GB.
May be I could save some money and buy an SSD of around 64GB for all I need right now.
PS.
Saw the Intel 520 at Novatech for £40. :think: