HDD identification

Hey all!
Is there some software or at least a relatively painless way of
identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).

As always thanks for any and all.

Drew

Hi, Drew.

Well, one way is to shut down, open the case, disconnect one of them, and
power up again.

But this can still get quite confusing, especially if the HDDs are identical
models and sizes. I have 4 HDDs: a 200 GB Maxtor, a 300 GB Seagate, and
two 1 TB Seagates, configured as a software mirror of each other.

One way that I use is to put a label - a volume name - on each partition.
The first partition on each HDD is named for that device: SATA 200
(currently D; SATA 300 (F and SATA 1000 Mirror (G. This identifies
them logically, but doesn't tell me which TB drive is Disk 2 and which is
Disk 3 in Disk Management. For that, I have to see which disk is plugged
into which SATA connector on my mobo. And then I use a marker pen to write
on the drive covers.

You DO know about Disk Management, I hope. Press Start, type diskmgmt.msc
and press Enter - and furnish Administrator credentials. Disk Management
will show you which partitions are on Disk 1, then all you need to know is:
Which disk IS Disk 1? ;^{

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX

Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1


"Drew" wrote in message news:iq21bt$36t$...

Hey all!
Is there some software or at least a relatively painless way of
identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).

As always thanks for any and all.

Drew

On 5/6/2011 6:51 PM, R. C. White wrote:
> Hi, Drew.
>
> Well, one way is to shut down, open the case, disconnect one of them,
> and power up again.
>
> But this can still get quite confusing, especially if the HDDs are
> identical models and sizes. I have 4 HDDs: a 200 GB Maxtor, a 300 GB
> Seagate, and two 1 TB Seagates, configured as a software mirror of each
> other.
>
> One way that I use is to put a label - a volume name - on each
> partition. The first partition on each HDD is named for that device:
> SATA 200 (currently D; SATA 300 (F and SATA 1000 Mirror (G. This
> identifies them logically, but doesn't tell me which TB drive is Disk 2
> and which is Disk 3 in Disk Management. For that, I have to see which
> disk is plugged into which SATA connector on my mobo. And then I use a
> marker pen to write on the drive covers.
>
> You DO know about Disk Management, I hope. Press Start, type
> diskmgmt.msc and press Enter - and furnish Administrator credentials.
> Disk Management will show you which partitions are on Disk 1, then all
> you need to know is: Which disk IS Disk 1? ;^{
>
> RC
> --
> R. C. White, CPA
> San Marcos, TX
>
> Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
> Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1
>
>
> "Drew" wrote in message news:iq21bt$36t$...
>
> Hey all!
> Is there some software or at least a relatively painless way of
> identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
> with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
> However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
> sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
> stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
> installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
> marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
> built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
> I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
> original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).
>
> As always thanks for any and all.
>
> Drew
R.C. I know about disk management and also about unplugging drives etc.
I have 2 identical drives that are confusing me. same model same gigs
etc and the more I think about it the more impossible I believe it would
be to do what I originally requested. Since a HDD does not have any
lights or a way of producing any kind of sound I do not see a way for it
to be that easy.While I am at it it though I will ask you if I can clone
my op system (win7 pro 64 oem from Newegg.com) then move it to a new
drive and wipe the old? I realize per the eula I am not supposed to but
for this purpose I would need to.

Hi, Drew.

Are you familiar with Belarc Adviser? That will tell you "more than you
ever wanted to know" about your computer hardware - including the make,
model AND serial number of each HDD. For example, my two TB Barracudas are
shown as:

ST31000340AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 3, s/n 5QJ0FGDR, rev SD1A,
SMART Status: Healthy
ST31000528AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 2, s/n 6VP9CM6V, rev CC46,
SMART Status: Healthy

You can get your copy of the Belarc Adviser here:
http://www.belarc.com/ctadvisor.html?B

It says, "Click here to download a free copy for personal use."

Again, once you have that info, open your computer case, check your HDD
serial numbers against this list, then use marker or tape or some other way
to physically identify each of them. And also add labels using Disk
Management or even Windows Explorer's Properties screen; these will be
written to the partitions on the HDD and will not change, even if you move
them to a different computer.

I can't comment on the EULA, but I've often copied full partitions,
including Boot Partitions (containing the Windows folder tree), from one HDD
to another on my only computer using good ol' Xcopy.exe, in an elevated
Command Prompt window, with the right combination of switches. Others
recommend RoboCopy, but I've never learned to use that. To use Xcopy, boot
into a different partition from the one you want to copy. (Boot into Win7
on F:, for example, to move WinXP from D: to X:.) Copying the current boot
partition is not advised because the Registry hives will be in active use
while you will be trying to move them. Ever since at least Win2K, both
64-bit and 32-bit, including many betas, the switch combination that has
always worked for me is:
F:> Xcopy D:\ X:\ /c /h /e /r /k

Then all I have to do is update Boot.ini or the BCD to point to X: instead
of D:.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX

Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1


"Drew" wrote in message news:iq3if7$1ku$...

On 5/6/2011 6:51 PM, R. C. White wrote:
> Hi, Drew.
>
> Well, one way is to shut down, open the case, disconnect one of them,
> and power up again.
>
> But this can still get quite confusing, especially if the HDDs are
> identical models and sizes. I have 4 HDDs: a 200 GB Maxtor, a 300 GB
> Seagate, and two 1 TB Seagates, configured as a software mirror of each
> other.
>
> One way that I use is to put a label - a volume name - on each
> partition. The first partition on each HDD is named for that device:
> SATA 200 (currently D; SATA 300 (F and SATA 1000 Mirror (G. This
> identifies them logically, but doesn't tell me which TB drive is Disk 2
> and which is Disk 3 in Disk Management. For that, I have to see which
> disk is plugged into which SATA connector on my mobo. And then I use a
> marker pen to write on the drive covers.
>
> You DO know about Disk Management, I hope. Press Start, type
> diskmgmt.msc and press Enter - and furnish Administrator credentials.
> Disk Management will show you which partitions are on Disk 1, then all
> you need to know is: Which disk IS Disk 1? ;^{
>
> RC
> --
> R. C. White, CPA
> San Marcos, TX
>
> Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
> Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1
>
>
> "Drew" wrote in message news:iq21bt$36t$...
>
> Hey all!
> Is there some software or at least a relatively painless way of
> identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
> with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
> However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
> sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
> stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
> installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
> marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
> built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
> I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
> original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).
>
> As always thanks for any and all.
>
> Drew
R.C. I know about disk management and also about unplugging drives etc.
I have 2 identical drives that are confusing me. same model same gigs
etc and the more I think about it the more impossible I believe it would
be to do what I originally requested. Since a HDD does not have any
lights or a way of producing any kind of sound I do not see a way for it
to be that easy.While I am at it it though I will ask you if I can clone
my op system (win7 pro 64 oem from Newegg.com) then move it to a new
drive and wipe the old? I realize per the eula I am not supposed to but
for this purpose I would need to.

On 5/7/2011 9:29 AM, R. C. White wrote:
> Hi, Drew.
>
> Are you familiar with Belarc Adviser? That will tell you "more than you
> ever wanted to know" about your computer hardware - including the make,
> model AND serial number of each HDD. For example, my two TB Barracudas
> are shown as:
>
> ST31000340AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 3, s/n 5QJ0FGDR, rev
> SD1A, SMART Status: Healthy
> ST31000528AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 2, s/n 6VP9CM6V, rev
> CC46, SMART Status: Healthy
>
> You can get your copy of the Belarc Adviser here:
> http://www.belarc.com/ctadvisor.html?B
>
> It says, "Click here to download a free copy for personal use."
>
> Again, once you have that info, open your computer case, check your HDD
> serial numbers against this list, then use marker or tape or some other
> way to physically identify each of them. And also add labels using Disk
> Management or even Windows Explorer's Properties screen; these will be
> written to the partitions on the HDD and will not change, even if you
> move them to a different computer.
>
> I can't comment on the EULA, but I've often copied full partitions,
> including Boot Partitions (containing the Windows folder tree), from one
> HDD to another on my only computer using good ol' Xcopy.exe, in an
> elevated Command Prompt window, with the right combination of switches.
> Others recommend RoboCopy, but I've never learned to use that. To use
> Xcopy, boot into a different partition from the one you want to copy.
> (Boot into Win7 on F:, for example, to move WinXP from D: to X:.)
> Copying the current boot partition is not advised because the Registry
> hives will be in active use while you will be trying to move them. Ever
> since at least Win2K, both 64-bit and 32-bit, including many betas, the
> switch combination that has always worked for me is:
> F:> Xcopy D:\ X:\ /c /h /e /r /k
>
> Then all I have to do is update Boot.ini or the BCD to point to X:
> instead of D:.
>
> RC
R.C. my first response would be Duh! as I have and always use Belarc but
it never occurred to me to look there. I shall follow your advice and do
just that.

If you have a drive that is not solidstate, then they make noise; you could use the same trick that mechanics use on cars to check for internal engine noises, use a slender rod of sufficient length to touch the drive & touch behind your ear, you should be able to hear the operating drive, as the other would not be spinning so long as its not being accessed.

> On Friday, May 06, 2011 7:48 PM Drew wrote:

> Hey all!
> Is there isome software or at least a relatively painless way of
> identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
> with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
> However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
> sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
> stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
> installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
> marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
> built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
> I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
> original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).
>
> As always thanks for any and all.
>
> Drew


>> On Friday, May 06, 2011 9:51 PM R. C. White wrote:

>> Hi, Drew.
>>
>> Well, one way is to shut down, open the case, disconnect one of them, and
>> power up again.
>>
>> But this can still get quite confusing, especially if the HDDs are identical
>> models and sizes. I have 4 HDDs: a 200 GB Maxtor, a 300 GB Seagate, and
>> two 1 TB Seagates, configured as a software mirror of each other.
>>
>> One way that I use is to put a label - a volume name - on each partition.
>> The first partition on each HDD is named for that device: SATA 200
>> (currently D; SATA 300 (F and SATA 1000 Mirror (G. This identifies
>> them logically, but does not tell me which TB drive is Disk 2 and which is
>> Disk 3 in Disk Management. For that, I have to see which disk is plugged
>> into which SATA connector on my mobo. And then I use a marker pen to write
>> on the drive covers.
>>
>> You DO know about Disk Management, I hope. Press Start, type diskmgmt.msc
>> and press Enter - and furnish Administrator credentials. Disk Management
>> will show you which partitions are on Disk 1, then all you need to know is:
>> Which disk IS Disk 1? ;^{
>>
>> RC
>> --
>> R. C. White, CPA
>> San Marcos, TX
>>
>> Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
>> Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1
>>
>>
>>
>> Hey all!
>> Is there isome software or at least a relatively painless way of
>> identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
>> with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
>> However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
>> sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
>> stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
>> installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
>> marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
>> built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
>> I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
>> original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).
>>
>> As always thanks for any and all.
>>
>> Drew


>>> On Saturday, May 07, 2011 9:46 AM Drew wrote:

>>> On 5/6/2011 6:51 PM, R. C. White wrote:
>>> R.C. I know about disk management and also about unplugging drives etc.
>>> I have 2 identical drives that are confusing me. same model same gigs
>>> etc and the more I think about it the more impossible I believe it would
>>> be to do what I originally requested. Since a HDD does not have any
>>> lights or a way of producing any kind of sound I do not see a way for it
>>> to be that easy.While I am at it it though I will ask you if I can clone
>>> my op system (win7 pro 64 oem from Newegg.com) then move it to a new
>>> drive and wipe the old? I realize per the eula I am not supposed to but
>>> for this purpose I would need to.


>>>> On Saturday, May 07, 2011 12:29 PM R. C. White wrote:

>>>> Hi, Drew.
>>>>
>>>> Are you familiar with Belarc Adviser? That will tell you "more than you
>>>> ever wanted to know" about your computer hardware - including the make,
>>>> model AND serial number of each HDD. For example, my two TB Barracudas are
>>>> shown as:
>>>>
>>>> ST31000340AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 3, s/n 5QJ0FGDR, rev SD1A,
>>>> SMART Status: Healthy
>>>> ST31000528AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 2, s/n 6VP9CM6V, rev CC46,
>>>> SMART Status: Healthy
>>>>
>>>> You can get your copy of the Belarc Adviser here:
>>>> http://www.belarc.com/ctadvisor.html?B
>>>>
>>>> It says, "Click here to download a free copy for personal use."
>>>>
>>>> Again, once you have that info, open your computer case, check your HDD
>>>> serial numbers against this list, then use marker or tape or some other way
>>>> to physically identify each of them. And also add labels using Disk
>>>> Management or even Windows Explorer's Properties screen; these will be
>>>> written to the partitions on the HDD and will not change, even if you move
>>>> them to a different computer.
>>>>
>>>> I cannot comment on the EULA, but I have often copied full partitions,
>>>> including Boot Partitions (containing the Windows folder tree), from one HDD
>>>> to another on my only computer using good ol' Xcopy.exe, in an elevated
>>>> Command Prompt window, with the right combination of switches. Others
>>>> recommend RoboCopy, but I have never learned to use that. To use Xcopy, boot
>>>> into a different partition from the one you want to copy. (Boot into Win7
>>>> on F:, for example, to move WinXP from D: to X:.) Copying the current boot
>>>> partition is not advised because the Registry hives will be in active use
>>>> while you will be trying to move them. Ever since at least Win2K, both
>>>> 64-bit and 32-bit, including many betas, the switch combination that has
>>>> always worked for me is:
>>>> F:> Xcopy D:\ X:\ /c /h /e /r /k
>>>>
>>>> Then all I have to do is update Boot.ini or the BCD to point to X: instead
>>>> of D:.
>>>>
>>>> RC
>>>> --
>>>> R. C. White, CPA
>>>> San Marcos, TX
>>>>
>>>> Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
>>>> Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On 5/6/2011 6:51 PM, R. C. White wrote:
>>>> R.C. I know about disk management and also about unplugging drives etc.
>>>> I have 2 identical drives that are confusing me. same model same gigs
>>>> etc and the more I think about it the more impossible I believe it would
>>>> be to do what I originally requested. Since a HDD does not have any
>>>> lights or a way of producing any kind of sound I do not see a way for it
>>>> to be that easy.While I am at it it though I will ask you if I can clone
>>>> my op system (win7 pro 64 oem from Newegg.com) then move it to a new
>>>> drive and wipe the old? I realize per the eula I am not supposed to but
>>>> for this purpose I would need to.


>>>>> On Saturday, May 07, 2011 12:51 PM Drew wrote:

>>>>> On 5/7/2011 9:29 AM, R. C. White wrote:
>>>>> R.C. my first response would be Duh! as I have and always use Belarc but
>>>>> it never occurred to me to look there. I shall follow your advice and do
>>>>> just that.

On 6/10/2011 12:41 PM, anthony julian wrote:
> If you have a drive that is not solidstate, then they make noise; you could use the same trick that mechanics use on cars to check for internal engine noises, use a slender rod of sufficient length to touch the drive& touch behind your ear, you should be able to hear the operating drive, as the other would not be spinning so long as its not being accessed.
>
>> On Friday, May 06, 2011 7:48 PM Drew wrote:
>
>> Hey all!
>> Is there isome software or at least a relatively painless way of
>> identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
>> with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
>> However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
>> sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
>> stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
>> installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
>> marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
>> built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
>> I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
>> original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).
>>
>> As always thanks for any and all.
>>
>> Drew
>
>
>>> On Friday, May 06, 2011 9:51 PM R. C. White wrote:
>
>>> Hi, Drew.
>>>
>>> Well, one way is to shut down, open the case, disconnect one of them, and
>>> power up again.
>>>
>>> But this can still get quite confusing, especially if the HDDs are identical
>>> models and sizes. I have 4 HDDs: a 200 GB Maxtor, a 300 GB Seagate, and
>>> two 1 TB Seagates, configured as a software mirror of each other.
>>>
>>> One way that I use is to put a label - a volume name - on each partition.
>>> The first partition on each HDD is named for that device: SATA 200
>>> (currently D; SATA 300 (F and SATA 1000 Mirror (G. This identifies
>>> them logically, but does not tell me which TB drive is Disk 2 and which is
>>> Disk 3 in Disk Management. For that, I have to see which disk is plugged
>>> into which SATA connector on my mobo. And then I use a marker pen to write
>>> on the drive covers.
>>>
>>> You DO know about Disk Management, I hope. Press Start, type diskmgmt.msc
>>> and press Enter - and furnish Administrator credentials. Disk Management
>>> will show you which partitions are on Disk 1, then all you need to know is:
>>> Which disk IS Disk 1? ;^{
>>>
>>> RC
>>> --
>>> R. C. White, CPA
>>> San Marcos, TX
>>>
>>> Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
>>> Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Hey all!
>>> Is there isome software or at least a relatively painless way of
>>> identifying which HDD is which in this box. I am running win7 pro 64
>>> with 3 separate HDDs. I know which one win7 is on as it is a ssd.
>>> However the others are regular spin em up's and I was curious. I am not
>>> sure this would even be possible but somebody has to volunteer to be the
>>> stupid s.o.b and ask this question.When I originally built this box I
>>> installed 2 identical Seagate barracuda's and unfortunately I never
>>> marked them. Actually these drives have been in the last 3 machines I
>>> built and only contain every frickin thing I really need to keep. lol.
>>> I am thinking about adding another ssd Then cloning my main and using my
>>> original ssd for backups or something as it is very small (40gig).
>>>
>>> As always thanks for any and all.
>>>
>>> Drew
>
>
>>>> On Saturday, May 07, 2011 9:46 AM Drew wrote:
>
>>>> On 5/6/2011 6:51 PM, R. C. White wrote:
>>>> R.C. I know about disk management and also about unplugging drives etc.
>>>> I have 2 identical drives that are confusing me. same model same gigs
>>>> etc and the more I think about it the more impossible I believe it would
>>>> be to do what I originally requested. Since a HDD does not have any
>>>> lights or a way of producing any kind of sound I do not see a way for it
>>>> to be that easy.While I am at it it though I will ask you if I can clone
>>>> my op system (win7 pro 64 oem from Newegg.com) then move it to a new
>>>> drive and wipe the old? I realize per the eula I am not supposed to but
>>>> for this purpose I would need to.
>
>
>>>>> On Saturday, May 07, 2011 12:29 PM R. C. White wrote:
>
>>>>> Hi, Drew.
>>>>>
>>>>> Are you familiar with Belarc Adviser? That will tell you "more than you
>>>>> ever wanted to know" about your computer hardware - including the make,
>>>>> model AND serial number of each HDD. For example, my two TB Barracudas are
>>>>> shown as:
>>>>>
>>>>> ST31000340AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 3, s/n 5QJ0FGDR, rev SD1A,
>>>>> SMART Status: Healthy
>>>>> ST31000528AS [Hard drive] (1000.20 GB) -- drive 2, s/n 6VP9CM6V, rev CC46,
>>>>> SMART Status: Healthy
>>>>>
>>>>> You can get your copy of the Belarc Adviser here:
>>>>> http://www.belarc.com/ctadvisor.html?B
>>>>>
>>>>> It says, "Click here to download a free copy for personal use."
>>>>>
>>>>> Again, once you have that info, open your computer case, check your HDD
>>>>> serial numbers against this list, then use marker or tape or some other way
>>>>> to physically identify each of them. And also add labels using Disk
>>>>> Management or even Windows Explorer's Properties screen; these will be
>>>>> written to the partitions on the HDD and will not change, even if you move
>>>>> them to a different computer.
>>>>>
>>>>> I cannot comment on the EULA, but I have often copied full partitions,
>>>>> including Boot Partitions (containing the Windows folder tree), from one HDD
>>>>> to another on my only computer using good ol' Xcopy.exe, in an elevated
>>>>> Command Prompt window, with the right combination of switches. Others
>>>>> recommend RoboCopy, but I have never learned to use that. To use Xcopy, boot
>>>>> into a different partition from the one you want to copy. (Boot into Win7
>>>>> on F:, for example, to move WinXP from D: to X:.) Copying the current boot
>>>>> partition is not advised because the Registry hives will be in active use
>>>>> while you will be trying to move them. Ever since at least Win2K, both
>>>>> 64-bit and 32-bit, including many betas, the switch combination that has
>>>>> always worked for me is:
>>>>> F:> Xcopy D:\ X:\ /c /h /e /r /k
>>>>>
>>>>> Then all I have to do is update Boot.ini or the BCD to point to X: instead
>>>>> of D:.
>>>>>
>>>>> RC
>>>>> --
>>>>> R. C. White, CPA
>>>>> San Marcos, TX
>>>>>
>>>>> Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
>>>>> Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3508.1109) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On 5/6/2011 6:51 PM, R. C. White wrote:
>>>>> R.C. I know about disk management and also about unplugging drives etc.
>>>>> I have 2 identical drives that are confusing me. same model same gigs
>>>>> etc and the more I think about it the more impossible I believe it would
>>>>> be to do what I originally requested. Since a HDD does not have any
>>>>> lights or a way of producing any kind of sound I do not see a way for it
>>>>> to be that easy.While I am at it it though I will ask you if I can clone
>>>>> my op system (win7 pro 64 oem from Newegg.com) then move it to a new
>>>>> drive and wipe the old? I realize per the eula I am not supposed to but
>>>>> for this purpose I would need to.
>
>
>>>>>> On Saturday, May 07, 2011 12:51 PM Drew wrote:
>
>>>>>> On 5/7/2011 9:29 AM, R. C. White wrote:
>>>>>> R.C. my first response would be Duh! as I have and always use Belarc but
>>>>>> it never occurred to me to look there. I shall follow your advice and do
>>>>>> just that.
>
>
>

Good one and I had considered that. years of tinkering with the
automotive variety of a pain in the ass. I was concerned about static
charges and such but if it gets to that I may attempt it. Thanks all for
the help.