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For those of you buying Windows Vista PCs today (or thinking about buying Windows Vista PCs in the future) and wondering how best to move all the information on your old PC to your new one, I'd like to update you on some of the new ways Windows can help transfer all your personal stuff: documents, photos, music, email, address book entries, Windows settings, and now, even programs.
The good news is that we've made this process much easier for the millions of people who will buy Windows Vista-based PCs in the coming years. Read on to see how we designed Windows Vista's transfer features to work together with special cables from hardware partners, and to learn about the beta release of our new tool for transferring programs, based on the Alohabob PC Relocator software we acquired last year.
Windows Easy Transfer
This wizard is built into Windows Vista and will automatically transfer your personal data from a Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows Vista based-PC to a Windows Vista-based PC. It gathers up the data from your old PC and then applies it on your new PC in the right places. It will move user accounts, files and folders, email messages and settings, address book entries, and Windows settings. It does not move programs.
Windows Easy Transfer supports a number of ways to connect the two PCs to actually move the data:
Easy Transfer Cables
In the past, one of the most difficult parts about the transfer process has been connecting the two computers if you don't have a home network. Fortunately, we've worked with hardware partners to create a really cool new product called Easy Transfer Cables. These are specially designed to work together with Easy Transfer to move all your data in the easiest and fastest way possible.
They're USB 2.0 cables with a special chip that enables them to connect two PCs. (A standard USB cable cannot do this, even if the USB connectors fit). The cable will come with a CD which has the Easy Transfer software on it -- you just install it on your Windows XP-based PC and then plug the cable into both PCs. That's it! The Easy Transfer wizard will popup automatically on both PCs and you can begin transferring right away.
These cables are being manufactured worldwide by a number of partners, including Belkin International, Vivanco Group AG and Bafo Technologies. They will be sold at retail stores, online retailers and from PC manufacturers. Look for the Certified for Windows Vista or Works with Windows Vista logo to know that the cable is supported.
Windows Easy Transfer Companion (Beta)
Although the standard Easy Transfer wizard does not move installed programs, this is a very important capability that's been requested by our customers. Because of this we have been working on a new tool called Easy Transfer Companion, which will transfer programs and program settings from a Windows XP-based PC to a Windows Vista-based PC. When used together with Easy Transfer, you will be able to move everything you need to your new PC running Windows Vista. Easy Transfer Companion has been designed to transfer many of the most popular programs for consumers and small businesses, as well as many others. You can transfer programs with either an Easy Transfer Cable or a network. We've released the tool in Beta so that we can take feedback on the overall functionality and get more information about the experience of transferring specific applications outside of those that we've tested internally. At this point the Easy Transfer Companion is only available in English and designed for use in the US. It is available for download here.
Easy Transfer Companion is based on technology we acquired from Apptimum, Inc. last year -- makers of the popular Alohabob PC Relocator software. For reference, here is the original press release on this acquisition.
Because this tool is in Beta, at the end of the transfer process it will ask for your feedback on how well it worked so we can continue improving its performance and bring it to a wider number of users in the future.
I hope these features help you and your family quickly and easily set up your new Windows Vista-based PC.
Transfering software has always sounded dodgey to me... it makes me think that the person doesn't own the orignal software...
Will the transfer cable work between a USB 1 based older PC and a USB 2 based newer PC?
My friend sent pic's that are taking forever to receive-she has something going on with her computer so my outlook states receiving 1 of 59-How do I stop all of this on my end?
I am unable to get any emails now... I want to stop the insanity.
Very nice tool !
Do you know when we could expect it in France ?
http://www.guwiv.com (French Vista USer Group)
I agree. Looks like a great tool, but what if your still using Win 98 like me
Hey Damo: the Windows Easy Transfer Companion tool only works with XP SP2 -- sounds like you're due for an upgrade.
Hey Nick, for the easy transfer what you've mentioned here is Belkin International and others...I found this product called "The Tornado" by a company called Data Drive Thru..seems to have the same function with whats up above, just wanna confirm if it will actually work...
Hey marcar: we cannot provide suport on this blog, so you'll want to direct your inquiry to our public newsgroups.
Hey newscientist2000: yes, it will work -- the cable is 2.0 speed but backwards compatible.
Thanks for the clarification Nick.
Thats great but what advice do you have for the people who are going to do a clean install on a box that is running a pre-release of Vista or XP?
GCRaya, lemme see if I can help you with that.
The Windows Easy Transfer™ is not limited to transfers from one machine to another via the USB cord(although, it makes a sweesh of time;) ). Instead, you can save all the data in a compiled format, called Migration Store(.MIG), that can be transfered to an external/internal drive not being used as the primary(read: OS) or onto some external media; like a DVD ROM. It all really depends on the size of the collection and what works best for you.
Here are the options listed below as the end-user would see them using Windows Easy Transfer™:
Network transfer: Secure transfer with a wired or wireless netwrok
Removable storage: CD, DVD, External HD (Or alternate internal, just don't format!), or Flash drive
Easy Transfer Cable: As seen in the article above.
Hope this helps!
FWIW, USB 1.x no longer exists any more. It was renamed to USB 2.0. USB 2.0 defines 3 speeds: Low Speed, Full Speed and Hi Speed. Full speed is 11mbps. A device can and will be labeled as USB 2.0 even if it cannot go any faster than low speed. It's all marketing.
GCRaya, Windows Easy Transfer works for transferring files from Windows XP and 2000 to Windows Vista. You can also use Windows Easy Transfer to put your data on either a external harddrive or DVD for doing clean installs and when a PC-to-PC transfer won't work.
In regards to pre-release versions of Windows Vista, I believe Windows Easy Transfer should be included for you to take your data off.
If you're running a pre-release version of XP, unfortunately there really isn't a supported solution for you. However, Windows Easy Transfer works great on XP RTM.
Hey glaeken: the Tornado does not work with WET, such as the Belkin Easy Transfer cable. It is its own solution and transfers files between two machines. As far as I know, it does not transfer any settings like WET does.
Hope this helps.
Sadly it doesn't really properly document what settings it migrates (a similar problem exists with the Office Transfer Wizard).
It's hardly comprehensive in what it moves. So if you have a non-Microsoft app like Thunderbird, you may find that none of your email accounts or newsreader settings are moved...and you won't be warned of this.
Ah okay...but basically it will allow you to transfer files from one PC to another but it has its own solution or process for that. But it would not work with the Windows Easy Transfer program...Good thing you said that, dont want to give my customers wrong info.
Easy transfer did not work for me when I tried to move files from my XP machine to my Vista machine. I followed all instructions but nothing happened. My XP machine has an AMD Athlon processor. Is this the problem?
Very nice tool !thanks for share.
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I did allow the minidump to be sent but where should I go to leave more details as to my setup (memory, partitions) etc. I can't leave feedback because it never gets that far. I have unloaded everything I can think of (AV, Firewall it's ok because I'm behind another firewall) It always crashes in the same place. The registery has been cleaned. Drives defragged. Win XP home sp2
hey ashwoof: give us a call here at MS Cust. Service so hopefully if you're entitled to free tech support, we can have our technicians assist you on that...
This is a re-post because I mistakenly used the URL for a subject line... duh!
I had a crash while scanning the OLD computer (Win XP Home SP2 and patched to the hilt) it was pass 4. I sent the mini-dump. But I'm not sure what to do next. Always bombs the same way. I have unloaded everything out of memory that is reasonable (including AV and firewall - don't worry I'm still behind a hardware firewall). Cleaned the registry, cleaned temp files. Tried Safe mode (wouldn't allow me to). I can't leave any user experience because I never get finished. Progress bar is about 3/4+ across. I have 256Mb mem. Using ethernet 100baseT as transfer mechanism
Great Tool, Thanks
Windows Easy Transfer aint easy. It crashes every time I run it saying "There was an error scanning the data on your system" it does this after about 1 second of scanning.
Also Vista Ultimate will not install on my machine. It goes through the whole upgrade process and then 64% through the completing Install it crashes with a BSOD!! XP has never given me these problems. My machine is a P4 Intel 2.8Ghz, with 2Gb of Ram, 80Gb free HDD.
I set up a new Dell computer with Vista and tried to use Easy Transfer to move data from a computer running Windows XP. I followed the instructions that came with the Belking Easy Transfer cable, installing the program from the small CD Rom on the XP machine and attaching the cable between the two machines. The Vista machine recognized the cable and gave directions for starting the transfer. Nothing seemed to happen. No progress indicator on either machine. The light on the cable was blinking, but that is all.
I am an experienced computer user and programmer, and I followed the instructions to the letter. It's a poor program that doesn't provide clues to what is happening.
I was trying this at the home of my sister-in-law in Montana, following funeral services for my brother. I live in California. Can you provide any help on how to use Easy Transfer that I can use to talk someone through to? Otherwise, I guess they'll just use flash drives to move stuff.
I too have a new Dell computer running Vista Home Premium. The Easy Transfer wizard worked fine so then I tried Easy Transfer companion. Everything went fine on my old PC, Windows XP. But the Vista PC keeps producing an error message that simply says "Serious Error" after it go through its complete scan. I'm not sure what to look for at this point. I've searched the net for a solution but found nothing. Has anyone encountered this error and if so, can you provide some direction? I really need to get my apps moved over. Thank you!
Help, how do you overcome the error “There was an error scanning the data on your system. Windows Easy Transfer will now be canceled.” Where do you go from there?
I have successfully been able to use the XP “Files and Setting Transfer Wizard” to collect the data I want to transfer to my new Dell with Vista installed but it will not recognize it.
What can I do to make this work?
Am having just a world of trouble trying to get my files off my old hard drive onto a brand new computer running Vista. Tried Easy Transfer by way of connecting my XP drive as a slave (Old computer is dead) and everything moved, ran the program back from the stored file with no errors whatsoever. Only problem is nothing showed up anywhere ...
After consulting a variety of sources was told to go with USMT 3.0 as an alternative but cannot get the download to setup properly, recieving an error message; "Not enough storage is available to process this command".
Recognize this is not a particular place for technical assistance as was mentioned but I am looking for any help whatsoever, having been reading every conceviable, related item on this matter and have come up empty.
For problems with Windows Easy Transfer, I suggest posting about your problems and any erroros on the Public Windows Vista Newsgroups. There are people there that can help assist in possibly figuring out what is going on. Unfortunately this blog isn't designed to be a tech support blog.
http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/en-us/default.mspx
Thanks Sidebar, appreciate the link. After reading through hundreds of pages it can become something of a whirlpool trying to figure out what the best avenue of approach might be.
Hi,
I've bought the cables but noticed that the software only runs on XP machines. I have windows 2000, and I noticed in your intro above you mentioned it works for 2000 as well. Any idea where I can get the download for 2000?
Hey normanno: you'll note that WET only runs on Windows Vista and XP: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=39F724EB-4E37-4BE0-ADFC-786786E73E50&displaylang=en.
So exactly what are people with Windows 2000 supposed to do? This has gone beyond frustrating, as there are plenty of places online stating that this is compatible with Win 2K. I bought the Belkin cable (which only mentions compatability with XP, but both the statements online and assurances from the store's tech guy saying it wouldn't be an issue led me to purchase it), but it's not letting me install the CD software. I've been to five different stores, and the Belkin cable was the only one available. Is there some sort of downloadable software that's available? I've also seen mention of needing at least Service Pack 4, but I have that.
Can the Belkin USB cable also work from an XP machine to another XP machine? The problem is once I've transferred the files to my Vista PC, I have no use for the cable anymore, unless it is also useful for transferring files between other non-Vista machines. An external HD may be much more useful in the long run, if slower.
Hey bho: Windows Easy Transfer supports transferring files (settings are not supported) from Windows 2000. In order to perform a migration from Windows 2000 to Windows Vista, you must first run Windows Easy Transfer on your Windows Vista PC to create an installation package for your Windows 2000 PC. You can do this by:
- Running Windows Easy Transfer from the Start Menu | All Programs | Accessories | System Tools
- Clicking "Next" on the Welcome screen
- Selecting "Start a new transfer"
- Selecting "My new computer"
- On the "Do you have an Easy Transfer Cable?" screen, selecting "No, show me more options."
- On the "Is Windows Easy Transfer installed on your old computer?" screen, selecting "No, I need to install it now."
This will allow you to choose where to save the installation file. Once the installation package is created, install it on your Windows 2000 PC.
Once you have installed Windows Easy Transfer on your Windows 2000 PC, you will be able to follow on-screen instructions to transfer your information via either a network connection or intermediate storage (such as DVD, USB key, network storage location, etc). The Easy Transfer cable is not supported on Windows 2000. Hope this helps.
Hey AnthonyR: The Belkin Easy Transfer cable works with Windows Easy Transfer to move files and settings from a Windows XP or Windows Vista PC to a new Windows Vista PC. Windows Easy Transfer does not support transferring information to Windows XP. However, the Belkin Easy Transfer cable also includes free file-synchronization software. The PCsync software automatically synchronizes files, folders, music, photos, video between your PCs.
can the belkin easy transfer cable software bve downloaded anywhere? I purchased but my old computer running XP does not have a functional CD drive so I can't load the software?
Hey mwharvison: you can download the WET tool from here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/buyorupgrade/easytransfer.mspx.
Windows 98 issue: I, too, purchased the Belkin cable. However, my old Windows 98 pc will not recognize the software. How can I transfer files from Windows 98 SE pc to new Windows Vista pc?? Any support/info you offer would be greatly appreciated!
Can Easy Transfer be used with Windows 2000 or not? Microsoft says it can (Win2000 only, not Win2000 Pro or Win2000 Server; see url above).
But, when I follow the prompts, and download the GenuineCheck app, and then run that app, I'm then prompted for info regarding XP.
Also, when I go to Belkin (for example) and look for an Easy Transfer cable, again everything references XP.
So, does Easy Transfer support Win 2000 or not? And if not, will someone PLEASE correct the support document that plainly says Win 2000 is supported?
Hey Mike McCarthy: Windows Easy Transfer supports the transfer of only data from Win2000 (no settings). In order to perform a migration from Win2000 to Windows Vista, you must first run Windows Easy Transfer on Windows Vista to create a down-level installation package for your Win2k machine. Here are the steps you should follow to create the package:
- Launch Windows Easy Transfer on your Windows Vista PC
- On the Welcome Screen click “Next”
- On the “Do you want to start a new transfer or continue on in progress?” screen, select “Start a new transfer”
- On the “Which computer are you using now?” screen, select “My new computer”
- On the “Do you have an Easy Transfer Cable?” screen, select “No, show me more options”
- On the “Is Windows Easy Transfer installed on your old computer?” screen, select “No, I need to install it now”
- Choose your installation method to install Windows Easy Transfer on your Win200 machine. Once Windows Easy Transfer is installed on the Win2000 machine, you can transfer files via either a network connection or intermediate storage (such as removable media, network storage location, etc.). The Belkin Easy Transfer Cable does not support Win2k.
Hope this helps resolve your situation.
Hey Nick,
> Windows Easy Transfer supports the transfer
> of only data from Win2000
What is data? You mean things like docs and music in the My Computer folder? Can you clarify the definition of "data"?
For example, what about messages stored in my email client.....is that data?
(And, if Easy Transfer can move stored email messages from my old PC to my new PC, will Easy Transfer work on non-MS email clients like Thunderbird, or does it only work on Outlook?)
Thanks.
Sorry....meant to say "My Documents" folder.
Meant to say:
What is data? You mean things like docs and music in the My Documents folder? Can you clarify the definition of "data"?
Hi again Mike McCarthy: Yes -- in this case, "data" means things such as docs, music, pictures, etc. in My Documents and on the Desktop. But, email messages and contacts are not transferred from Win2000.
Hey PG-D: Because the Belkin cable works with Windows Easy Transfer, and Windows Easy Transfer works only with Windows 2000-, Windows XP- and Windows Vista-based PCs, Win98 is not supported. I'd suggest using a network or storage medium to move your docs and other data; your settings will need to be configured from the outset on the new Windows Vista-based computer.
> "data" means things such as docs, music,
> pictures, etc. in My Documents and
> on the Desktop.
Nick,
Thanks for the answers but, come on, it's a stretch to say "Easy Transfer" works with Win2000 if all it does is copy files from My Docs and the Desktop. You certainly don't need a "package" to do what you can do by just dragging files from the old PC onto a removable drive (or any other file transfer methods using networks or recorded media or whatever).
IOW, what does "Easy Transfer" do that Explorer can't do (besides copy a lot of things at once)?
Bottom line, "Easy Transfer" works for XP --> Vista, period. If you are upgrading from any other OS it will be virtually a 100% manual process.
I copied files OK from my XP to Vista machine, but, when I tried to open the Documents and Settings Folder on the Vista machine, it says Access Denied! How do I fix this problem??
I have a question - I downloaded Easy Transfer to my old computer(XP), as the cd drive doesn't work anymore ... it comes up on both computers, and leads me through until I hook up the cable. Then it stops, there are no more prompts on the screen. The cable I'm using is from Intellimover, so it should work, right?
I have the same problem. I used the CD that came with the Belkin cable on the XP machine. Followed the instructions and after I hook up the cable to both machines, nothing else happens. Do I need to disable any software, such as virus, spyware software?
This fix to this is to disable any spyware software, anti-virus software and the XP firewall. There is no need to do the same on the Vista pc. Belkin also recommended that the network card on the XP machine be disabled due to possible conflicts between the network card and the USB cable.
Hey wallyk52: What works here is to go to 'drive'\Users\User Account rather than using the Documents and Settings shortcut, as I’ve always gotten the "Access Denied" error if I try to use the shortcut, even when selecting "Run as Admin."
Hey kw35763: two ideas -- 1) try plugging the cable into another USB port on the PC. We have sometimes seen problems with the ports themselves. 2) If the AutoPlay of Windows Easy Transfer does not occur, try manually launching the wizard from the Start menu on both the Windows XP and Windows Vista PCs. The wizard and the cable should be auto-detected. Hope this helps.
Nick, nice job, lots of good info, great blog, good contributors too. Just my two cents, it's icky so hold your breath. W2K to Vista 64-bit transfer is a bitch! Belkin's XP to Vista is not an option as the cable solution is not supported by W2K. So on to old USB transfer tech for 98/2K/XP from the local RadioShack using Virtual PC 2007 with W2K. Come to find out Virtual PC 2007 doesn't support USB within client OSs -- got to be kidding! With no r/w cd, zip drive, network, memory stick capability or other media, that leaves the good old floppy. Naturally the file produced by "easy" transfer is way too big for a floppy. Lovely, just lovely. So to heck with all this techie self-help, zipping the files needed piecemeal to a floppy for transfer and re-installing programs on the new machine in W2K within MS Virtual PC if necessary. Oh, and HP hasn't put out Vista drivers for all its priners yet, so printing is a scrum too... P-U, what a stinky mess!
I have Vista Ultimate and Office 2007 on two computers and love it. A friend just purchased a Dell with Vista Home Premium and asked me to help him set it up. Unfortunately my friend’s old computer has Windows 98SE on it and he is using Outlook Express as an email client. How can I easily transfer his Outlook Express on Windows 98 SE to Vista’s Windows Mail and keep his contact list and old emails? I purchased a Belkin Easy transfer cable, but noticed it only works with Windows XP and Vista. I have a couple of 2 G flash drives and three external USB hard drives. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.
Hey David737: as you note, the WET tool only works with Windows XP and Windows Vista. You might search the MS Knowledge Base to see if there's an article explaining how to export mail from OE, as I believe this is possible: http://support.microsoft.com/.
I am having a problem with my Excel files. I am running XP with Office 2003 on my old computer. My new computer has Vista and Office 2007. I used the "Easy Transfer" to transfer the files from the old to the new machine using a Belkin cable. That was actually pretty easy. However, when I try to open an Excel file I get a dialogue box that says "Windows cannot find 'C://Users\diane\Documents\File Name.xls'. Make sure you typed the name correctly, and then try again." I even get the same message if I receive an Excel file in an e-mail and try to open it. I have run a disk scan with repair with no affect on the Excel files. I am afraid that if I run the transfer programs again that I will get the same result. I use Excel extensively in my business and have literally thousands of files to transfer. I also use Access extensively but I am able to open up my 2003 databases (after I told security to let me open it). If you answer me by e-mail please ! it. Thanks.
I've answered my own question. You cannot open 2003 Excel files by going into Explore/Files etc. locate the file and double click on the file. You must open Excel, left click on the windows logo (top left corner) and then Open, locate your file and double click on the file name and it will open your 2003 file. If you receive a zipped 2003 Excel file in an e-mail, you must double click on the attached file (or any zipped file), and copy the file and paste it in a directory. Then open Excel and open the file. Piece of Cake !! I wish Microsoft could have given a few hints on how to deal with this situation, but noooo, we have to finger it all out by ourselves. Thanks.
Hey dboatwright: glad you've found a work-around for this issue. I say "work-around" because you should be able to open any Office document, be it created in Office 2003 or Office 2007, by simply double-clicking its icon in any Window. I know this because I run several systems, each with Windows Vista and Office 2007 installed, and I can open docs from either Office suite without issue. Hence, I believe there is still an issue of some sort with your system, as you should not have to resort to this work-around to open Office files.
You might pose this question in one of the public Office newsgroups for help in diagnosing the issue on your particular system.
I have cable made by Detto, which came with Intellimover in 2004. It looks like the Easy Transfer cable pictures--USB on both ends and a 2-inch rounded housing in the middle containing a chip of some kind. I used it in 2004 with Intellimover v3.6 to transfer from a Win 2000 computer to a Win XP computer. Will it work with Win Vista Easy Transfer? I tried yesterday (using the downloaded version of the Easy Transfer software) to move from an XP computer to a computer with Vista; and the XP machine stated it couldn't find the driver for the cable and we could go no further. Is such a driver available? Or a workaround?
To find the driver for your Detto USB transfer cable, I suggest going to Detto's website.
However, I would not think your Detto cable purchased in 2004 would be compatible to work with Windows Easy Transfer due to the fact it wasn't designed to work with Windows Easy Transfer. According to the above statement from Nick:
"These cables are being manufactured worldwide by a number of partners, including Belkin International, Vivanco Group AG and Bafo Technologies. They will be sold at retail stores, online retailers and from PC manufacturers. Look for the Certified for Windows Vista or Works with Windows Vista logo to know that the cable is supported."
So it appears to identify Windows Transfer Cables in stores... look for the brands specified above as well as those cables carrying the "Works with Windows Vista" or "Certified for Windows Vista" logos on the product packaging.
- Brandon
Machines w/multiple windows installs aren't supported? That's a real shame. I've got a copy of Vista and I'm currently running it on another hard disk on my XP machine to work out all of the various driver kinks and other compatibility issues so that I can feel comfortable "upgrading" my main drive.
I had hoped to be able to transfer settings over to the 'test' image to see how well that works, again, to make the main transition smooth. I'd like to not loose all of our stuff and would like the transition to be easy.
The ability to transfer installed programs is kinda cool in that I don't have to dig out all my install disks and what-not but I would go so far as to say that transferring settings (like shortcuts, favorites, desktop) is a much harder thing to do manually. I wish WET were more flexible about multiple installs.
SquidgeyFlint, you can use Windows Easy Transfer to transfer files to a CD, DVD or external harddrive. There is absolutely no reason why you can't then take what you transferred out and transfer it into your Windows Vista install on your other hard disk.
I have a Windows XP Virtual Image running in Virtual PC 2007 and I was able to download Windows Easy Transfer and transfer my files out to my external harddrive. I was then able to import those files onto my Windows Vista laptop.
You can use Windows Easy Transfer to transfer shortcuts, favorites, email, deskop files, and more to Windows Vista from XP regardless of where Windows Vista is installed.
You can download the free Windows Easy Transfer tool for XP here:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=2B6F1631-973A-45C7-A4EC-4928FA173266&displaylang=en
Windows Easy Transfer is already built in to Windows Vista.
Let me know if this helps.
Brandon, Thank you for the pointer. I'm embarrassed to say that somehow I had ended up downloading the Windows Easy Transfer Companion and that is what won't run on my multi-OS system. Using the link you provided -- the real Windows Easy Transfer app -- I was able to bundle up all my stuff. I'll be transferring it over to my Vista install shortly. Thanks again for the pointer.
SquidgeyFlint, glad I could help! Let me know how it goes!
So here's my problem with Easy Transfer. My XP Professional SP2 does not seem to recognize the cable. I've downloaded the latest software F5U258 from Belkin but it doesn't seem to recognize the cable. My device manager shows it as an Unknown Device under the USBs. I've swapped ends of the cable and I've put it into different USB ports. The XP machine is a Dell 600M. Any ideas?
Are the USB ports USB 2.0? That could be your problem. I am not sure how the Easy Transfer Cable works if at all with any USB port other than USB 2.0 ports.
I'm looking at my device manager and it says it's an Intel(R) 82801DB/DBM USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller - 24CD
The location is PCI bus0, device 29, function 7
All of my USB connections are working properly. I've tried to "force" it to find the driver but no luck. And I've got the latest download from Belkin - F5U258
I have the same problem as Matt-NZ and Imax. When I try to use Easy Transfer I get the message, "There was an error scanning the data on your system. Windows Easy Transfer will now be cancelled." I used Easy Transfer Companion successfully, so it is not a cable problem. This issues has also been posted on the Vista forums several times and has never been answered.
Re:Windows easy transfer companion(beta)
installation on Vista Home Basic US english error message
Although, I live in US and downloaded easy transfer companion in US, I recieve an error message : only supports US english and will
not allow me to use.
At one time we did have English Canada as second language mainly as a joke because
it is 99.9999% identical to US English.
However, Easy Transfer forbids any usage
other then US English.
My XP laptop will download and install perfectly Easy transfer companion, even
from English Canada language selected!
Can someone help me sucessfully install
Easy Transfer companion on my Vista Home Basic
laptop purchased in California, without recieving the US english error?
Thanks
Ricky
Hi NIck, et al.
I have been running Vista 64-bit for painful 3 weeks, and must bail out. Unfortunately, I cannot do so. The original problem was that Vista-64 lacked drivers for my new HP printer, a nice HP scanner that is about 4 years old, as well as some valuable 16-bit analysis programs. It also would not work with the dial-up modem. Due to all of this incompatibility, I am forced to transfer my files and settings to another new computer running XP. Unfortunately, Windows Easy Transfer will not allow such "reverse" transfers. (It does not generate an error message, it just keeps gathering data from the same file for hours). Worse, Vista-64 is incompatible with Alohabob PC Relocator (interferes with the USB port software) and with LapLink PCSynch that came with the Belkin Easy Transfer Cable (keeps disconnecting the XP computer). Can anyone help me migrate from Vista-64?
Dr. Mike
Hey Ricky Ricardo: let me see if I can get hold of an expert on Windows Easy Transfer to see if this is a known issue.
Hi again Ricky Ricardo: The WET tool checks to see which OS locale was chosen at the time of install, so you shouldn’t see an error message if US English was chosen when you installed Windows Vista. We haven't seen issues of this type with any other customers, so I'm thinking your situation has to do with the OS locale chosen at install. Note that WET is in Beta and only supports US English presently -- sorry I cannot be of more help.
Hey Dr.Mike: working on getting an answer for you, so please be patient ...
Nick.
What is my customer has 2 pc to migrate into one vista pc????
Will it overwrite one with the other, or will it ask for different users??
SG
I used Belkin's easy transfer cable to transfer from winXP SP2 to Vista Business Tablet. all indicators said it was complete & successful, but on restart got Black Screen message "error loading operating system" and have to use 0n/off button to shut down. on every second boot, same message occurrs, Lenovo says to re-image harddrive. does anyone know a less painful process?
Hey Dr.Mike: I've conferred with my colleagues to see if there's a way to help you out of this situation, but there is unfortunately no way to revert to Windows XP from Windows Vista using Windows Easy Transfer. I'd suggest you backup all of your files on the Windows Vista machine and then restore by re-installing Windows XP. Sorry I don't have a better answer :(
Hey susang: If I understand correctly, you want to migrate the contents from 2 separate PCs to 1 new Windows Vista PC. That is certainly possible, but you will have to perform two separate migrations using Windows Easy Transfer. The tool will detect whether a version of a file already exists on the machine and prompt you with replace/skip dialogue in each case.
Alternatively, Windows Easy Transfer also allows you to re-map users, so the contents from multiple users can be migrated to one single user on the new machine.
Hope that helps.
Hey epjr: sorry to hear of your troubles. If it's possible, I might suggest booting into Safe Mode and then reverting to a previous System Restore Point. Hope this info helps.
I tried to use Windows Easy Transfer from a USA WIN XP SP2 to a Dutch Vista machine via my local network.
I had to install the USA version of the program on the XP while the Dutch version was of course already available on the Vista PC.
After connecting and entering the password I got a window showing that it was not possible to use this method due to Language differences.
Any suggestions?
Henk
I got a new computer, and want to use the Windows Easy Transfer application to move over data using an external hard drive. However, it isn't working. Here's what I did/selected, what should I do to resolve?
(1) Selected "Use a CD, DVD, or other removable media"
(2) Selected "External Hard Disk or to a Network Location"
(3) Selected the "Browse" option and selected the E drive from the My Computer window that opens, which is the external hard drive, and that selection then populates the Network Location box with "E:\SaveData.MIG"
(4) Selected the "All users/accounts" option.
(5) It calculates the transfer file size, which comes in at 47.3GB (there is 123GB of free space on the external drive).
(6) I hit the Transfer button to tell it to proceed and it immediately (no delay at all) pops up this message: "Problem with the selected media. Please try different media, or drive, or select another way to create the transfer disk.(FAT32)"
Hi
I'm upgrading from an old PC with Windows98 (V2 with USB) to a new PC with Vista. Unfortunately the CD-drive of the old PC is out of order and I only have a Iomega ZIP 100MB drive to back-up my files. However, Iomega ZIP is no longer supported by Vista.
So: how am I going to transfer my old files? The "easy transfer" route won't do (W98, CD drive broke), the transferring via Zip won't do (Iomega Zip software no longer supported by Vista).
So, any suggestions how I could transfer my old data to the new Vista PC? Many thanks in advance!
Any ideas on the 7/26 Posted by xjben ? I'm having the exact same problem and error message.
Hey VistaZip: I'm afriad that there's no simple solution that doesn't involve creating a network connection between the two PCs.
Hey AronL (and xjben): This is occurring due to a limitation in the way the drive is formatted, FAT32, which supports a maximum file size of only 4GB. The way to make this work is to reformat the external hard drive to NTFS. Of course, you'll want to be sure to backup any data currently on the drive prior to reformatting, as all data currently on the external hard drive will be lost when reformatting.
I'm trying to use Easy Transfer from an XP machine. On the XP side, everything goes well, and I have created 3 CDs - although the program says that DVDs can be used, it doesn't accept them, so I had to use CDs.
When I try to install in Vista, the first CD is read, but the second one produces the message "There was an error reading all pieces of media. Windows Easy Transfer will now be cancelled". I've tried it three times with the same result.
The old machine has Windows XP in French, and the new machine has Vista in English. Could this be the problem, and if so, is there a way to get round it?
Thanks to a bone head move, I inadvertently transferred setting as well as file. The files were all I wanted to transfer.
Is there any way to prevent Vista from applying setting imported from the XP world?? Every time I try to start Outlook, it starts 'Configuring Outlook' with a profile from the XP world that I do NOT want to use on Vista. Is there any way I can bypass this and any other app settings from being applied???
Did I mention this was my own bonehead move??
I used Easy Transfer with the Belkin cable. My old computer has a C, D, and E drive. The first time I used it, the transfer was interrupted saying my disk was full. What it did was transfer my files from the C drive to the C drive, from the D drive to the D drive, and from the E drive to the C drive (I didn't notice it had a choice of which drive to transfer to). The D drive on my new computer was partitioned as 10gb by Dell for Restore files. I have since manually transferred several files from the new D drive to the new C drive. When I retry Easy Transfer it lets me specify the C drive to the C drive, gives me a choice of the E drive to the C or D drive, but is grayed out for the D drive. It only lets the D drive go to the D drive, which is what got me in trouble in the first place.
WET sounds like a good idea, but based on my experience I would say it isn't ready for prime time. I'm able to install it on my old computer through my home network, but get an error message that it can not scan and will close. No suggestions, no offer of help. It just shuts down. (I'm seeking support through other channels, but this seems like the right place to comment on the dead end error message). A search of the MS Community for this error will show that I'm not the only one running into this problem).
I have XP Home on my old computer & Vista home basic on the new one. They both have one drive with a partition for recovery with the letter"C" as the main partition & "D" for the recovery partition. When I try to use easy transfer it alway goes to the "D" drive which is not large enuf & I want the stuff on "C" anyway. Is there anyway I can make the files,etc. go to the "C" drive? I'm not very computer savvy so plain english please.<G>
Ed
I had the 'scanning error' problem and, looking at the diagerr.xml in the MigWiz directory, discovered an exception handling problem with a filetype identified as .avi"
Looking through the registry, I discovered a number of (mainly multimedia) filetypes with an additional "
Deleting all these eliminated the scanning error problem. Whether any other problems will emerge with Anything But Easy Transfer remains to be seen...
I am quite frustrated by this Easy Transfer software. I've got the Belkin cable and going from my XP machine to the Vista machine trying to transfer photos. Previously I tried to transfer documents. But at some point, the transfer program hits a file -- in one case it was an access file, in another it was a photo -- and announces it's timed out and can't transfer the file. Both computers have the error and ask if I want to skip the file and continue. I click to continue on both computers and... well... that's it. Nothing happens. Both computers appear to lock up and transferring never continues. I have to cancel out of Easy Transfer. What's going on? This is very frustrating. I'm ready to string someone up with the Belkin cable.
OK and now I just tried again, and both computers just locked up at some point... with no error message. This is just horrible.
Nick: Thanks for the August 03 response, but now I'm having a problem with auto-detect of easy transfer cable. I went ahead and bought the cable anyway, as I was reluctant to reformat my external drive and I figured I needed something to walk me through settings, etc. that I wanted to transfer. However, after having loaded the Belkin cable driver software on both computers, when I run the easy transfer software, I get to step two where it says to plug in the cable. I do, the little circle thing goes for a couple of seconds, but then it does not get automatically detected and I have to quit the program. Neither computer recognizes while in the easy transfer program. However, they both recognize when NOT in the easy transfer program, i.e., they autorun to the easy transfer program, leading to the same problem of no detection. Upshot is I can't run easy transfer because it won't autodetect.
Thanks for any help,
Aron
Thanks very for the confirmation of my worst case. BTW without doubt--Belkin cable does not transfer between W2K & Vista. Do not be fooled by claims of W2K drivers; they don't.
Attempting the network connection transfer, I experienced same "Disk is full" issues with transfer attempts from C:\; D:\; E:drives to a New "DELL partition (D:\RESTORE)as bobminer(8/6). DELL Tech suggested I reformat new drive, reinstall OS & CDs that came w/PC and THEN try transfer from the multiple drives... There has got to be a better way.
Hey bobminer: just got a reply from our WET product expert:
Windows Easy Transfer matches drives by default, so in this case if C: and D: are on both the old and new PC, then WET will automatically transfer C: -> C: and D: -> D:. You're given the option to remap the E: drive because there isn't a corresponding E: drive on the new PC.
Two suggestions:
1) Deselect the D: drive for migration by choosing "Advanced options" on the "What do you want to transfer" screen -- this way the C: and E: drives will transfer successfully;
OR
2) Rename the D: drive on the source PC to a letter that doesn't have a corresponding match on the new PC. This can be done through the Computer Management Console under Disk Management.
Hey APKhaos: I'm not clear on the entire scenario here, but the only way to prevent Windows Vista from applying settings imported from Windows XP would be to deselect "Outlook" under "Application Settings" prior to the transfer. "Application Settings" are available in "Advanced Options" when choosing which items you want to transfer to your new PC. By default, everything that is selected to transfer is automatically applied -- in other words, you can selectively capture, but you cannot selectively apply.
Hey BrianAllgar: You are correct in having identified the problem as being the cross-language migration scenario. Unfortunately, you will only be able to apply your files and settings to a French-language Windows Vista machine, as they were captured from a French-language Windows XP system.
Hey Ed Bolton: If you only want to transfer items from your C: drive, then you should deselect the D: drive in the "Advanced options" route. Notice the "Select drives" option at the bottom of that window; click on this and you can deselect the "D:" drive.
Hey AnthonyMoor: This error is not one we usually see -- pressing "continue" should work for you. However, considering you are seeing it with a few different files and once with a photo makes me wonder if you're using the computer for other things while the transfer is in progress?
It is important that *all* processes are shut down (which WET automatically does when it begins, but users can then re-launch apps) on both computers until the *entire* migration is complete. Also, if you have any automatic processes running in the background, such as virus scanning, automatic updates, etc, you should disable them while performing a migration.
Hope this helps overcome the errors.
Thank you, Nick
Your suspicions were correct. I figured it out on my own, after much frustration.
I did get the Belkin/Easy Transfer thing to work. Here's what I had to do. First, because I was transferring photos, I disabled the "Photos" screensaver on 3 computers on my home network. All were pointing to the same file folder on the "old" computer. Next, I disabled power save on both computers. These two actions apparently made the difference. I was able to transfer several batches of files, including one 95 gig session of video.
That said, I think there should be some kind of clear instruction in Easy Transfer that emphasizes what you've said: The need to disable all automatic processes, antivirus blah blah. Because, for many file transfer applications, this is not necessary.