In Vista, opening files restored from Win XP

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Guest

I backed up files onto an external hard drive from Win XP. That PC died and
now I cannot open the files using my new Vista PC.
Tried downloading NT Backup/Restore utility but it doesn't help.
I can move the files about but can't find a way to open them to extract the
vital data I urgently need??

I have the XP PC Hard Drive but am reluctant to try installing it in the new
HP Presario as I'm not sure how to connect it. Even then I don't know if I
could boot from it or access the files??

Read articles about dual booting and have shrunk my Presario Hard Drive to
make a partition for Win XP if that might be a way. But I haven't named it
as per the DVD Drive letter.

Any advice out there please??
John - York - UK
 
Veejay said:
I have the XP PC Hard Drive but am reluctant to try installing it in the
new
HP Presario as I'm not sure how to connect it. Even then I don't know if
I
could boot from it or access the files??
Click to expand...


You could buy one of those exernal enclosures. You connect your drive to it
the way you would if you were putting it inside your machine, and then the
enclosure connects to your computer via USB or Firewire.

I had one a few years ago that worked great.

Search New Egg or Cyberguys.com for "hard drive enclosure" and see what pops
up.
If that doesn't work, just search for USB products.
 
I backed up files onto an external hard drive from Win XP. That PC died and
now I cannot open the files using my new Vista PC.
Tried downloading NT Backup/Restore utility but it doesn't help.
I can move the files about but can't find a way to open them to extract the
vital data I urgently need??

I have the XP PC Hard Drive but am reluctant to try installing it in the new
HP Presario as I'm not sure how to connect it. Even then I don't know if I
could boot from it or access the files??

Read articles about dual booting and have shrunk my Presario Hard Drive to
make a partition for Win XP if that might be a way. But I haven't named it
as per the DVD Drive letter.

Any advice out there please??
John - York - UK
Click to expand...

Just right click and take ownership of the file. Then you can do
whatever you like with it.
 
Thanks for that, I hadn't heard of the "take ownership" option before - but
though I worked my way through everything I could find in that area I am
still only able to move the file around - I can't open anything in it. I
just tries to restore everytime and then is just a dead lump wherever I put
it.
 
Thanks DP, I haven't yet found anything that I can see is definitely suitable
but I hadn't realised that there were such things still around. I'll keep
looking.
I hope that someone might know enough to direct me so I can install the
Western Digital 160Gb Hard Drive from my old PC into this HP Presario. The
Disc connections look as though they relate to the instructions for this in
the Vista Help but I'm not sure where I connect it to the Mother board (or
with what - a red cbale was used on the previous PC?).
John
 
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