Transferring large amouns of files between two comps...

[MKSheppard]

Are there any modern day versions of the old "parallel port file trnasfer" programs out there?

Would hooking up the two computers to a network and enabling file+Print sharing do the job?

What if the two computers have the same Windows Product ID? (I know I know, I'm going to wipe my old computer and put Windows XP OEM onto it and give it away, but first, I want to get all the data from my existing XP Pro install over to the new computer, which I'm using the retail box for.

(I damn well better be able to transfer my XP Pro Key over to the new box, I paid a premium to avoid the OEM trap)

[InnocentBystander]

That should work fine. Though, I think the fastest way is to put both drives in the destination machine and just transfer the data like that, rather than over the network (which can be slow).

[MKSheppard]

That should work fine. Though, I think the fastest way is to put both drives in the destination machine and just transfer the data like that, rather than over the network (which can be slow).

The drives are IDE....the new comp will be SATA.

[General Zod]

Are there any modern day versions of the old "parallel port file trnasfer" programs out there?

Would hooking up the two computers to a network and enabling file+Print sharing do the job?

What if the two computers have the same Windows Product ID? (I know I know, I'm going to wipe my old computer and put Windows XP OEM onto it and give it away, but first, I want to get all the data from my existing XP Pro install over to the new computer, which I'm using the retail box for.

(I damn well better be able to transfer my XP Pro Key over to the new box, I paid a premium to avoid the OEM trap)

Try a USB PC to PC file-transfer cable.

[Beowulf]

That should work fine. Though, I think the fastest way is to put both drives in the destination machine and just transfer the data like that, rather than over the network (which can be slow).

The drives are IDE....the new comp will be SATA.

So? Unless your new comp doesn't have any IDE ports on the MB, it should still work.

[Netko]

The new computer should still come with an IDE channel (possible to attach 2 devices - master and slave) since most optical drives still use the IDE standard. So (if not prohibited by warranty) just open it up, get the IDE cable (ribbon) from the optical drive(s) and attach it to the hard drive(s) - best to do one at a time (only device on the IDE channel) if you don't want to bother with jumper settings.

If you don't want to mess with all that and you don't have a router, your best bet is a crosslink (or similar name) ethernet cable that directly connects 2 PCs (a regular ethernet cable will not work because you will essentially be connecting the receive pins to the receive pins and send to send thus making it worthless hence the need for crosslink if directly connecting 2 PCs) . After that the usual windows file sharing should work.

If you do have a router or switch, just connect both computers to it with regular ethernet cables and again use the standard sharing.

It all depends on your computer knowledge and comfort areas. If you're more comfortable with hardware then software go with option number one, if its the opposite go with 2 or 3 depending on availability of a router/switch.

[InnocentBystander]

That should work fine. Though, I think the fastest way is to put both drives in the destination machine and just transfer the data like that, rather than over the network (which can be slow).

The drives are IDE....the new comp will be SATA.

I believe there are cheap adapters that solve this. Additionally, almost every motherboard I've seen can support at LEAST 2 IDE drives in addition to however many SATA drives. Are you positive the board has ONLY sata ports? Or are we talking about a laptop?

[Netko]

Try a USB PC to PC file-transfer cable.

That is a possible solution but its probably the worst one of the ones presented here. Its essentially establishing an ethernet connection over USB, which is just asking for incompatibilities compared to a regular ethernet cable (requires drivers while regular ethernet does not) and in the end is slower then ethernet. Its one of those products for people with out a clue really, and with very limited circumstances where it is a preferred option (possibly if you have a computer with USB ports but no ethernet card, but even then I believe a combination of a cheap PCI or PCMCIA for laptops ethernet card and cable is cheaper then this overpriced solution).

[phongn]

That is a possible solution but its probably the worst one of the ones presented here. Its essentially establishing an ethernet connection over USB, which is just asking for incompatibilities compared to a regular ethernet cable (requires drivers while regular ethernet does not) and in the end is slower then ethernet. Its one of those products for people with out a clue really, and with very limited circumstances where it is a preferred option (possibly if you have a computer with USB ports but no ethernet card, but even then I believe a combination of a cheap PCI or PCMCIA for laptops ethernet card and cable is cheaper then this overpriced solution).

USB 2.0 is faster than 100-megabit Ethernet, you know.

[General Zod]

Try a USB PC to PC file-transfer cable.

That is a possible solution but its probably the worst one of the ones presented here. Its essentially establishing an ethernet connection over USB, which is just asking for incompatibilities compared to a regular ethernet cable (requires drivers while regular ethernet does not) and in the end is slower then ethernet. Its one of those products for people with out a clue really, and with very limited circumstances where it is a preferred option (possibly if you have a computer with USB ports but no ethernet card, but even then I believe a combination of a cheap PCI or PCMCIA for laptops ethernet card and cable is cheaper then this overpriced solution).

$20 is overpriced? If you just want a quick PC to PC file transfer of lots of files with minimal hardware dicking around involved this seems to be the simplest solution.

[RThurmont]

Another real easy solution that doesn't require you to pop your case open is to use a cat5 ethernet crossover cable. Make sure its a _crossover cabe_, as regular cables will _not_ work for this procedure.

Enable file and printer sharing, and also check the box to allow the computer to share its internet connection and make sure both computers are on the same workgroup.

Configure the IP settings for the first computer as:

IPadr: 192.168.1.1
Subnet: 255.255.255.0
Default GW: 192.168.1.2

Configure the IP settings for the second computer as:

IPadr: 192.168.1.2
Subnet: 255.255.255.0
Default GW: 192.168.1.1

Getting a working internet connection shared between the two systems is a little bit trickier... Be sure to specify the DNS servers if you need to do that, and be prepared for some delicate massaging, tweaking and rebooting (translation: angry pounding on the case and a steady stream of expletives).

[Netko]

That is a possible solution but its probably the worst one of the ones presented here. Its essentially establishing an ethernet connection over USB, which is just asking for incompatibilities compared to a regular ethernet cable (requires drivers while regular ethernet does not) and in the end is slower then ethernet. Its one of those products for people with out a clue really, and with very limited circumstances where it is a preferred option (possibly if you have a computer with USB ports but no ethernet card, but even then I believe a combination of a cheap PCI or PCMCIA for laptops ethernet card and cable is cheaper then this overpriced solution).

USB 2.0 is faster than 100-megabit Ethernet, you know.

Theoretically, but I've never seen one of those cables or similar solutions (USB connected modem/routers for example) archive anywhere near the theoretical maximum nor more then (100mbit) ethernet speeds. Haven't used one in a while though, its possible that the drivers for this hack have matured.

And yes, they are overpriced when you can get a PCI ethernet card for 5$, PCMCIA for 10$ (and computers came with integrated ethernet for a few years now so in all likelyhood you don't need a separate card) and a crosslink cable for less then 5$.

There also should be no need to manually set up IP adresses, it should be taken care of automatically. Making sure that both computers are in the same workgroup is sound however.

[Stark]

Do you *really* still need crossover cables for direct NIC to NIC connections these days? I remember years ago you did, but these days I use the same cables for all roles and never run into the failures you would back in the day.

[Uraniun235]

Do you *really* still need crossover cables for direct NIC to NIC connections these days? I remember years ago you did, but these days I use the same cables for all roles and never run into the failures you would back in the day.

I'm pretty sure the gigabit ethernet standard requires all gigE devices to be capable of detecting the media such that special "crossover cables" are no longer required.

[ThatGuyFromThatPlace]

last time I tried to hook up a pair of computers via gigabit ethernet it wouldn't work without a crossover cable, that was a few month's ago so I doubt it's been 'fixed'

[phongn]

last time I tried to hook up a pair of computers via gigabit ethernet it wouldn't work without a crossover cable, that was a few month's ago so I doubt it's been 'fixed'

Might depend on how good the GigE implementation is. It's supposed to autonegotiate that, however.

[Ace Pace]

Another real easy solution that doesn't require you to pop your case open is to use a cat5 ethernet crossover cable. Make sure its a _crossover cabe_, as regular cables will _not_ work for this procedure.

Enable file and printer sharing, and also check the box to allow the computer to share its internet connection and make sure both computers are on the same workgroup.

Configure the IP settings for the first computer as:

IPadr: 192.168.1.1
Subnet: 255.255.255.0
Default GW: 192.168.1.2

Configure the IP settings for the second computer as:

IPadr: 192.168.1.2
Subnet: 255.255.255.0
Default GW: 192.168.1.1

Getting a working internet connection shared between the two systems is a little bit trickier... Be sure to specify the DNS servers if you need to do that, and be prepared for some delicate massaging, tweaking and rebooting (translation: angry pounding on the case and a steady stream of expletives).

No need to set a gateway if all he's doing is file sharing, I don't see any need to connect both to the net.

[Darth Wong]

Buy a cheap USB2 external IDE drive enclosure. The damned things are so cheap nowadays that you can buy them for the cost of a really good-quality SATA cable. Then you can stick your old IDE drive into it, and plug it into the new box without having to open it up and clumsily mount the drives (very important if the new case is a micro factor), and suck the files off them at will.

[Lonestar]

DW beat me to it. Just buy an IDE harddrive enclosure and turn it into a "portable Media Drive".

Alternatively, get a friend he has said enclosure to loan it to you.

[Rin]

As an alternative to external HDD case, I have found this a extremely useful: Kama Connect.

USB adapter for one SATA and one ATA device. Doesn't have case for HDD but very nice for temporary file transfers. Works with both 2.5/3.5" and optical drives.

[Starglider]

Might depend on how good the GigE implementation is. It's supposed to autonegotiate that, however.

This is actually an optional part of the standard (auto-mdix). Most decent switches and NICs implement it. Unfortunately a lot of consumer-grade gear and cheapo integrated NICs don't. If you've got a standard ethernet cable sitting around but not a crossover cable, give it a try first, it may work.