Delete windows from old hard drive but keep the files

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Caoolio

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Aug 24, 2014
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I just got a new SSD and installed windows 7 on it and made it my primary boot device.

My old drive is holding all my files but it also has windows 7 on it and I want to delete the files I don't need without formatting and erasing all the data.

I've already started deleting a lot of the files I don't need but it is saying i need permission to delete a lot of the system and program files. (I have tried adding permission in properties>security>owner)

I think I've deleted too many important files to boot onto this drive again and they're using up a lot of space on it.
 
Solution
Phillip Corcoran
You can delete restricted files by booting your PC from a bootable CD that contains a file manager utility. Windows will then not be able to impose the restraints that are blocking you. For that reason you must take care to ensure you are deleting from the correct drive.

A better solution though is to copy what you want to keep to another location, then reformat the drive.
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Phillip Corcoran

Phillip Corcoran

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You can delete restricted files by booting your PC from a bootable CD that contains a file manager utility. Windows will then not be able to impose the restraints that are blocking you. For that reason you must take care to ensure you are deleting from the correct drive.

A better solution though is to copy what you want to keep to another location, then reformat the drive.
 
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Solution
C

Caoolio

Reputable
Aug 24, 2014
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4,510


Thanks for the response.
I'll check the file manager utility, would there be any you could recommend?

My SSD isn't big enough to hold about 500GB and I don't have any other hard drives.

Thanks :D
 
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