Can i put an ssd with Windows 7 on it, in a new build with Windows 10 on the ssd without problems?

serge.loldude2

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Jan 31, 2018
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I'm very clumsy with my words so the title is probably pretty confusing.
The deal is, I recently build a new pc with a Samsung 850 evo ssd in it, running on Windows 10. Everything is great and I love the thing.

But looking trough my older pc parts from my previous build, I remembered and found the ssd from that build. Wich is a Samsung 840 ssd. Altough I don't neccesairly need it, I wanted to try and put it in my new build.

The thing is that the older 840 still has Windows 7 on it from the previous pc, and I wonder if it would give problems when booting or anything if I just plug it in. So in that way I could just format the 840 and use it as a secondary ssd drive.

Hope it all makes a little bit sense, english isn't my first language so.. Thanks for the help.
 
Solution
Well you certainly don't want your Win 10 system to boot to the Win 7 OS (it probably wouldn't anyway!). As you've indicated you desire to use the older SSD as a SECONDARY drive for storage, backups, etc. and presumably have no intention of booting to its Win 7 OS. So it's no problem of installing it in your system where it will function as such.

I would suppose you might consider formatting that SSD unless there is data on the drive you desire. It would be best if you would delete the Win 7 OS on the drive however.
Well you certainly don't want your Win 10 system to boot to the Win 7 OS (it probably wouldn't anyway!). As you've indicated you desire to use the older SSD as a SECONDARY drive for storage, backups, etc. and presumably have no intention of booting to its Win 7 OS. So it's no problem of installing it in your system where it will function as such.

I would suppose you might consider formatting that SSD unless there is data on the drive you desire. It would be best if you would delete the Win 7 OS on the drive however.
 
Solution

jgustin7b

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Nov 17, 2017
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Apologies, I did perhaps misread the question. If using it as a secondary drive, there shouldn’t be any issues. You’d just see all of the system files in file explorer for both OS’s. With boot order setup properly, you can choose which drive to access first, therefore defining which OS is to run.

But as previous user said, if you want it as a dedicated storage drive, try formatting.
 

serge.loldude2

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Jan 31, 2018
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Thanks both for your replies! I will just use it as a secondary drive, so formatting was the plan. I was just worried for some reason that the booting would be problematic. Will try It first thing in the morning. Thank you for your fast responses!
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator


In a Win 10 environment we have encountered no problem formatting a drive containing the Win 7 OS that is installed as a SECONDARY drive in the system. That includes using Disk Management to undertake either a quick or full format. We have found no need to take any special procedures other than a simple format of a secondary installed drive containing the Win 7 OS.

If the drive contains a separate partition containing programs/data the user desires to retain, that partition can still remain on the drive after formatting the partition containing the Win 7 OS (assuming the OS is installed in a separate partition. Or, of course, the entire drive can be formatted should the user choose to do so.

Have you encountered any problem in this area?
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator


Formatting the 'drive' is no problem. It will be seen as the "E" drive or whatever...format that as normal.
The original boot partition, though...that still lingers. Doesn't really hurt anything, except look bad in Disk Management. and often, DM doesn't give you the easy option to delete/merge that little partition.
So, diskpart it is.
 
There is NO problem that we've ever encountered where the boot partition containing the Win 7 OS of the secondarily installed drive was deleted (along with any other data in that partition). Deleting ONLY that boot partition (should the user choose to do so rather than delete and/or format other partitions on the drive) did NOT result in a "boot partition that still lingers". It was gone - pure & simple. The disk-space thus available was now "unallocated" and the user could utilize that disk-space to create one or more partitions for other purposes as he/she desires.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator


Consider a drive that used to be the OS drive.
Boot partition and the big C partition.
Build the PC with a new drive, plug this ond one in.
It appears in This PC as the D drive.
Format...all gone.
No, the Format did not touch the existing boot partition.
No problem, it doesn't hurt anything.
Open Disk Management, and there you see it.
Aha...I'll just right click and make it be gone.
Often, DM does not give that easy right click option. It simply gives you a choice for Help in the context menu.
Like this person.
Hence, diskpart to force delete it.

I see people like that here just about every day.
 
USAFRet:
Your responses re this issue are beginning to border on the absurd. Since you are obviously an experienced PC user I'm at a complete loss to understand why you persist in promulgating these nonsensical statements like the last one.

For the last time...
If, as in this case, a user is running a Win 10 OS and installs a secondary drive in his/her system containing the Win 7 OS and the user has no further use for that old OS, but simply plans to use the seccondary-installed drive as a storage drive in his/her Win 10 system, the user can utilize Disk Management to simply format that old Win 7 drive. Deleting & formatting the desired partitions (including the Win 7 OS) on the drive is simply accomplished with Disk Management and there is no need to use "diskpart to force delete it" or any other program. If the user desires to use diskpart he/she is free to do so BUT THERE IS NO NEED TO DO SO UNDER THESE CIRCUMSTANCES. DM will do the job.

Stating (as you have) "Format did not touch the existing boot partition" is an absurd statement. Following the deletion/formatting of the Win 7 boot partition (along with any other volumes on the drive the user deletes & formats), all will be "gone with the wind" and not rise up (as you apparently infer) to create future mischief.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
ArtPog:

Apologies and correction on my part.
Not the System Reserve (boot partition), but rather the sometimes appearing 450MB Recovery Partition is the problem child.

The System Reserve can indeed be deleted, formatted, whatever in Disk Management. No problem.
The 450MB Recovery Partition that Windows sometimes creates cannot.
This is NOT a Factory Reset partition, but something that Windows creates.
Disk Management gives no functionality to manipulate that.

I can provide whatever screenshots you desire to show this.
 


1. I trust the recent "correspondence" between USAFRet & myself have not been a source of confusion for you. As a matter of fact I trust the information we exchanged will be of some value to your general PC knowledge.

2. In any event I do not know where you stand with the problem you originally stated. If the issue you were grappling with still exists and you wish to pursue it further, do so indicate. If you do, you MUST submit a screenshot of Disk Management that reflects the configuration of your drives. And you MUST include in that screenshot the upper portion of Disk Management that lists the drives ("volumes") and includes detailed information about the drives.