How to transfer old to new hard drive

I will assume what you want to move are files, pictures, music and other data. So yes you can use the external drive and move what you want to it, then move the data to the new drive once it is installed. If you are thinking of moving the OS and everything else you need a different approach. You will need some software to make an image of the existing drive that will be saved to the external drive and then the image installed to the new drive using the same software.

Yes... moving the OS. So what software that will work? Thanks

First I would suggest a clean install. True this is a bit of a hassle and you need all your software and drivers to install but it is the best way to do it. If you want to avoid that; Win 7 has a back up feature that will image the disk and back everything up. Here are a few links to reliable software (http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/trueimage...); (http://clonezilla.org/clonezilla-live.php); (http://download.cnet.com/windows/backup-software/?tag=b...) and (http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,76071-order,4...). Please read about your selection thoroughly to be sure it will let you do what you need to do. Some offer free trials that have limits to what you can do (might let you create the image but not use it until you buy the software or have time or file size limits to the trial). Oh ya Norton Ghost is another widely used product. A last suggestion is you migh inquire of a local shop or store what they might charge to do it for you. It should not cost much if you do not want to do it yourself.