Have a new PC and curious if I need to do anything special with the SSD (my bootup drive) from my old PC - as want to plug it into the new PC as if it was a USB device. Is that possible? upon plugging in that old SSD the new PC wont start up again, will it?
SOLVED Can I plug in my old SSD into a new PC?
- Thread starter sethm1
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From your post, I assume you want to use it as a secondary HD/SSD, plugged into a USB port.?
No problem. But have a look in the bios setup and ensure that you do not have it listed as your boot device.
I di this on a regular basis, as I use my old disks for backup purposes
No problem. But have a look in the bios setup and ensure that you do not have it listed as your boot device.
I di this on a regular basis, as I use my old disks for backup purposes
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You are right Dave!. He could also just plug it in as a 2nd drive inside his computer but you make a valid point!. 
Hi Seth,
go to eBay or Amazon and simply search for SATA to USB adapter, they aren't that expensive!.
sata - usb adapter | eBay
Hi Seth,
go to eBay or Amazon and simply search for SATA to USB adapter, they aren't that expensive!.
sata - usb adapter | eBay
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Mine is black but it isn't being used since my gaming PC was rebuilt including the case which has SSD fixing points/bays!.
A few at the following link just to give you an idea.
2.5" to 3.5" SSD HDD Metal Adapter Mounting Bracket Hard Drive Holder for PC V7a günstig kaufen | eBay
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I have some black ones also. I actually salvage drives from computers before they go to the landfill, have started weeding out the smaller ones, 6 that were less than 500GB.Mine is black but it isn't being used since my gaming PC was rebuilt including the case which has SSD fixing points/bays!.
A few at the following link just to give you an idea.
2.5" to 3.5" SSD HDD Metal Adapter Mounting Bracket Hard Drive Holder for PC V7a günstig kaufen | eBay
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Ok. COuld you mark the thread as solved - it seems to have changed to sn ssd comparison thread
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Just from experience and the beauty of Win-10, as I've done this lots of times on different computers and it works. Win-10 is not determined by specific drives as the OS is very adaptable and does update itself. I've taken a boot drive from a new computer out and have installed an old Win-10 boot drive like you are asking about your old SSD boot drive, it worked perfectly and booted but and yes, you do have to update its specific drives. Look at Device Manager for all the drives that need updating and run Windows Update to get all appropriate updates for your new system. Also enable the "TRIM" cmd in Win-10 to make make sure that all SSD drives run more efficiently and speedily.. Good luck and hope this helps.
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You won't be able to boot to the OS via USB. installing it with the old OS may work, depending on the CPU and chipset, if you want to wipe and reinstall, you can just do that, if you just want to copy files over via USB that will work too.
I've found that the simplest and fastest way to up and running on a new PC is
1) set the new PC's admin account to a Microsoft Login which registers that computer as a valid version of Windows. Copy / save all the registration info to a USB drive.
2) Use Macrium Reflect to make a full disk image of the new computer's minimal setup.
3) Use the "dism" command line feature to backup the new computer's drivers.
4) Clone the hard drive of a current computer to the new PC's drive, then restore the drivers using "dism" command line.
You're up and running with copies of all programs in a matter of a few hours, rather than days.