When I recently upgraded to a new computer (thanks for the advice given elsewhere in these fora), I took out my old 80GB HDD, put it in an enclosure so that I could use it as a back up storage drive.

Question: Can I easily delete some of the programs on that drive (especially Windows XP)? At this stage I do not want merely to re-format the drive as there are downloaded programs on it, which haven’t been put into the new system yet (incidentally, what is the best way to do that? I presume I cannot just copy them across, but being Freeware, I’m not too sure just where I picked them up).

Hello openacres,

I'm glad we were able to help you in the past, thanks for relying on us once again.
No, it would not be an easy task to just delete the operating system. You can delete the Windows directory and other program directories, but that alone will not remove all unnecessary files and folders.

You'll need to download the setup files for the programs and install them on the new system. It may help us to know which programs you want to install. If possible, you can put the hard drive back into the old system and generate a list of installed programs, which would be your best bet. Otherwise, you'll need to go into the "Program Files" directory of the hard drive and write up a list.

My advice to you would be to wait until you have your new system set up as you would like, then format the old system's hard drive prior to using it as a backup.

Regards,

Ax