I have two files (*.pst files) that I need to transfer from one
computer to another.  The first is 6 MB and the second is 89 MB.

These appear to be much too big to send via e-mail/Internet.

I have a DVD-RW external drive, but would prefer to not use
it.  (I tend to break electronic things, and my VCR is still
flashing 12:00 after 4 years...)

Here's the Google Question:  how can I hook up a cable between
ports on the back of the two computers, and send the files directly
from hard drive to hard drive?

15 years ago, we would have used LapLink for such an operation.
I'm hoping I don't have to buy any software this time, but can simply
hook up a cable and type in a few magic commands to send the files on their
way.

A 5-star answer would be 1 paragraph on how to accomplish this.

All questions or comments greatly appreciated !

Thx.
ron

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Request for Question Clarification by feilong-ga on 07 May 2003 10:45 PDT

Hi Nronronronro,

You may have noticed that your question was locked for quite some time
and got no answer. Your question was locked by the Googlebot because
your question contained the "G" word so nobody was actually answering
your question until now.

Your problem is an easy one if you know the internal components of
your computer. You don't need any additional software, any other
peripheral or accessories, nor hook up your computer using a cable via
the ports at the back of your computer. I can give you direct
instructions on how to do it but I'm afraid I may not be able compress
it in one paragraph since it will be a set of instructions. However,
it will surely get the job done. If I compress it in one paragraph,
you might be confused that's why I want to be clear on this.

Please tell me:

1) Do you know the basic internal parts of your computer? Can you
identify the hard drive and the IDE cable?
2) What are you using -- PC or Mac?
3) What is your operating system?
4) In case your answer to #1 is no, are you prepared to follow the
instructions I'm going to give you?

I hope you respond asap. Thank you.

Regards,
Feilong

---

Clarification of Question by nronronronro-ga on 07 May 2003 11:08 PDT

Hi Feilong,

Thanks for your interest in my question!

Unfortunately, all I know about the two
hard drives is that they have 200+ MB in capacity each.

We actually have several different brands
of PCs here.  Most are Dell or Hewlett Packard.
No Apple procucts.

I would prefer to transfer the files using
Windows 98 or Windows 2000.  But I could also
do it using MS-DOS commands, if that might be
easier.


I would be happy to follow whatever instructions
you offer.  I do have an assortment of cables
and cable adapters----so if I knew the right
commands, everything would probably work fine.

Please let me know if I can provice more information.
Again, I appreciate your help !

ron

---

Request for Question Clarification by feilong-ga on 07 May 2003 11:21 PDT

Thanks for your speedy reply. As I said, you don't even need to use
additional cables to transfer large files from hard drive to hard
drive. You will actually be using Windows Explorer to transfer the PST
files from one folder to another  via the instructions I'm going to
give you. Please assure me that you are prepared to follow my
instructions and willing to open your computer. Don't worry, it's
easy. I'll get back to you as soon as you reply.

Hi Nronronronro,

You may seek the assistance of someone who is familiar with computer
parts, particularly the IDE cable and hard disk to be sure you can
follow the directions properly. It would certainly be a lot easier for
you if that person is also familiar with how to set the BIOS of a
computer. You can apply the following instructions on a Win98 computer
or basically any system. Here's what you should do:

1) Remove the covers of the computers you are going to use. You need
to identify the IDE cable and hard drive. You can refer to this
picture:

IDE cable and Hard Drive
http://www.waterwheel.com/images/r0300020.jpg

The IDE cable is held by the hand. The one on the right is the closeup
of the hard drive.

Here's an example of a hard drive:

http://www.pcupgrade.co.uk/images/hdinst-a.jpg

Now that you now what a hard drive is, let's call the drive and
computer that you are going to copy from as "C" and the drive and
computer that you are going to transfer files to as "T".

2) I assume that both hard drives are set to "master" and both drives
are virus free. If you are unsure about virus infection, please use an
antivirus and scan the drives first. If you are sure that everything
is okay and you want to proceed please remove the IDE cable and power
cable of the C drive. You can then remove the drive from the computer.

3) At the back of the C drive, you will see many pins where the IDE
cable was connected and you will see one or two small plastic
somethings called "jumpers" inserted to some separate pins. Again, I'm
assuming that C drive is set to master so you will need to change this
jumper position to make the drive a "slave drive". You will find some
explanations on the C drive on how to set it to slave. Follow the
instructions carefully.

3) Once set to slave, you will need to attach the C drive to the same
cable where the T drive is attached. Normally, the IDE cable has two
terminals where you can attach an extra drive. Each terminal has one
or two notches. When you attach the terminal to the C drive, make sure
that the notch(es) are facing up -- same as the top part of the hard
drive. The bottom part is where you pcb circuits are. Please don't
forget to attach the power cable for the C drive.

4) Once attached, you will need to identify the C drive inside the T
computer. To do this, restart the system and go to the BIOS program. I
don't know your BIOS setup program interface so you will have to read
the intructions onscreen. Identify the C drive using "auto detect" or
"detect hard drive" command.

5) Once identified, you can now restart your system to Windows. In
Windows, you only need to open up Windows Explorer and copy the PST
files from the C drive to the T drive in much the same way as you copy
a file from one folder to another. It's that easy.

In case you have questions, please say so and I'll be happy to assist
you.


Search strategy:

drive to drive file transfer
://www.google.com/search?q=drive+to+drive+file+transfer&cat=&hl=en

+ personal knowledge


I hope this helps you. Should you have any comments/questions, please
feel free to post your clarification before rating this and I'll
attend to you as soon as possible. Thanks for asking.

Best regards,
Feilong

Thanks!  ron

Thanks for the excellent rating Ron. I really appreciate it. :-)

The given answer is completely unnecessary - there are much easier and
less-time consuming solutions:
1) If both computers have Ethernet ports (they look a little bigger
than the phone jack on a moder) you can use a crossover networking
cable and just plug one end into one computer and the other end into
the other computer.  This is by far the simplest way to network two
computers together.  Windows XP can do this easily.
2) If both computers have serial ports, you can use a null-modem cable
to connect one to the other to transfer files.

There are other ways as well (such as firewire networking or
connecting to a hub).

There really is no reason at all to open your PC case - each of these
cables can be found for around $10.

elipc!   thank you very much.  I appreciate your taking the time !  ron