With internet access and a few clicks, you can back up your files online. When you’re ready, sync them onto a new PC—or you can leave them in the cloud without having to download them. This saves space on your new PC’s hard drive and leaves your files and photos easily accessible from any of your devices, anywhere.1
Copy your files and folders to a secure location in the cloud then get up and running quickly so you can get back to doing what you love.
When you start up your new PC, you may want to install additional apps. The Microsoft Store has many popular apps available to download or you can check with the publisher of your software for more information.
Check the table below to see what makes the most sense for your move.
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| Details | If you've been using your PC for a few years, you probably have some files that you want to move to the new PC. By using OneDrive, you can quickly transfer files from PC to PC or Mac to PC, so your files are organised like they were on your old computer and you can get right back to work. | You can use an external storage device such as a USB drive, SD card or external hard drive to help you move all your favourite files off a Windows 7 PC and onto a Windows 10 PC. |
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| Cost | A Microsoft account comes with 5 GB of OneDrive storage. You can buy more storage if you want it. Compare plans. | Shop at your local retailer for hard drives and USB drives. |
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How can I transfer my current PC files to a new Windows 11 PC?
There are a couple of ways to get your files and photos onto a new PC. With OneDrive you can quickly transfer files from PC to PC or Mac to PC, so your files are organised like they were on your old computer and you can get right back to work. Or you can use an external storage device such as a USB drive, SD card or external hard drive to help you make the move.
Do I need a Microsoft Account for Windows 11?
OneDrive is a Microsoft cloud storage service that lets you store your personal files in one place, share them with others, and get to them from any device connected to the Internet.
LEARN MORE ABOUT ONEDRIVE
How do I create an account for OneDrive?
How much storage is available on OneDrive?
A free OneDrive basic account offers 5 GB of storage. Need more space? No problem, see available options.
Can I transfer my files without using OneDrive?
Yes. If OneDrive is not the best fit for you, there are other options available. For example, you can use an external hard drive along with the Windows Backup & Restore feature. There are also other programs designed to help with backing up your files and data and some retailers have service desks that will do the work for you.
Learn how
Can I transfer older programs and applications to a new Windows computer?
If you are upgrading an existing Windows 10 PC to Windows 11, your apps will remain on the PC and they should continue to work. However, if you purchase a new Windows 11 PC, you will need to reinstall your apps on the new PC.
Can I drag whole folders into OneDrive, or do I have to drag each file?
Yes, you can drag whole folders from File Explorer to your OneDrive folder.
With the broadest choice of devices—across style, features and form factors—we and our ecosystem of partners can help ensure that you will find the right fit with Windows.
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SHOP DESKTOPS AND ALL-IN-ONES
How to share files between laptop and desktop PC installed Windows 10, 8 or 7? In fact, it is pretty easy as long as you find the right way. Use freeware AOMEI Backupper Standard to complete this task easily.
It is not uncommon that people use more than two computers nowadays. Maybe you work at desktop in the office and do personal things at laptop at home. Then you have to transfer files between laptop and desktop when you need to work overtime during the vacation or holiday.
Besides, you might buy a new laptop to replace the old and cumbersome desktop, and it is necessary for you to transfer files. There might be many other situations you have to do this. Therefore, it is important to find out how to transfer files between computers.
2 situations of transferring files in Windows
There could be two circumstances you probably confront: transfer files once and transfer files regularly.
Transfer files once only
If you are going to transfer files between desktop and laptop once, use a big enough memory stick, USB flash drive or other removable hard drives as the medium. This method saves time and requires no complicated operations.
Take transferring files from desktop to laptop for example. First, connect the removable medium to desktop, drag the files you want to transfer to the removable device, and then disconnect this device. Next, connect the fulfilled device to laptop, and then drag those files to the laptop.
Furthermore, you can backup files first in the old computer, store the backup image to removable storage device, and then restore it on the new computer.
Transfer files regularly
To transfer files regularly, you might require the help of network (LAN or WIFI). You can create a local area network (LAN) using a router or hub, and then plug both computers into the hub using cat5 cable.
Then you share all the folders you want to transfer on your desktop by right clicking them and choosing “Share with” (follow the wizard to go through all the security stuff and wait for the process to be done).
Finally, go to “Network” on your laptop, double click on your desktop name, and all the folders shared from your desktop will appear after that. The rest step is to click and drag the files to the designed drive on your laptop.
Top 3 ways to transfer files from laptop to desktop
Transfer files using cloud storage (remotely)
Cloud storage like OneDrive, Google Drive and Dropbox has made it simple to copy files between PCs. More pleasing, you can get a few gigabytes of online storage for free. Take OneDrive as an example. Let’s see how to share files between laptop and desktop using OneDrive step by step:
1. Install OneDrive desktop app on two computers. If your computers are running Windows 10, then the app may have already been installed.
2. On the computer you want to transfer files from, enter “OneDrive” in the search box on the taskbar and select it from the list of results.
3. Sign in with your Microsoft account and follow the wizard to complete OneDrive setup.
4. Open File Explorer and click OneDrive from the left panel. You’ll get to your OneDrive folder. Then, drag the files you want to transfer from this computer into the folder.
5. On the other computer, open OneDrive app and log into the same account.
6. The app will sync files to the OneDrive folder on your second device automatically. Copy the files to a new location on your computer as you wish.
Transfer files with Windows Easy Transfer
The Windows Easy Transfer (WET) application can also help you transfer files between PCs. It offers you three transfer methods: “An Easy Transfer cable”, “A network”, and “An external hard disk or USB flash drive”. Take “A network” as an example. Learn how to transfer files between two computers running Windows 7 below:
Note: This utility doesn’t support Windows 10 because it has been replaced with PCmover (need to purchase).
1. Make sure your laptop and desktop are connected to the same wired or wireless network and both computers are able to share files and folders.
2. On the source computer, click Start, type “easy transfer” in the Search field, and then select Windows Easy Transfer in the list of search results.
3. It will pop up a welcome window. Click Next and select A network > This is my old computer. Then take a note of the Windows Easy Transfer key, and leave this computer alone now.
4. Open Windows Easy Transfer on the destination computer. Repeat above steps to the third window, and select This is my new computer. Then select My old computer is running Windows 7. Now type in the Windows Easy Transfer key and click Next.
5. The network will display “Connected”, and it will check what can be transferred for a few minutes. After that, you can choose what to transfer as per your need.
This method works, but it is a little bit complicated. Moreover, Windows Easy Transfer doesn’t support the new operating system - Windows 10/11, which could be somehow annoying. Also, it cannot transfer files from 64 bit OS to 32 bit OS.
Transfer files via AOMEI File Sync
Fortunately, you can make the process easier with freeware, AOMEI Backupper Standard. This freeware supports Windows 11/10/8/7 and Windows XP/Vista. The Sync feature can help you synchronize files from laptop to desktop with a few clicks. Download AOMEI Backupper to have a try.
To get started, you need to create a LAN as mentioned in the second part and create a network shared folder on the source computer. Then, follow the steps below to transfer files from old PC to new PC without a USB cable:
Step 1. Install and launch AOMEI Backupper Standard on the source computer. Click Sync, and then click Basic Sync.
Step 2. Add folders you want to transfer by clicking Add Folder.
Step 3. Choose the destination location. Here you can select Share/NAS > Add Share or NAS Devices > type in the IP address of the source computer when required. Then, select the shared folder you created before.
Step 4. Click Schedule, and you can set a schedule to synchronize daily, weekly, or monthly. Then click Start Sync.
Step 5. Go to This PC > Network on the new computer to access the synced files wirelessly.
Notes:
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File/Folder can’t be synchronized to CD-ROM/DVD/Blue-Ray.
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Individual file that is more than 4GB cannot be synchronized to FAT/FAT32 because of partition limitation.
All in all, this freeware can transfer files between laptop and desktop regularly with less manual operations. If you are using File Sync, don’t waste other powerful features in AOMEI Backupper, like System Backup, Disk Backup and Disk Clone.
If you want to protect unlimited computers within your company, you may pick AOMEI Backupper Technician. It also allows you to create portable sync software so that you can sync files on any computer. Just go for this tool!