New computer, new Windows 11

[popcorn]

My last computer started to give signs of being on the verge of failing.
So before it gave up I decided to replace it.

I also decided to upgrade to Windows 11.

I gave it to the person we out- source all out computer work to. The old computer was still operational and the disk was fine ( a 1TB SSD ) 
I asked that he configure it as close as possible to represent the same structure as the one it was replacing.
It took a few day before I got it back. I was assured it was a duplicate. I assumed that it was a case of cloning the old disk.

When I opened it I was horrified, I am no computer fundi and everything I tried to do took me lots of trial and error. 
Some of my programs were missing, none of my shortcuts worked, my links to my favorite Web sites were gone and some of my passwords did not work.
All my add-0n to Elements 2023 were non functional and worst all, my entire Organizer was empty.

I still have the old computer and the old SSD. Is there a way to recover my Organizer file? I can reload most of the missing Apps but there is no way of replacing the Organizer.

Coincidentally, my sister had a hard drive crash last week, they managed to recovery everything, she also upgraded to Windows 11 and she says she can hardly find any difference. 
Different town different technician!  He said they were lucky to be able to recover the disk but then it was just a case of cloning o to a new one.

My disk was intact, any idea why my technician could not have cloned the same way?
Any help will be much appreciated. 
 

[michelb]

Hi Popcorn,

I am also wondering about what I should do to update my ageing hardware and if I should migrate to Windows 11 at the same time. Your horror story and the comparison with the experience of your sister make me want to hear more comments and testimonials from other users of this forum.

What I can say is that if you have still your old computer available, it's not too late to transfer your catalog(s) and photo/video file folder trees to your new computer using the backup and restore recommended process.

helpx.adobe.com/photoshop-elements/kb/backup-restore-move-catalog-photoshop.html

I think that there are pros and cons for using cloning vs clean reinstall of each and every app. Cloning looks much easier and faster when you want to replicate a full config on a new similar hardware. That's what is used most frequently when changing you main drive by an equivalent SSD one. An old config with many softwares will benefit from a selective individual reinstall of all apps and clean up your cluttered hardware. I don't believe in using migrating softwares which never work with Adobe programs, especially the organizer.

You'll find lots of good info in this forum section about the organizer.

It is my understanding that many Windows users have been able to switch to Win 11 without major problems on their existing hardware.

In my case, all my 3 computers (including my wife's) don't qualify for that upgrade... That suggests I should buy a new computer meeting the specs and reinstall every program one by one ?

[Howard]

Hello.I run a software development company and while I am not a hardware expert I would say reinstall applications from scratch on new hardware so that registry entries and suchlike are correctly updated, especially when updating the OS as well. Simply copying files etc can create problems.

[popcorn]

Hi Michel & Howard

Your reluctance and trepidation to changing your hardware and Windows 11, with all the experience I know you have got, my anxiety is only growing.
I have found that even EXCEL is presenting me with problems. According to our IT consultant these presented problems even though they were loaded from scratch.

I am going to get my old computer back from him and, and with the help of the link you have supplied, try and transfer my catalog(s) with his help.
Thank you for taking the time to reply, I will keep you informed. The problem is there are many other programs, so it won't be a quick fix, the invoice for technical help is not going to be small.
The cost of updating is going to be a lot more expensive than I thought.

[Howard]

Apr 13, 2023 21:18:00 GMT popcorn said:

Hi Michel & Howard

Your reluctance and trepidation to changing your hardware and Windows 11, with all the experience I know you have got, my anxiety is only growing.
I have found that even EXCEL is presenting me with problems. According to our IT consultant these presented problems even though they were loaded from scratch.

I am going to get my old computer back from him and, and with the help of the link you have supplied, try and transfer my catalog(s) with his help.
Thank you for taking the time to reply, I will keep you informed. The problem is there are many other programs, so it won't be a quick fix, the invoice for technical help is not going to be small.
The cost of updating is going to be a lot more expensive than I thought.

Hi Popcorn.  I wouldn't have any concerns about Windows 11 in itself, it seems a very robust OS. We always upgrade our PC's gradually in case something goes wrong and to allow us to test our own application before clients find any bugs.   So far everyone using 11 is very happy and we have had no issues whatsoever with existing software or performance.  But reinstalling everything can be a pain, that's for sure!

All the best
Howard

[BuckSkin]

From what I have seen out of Windows 11, all I can say is that it is the best free advertising Linux could ask for.

[popcorn]

Thanks ,
I will be collecting my old computer in a couple of hours.
What happened to the days when you loaded the new program/upgrade, pressed the install button, waited 10 minutes and you had the new programmed almost duplicating your previous configuration. "Plug & Play"

I actually don't know what programs I had installed on my old computer, I now have to go through all the directories, check all the folders to see where I have put what. Then I have to find out where I have filed the program downloads and then re-install them. re and if I can't find them, send an e-mail to each supplier to ask them to re-send the program files. The days of having CD's are long gone.

This seems to apply to every shortcut as well!
Howard, I can only say "well done".
In Elements I have about 10 apps, Elements+, at lease 6 Franciz apps, Faststone Viewer etc etc.
This is no joke.
I am so grateful that I have a separate drive for all my images.

[BuckSkin]

Apr 14, 2023 14:00:52 GMT popcorn said:

I am so grateful that I have a separate drive for all my images.

I guess you have done the same = my entire world became a better place when I isolated my system on (C:) Drive and all other data on respective drives of their own; thus even a system crash only ever affects the isolated system drive; everything else is right there where I left it.

[Sepiana]

Apr 12, 2023 16:22:48 GMT popcorn said:

Apr 12, 2023 19:24:30 GMT michelb said:

I am also wondering about what I should do to update my ageing hardware and if I should migrate to Windows 11 at the same time. Your horror story and the comparison with the experience of your sister make me want to hear more comments and testimonials from other users of this forum.

It is my understanding that many Windows users have been able to switch to Win 11 without major problems on their existing hardware.

I also decided to upgrade to Windows 11.

Some of my programs were missing, none of my shortcuts worked, my links to my favorite Web sites were gone and some of my passwords did not work.
All my add-0n to Elements 2023 were non functional and worst all, my entire Organizer was empty.

popcorn and michelb,

I upgraded one of my computers (the workhorse one) to Windows 11 Pro. No problems whatsoever!

Each and every Elements version I have is working flawlessly (13 versions!!!). The same holds true of my CC apps -- Photoshop, Lightroom Classic, and Bridge -- as well as of all the non-Adobe apps.

As to the Organizer? No issues to report. Everything is working as it should.

[michelb]

Apr 14, 2023 16:39:35 GMT Sepiana said:

Apr 12, 2023 16:22:48 GMT popcorn said:

I also decided to upgrade to Windows 11.

Some of my programs were missing, none of my shortcuts worked, my links to my favorite Web sites were gone and some of my passwords did not work.
All my add-0n to Elements 2023 were non functional and worst all, my entire Organizer was empty.

popcorn and michelb ,

I upgraded one of my computers (the workhorse one) to Windows 11 Pro. No problems whatsoever!

Each and every Elements version I have is working flawlessly (13 versions!!!). The same holds true of my CC apps -- Photoshop, Lightroom Classic, and Bridge -- as well as of all the non-Adobe apps.

As to the Organizer? No issues to report. Everything is working as it should.

Thanks Sepiana,

My own problem with the Win 11 update is that my 4 old computers don't meet the new requirements. And that would be a problem anyway without the OS change. From what I see in the Adobe Elements forum, there are a lot of users asking before upgrading, and getting mainly positive testimonies as yours. It's a bit tricker for Mac users asking a bit too late!

I have migrated to new computers a number of times, and I have always taken the time to reinstall every software separately. Recently, I have considered only replacing my main drive by a big SSD one. I have studied various options including the cloning ones, but there is more to upgrade in my hardware than that.

I am very happy with my choice of storing all my files and catalogs on an external 1 Tb SSD drive. I would advise to move yours from your main computer like this with the organizer.

[Sepiana]

Apr 14, 2023 19:11:42 GMT michelb said:

Thanks Sepiana,

My own problem with the Win 11 update is that my 4 old computers don't meet the new requirements. And that would be a problem anyway without the OS change. From what I see in the Adobe Elements forum, there are a lot of users asking before upgrading, and getting mainly positive testimonies as yours. 

Michel, you are most welcome! Glad to share my successful experience with Windows 11.

[Andy]

I'll echo some of the posts already made here:
- Windows 11 is a solid, stable operating system. I have no qualms about recommending moving to Windows 11 **IF** your computer easily meets the requirements. If you have an older machine, I might recommend staying with Windows 10.
- Windows 11 should upgrade in place on an existing computer. Cloning a hard drive and then trying to do an upgrade is extremely challenging, especially when moving to a new computer. I would recommend it. I would install programs from scratch. There are ways to backup and restore settings from one computer to another. Moving a PSE Catalog is a whole separate exercise in itself and unless an IT person knows how to handle PSE, it won't get done correctly.
- Windows 10 isn't going away yet. Microsoft is advertising October 2025 for retirement. By that time, if you are still running Windows 10 and aren't able to upgrade, it is time for a new computer.
- I agree with buckskin that running your operating system and programs on the c:\ drive and having a separate drive for data (photos, documents, etc.) is a great way to go if you can. I don't agree about the Linux comment. I have many things positive to say about Linux, but using it as a replacement for your Windows or Mac desktop is not a trivial exercise.

[michelb]

Apr 17, 2023 3:38:50 GMT Andy said:

Moving a PSE Catalog is a whole separate exercise in itself and unless an IT person knows how to handle PSE, it won't get done correctly.
- Windows 10 isn't going away yet. Microsoft is advertising October 2025 for retirement. By that time, if you are still running Windows 10 and aren't able to upgrade, it is time for a new computer.
- I agree with buckskin that running your operating system and programs on the c:\ drive and having a separate drive for data (photos, documents, etc.) is a great way to go if you can

Andy,

I totally agree with everything you said.

About moving the organizer catalog and storing your data on a separate drive, it's indeed a separate exercise, but it's probably the easier part of the global move. And choosing to store Data on a different drive is a must.

Even without migrating to a new computer AND/OR a new OS version, I have always recommended storing the catalog and the restored media files folders on an external drive. That's what I have done for years. Everything is now on a 1 tb SSD USB drive. I only have to plug in the very small drive to any of my computers to have everything immediately available.

If I have to migrate to a new computer, new OS version and even new PSE version, I am safe and I can even use everything on another computer while I take the time to reinstall everything on the new computer. Doing this transfer to a new drive via backup and restore is all you need and can be done now, no need to wait for the new computer to be ready. See the organizer tips in this forum dedicated section.

[mart44]

I recently got a new computer running on Windows 11 Home. I got an all-in-one (AIO) computer this time and am very happy with it. I has a 1TB SSD for the operating system and programs. A 1TB HDD for storage purposes (disk images too). I have other external USB drives and sticks for backing up all created files and installation programs. 

I think as long as the created filed and folders are stored on an external drive, everything falls into place once the favourite programs are reinstalled on the new computer. This applies to Windows, Linux and presumably Mac as well. It then just becomes a matter copying the created/stored files and folders into the Pictures, Music, Video, Documents directories on the new computer.

One thing I've fallen foul of in the past is not de-registering programs from the old computer. These are the programs that are only licenced for a certain number of installations. Some programs won't activate if that number has been exceeded. I had to log into the makers server and de-register before Xara Photo & Graphic Designer would activate and work. Making sure all the key numbers to hand is important too.