1. Boot your new Windows installation
  2. Make sure you have all the same user accounts as before (the ones you would click to log in with). Make sure you can log in as all these users
  3. To copy the data back, I use drag and drop. The reason I don't use XCOPY or ROBOCOPY on the folders are because there are reminents of the old system that should not be copied to a new system.. Open both the C:\Windows.old\Users\username and the C:\Users\username folders, and stack them side to side (Press Windows+Left on one window, and Windows+Right on the other).

  4. Drag the following folders over from the OLD folder to the NEW:

    • Documents
    • Desktop
    • Contacts
    • Favourites
    • Music
    • Pictures
    • Videos
    • Downloads
    • Virtual Machines (if it exists)
    • Dropbox (if it exists)
  5. Depending on email, you may be able to just move email messages and accounts over, or you'll need to import messages. That would be another topic. Lather, rinse, repeat for all the other user accounts.
  6. To install drivers, click Start, right-click on Computer and click Manage. Click Yes if prompted. Select Device Manager from the list on the left. On the right side, look for any icons with a yellow triangle, black explanation mark (!) on it. Right-click each one, one at a time, and select Update driver. Select the option to choose a driver yourself from a folder, and point the Browse folder toC:\Windows.old\Windows\System32. Ensure the checkbox for Include subfolders is checked. Click Next, and it should pull the drivers from the previous installation, assuming it's the same version.