If I reinstall windows on a different drive will I lose my data?

Question

Hello, I recently just added an SSD to my pc build. Before, I had everything on an HDD, including windows. If I reinstall windows onto the SSD will I lose all my files and data that I previously had on the HDD?

Answer 1

Try following the link above. If you try cloning you will most likely break things. Simplest solution is to boot the install media, then choose the second disk for the second windows install, then when you boot the pc you'll be presented with a dual boot menu where you can choose which OS to start up. Another other option may be installing the second instance within hyper-v but that's a new topic.

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Answer 2

Are you planning to dual boot? As long as both disks are connected and windows still boots then it should not be a problem. If you are swapping out the disks then that's a different story and outcome. Something here could help.
https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/how-to-dual-boot-windows-10-and-windows-11

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