Setting up a new computer properly
The first hour with a new computer decides how well the next few years go. Done in a rush, you end up with files left behind on the old machine, trial software nagging you and no backup.
This is the order we work through in the workshop.
Before you touch the new one
Everything gets easier if the old machine is dealt with first.
- Take a full backup of the old computer — not just documents; check the desktop, Downloads and any second drive
- Write down the software you actually use, and find the licence keys or account logins for each
- Note your email settings if you use a mail program rather than a website
- Export browser bookmarks and passwords, or sign into the browser account so they sync
- Check for files stored inside programs: accounting data, photo libraries, saved games
The first-run setup
Windows asks a lot of questions quickly, and the defaults aren't all in your interest.
- Connect to Wi-Fi and let it finish all the updates before anything else — often several rounds
- Decline the advertising, personalised ads and diagnostic-sharing options if you'd rather not
- Set up your Microsoft or Apple account, which also stores your recovery key
- Create a password or PIN, and set up fingerprint or face unlock if the machine has it
- Check that device encryption (BitLocker or FileVault) is on — especially on a laptop
Strip out what the maker added
New machines ship with trial software that slows things down and nags for payment. Remove the antivirus trial, any "PC optimiser", the bundled trial office suite if you have your own, and the maker's duplicate utilities.
Leave the manufacturer's driver-update tool and anything related to the hardware itself. If you're unsure what something is, look it up before removing it.
Moving everything across
There are three routes, and the right one depends on how much you have.
- Cloud sync (OneDrive, iCloud, Google Drive) — simplest if your files already live there; just sign in
- External drive — copy everything off, then copy on. Reliable and easy to verify
- Direct transfer over the network or a cable, which is quickest for large amounts
- Reinstall programs freshly rather than copying them; copied program folders rarely work
- Afterwards, open a few files at random to confirm they really came across
Finish properly
The steps people mean to do later and never do.
- Set up the backup now, while the machine is empty and it's quick
- Install proper antivirus and confirm it's actually active, not a lapsed trial
- Sign into email and check that old mail and contacts are present
- Install the printer and test a page
- Keep the old machine untouched for a month before wiping it — that's when you find the thing you forgot
Disposing of the old computer safely
Deleting files and emptying the Recycle Bin does not remove them. Anyone with free software can recover a supposedly wiped drive.
Use the built-in reset with the option to remove everything and clean the drive, or have the drive securely erased. If you're giving it away or recycling it, that step matters — and if the machine is being scrapped, removing the drive and keeping it is the simplest certainty. We can wipe drives to a proper standard and recycle the rest responsibly.