External HD and Win 7 boot?

[X Sub]

I just got a Segate 250gb external USB HD -$50.00 at Walmart.
Question is can I install Win7 on It and all the other programs I am
using now and just stop using my internal HD. I can set the bios to
boot from usb so if I can get it to work I maybe just un do the power
to my internal drive??? I am thinking I can get the Win7 upgrade to
the external HD by installing it twice.

What do you think??

X Sub

 

[Don]

I just got a Segate 250gb external USB HD -$50.00 at Walmart.
Question is can I install Win7 on It and all the other programs I am using
now and just stop using my internal HD. I can set the bios to boot from
usb so if I can get it to work I maybe just un do the power
to my internal drive??? I am thinking I can get the Win7 upgrade to the
external HD by installing it twice.

What do you think??

X Sub

I do not believe you can install Windows and run it from an external usb or
firewire hard drive.
It can be on an E-sata drive, but that is about it.

 

[Augustus]

I just got a Segate 250gb external USB HD -$50.00 at Walmart.
Question is can I install Win7 on It and all the other programs I am using
now and just stop using my internal HD. I can set the bios to boot from
usb so if I can get it to work I maybe just un do the power
to my internal drive??? I am thinking I can get the Win7 upgrade to the
external HD by installing it twice.

What do you think??

X Sub

Can't be done. An external eSATA, yes. An external USB, no.

 

[Ato_Zee]

Even if you can, and it is doubtful if it can be done successfully,
the speed of USB will be a bottleneck.

 

[X Sub]

Well I was justa hoping, duh
I still may try it.

X Sub

 

[GlowingBlueMist]

Can't be done. An external eSATA, yes. An external USB, no.

Works just fine for me. I used an older IDE drive in a USB case to install
the Windows 7 as a test and it installed just fine. True the speed could be
a little faster if I used an internal drive, IDE or SATA but it does work.

I have also used XXClone to copy a working Windows 7 from an internal SATA
drive to the same external USB drive and have been able to boot just fine
from the copied system. Makes a nice backup and it is good being able to
actually boot it from it if needed rather than having to use boot CD to
bring it up.

It all depends on the motherboard BIOS supporting booting from USB. The
other thing is to have the drive plugged directly into a USB port directly
from the computer and not from an external Hub. Some people have reported
problems booting to a drive that is attached to an external Hub for some
reason but then again mine seems to work just fine either way but it is an
externally powered Hub.

 

[Augustus]

Works just fine for me. I used an older IDE drive in a USB case to

install the Windows 7 as a test and it installed just fine. True the
speed could be a little faster if I used an internal drive, IDE or SATA
but it does work.

You put in the Windows 7 DVD and the Windows installer gave you the option
of doing an Windows 7 install to a partition on a external USB drive? I find
that, shall we say, hard to believe.

 

[GlowingBlueMist]

You put in the Windows 7 DVD and the Windows installer gave you the
option of doing an Windows 7 install to a partition on a external USB
drive? I find that, shall we say, hard to believe.

I find that I have to agree with you Augustus. I must have done some kind
of an upgrade over one of my clone copies when I thought I was doing an
install. I just formatted the USB drive and tried to do a new install and
the CD would not allow me to do it. Must have been too many hours at the
keyboard...

After the last attempt I used XXClone to make a new copy of my working
Windows 7 (reinstalled internal drive) over to the blank USB drive with no
problems. The laptop was able to boot from it just fine once I told the
BIOS to boot from it. So a clone of Windows 7 can still be made to a USB
drive but I don't know of a way to install Windows 7 directly to the USB
drive.

Sorry for any aggravation my incorrect information may have caused anyone.