windows 7 clean install and subsequent repopulation

Hello fellow geeks,
I am planning to upgrade from windows xp home, to windows 7 proffessional, using http://www.software4students.co.uk/...fessional_32_bit_Upgrade_Edition-details.aspx
i have a desktop computer with two internal hard drives:
Hard drive 1 - currently has windows xp installed on it, and has my docs and program files etc
Hard drive 2 - has all my music, videos, pictures etc on it.
My proposal is to backup all my docs and files for uni work and things (evereything important on HD 1) onto HD 2, then to unplug HD 2, and clean install windows 7 over xp on HD1.
If i then plug in the second hard drive to repopulate my documents, but leave music etc on hard drive 2, then will that work? or will windows 7 realise the hard drive was plugged into xp and try to wipe it?
i know this seems like a silly question, but i am one of the most unlucky people on the planet so i'm making absolutely sure!
also as a side question will flash 8 work with the xp compatibility platform thing that 7 has?
thanks a lot!
rich

 

Greetings, richardharveyhowells.

Your proposed procedure should work just fine for your documents, music, videos, pictures, etc. Be advised, however, that the 'program files' will be pretty much useless - the programs must be reinstalled with the new operating system.

As far as the Flash 8, I would venture that it should work in XP compat mode (especially since you're upgrading to 7 Pro instead of Home), but that's just a matter of opinion - perhaps other MGs will chime in with suggestions.

 

Hi

Another thing to keep in mind -- if the drive you backup all of your files onto is formatted NTFS, you will likely need to take ownership of the files once you install Windows 7, as all of the file properties won't transfer over automatically. If the drive is formatted FAT32, this won't be an issue.

 

thanks everyone for the help, and sorry i didnt reply soon because i have been on holiday so no internet
anyway, it went well, EXCEPT for upon startup the boot manager selection screen comes up, givine the options of:
Windows XP
Windows 7
Windows XP setup/repair
and it automatically selects xp setup, and has the 30second timer for me to select windows 7 instead. i have tried right clicking on my computer to change the default to windows 7, but it rekons the default is already is windows 7...
Any way that anyone knows of getting rid of the old windows xp, or booting windows 7 as default would be useful. I have tried fiddling with the boot.ini, but its write protected etc and im not really sure what im doing!
so, in a nutshell, windows 7 installed fine, and i chose clean install, but my comp still reckons xp is there, and is trying to setup/repair windows xp every time i boot, and wont change its mind.

Thanks guys!