Windows upgrade and migration considerations

Files and application settings can be migrated to new hardware running the Windows operating system, or they can be maintained during an operating system upgrade on the same computer. This article summarizes the Microsoft tools that can be used to move files and settings between installations in addition to special considerations for performing an upgrade or migration.

Earlier versions of Windows can be upgraded to later versions. As part of the upgrade experience, the newer version of Windows can be installed while retaining applications, files, and settings as they were in the previous version of Windows. If a custom installation of Windows is performed instead of an upgrade, applications and settings aren't maintained. Personal files and all Windows files and directories are moved to a Windows.old folder. The data can be accessed in the Windows.old folder after Windows Setup is complete.

The User State Migration Tool (USMT) is available to transfer settings:

• Between two computers running Windows, also known as a side-by-side migration.
• On a single computer upgrading the version of Windows when not using an in-place upgrade, also known as a wipe-and-load or refresh migration.

USMT only transfers the program settings, not the programs themselves. USMT is an application intended for administrators who are performing large-scale automated deployments, but it can also be used in smaller migrations.

USMT can be used to automate migration during large deployments of the Windows operating system. USMT uses XML files that define migration rules. The migration rules can be configured to control exactly what USMT migrates and how it migrates the items. For example, USMT can migrate:

• User accounts, including which specific accounts to migrate.
• User files, including which specific files to migrate.
• Operating system settings, including which specific operating system settings to migrate.
• Settings for some applications, including which specific application settings to migrate.

USMT can be used for the following scenarios:

• Side-by-side - migration where one device is replaced with a different device.
• Wipe-and-load/refresh - migration where Windows is upgraded on a single device.

When upgrading or migrating to a new version of Windows, be aware of the following issues and considerations:

For more information about application compatibility in Windows, see Compatibility for Windows 11.

USMT doesn't support cross-language upgrades when performing multilingual Windows upgrades. If upgrading or migrating an operating system with multiple language packs installed, only the system default user interface (UI) language can be upgraded or migrated to. For example, if English is the default but a Spanish language pack is installed, only English can be upgraded or migrated to.

If a single-language Windows image that matches the system default UI language of a multilingual operating system is being used for a wipe-and-load/refresh migration, the migration works. However, all of the language packs are removed. The language packs will need to be reinstalled after the upgrade is completed.

If using Errorhandler.cmd when upgrading from an earlier version of Windows, copy Errorhandler.cmd into the %WINDIR%\Setup\Scripts directory on the original installation of Windows. Copying Errorhandler.cmd into the %WINDIR%\Setup\Scripts directory on the original installation of Windows makes sure that if there are errors during the downlevel phase of Windows Setup, the commands in Errorhandler.cmd run. For more information, see Run a script if Windows Setup encounters a fatal error (ErrorHandler.cmd).

• User State Migration Tool (USMT) overview.
• Windows upgrade paths.
• Windows edition upgrade.