I think I may need to reinstall Windows on my laptop, and probably stripping it all the way back to a clean install too. I've a few glitches happening and cannot work out why they are happening, despite trying thing like Task Manager reviews, latency monitoring, service killing and so on.

However, I have a few things installed that I'm worried about. I installed a number of Kontakt libraries that are housed on an external SSD. So, the library content will be fine, but what about the installs? Will using R2R's Kontakt Manager install the necessary local C: drive files when registering the .nicnt file for each library for all the libraries to run ok? Or is there a way to backup/copy the required data? Some of these libraries are 100GB+, so I do not want to re-download to reinstall if possible.

I also have a number of plugins installed and I am planning to strip these back to a minimal amount on the new install. Is there anything I can copy over from my existing install to make life easier with regard to these?

 

...following...

 

following this thread too..

 

I'm following the following.

 

For Kontakt libraries most of the time you'll only need the content that was installed in the folder where also your samples and intruments are. The only thing you have to do after the re-installation is install Kontakt and add the libraries via the 'Add libraries' tool. You can select a whole folder or drive where you libraries are so you wont have to add them one by one.

However some libraries like for instance some Orchestral Tools and some other libraries have separate installations for content like GUI or snapshots.These are usually stored in C:\Users\<User Name>\My Documents\Native Instruments\User Content\
So it might be a good idea to backup this folder so you copy back this content if you need it.

For other plugins it all depends on what plugin it is? So impossible to tell you what to do with those. If you have custom made presets saved you don't want to lose I would surely investigate where they are stored.

As with every re-installation I would strongly advise you to make a complete backup (image) before doing so. For instance with Acronis True Image. So you can always restore individual files when you discover you need them after the re-installation.

 

With R2R's kontakt manager pretty much all you need is the library content and a valid ncnit file for things to work as they should, no need to back up anything else.

However, some older libraries are not recognized by kontakt manager or don't come with an ncnit file at all, you can make a ncnit file but that doesn't always work, it's a pain in the ass.

So try first, see in your current system if the libraries you have are recognized by kontakt manager. If everything works, then you don't have to backup anything from C

 

Due to the amount of applications and their content installed you need to have a backup drive for the main OS + Installed applications.

This gives you an advantage as only the network mac licensed applications need to be re-registered if you move that OS image into another computer for example.

I back up my laptops, desktops every Friday so this gives me a week to test out some new stuff for at least a week and if anything comes up, swap back to the previous Friday backup.

Reinstalling the OS, apps+content+ registering will take some time...........

What I recommend is backup your OS drive right now!!

Then start uninstalling the last apps one by one until you come down in size and see if the problem went away.

This way you have a backup of the Original full OS and Installation of apps, which then you know which app was the issue and uninstall that from that backup image.

 

I feel for ya

 

I feel for ya

 

You could always make a vhd or vhdx of a freshly debloated Windows + your most commonly used software and write that vhd to an SSD instead of reinstalling Windows and all your software every time. Of course you still need to reactivate all the software but it still saves a lot of time.

 

Look up PCMover (The application by Laplink).
It may or may not be the right fit if you have an external HDD.
It also comes with a money back guarantee. Not many do that these days.
https://go.laplink.com/pcmover-bran...ter?utm_source=google&utm_medium=ppc#features

 

last time I did so with Mac (which people say is perfect, unlike Windows), I had big problems with some (Kontakt) libraries placed on external drive, because they still may have some data linked on system drive (for ex. presets for newer Gothic Instruments Dronar series instruments are buried somewhere in userprofile Documents or maybe not can't remember),

clean install of operating system is great opportunity to replace your drive with something faster and bigger, being left with fully functional previous drive in case anything gets fucked up, it's also way easier and faster than mirroring full backup of the drive hoping it would work if rolled back...

 

All of the libraries I use have a .nicnt file that works in my current 7.2.0.r3.bobdule version, so I'm hoping the R2R Kontakt Manager can re-add them in easily using the .nicnt then. Am backing up my Common FIles\Native Instruments folder though just in case I need anything from it.

 

This is what I'm doing. I plan to replace with a clean PCIe 4.0 NVMe that has a write speed of 5000+ and is 2TB in size

 

which one exactly? I'm planning 2TB KC3000 myself (desktop rig), price / sustained performance ratio seems best,
that said, all well-performing PCIe 4.0 NVME drives by nature heat a lot, not sure it ideal for a laptop I'm afraid

 

The Crucial P5 Plus 2TB M.2 PCIe Gen4 NVMe up to 6600MB/s is the one I am going to be inserting in the machine as I already have one spare.

 

if you're running this machine on the internet with a/v on and ms updater running amok, and non optimized OS? If yes, you'll probably be rebuilding again soon. just FYI..

 

It's a pain, but it is one of those things that needs to be done. The key is to backup all of your important stuff to minimize the drama.