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Programs on a new computer

How to Put Your Programs on a New Windows Computer

Copying files from an old Windows computer transfers your documents and pictures to a new Windows 11 computer, but not your programs. A program, also called an app, has to be installed again on the new computer. This page explains why, and how to install each program again from Microsoft Store or from the company that makes it.

Why copying does not bring your programs

Installing a program does more than copy its folder. The installation also saves settings that the program needs in other parts of Windows, and it can put other pieces of the program, such as shortcuts and parts that several programs share, in other places on the computer. A copy of the program's folder brings only the files in that folder, so on the new computer the program usually does not work properly. Installing the program again puts all of its pieces in place.

Your files are separate from the program

Documents, pictures and other files you can see on the new computer are separate from the program you used to make them. When the program is installed again, you can open those files in it.

Install each program again, one at a time

Before you start, write down the name of each program you remember using on the old computer and the company that makes it.

First, type the program's name in the search box of the Start menu, as in How to Open an App on Windows 11. If the program opens, it is already installed. If its icon is already on the Start menu or the taskbar from your old computer, click the icon; Windows starts getting the program from Microsoft Store or takes you to a website to download it.

Install each program that is still missing, one at a time, from where you got it.

Apps from Microsoft Store. If the app is free, follow How to Install a Free App from the Microsoft Store on Windows 11. Those steps cover free apps that install without a sign-in window.

If you got the app before with your Microsoft account, whether it was free or paid, install it again from your Library. These steps use your own Microsoft account:

  1. Click Start, type Microsoft Store, then click Microsoft Store in the search results.
  2. If Microsoft Store asks you to sign in, sign in with the Microsoft account you used on the old computer.
  3. In the column of buttons on the left side of the Microsoft Store window, click Library.
  4. Find the app in the list, then click the button next to its name that installs it: Install, or the Download icon, an arrow pointing down. Wait while the app installs.

Programs from a company's website. Follow these steps:

  1. Open the website of the company that makes the program, using its address from the program's box, your receipt or the purchase email. How to Go to a Website by Typing Its Address in Microsoft Edge on Windows 11 shows how.
  2. Download the program. How to Download a File from a Website in Microsoft Edge on Windows 11 shows how. Do not use another website that offers downloads, because other websites can change a program to add software you did not ask for.
  3. Open the downloaded file to start the installation: click Open file under its name in the Downloads list, as in the last step of that lesson.
  4. If a window asks Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device?, the rest of the screen may turn darker while it is open. Click Yes if the window shows Verified publisher followed by the name of the company that makes the program, even with extra words such as Inc. or Ltd. If the name is different, if there is no Verified publisher line, or if the window asks for a password or PIN, click No. The program is not installed.
  5. Read each window that the installation shows. If a window offers extra software, such as a toolbar, with a checked box, click the box to remove the check mark. To continue, click the button that goes on with the installation, such as Next or Install.
  6. If the installation asks you to sign in, use the account you used to buy the program. If it asks for a product key, type the code that came with your purchase, such as on a card in the box or in the purchase email.

When a program is back

Open the program from the Start menu, as in How to Open an App on Windows 11. Your copied files stay in the folders where you put them; to open one, follow How to Open a File You Saved on Windows 11.