Upgraded to Windows 10 and lost nothing, feeling pretty smug!

[anon(5327127)]

Backup. That's what I did.

I simply copied, which is one way, all of the folders from within c:\Users\%Profilename% onto an external USB. Simple. After the upgrade I logged in using the same hotmail account and then carried on.

Success.

Although there is an air of sarcasm in my post, especially as I've upgraded a whole load of machines, the message is pretty clear... backup your VITAL documents.

 

[Demian Mioc]

Your tip is the easiest step for people who don't know how or where to backup their files. I've done quite a few Windows 10 installs and upgrades, and on fresh installs I create 2 disk partitions, Windows 10 goes on first partition, while Desktop, Documents, Downloads and other folders from current user/users are linked to the second partition, or in some cases on another hard drive - which is more safe. This way, even if something goes wrong, clean install would still do the trick. Making complete backup image of the whole system is also viable, it's best used on small SSD disks with OS installed, and complete backup goes on the larger (portable)hard drive.