Verifying File Integrity After PC Migration

Step by step

1. 1 min

   Compare aggregate directory properties

   Open File Explorer and navigate to the root folder of your data on both the source and destination drives. Right-click the folder and select Properties to compare the Size and Contains values. Note any discrepancies in the number of files or total size, as these indicate incomplete transfers.

   Note: Size on disk will differ due to cluster size variations; focus on the Size value.
2. 2 min

   List directory contents via terminal

   Press the Windows key, type cmd, and press Enter to open the Command Prompt. Use the dir /s /a command within your target directory to generate a recursive list of all files. Redirect this output to a text file using the > syntax to facilitate side-by-side comparison with your source logs.

   Note: Use 'dir /s /a > C:\audit.txt' to save the file list for manual review.
3. 1 min

   Check for hidden system files

   In File Explorer, navigate to the View menu, select Show, and ensure Hidden items is checked. Migration processes often omit system or hidden files, which may be required for application configuration. Ensure these files exist in their corresponding paths on the new machine.

   Note: Configuration files are frequently stored in AppData, which is hidden by default.
4. 30 sec

   Verify file readability

   Select a random sample of files from various subdirectories, specifically high-density folders like Documents or Pictures. Attempt to open these files in their associated applications to ensure no header corruption occurred during the move. If files fail to open, re-copy the affected directories from the source.

5. 30 sec

   Perform a checksum validation

   For mission-critical data, run the Get-FileHash cmdlet in PowerShell on both source and destination files. Compare the resulting hash strings; if they match, the file integrity is identical. If hashes differ, the file was corrupted during transfer and must be re-migrated.

   Note: Use 'Get-FileHash -Path "C:\Path\To\File.ext"' to retrieve the SHA256 signature.