A Few Moving Tips

Michael Mikhailidi -

Personal device upgrades have always been an exciting journey and, of course, a challenge. Software reinstallation, moving your local projects, and interface compatibility were a thrilling personal challenge that may take months of joy and loss. Cloud services drastically changed the game and left little room for novelty - you are always home.

My work devices are robust corporate machines equipped only with essential software. This stems from security policies and minimal requirements. However, let's be honest: what more do you need than a browser to access your cloud environment?

Still, I pull a few software components from laptop to laptop, indulging my old habits and muscle memories. Let's see what I moved with me this time:

  • OpenSSH and its alternatives. I will name my terminal of choice later, but whatever you use, do not forget your SSH keys and configuration. You will likely find them in a folder %USERPROFILE%/.ssh/ (*NIX users instantaneously recognize $HOME/.ssh/ location.)
  • Git for Windows - While keeping project-level configuration is a better idea, I still store a lot of properties on the global level. Copy over the file %USERPROFILE%/.gitconfig and save some time on git reconfiguration.
  • Windows Credentials - If you use git with the system secret manager, your passwords and tokens will end up in the Windows Credentials safe. Review stored credentials and export your secrets into an encrypted file. Import them on the new system and you will have all your credentials restored.
  • MobaXTerm - I have used this terminal for decades and plan to use it as far as possible. It looks like good old-school bloatware, but I still can't name a better alternative for a one-in-one solution with a portable installer and extensive SSH/SFTP/X functionality. It asks you for the root and home locations for the first time, so do not forget to take them with you. Put them back in place, and your suitable old terminal will be ready to serve. Typically, I group such folders somewhere under C:\Portables, so it's not a problem to grab them all at once.
  • Notepad++ - This text editor is second to none, and I can not find an alternative on any modern platform. Apart from text processing, I use it as an alternative note manager since NPP can keep your open drafts indefinitely and restore them after a system or application restart. If you use a portable version, archive the whole folder and unpack it in the same place in your new system. If you have the properly installed version, bring over the content of the folder %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Notepad++
  • Microsoft VS Code - I know how many people pledge never to use this IDE, but I still love it as a swiss-army-IDE for everything. Yes, specialized solutions could do better, but I love the opportunity to build anything you need without leaving the same familiar scenery and services. I does not matter if you have a portable installation or have installed it through the Microsoft Store; VS Code keeps the configuration, settings, and plugins under a %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Code folder. It could be pretty large - my archive was well over 2Gb.

Good luck with your new machine, I hope my note will make your migration less stressfull.