How do i transfer files from external hd to new hd in macbook pro

Question

Hi Totally new to upgrading Mac.  I Backed up my hd to a an external hd. Upgraded my hd to 1tb. How do I make the transfer? The new hd does show in disk utility. Do I have to format this hd? Really not sure what to do next. Thanks

Answer 1

Format the new 1TB internal drive 1 partition, Option: GUID, Format: OS X Extended Journaled, give it a name and click Apply.
Then head to Erase and move the slider one notch to the right, then click erase and come back in a few hours.
What this will do is write zero's to the whole hard drive and then it reads it back and if the driver can't read a sector of data, it's mapped off never to be written to again.
This is a lenghtly process, but has the benefit of your precious data being placed on perfectly working magnetic sectors and reduces a lot of issues later on down the road.
Once that is finished, quit Disk Utility and install OS X using your AppleID and password on a reliable, fast, Internet connection (preferably via Ethernet cable)
Once that is done, reboot and setup. If your backup is TimeMachine or bootable clone, then hook that up first and reboot again so Setup Assistant see's it and you can use that to transfer your programs and accounts/files over.
If you want to start brand new, with no contamination of older programs, then install programs fresh first from original sources (best actually) and then manually transfer personal files from backup checking to see what they are.
If the account names are different, then drop the files into the DropBox folder of your new account's Public folder, this way the permissions and whatnot will change.
When you use Migration or Setup Assistant, it copies all your crap and unwanted history along for the ride.
Some like a clean start on a new machine, leaving sins of the past behind them.