New Computer

I have purchased a new Windows 8 computer and moved files, etc. from my old Windows XP computer to the new one.  I have also added a few new files on the new computer.  I have used my My Passport Essential with WD Anywhere Backup to back up my old computer for a few years.  I plan to discontinue use of the old computer (since it is old and no longer stable).  How can I use my My Passport Essential as the backup drive for my  new computer?  Should I delete the WD Backup files currently on the Passport Essential associated with backing up the old computer first?  Finally, the original backup program that came with my My Passport Essential became problematic so a WD support person helped me download a WD Anywhere Backup program from the WD website about a year ago.  Can I download that program from the WD website onto my new computer for use with the My Passport Essential?  If so, how do I find that program?  Thank you.

How can I use my My Passport Essential as the backup drive for my  new computer?

You will need to use a back software compatible with windows 8 and your passport.

Should I delete the WD Backup files currently on the Passport Essential associated with backing up the old computer first? 

If you already moved the files to the new computer, will be better if you remove the old backup from the drive to make sure that you dont have duplicated files.

Can I download that program from the WD website onto my new computer for use with the My Passport Essential?

You need to make sure that the WD Anywhere backup is compatible with windows 8

If so, how do I find that program? you can get that from the WD web site using the model number for your drive.

Check the link below

http://support.wdc.com/product/download.asp?groupid=204&sid=87&lang=en

Thank you for your response.  You note that I should remove from my My Passport the back up related to my old computer.  Do you mean I should remove both 1) the backup program that I created and 2) the files that have been backed up on the My Passport drive (and then create a completely new back up program after I install the My Passport and its backup program on my new computer)?

Separately, I found on the WD website the “update” WD Smartware program for my My Passport model but did not see the full WD Smartward or WD Anywhere program for my new computer’s operating system (Windows 8) listed there.  Do you know where I can find it?