Just bumping in hope of some additional input on post #7 of the thread so I can best prepare to go from X3 to Platinum. Excited to do this but don't yet have clarity.

chamlin
 
 Questions: A.  Which of these should I NOT change from S: to C: (other than Project Files)?
                  B.  If I change these will Sonar automatically adjust this for all existing projects, or will projects be
                       confused as to where things are?
                  C.  Do I need to move the actual content of these folders or will Sonar automatically do so?
 
                  D.  How can I safely move that audio data to the proper folder on my S: drive?
 

Hi.
A: I have everything placed on other disc's in Preferences.
B: You can choose to open projects, save and choose copy audio to new location.
C: I have copied my folders to new drive, before deleting old one. SONAR will ask for audio location. Just locate new path.
All the best.
 

chamlin
  A.  Which of these should I NOT change from S: to C: (other than Project Files)?

Here is how I setup a second internal drive as a project drive. With SONAR not running

• Rename "C:\Cakewalk Projects" to "C:\Cakewalk Projects 2"
• Then run cmd.exe as administrator and type
  • mkdir "S:\SONAR Projects\Audio Data"
  • mkdir "S:\SONAR Projects\Picture Cache"
  • mklink /j "C:\Cakewalk Projects" "S:\SONAR Projects"
• Copy any files in "C:\Cakewalk Projects 2\Audio Data" to "S:\SONAR Projects\Audio Data"

If you work with video that path probably should not point to the system drive. Everything else can work with the defaults on the C: drive although I prefer to some custom locations. For example, I use a custom location for drum maps and project templates in order to keep those lists small. Once you are sure everything is running OK, delete or archive the old "Cakewalk Projects 2."
 
If there is a third drive available, I would put the picture cache on it otherwise, leave it alone. It is handled by the instructions above.
 

chamlin
B.  If I change these will Sonar automatically adjust this for all existing projects, or will projects be  confused as to where things are?

Projects which use the default layout of per-project audio folders, IOW with an audio folder nested below the project files, are portable. The projects use a relative path to the audio data. This means you can move the projects anywhere and as long as the data stays in the same relative location, nested in a folder below the project files. If you are currently using the global audio file, copying the data to the new location I mention above "S:\SONAR Projects\Audio Data" will work for them. Of course the data will need to be moved before removing the "C:\Cakewalk Projects" folder. If you use another scheme you will probably have to tell the project when the audio files are located when you open the project.
 

chamlin
C.  Do I need to move the actual content of these folders or will Sonar automatically do so?

When changing paths in preferences, you are responsible for making sure the data is in the correct location.
 

chamlin
D.  How can I safely move that audio data to the proper folder on my S: drive?

Covered in the answer to B above unless this is a question about how to convert project using global data to per-project audio folders. The conversion is performed by opening the projects and using the "Save As" command with the "Copy all audio with project" enabled and the paths properly defined in the dialog.
 

Scook has given you a very comprehensive answer and there is nothing I would add.

Thank you all for the great input. I'm going to digest this tonight and (warning) may have a few follow ups. :)

Fantastic. Thanks, all. And Scook, that detail really helped clarify everything for me. And Wooks, your PM's as well.
 
For greatest ease, I changed all File Location preferences to the C: drive (except my my Sonar project files) then moved all the Cakewalk Content manually from the S: drive to the C: drive. Then, I changed the Audio Data preferences "audio data" and "picture cache" to the S: drive and kept "per project" checked, so that when I back things up on that drive (real-time 24/7) all that data is kept together.
 
Finally, that aberrant issue of one song's .wav files somehow all being in the global folder even though "per project" was selected...I just moved that audio data to the actual songs project's audio folder, then opened the project and when prompted, pointed Sonar to the "missing data".
 
This now leaves me with all Sonar content, samples, etc. in their respective places on the C: drive and only my song projects on the S: drive.
 
So...next up is installing Platinum! Thanks again all.

Platinum installed...but threw content, samples all over the place regardless of prior settings. THAT'S where Scook's brilliant mk dir thingies were critical. So I backed out, did what Scook suggested, and things reinstalled mostly well. Ultimately, had to go in to the registry and painstakingly went through every entry and found the little pixies hiding and pointing in the wrong direction, adjusted them, and all is well in the world of Platinum.
 
Got rid of all my extra Dimension samples and other duplicate files accumulated over the years. CCC is pointed in the right direction as well. Goodbye X3 64-bit and 32-bit (for Drumcore 3). Hello SPLAT with Jbridge for DrumCore 3.
 
Much gratitude to all...
Chamlin