Moving to a new Windows PC usually means two separate chores: getting your files where they need to go, and rebuilding the pile of apps that made the old machine feel usable. In a ZDNET how-to by Ed Bott, UniGetUI is presented as a way to make the second part less tedious. Bott describes the app as a free, open-source package manager and, for this workflow, "basically a wrapper around Microsoft's WinGet command-line tool."
Bott's checklist starts before the new PC is even powered on. He recommends using the switch as a chance to clean up the old machine, uninstalling apps you already know you do not want to bring forward. He also says your files should be safely synced to a cloud service or, if you do not use one, copied to external storage. Separately, he says users who sign in with a Microsoft account and already sync files to OneDrive should run Windows Backup to save details about apps, settings, and credentials.
Saving an app bundle on the old PC
The heart of Bott's method is UniGetUI's bundle feature. In his walkthrough, the app saves a bundle of installed packages on the old PC so that list can be reused later on the new one.
He lays out the process step by step: switch to the Installed Apps view in UniGetUI, filter for WinGet sources, select the package list, and add that selection to a bundle. The result is a small JSON file, which he says you can stash on a flash drive or in cloud storage so it is available when you start setting up the replacement PC.
Reinstalling on the new machine
Once Windows setup is finished on the new computer, Bott says to install UniGetUI again, open the saved bundle, select the packages you want, and click Install selection. In Bott's workflow, that saved list is used to reinstall the apps in the bundle on the new PC.
That does not mean the move is fully automatic. Bott also recommends checking Windows Update, Microsoft Store updates, and any driver or firmware updates from the PC maker as part of the new-PC setup process.
What still has to be done manually
Bott's guide is clear that the bundle will not cover everything. He says some apps still need separate installation, including third-party programs that are not in the GitHub package repository or the Microsoft Store.
He specifically notes that this can include older software, along with some security, backup, and other system utilities that install kernel drivers and are not eligible to be installed from that repository-based workflow. He also flags OEM utilities as device-specific, which is another reason a saved bundle is not the same thing as cloning your old PC.
Why this approach is useful
The appeal here is not that UniGetUI turns a new PC into a perfect copy of the old one. It is that, if your files are already synced and many of your everyday apps are available through WinGet, Bott's method can reduce how much manual reinstall work is left.
You still have to finish the last-mile tasks yourself, including signing back into your password manager, browser, and cloud storage, and manually reinstalling anything the bundle does not catch. But as a practical Windows setup tip, the how-to's UniGetUI method offers a cleaner way to get from old machine to usable new one.
