How to reinstall files from cloned hard drive after clean Yosemite install?

[ChrisB1]

My iMac is slow and buggy and I'd like to do a clean install. I've already downloaded a copy of Yosemite to a bootable thumb drive. Once I do the clean install, what is the best way to re-install my applications and mail/docs/pics ect...

I have cloned copy of my hard drive using SuperDuper. I'd like my new system to be like new but with my old apps/documents. Is there an easy way to use Migration Assistant or do I have to reinstall all the old apps one at a time?

 

[matreya]

Once you do a fresh install, use the Setup Assistant (which will be launched automatically after the OS install) to migrate your files/apps over....

I did that recently with Yosemite and it worked perfectly on a late 2012 iMac.

 

[ChrisB1]

Thanks

That will allow me to set up a new profile and just copy over apps/files, correct?

 

[Garsun]

It just depends on how clean a clean install you want.
Migration assistant will allow you to re-create individual user accounts individually in their entirety. Passwords, mail settings and content, application settings, just about everything Including any corrupted data. It will also allow you to transfer back any non-app store application that you may have installed.
If you don't mind re-creating your user account from scratch i.e. Re-create mail accounts reenter password and such, then you can just plug in your clone to drive and copy documents and individual files back onto your computer one at a time. This makes for the cleanest reinstall. It really just depends on where the issues were in your old system and unfortunately that can be difficult to determine without experimentation and may not be worth your time.

What I did this time around was a clean install, reloaded all possible apps from the app store, reload Microsoft stuff from the cd, Re-downloaded WOW from there server, And then use migration assistant to re-create my user account.
I keep my user account separate from the administrator account for security reasons.

 

[ChrisB1]

And then use migration assistant to re-create my user account.
I keep my user account separate from the administrator account for security reasons.

If my profile is part of the problem, won't copying my user account from the clone drive just bring the problem over to my new install?

 

[Garsun]

If my profile is part of the problem, won't copying my user account from the clone drive just bring the problem over to my new install?

Exactly, So you will have to re-create your user account and get everything working fresh, Anything that iCloud is not handling will have to be re-created.
Email accounts, alternate a browser settings,email security keys (if you have any).
Then you just copy your documents over folder by folder or one by one depending on how you are organized.

I did it this way for the last OS upgrade but was not having a issue so I didn't bother with this upgrade

I use carbon copy cloner to make a bootable backup.I believe superduper can do the same thing. The nice thing about having this type of bootable backup is that if something is missing when you're done you can always reboot on the old operating system on the external drive and see exactly how you used to be