Are you a tech lover and searching for ways on how to clone HDD to SSD? Opting for traditional means without starting from scratch, the transfer process is a bit tricky. Swapping for the solid-state drive is one of the best upgrades that can improve the speed of your system. Re-installing windows might seem an easier process but actually, it involves more hassle.
If you wish to achieve success on the process of how to clone HDD to SSD quickly, you should follow the instructions offered below in a precise and proper manner.
Have you heard about the Windows Backup Software? This software can help you if you have been looking for answers on how to clone HDD to SSD effortlessly. Before you begin the process, you need to focus on certain preparations to ensure a smooth cloning process.
If the files are already existing on your SSD, you must back them up well in advance before the disk clone is done. Wondering how to clone HDD to SSD and not following proper techniques will delete all the data on the recipient device. You also need to make sure the volume of the SSD surpasses the used space on your HDD, or you will surely face boot issues or data loss after cloning the HDD to your SSD. You have to check that the partition style of the target disk is in accord with the source disk. If it is a different issue, you should convert it from MBR to GPT or vice versa.
Follow the below steps to check the partition style of the HDD and SSD:
Step 1. Connect the HDD/SSD to the computer.
Step 2. Right-click on the “This PC” option and navigate in the path of “Manage” > “Disk Management”.
Step 3. Right-click on your disk and select “Properties”.
Step 4. Shift to the “Volumes” tab. Under Disk Information, you can see the details of the partition style of your disk.
Once all these above requirements are met, you can now switch to the actual cloning process from your HDD to SDD.
You can try out the EaseUSToDo Backup software and use it for the process. Read on to find out how to clone HDD to SSD with the help of the software.
- The first step is to launch EaseUSToDo Backup and click on Clone.
2. Now, you have to select the source disk which contains the operating system.
3. The next step is choosing the destination disk.
You can even try out the advanced settings as well. Well, the EaseUSToDo Backup works fine and gives an exact clone, still, new options can be explored.
Optimize for SSD – If an SSD is the destination disk, you can ensure sector alignment with this process.
Sector by sector clone – This guarantees that the destination hard disk/partition is precisely the same as the source hard disk/partition. It will clone all the sectors if you have opted for it, even if there is no data in the sector.
This leads to an equal size of the target and destination disk cloned after the process. You can find this option in the same step where you select the destination hard disk/partition in the Disk clone as well as Partition clone wizard.
Creating a Portable Windows USB drive – This particular option confirms that the cloned USB system disk can boot ordinarily.
These queries can address your queries on how to clone HDD to SSD.
4. Once you have selected the EaseUSToDo Backup or the advanced settings, you must preview and save the changes and the software will start to clone your disk.
If the used space on your HDD is bigger than the total size of your SSD, you can explore options of migrating OS to your SSD. As long as your SSD is greater than the used space on the system and boot drive, you can clone the OS from HDD to SSD without any boot problems.
Issues encountered after disk clone from HDD to SSD
Disk Boot Issues: It generally occurs when you choose to clone the Windows operating system from your HDD to the SSD by manual selection, you can choose the C drive only. That will cause boot issues if the system partition and boot partition are different.
Software Activation: An issue may pop up where the software installed in the system disk may ask for activation after the cloning process of HDD to SSD.
Misaligned SSD after cloning: Misalignment may reduce the performance of the SSD. So you must check the alignment feature in SSD and HDD before the cloning is done.
In the bottom line, this quick and simple guide will help you with the complete process of how to clone HDD to SSD. Follow each step with precision and you can achieve your goal with 100% accuracy. Check your alignment and data that you are planning to transfer before you get on with these solutions on how to clone HDD to SSD.
If you are interested in more such hacks and tutorials, you can also read our guide on How To Unpair Apple Watch In 7 Easy Steps.