[SOLVED] Best easy to use hard drive cloning software?

[randyh121]

I have an old hard drive I'd like to clone over to an ssd. It has software installed on it, so I can not just copy and paste it. I need a complete clone over. I've used Acronis and Macrium Reflect and they are so hard to use and dont work half the time previously on other projects, I am wondering if there is an easy to use software that clones everything 1 to 1.
I'm so frustrated with cloning software being so garbage I've been thinking of just getting a hardware cloner but If I do that I have the risk of breaking my external hdd if I have to take the 2.5 inch drive out of the sealed enclosure.

 

[Lafong]

Did you try imaging with Macrium?

Or just cloning?

 

[randyh121]

Did you try imaging with Macrium?

Or just cloning?

Just cloning. Whats the advantage of imaging vs cloning?
Ive never done imaging before honestly so I dont know what it does

 

[Lafong]

Just cloning. Whats the advantage of imaging vs cloning?
Ive never done imaging before honestly so I dont know what it does

The end result is the same....everything on the old drive ends up on the new drive.

Sometimes one works when the other fails.

Worth a try. There are other tools, but I'm not sure any are easier and not sure where you went off the track with Macrium cloning.

Imaging is a 2 step process. 1; you make an image file of ALL partitions on the old drive and save it to some other drive. 2; you then restore that image file to the new drive.

You can make an image in 6 or 8 mouse clicks in Macrium, using defaults.

 

[randyh121]

The end result is the same....everything on the old drive ends up on the new drive.

Sometimes one works when the other fails.

Worth a try. There are other tools, but I'm not sure any are easier and not sure where you went off the track with Macrium cloning.

Imaging is a 2 step process. 1; you make an image file of ALL partitions on the old drive and save it to some other drive. 2; you then restore that image file to the new drive.

You can make an image in 6 or 8 mouse clicks in Macrium, using defaults.

Alright I'll give that a try.
How do I restore an image file to a new drive though?

 

[Lafong]

Alright I'll give that a try.
How do I restore an image file to a new drive though?

You use Macrium menus.

I'm sure there a lot of tutorials around...Youtube and elsewhere.

A few things before you start:

1; How much space is NOW occupied on the old drive? You'll need about 2/3 of that amount to store the image file....on SOME OTHER DRIVE. That other drive could be internal or external, but it CAN'T be your system drive (C). It will be a big file. One file, with an .mrimg extension.

2; after you make the image, you remove the old drive and install the new one and then boot the PC to restore the image. How do you boot when you have just removed the old drive?? You do that by using "Macrium rescue media"......which you make within Macrium by menus. All you need is a USB flash drive of at least 1 GB capacity. You boot from it since you don't have a system drive. The USB drive leads you to the Macrium interface, just like if it was on a hard drive. You navigate to your image file and direct Macrium to restore that image file to the new drive.

3; when you make the image, be sure to include ALL partitions on the old drive.

If you were experienced, it might take an hour or more, depending on how much is on the drive and how fast your CPU is.

Success rate in the high 90% range.

 

[USAFRet]

Alright I'll give that a try.
How do I restore an image file to a new drive though?

Assuming you have another drive (any type of drive) with sufficient free space to hold the entirety of your current drive:

1. Download and install Macrium Reflect
2. Run that, and create a Rescue CD or USB (you'll use this later). "Other Tasks". Create this on a small USB flash drive or DVD.
3. In the Macrium client, create an Image to some other drive. External USB HDD, maybe. Select all partitions. This results in a file of xxxx.mrimage
4. When done, power OFF.
5. Swap the 2 drives
6. Boot up from the Rescue USB you created earlier.
7. Restore (on the toolbar), and tell it where the Image is that you created in step 3, and which drive to apply it to...the new m.2
8. Go, and wait until it finishes.
9. That's all...this should work.

 

[USAFRet]

But for an actual clone, this:

-----------------------------
Specific steps for a successful clone operation:
-----------------------------
Verify the actual used space on the current drive is significantly below the size of the new SSD
Both drives must be the same partitioning scheme, either MBR or GPT
Download and install Macrium Reflect (or Samsung Data Migration, if a Samsung target SSD)
If you are cloning from a SATA drive to PCIe/NVMe, you may need to install the relevant driver for this new NVMe/PCIe drive.
Power off
Disconnect ALL drives except the current C and the new SSD
Power up

Verify the system boots with ONLY the current "C drive" connected.
If not, we have to fix that first.

Run the Macrium Reflect (or Samsung Data Migration)
Select ALL the partitions on the existing C drive

[Ignore this section if using the SDM. It does this automatically]
If you are going from a smaller drive to a larger, by default, the target partition size will be the same as the Source. You probably don't want that
You can manipulate the size of the partitions on the target (larger)drive
Click on "Cloned Partition Properties", and you can specify the resulting partition size, to even include the whole thing
[/end ignore]

Click the 'Clone' button
Wait until it is done
When it finishes, power off
Disconnect ALL drives except for the new SSD. This is not optional.
This is to allow the system to try to boot from ONLY the SSD

(swapping cables is irrelevant with NVMe drives, but DO disconnect the old drive for this next part)
Swap the SATA cables around so that the new drive is connected to the same SATA port as the old drive
Power up, and verify the BIOS boot order
If good, continue the power up

It should boot from the new drive, just like the old drive.
Maybe reboot a time or two, just to make sure.

If it works, and it should, all is good.

Later, reconnect the old drive and wipe all partitions on it.
This will probably require the commandline diskpart function, and the clean command.

Ask questions if anything is unclear.
-----------------------------

 

[randyh121]

Alright I will try both of those out and see what I get. I'm probably going to get a Samsung SSD so I might try the Samsung Data Migration program
As for my NVMe drive I plan on cloning to my new NVMe in the future, I'll try the imaging thing.