Yes, this software package will do exactly what you want. You would download it and install it on your existing HDD, just like any other software. Be sure to read the user manual file that comes with it, concentrating on the section about cloning. But you'll see that it can do LOTS more, too, when you need it.
You do NOT need to create Partitions or do any other advance work. After you've installed your new HDD and you run Acronis, you will need to specify the SOURCE and DESTINATION units. Be VERY SURE that you set the Destination to be your new HDD - everything already on that Destination unit will be wiped clean! Then it will propose a group of settings for making the clone. You MAY want to change a few (like, possibly, the size of the clone copy's Partition), which you can do from the prompts and the menu system. When you are happy with the settings, tell it to proceed. It will Partition and Format that Destination unit and copy absolutely EVERYTHING for you. When it is done, that clone HDD can be used completely as a substitute for your old C: drive, which is what you wanted.
I have done this, and it worked perfectly. Later, as you decide it's time to make a new backup, you can re-use Acronis to do the job again. You MIGHT want to tell it, at the beginning, to Delete the old Partition on the Destination unit in order to clear the space for the new clone copy.
One important aspect of backups you did not address. A backup should NOT be mounted inside your computer where it can be damaged by malware, electrical glitches, etc. Once you have made the clone, you really should shut down and remove the HDD from the computer, and store it in a safe place, preferably in a different location.
To illustrate, I'll tell you my tale briefly. I had one more complication: I have two 320 GB HDD's in the computer, and a 500 GB HDD in an external enclosure. I used Acronis to clone the C: drive, but told it to make that clone copy only 230 GB size - the C: drive was not anywhere near full. When that was done, I ran Acronis again and made a clone of the D: drive onto the remaining Unallocated Space on the 500 GB external unit, adjusting is size to fit. So now the external unit had clones of two HDD's, each in its own Partition. If I simply left it connected, I could access both those clone copies as different "drives" with their own separate letter names.
Then I shut down and disconnected both internal HDD's. Then I removed the HDD unit from the external enclosure and mounted it inside the computer as an internal drive, connected to the mobo port that the C: drive had been using. I closed it up, connected power and booted into Windows normally. The C: and D: drives were there just as normal and everything was working. The only difference was that the two "drives" were a bit smaller than before, because these were the clone copies I made smaller deliberately. When that test proved that the backup clones worked, I just reversed everything - 500 GB unit back to the external enclosure and stored away safely, and reconnect the two internal HDD's as before, and all was working perfectly.
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