[SOLVED] How to use Samsung Migration software and my motherboard to transfer data?

ganymede-

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Jul 25, 2008
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Hi, I have a question that I hope can be easily answered.

I have an ASUS ROG STRIX Z390-E Gaming Motherboard that has two slots for M.2 NVMe solid-state drives. Presently, the first M.2 slot holds a 500GB Samsung 970 Plus drive which is my main drive, the C drive.

I just purchased a 1TB Samsung 980 Pro that I want to be my new main C drive.

My question is how do I use the Samsung migration software to transfer all the data from the Samsung 970 to the Samsung 980 M.2 drive? Do I install the new 980 Pro drive into the second M.2 drive slot (that is presently empty) on my motherboard and then run the migration software to transfer the data, and then once that it is finished switch the two M.2 drives positions? I want the 500GB 970 EVO drive to be in the second M.2 slot.

Please advise on how to should proceed. Much thanks for your feedback.
 
Solution
After the cloning process was done, I tried to change the drive letters in the Disk Management service screen, making the new drive the C drive, but Windows would not allow me to make the change.

It then occurred to me that I should go to the BIOS and access the Boot section to see if I could change the drive the computer looked to first while booting. I was able to select the new M.2 drive, and once chosen it loaded my system from the new drive. When I looked at the "My PC" screen, Windows had automatically changed the drive letter of the new drive to the C drive and the older M.2 drive was assigned a different letter, so that worked out really well.
You absolutely do NOT try to or need to manually change the drive letter...
both drives need to be connected simultaneously for the data to be migrated.

but you will not see any noticeable performance increase by switching these drives.

i would recommend keeping the smaller(500GB) drive as the OS & applications drive.
and using the larger(1TB) drive for game installations, personal data, etc so that it is not on the OS drive and will still be available if/when your OS ever needs to be reinstalled or upgraded.
Do I install the new 980 Pro drive into the second M.2 drive slot (that is presently empty) on my motherboard and then run the migration software to transfer the data, and then once that it is finished switch the two M.2 drives positions?
after the cloning process has completed you would delete all partitions and format the original disk.
if Windows' system partitions and boot data is still on the original disk it will more than likely lead to problems with booting.

then you would swap their locations so the new OS drive is in slot 1 and the older drive is in slot 2.
 

ganymede-

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Jul 25, 2008
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Hi, thank u kindly for providing answers to my questions. I want to provide the information from my experience in hopes that it may help someone else.

After I had not received a reply to this post question for two hours, I decided to wing it and see if could make a success of installing and cloning my new M.2 drive. I installed the new 1TB generation 4 drive into the second empty M.2 drive on my motherboard. The drive was not recognized at first, but I went under Disk Management I found the new M.2 drive unformatted. I formatted it and then it appeared on the "This PC" screen with my other drives.

I used the Samsung migration software that allowed me to select my current C drive and select the new Samsung 980 drive as the target destination for the cloning. The process took fewer than 30 minutes. After the cloning process was done, I tried to change the drive letters in the Disk Management service screen, making the new drive the C drive, but Windows would not allow me to make the change. This is fortunate because changing drive letters manually can cause problems and should not be done under these circumstances.

It then occurred to me that I should go to the BIOS and access the Boot section to see if I could change the drive the computer looked to first while booting. I was able to select the new M.2 drive, and once chosen it loaded my system from the new drive. When I looked at the "My PC" screen, Windows had automatically changed the drive letter of the new drive to the C drive and the older M.2 drive was assigned a different letter, so that worked out really well.

So far, 12 hours later everything is working well. I haven't deleted all the content yet from my previous C drive yet. I know you recommended that I consider using the new larger M.2 for storage, and that is something that I am still ruminating over. Now that I have a better understanding of the Boot section in the BIOS, I do not have to be concerned with which M.2 slot the new drive is in since I can access it and reassign the drive from which the computer boots.

I also wanted to address your comment on the new drive not being any faster than my generation 3 M.2 drive. The new, generation 4 drive, is indeed faster when it comes to booting my computer and opening Windows 10. As for programs working faster like Photoshop, I have not investigated this yet.

I hope this in-depth recount of my M.2 installation and cloning experience is useful.
 
Last edited:

USAFRet

Titan
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After the cloning process was done, I tried to change the drive letters in the Disk Management service screen, making the new drive the C drive, but Windows would not allow me to make the change.

It then occurred to me that I should go to the BIOS and access the Boot section to see if I could change the drive the computer looked to first while booting. I was able to select the new M.2 drive, and once chosen it loaded my system from the new drive. When I looked at the "My PC" screen, Windows had automatically changed the drive letter of the new drive to the C drive and the older M.2 drive was assigned a different letter, so that worked out really well.
You absolutely do NOT try to or need to manually change the drive letter.

Right now....
Power OFF
Physically disconnect the old drive.
Power UP, and allow the system to boot from only the new drive.



For future reference...
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Specific steps for a successful clone operation:
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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 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
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 specifiy 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

(ignore the cable swap if NVMe drive, but DO disconnect the old drive)
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.
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Solution