Question Upgrading existing SSD

dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
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So I just bought a new ssd and I was wondering how would I switch out my old one with the new one without losing any information/files from the old ssd? Should i just try and move everything to my d drive and then move everything back or is that even possible or is there an easier way of doing this. Please let me know. Thank you.
 
What's on the old drive?

Just personal data, no Windows, no installed applications?

Just pictures, mp3, Word documents, videos, Excel spreadsheets, stuff like that?

If so, just install the new drive, format it, and do a simple drag and drop with the mouse just like you would do between folders on the old drive.

If
the old drive contains Windows or any installed applications, you have a couple of choices:

1; do a clean install of Windows and all applications to the new drive AFTER disconnecting the old drive.

2; "copy" the entire old drive to the new drive through imaging or cloning using an application such as Macrium Reflect.
 

dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
65
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What's on the old drive?

Just personal data, no Windows, no installed applications?

Just pictures, mp3, Word documents, videos, Excel spreadsheets, stuff like that?

If so, just install the new drive, format it, and do a simple drag and drop with the mouse just like you would do between folders on the old drive.

If the old drive contains Windows or any installed applications, you have a couple of choices:

1; do a clean install of Windows and all applications to the new drive AFTER disconnecting the old drive.

2; "copy" the entire old drive to the new drive through imaging or cloning using an application such as Macrium Reflect.
So my ssd does include windows and all of the important things. How would i do the clean install ?
 
I'd guess there are tutorials somewhere on this site.

Briefly, you would:


1; find a USB flash drive of at least 8 gb capacity

2; go to Microsoft.com and find their "Media Creation Tool"

3; you would use that tool to make a bootable Windows 10 installer

4; totally disconnect your old drive

4A; attach and connect the new drive

5; you would boot from that USB stick (not your hard drive) and follow the prompts. it will take a while (30 minutes?) involving a reboot or two. If you cannot boot from the stick, re-do it. It's useless if you can't boot from it.

6; when satisfied that all is well and that Windows will boot from this new installation, reconnect your old drive and do whatever you want with it...maybe use it for storage only, not Windows.
 
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dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
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I'd guess there are tutorials somewhere on this site.

Briefly, you would:


1; find a USB flash drive of at least 8 gb capacity

2; go to Microsoft.com and find their "Media Creation Tool"

3; you would use that tool to make a bootable Windows 10 installer

4; totally disconnect your old drive

5; you would boot from that USB stick (not your hard drive) and follow the prompts. it will take a while (30 minutes?) involving a reboot or two. If you cannot boot from the stick, re-do it. It's useless if you can't boot from it.

6; when satisfied that all is well and that Windows will boot from this new installation, reconnect your old drive and do whatever you want with it...maybe use it for storage only, not Windows.
Is there a way to have both ssds plugged into the pc at once to use macrium reflex?
 
If you have important data you don’t want to loose you should already have a back up. If you don’t then get it backed up before doing anything else.

From what you ask it sounds like cloning the drive ‘might’ be an option. You have not told us the size of the old or new drives, or anything about the pc/laptop you are trying to connect it to. If you provide more information we can help explore the possibility of cloning the drive.
 
Is there a way to have both ssds plugged into the pc at once to use macrium reflex?

If you use Macrium Reflect to clone or image, you would leave both drives connected.

If you do a clean install you DEFINITELY should not.

What should you do?

I'm guessing you have never used Macrium and have never done a clean install.

How long would it take you to do a clean install and then reinstall all your applications? Say that is X hours.

How long would it take you to learn how to use Macrium and then use it to clone or image to the new drive? Say that is Y hours.

Is X more or less than Y?

That's unknown, depending on your skill level, ability to follow possibly shaky instructions, tolerance for frustration, and some more stuff we don't know.

You might spend 10 hours fiddling with Macrium and wish you had done a clean install. If experienced with Macrium, you could have the whole thing done in an hour or so. Everything just like before, but on a new drive.

You might spend 10 hours fiddling with a clean install and wish you had used Macrium.

Knowing no more than you've said, I'd probably direct you to a clean install. Everyone should know how to do a clean install and do it at least once.

You should learn Macrium as a backup tool, but maybe simpler for you to do a clean install for your immediate problem.
 
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dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
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If you have important data you don’t want to loose you should already have a back up. If you don’t then get it backed up before doing anything else.

From what you ask it sounds like cloning the drive ‘might’ be an option. You have not told us the size of the old or new drives, or anything about the pc/laptop you are trying to connect it to. If you provide more information we can help explore the possibility of cloning the drive.
The old drive is 128 gb and the new one is 1tb
 

dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
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If you use Macrium Reflect to clone or image, you would leave both drives connected.

If you do a clean install you DEFINITELY should not.

What should you do?

I'm guessing you have never used Macrium and have never done a clean install.

How long would it take you to do a clean install and then reinstall all your applications? Say that is X hours.

How long would it take you to learn how to use Macrium and then use it to clone or image to the new drive? Say that is Y hours.

Is X more or less than Y?

That's unknown, depending on your skill level, ability to follow possibly shaky instructions, tolerance for frustration, and some more stuff we don't know.

You might spend 10 hours fiddling with Macrium and wish you had done a clean install. If experienced with Macrium, you could have the whole thing done in an hour or so. Everything just like before, but on a new drive.

You might spend 10 hours fiddling with a clean install and wish you had used Macrium.

Knowing no more than you've said, I'd probably direct you to a clean install. Everyone should know how to do a clean install and do it at least once.

You should learn Macrium as a backup tool, but maybe simpler for you to do a clean install for your immediate problem.
View: https://youtu.be/ElJJ5Sl4DoQ

would this video work with what i am trying to do?
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
So I just bought a new ssd and I was wondering how would I switch out my old one with the new one without losing any information/files from the old ssd? Should i just try and move everything to my d drive and then move everything back or is that even possible or is there an easier way of doing this. Please let me know. Thank you.
Make/model of both drives, please.
What motherboard is this on?

There are ways to do this, but we need details.
 
View: https://youtu.be/ElJJ5Sl4DoQ

would this video work with what i am trying to do?

That will work....

But if you have an ordinary external drive already, you wouldn't need to buy an enclosure. The external drive would need to have no more than 60 or 70 gb of free space. Maybe less.

You could instead use Macrium imaging, save the image on your current external, and then restore that image from the current external to the new drive.

Either way could work. Either way could fail. Know what you will do if that happens.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
If your system has only one viable M.2 port, and if you have some other drive with sufficient free space to hold an Image of your current C drive, this:
(You'll also need a small, blank flash drive)

1x m.2 slot with an Image

  1. Download and install Macrium Reflect
  2. Run that, and create a Rescue CD or USB (you'll use this later). "Other Tasks"
  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. Recover, 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.
 

dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
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That will work....

But if you have an ordinary external drive already, you wouldn't need to buy an enclosure. The external drive would need to have no more than 60 or 70 gb of free space. Maybe less.

You could instead use Macrium imaging, save the image on your current external, and then restore that image from the current external to the new drive.

Either way could work. Either way could fail. Know what you will do if that happens.
sadly i do not have any external drives so i might have to purchase the enclosure to do that process.
 

dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
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Make/model of both drives, please.
What motherboard is this on?

There are ways to do this, but we need details.
Sorry, i have no idea what the model/brand is for the old ssd because it came with the prebuilt but i just bought the 980 samsung 1tb ssd and the motherboard is a asrock b450
 

dirtydancin

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Nov 24, 2021
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Click where it says free download and you should see it in the lower left side of your monitor click on it and it will do it then post a link to the results, the exact motherboard you have could be helpful information.
where do i go to do this? i was on the crystal disk place and couldn’t find anything.