How to port ONLY Windows to an SSD

[Snotrap]

Hey!

 

I got a 120GB SSD and I want to port Windows 10 along with all of its settings etc to it.

 

Is it possible since I have most of my files on the C drive?

[Raudi_]

Reinstall windows trust me you will save yourself ALOT of trouble.

[amusedschrodinger]

What software are you using? Is there an option to copy just one partition and not the entire drive?

[SupaKomputa]

If you're moving a bigger hdd to a small one and you wanna just clone it, you can but first you will have to make the partition equal or smaller to the target size (120gb).

Moving files and resizing the partition plus cloning will take a very long time, and its not guaranteed to work.

It is faster if you just install a new windows in the new ssd, and have all your files on the old hdd.

I think installing windows + installing previous programs will be quicker than cloning.

[Enderman]

Do a clean install, you should never clone/migrate to an SSD.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Good grief, people! I've cloned drives to SSDs and other drives many times without trouble. The only caveat is that the data on the source drive has to be less than the data going to the clone. With the correct software, it's possible to just clone one or several partitions.

 

If your data is on the C:/ partition and you aren't already backing up your data, get an external drrive to use as a backup drive and copy your data to it. Once you are satisfied the data on the backup is all there, delete it on the C:/ partition.

 

Clone the C:/ partition to the SSD, then swap out the HDD with the SSD to make sure the clone is working. Then reinstall the HDD on a new port and erase all but your data.

[homeap5]

17 hours ago, Lady Fitzgerald said:

Good grief, people! I've cloned drives to SSDs and other drives many times without trouble.

There are few people on this forum who always wrote the same - that cloning is bad, clean install is the only way etc. Mostly because this is the only way they know.

 

But there is a problem - many people installs Windows on big HDDs and creates one big partition. Then it's really difficult (or time consuming) to made system clone to smaller drive.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

7 hours ago, homeap5 said:

There are few people on this forum who always wrote the same - that cloning is bad, clean install is the only way etc. Mostly because this is the only way they know.

 

But there is a problem - many people installs Windows on big HDDs and creates one big partition. Then it's really difficult (or time consuming) to made system clone to smaller drive.

I agree there is a problem when people have Windows and their data all in the same partition and want to clone the OS and programs only to a smaller drive, such as an SSD. The "fix", while a bit time consuming, isn't particularly difficult and is still easier than a clean install, especially when it comes to finding the correct drivers to install.

 

Using the correct programs helps considerably. I recommend Macrium Reflect Free for cloning. It defaults to what the program refers to as Intelligent Sector Cloning which clones only occupied sectors. This allows cloing from a larger drive to a smaller one as long as the content is smaller than the new available space. Cloning is a set or forget operation; starth the clone and walk away until it finished. You can even continue to use the computer.

 

For copying large amounts of data from one drive to another, I recommend using FreeFileSync. When set to mirror mode, it will easily copy selected data from one drive to anohter without bogging down and, usually, without errors. If there are any errors, they will be reported at the end of the operation. Just like cloning with Macrium Reflect, this is a set and forget operation.

[KuJoe]

On 12/2/2018 at 8:46 AM, Lady Fitzgerald said:

Good grief, people! I've cloned drives to SSDs and other drives many times without trouble. The only caveat is that the data on the source drive has to be less than the data going to the clone. With the correct software, it's possible to just clone one or several partitions.

 

If your data is on the C:/ partition and you aren't already backing up your data, get an external drrive to use as a backup drive and copy your data to it. Once you are satisfied the data on the backup is all there, delete it on the C:/ partition.

 

Clone the C:/ partition to the SSD, then swap out the HDD with the SSD to make sure the clone is working. Then reinstall the HDD on a new port and erase all but your data.

I've attempted this about 20 or so times in the past, at least a dozen with Windows 10 and the end result was a clean install was always better. I've never had any luck cloning a drive or restoring from an image before (with Windows).

 

EDIT: Let me elaborate on that, it's "worked" but not flawlessly. It would be "usable" with some minor issues here and there but within a month I would always have to do a clean install when I'd run into issues patching something or adding/removing a feature.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

2 minutes ago, KuJoe said:

I've attempted this about 20 or so times in the past, at least a dozen with Windows 10 and the end result was a clean install was always better. I've never had any luck cloning a drive or restoring from an image before (with Windows).

All I can say is you must be doing something wrong since I've never had a problem doing it. Of course, the caveat is that the Windows installation being cloned is in good shape and working well.

[KuJoe]

1 minute ago, Lady Fitzgerald said:

All I can say is you must be doing something wrong since I've never had a problem doing it. Of course, the caveat is that the Windows installation being cloned is in good shape and working well.

I wish I was doing something wrong, but alas I wasn't. I've cloned hundreds of Windows XP, Windows 7, Server 2003/2008/2012 without issue... but when it comes to Windows 8, 8.1, or 10 it just never worked. Windows is just really picky about change, even switching out a video card required a clean install to fix some display issues which made no sense since DDU is supposed to completely remove all display drivers. This is why I run disposable copies of Windows at home and do everything on a VM. The joys of Windows 10.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

1 minute ago, KuJoe said:

I wish I was doing something wrong, but alas I wasn't. I've cloned hundreds of Windows XP, Windows 7, Server 2003/2008/2012 without issue... but when it comes to Windows 8, 8.1, or 10 it just never worked. Windows is just really picky about change, even switching out a video card required a clean install to fix some display issues which made no sense since DDU is supposed to completely remove all display drivers. This is why I run disposable copies of Windows at home and do everything on a VM. The joys of Windows 10.

What were you using for cloning?

[KuJoe]

Just now, Lady Fitzgerald said:

What were you using for cloning?

Paragon, DriveImage XML, and MiniTool Partition Wizard.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Just now, KuJoe said:

Paragon, DriveImage XML, and MiniTool Partition Wizard.

Again, try Macrium Reflect Free. It's never failed me.

[KuJoe]

6 minutes ago, Lady Fitzgerald said:

Again, try Macrium Reflect Free. It's never failed me.

Thankfully I'll never have to clone another Windows 10 install again, but I'll be sure to recommend it to others who ask.