This article provides you simple way to clone small SSD to a larger SSD in Windows 10, 8 or 7 without reinstalling OS and programs. Follow this article to see how to clone SSD and upgrade system disk to larger SSD for free now.
Cloning an SSD to a larger one can give you disk space to install programs and run Windows faster if your old SSD has limited storage space. The biggest advantage of cloning an SSD to another is that you do not have to reinstall Windows or programs from scratch, as the Reddit post reads.
How to fully clone SSD to a bigger SSD?
Before I send in my laptop for a repair, I want to factory reset it to see if it fixes my issues. I don't want to lose anything, so I wish to fully clone the OS and all my files. I don't know what tools are actually useful to do this and are free. Any suggestions?
So, how do you copy over everything from one SSD to a larger SSD? We will walk you through how to clone SSD to larger SSD with tools, tips, and a step-by-step guide.
To clone a smaller SSD to a larger SSD, you will need cloning software and an external enclosure to connect the new SSD to your computer during the process. Install the cloning software, connect the new SSD, select the new drive as the destination and your old drive as the source, and then start the clone process. After cloning, you can physically swap the drives or adjust your BIOS/UEFI settings to boot from the new SSD. So, before cloning, some preparations are required.
1️⃣Prepare a USB adapter or an external enclosure
On a desktop computer, you can directly connect the new drive to its M.2 or SATA port and mount the new drive. On a laptop that doesn't have room for a second drive connection, you can use some external enclosures. For a 2.5-inch SATA SSD drive, a SATA to USB 3.0 enclosure is enough, while for an M.2 NVMe or SATA drive, an M.2 to USB enclosure can work.
2️⃣Run a Surface Test of the New SSD
When you get a new SSD, you can run a surface test on it to verify its health condition, because some new disks will also contain bad sectors, which can result in cloning failure.
3️⃣Backup Data
It is always a good idea to back up your data before performing any major drive upgrades or disk cloning processes. Most importantly, if your target SSD has important data, you must back it up before cloning because cloning will wipe all data on the target disk.
4️⃣Download Cloning Software
To clone an SSD to a larger SSD, you'll need to use cloning software because Windows lacks built-in cloning features. For free SSD cloning software, try Clonezilla or Rescuezilla. However, it is worth noting that you need to create a bootable USB containing Clonezilla or Rescuezilla, use it to boot your PC, and then clone an SSD to another SSD, which is unfriendly to beginners.
EaseUS Disk Copy is a great choice for an easy cloning solution. It can help you clone a hard drive to another one from a different manufacturer. It has Disk Mode, System Mode, and Partition Mode to meet your different needs and offers "SSD Alignment" or "Auto-fit the disk" to ensure the operating system partition takes advantage of the new drive's larger capacity.
If you want to have a smooth and successful SSD migration or SSD data transfer process, EaseUS disk cloning software is the second-to-none choice. Just download this simple yet powerful disk cloning software for SSD upgrade!
Now, you can start cloning the SSD to a bigger SSD. Here is the detailed guide:
Look for an option like "SSD Alignment" or "Auto-fit the disk" to ensure the operating system partition takes advantage of the new drive's larger capacity.
Initiate the clone process and wait for it to complete. The time it takes will depend on the amount of data and the speed of your drives.
This video shows how to use EaseUS Disk Copy to clone an SSD to a larger SSD:
The last step is to verify the data integrity and PC performance.
Now, you have copied everything from your old SSD to the larger one without reinstalling Windows or losing data.
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To swap an SSD, you must buy the right SSD to fit your PC's motherboard. To do this, you need to figure out the SSD interface (SATA, PCIe, NVMe) and form factor (2.5'', M.2, U.2) of your old SSD. When replacing an SSD, you'd better pay attention to its brand, quality, and reliability. For example, an NVMe M.2 SSD provides superior storage, superior speed, and superior compatibility.
In addition, you also need to buy a new SSD with enough capacity to accommodate the data on your old one. Here's an image that tells you how much solid-state drive storage you need. You can choose an SSD of different sizes, such as SATA SSD and NVMe SSD, from 250GB to 4TB or higher. Generally, an SSD with a capacity of 1TB is preferred for data storage and future OS updates.
Image credit _ cgdirector.com
Here is a collection of the top 5 popular SSD you can choose for an SSD upgrade.
| SSD Name | Interface | Form Factor | Capacity | Speed | Reliability | Warranty |
| Samsung 870 EVO | SATA | 2.5-inch | 250/500GB, 1/2/4TB | 560/530MB/s | High | 5 years |
| Samsung 990 Pro | PCIe | M.2 (2280) | 1TB, 2TB, 4TB | 7,450/6,900MB/s | High | 5 years |
| Crucial P3 | PCIe | M.2 (2280) | 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB | 3500/3000MB/s | High | 5 years |
| PNY CS2150 | PCIe | M.2 (2280) | 1TB, 2TB | 10,300/8,600MB/s | High | 5 years |
| WD SN850 | PCIe | M.2 (2280) | 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, 8TB | 7,300/6,600 MB/s | High | 5 years |
How to clone SSD to larger SSD? The best way to upgrade your SSD without data loss is to perform a disk clone. In this post, a powerful and full-featured SSD cloner, EaseUS Disk Copy, is introduced to help transfer data from a smaller SSD to a larger one without losing data or reinstalling Windows. After cloning, replace the old SSD (or change boot order) to boot your computer from the cloned SSD. Download and try this powerful SSD cloning software to upgrade your SSD to a spacious one!
1. Can I clone to a smaller SSD?
Yes, you can clone to a smaller SSD if the total amount of data on your current drive is less than the capacity of the new, smaller SSD. You will need to use a reliable disk cloning tool, and some tools, like EaseUS Disk Copy, offer features like "auto fit" to automatically resize partitions to fit the smaller drive.
2. Does cloning SSD copy the OS?
Yes, cloning an SSD creates an exact copy, including the operating system (OS), installed applications, personal files, and all system settings, making the new SSD bootable and a functional replica of the original drive.
3. How long does it take to clone a 1TB SSD?
Cloning a 1TB SSD can take from 15 minutes to several hours, depending on the speed of the source and target drives, the connection type (e.g., SATA vs. NVMe), and the amount of data being cloned.
4. What's the difference between cloning and imaging?
Cloning makes a direct, bit-for-bit copy of a hard drive onto another physical drive, which is ideal for quickly migrating to a new drive or replacing a failing one, while imaging creates a compressed file (an image) of the drive's contents that serves as a flexible backup, allowing for multiple copies and easier storage, but requires a restoration step to recover the data.
5. Why is there unallocated space after cloning?
Unallocated space appears after cloning because most cloning software copies the source drive's existing partition structure, not automatically expanding the partition to fit the larger target drive. This leaves the extra space on the larger drive as unallocated. You can fix this by using the "Extend Volume" feature in Windows' Disk Management or a third-party disk management tool.
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