How to Clone External Hard Drive to Internal (No Data Loss)

Learn how to safely and effectively clone an external hard drive to your internal HDD or SSD. Our step-by-step guide covers bootable USB methods and post-clone steps for a seamless system migration and recovery.

Ever found yourself needing to clone external hard drive to internal disk but hit a wall with confusing guides? Whether you're recovering from a failed upgrade, restoring a full system backup, or simply migrating to a faster SSD, this essential process can seem daunting. Many tutorials only cover cloning from an internal drive to an external, leaving you to search for clear, reverse instructions.

This guide cuts through the complexity, providing two reliable, step-by-step methods to successfully transfer your complete operating system, applications, and files from an external source to your computer's main drive without losing data or encountering boot issues.

Is It Possible to Clone External Hard Drive to Internal Drive?

Many users may have the same doubt as above: Can I clone an external hard drive to an internal one, including the operating system?

The answer is a resounding YES. Cloning an external drive to an internal drive is not only possible but a standard recovery and migration procedure. This process is essential in scenarios like:

• Recovering a complete system from a backup disk.
• Replacing a failed internal drive with a pre-cloned external copy.
• Upgrading the hard drive to an SSD, exactly as described in the above user's experience.

While most tutorials focus on the more common internal-to-external clone, the reverse process follows the same core principle. The critical requirement is to boot your computer from an environment outside the target drive (the internal hard drive).

How to System Clone External Hard Drive Interanl Disk Without Issues

To successfully clone your external system drive to the internal disk, the core challenge is avoiding operating system conflicts. You cannot perform this clone while booted from the target internal drive that will be overwritten. Therefore, you must initiate the process from a third, independent operating environment. Below are the two primary methods to achieve this, both designed to bypass Windows' file locks safely.

Now, we'll explore 2 specific methods step by step to clone your external hard drive to internal. Keep reading.

1. Reinstall/Connect the External Hard Drive - Boot from the External drive

This method involves physically reinstalling your external hard drive as the primary boot device for your computer, or connecting the external hard drive via a USB-to-SATA/NVMe adapter. By booting directly from the external drive, which contains your old system, you bypass the limitations of the current internal drive's operating system. This allows cloning software to run freely, treating the internal SSD as a blank target disk.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

Step 1. Set External Hard Drive As Boot Drive

• Restart the computer and enter the BIOS/UEFI setup (usually by pressing F2, Del, or Esc during startup).
• Navigate to the "Boot" menu and change the boot priority so that your external hard drive is the first boot device.
• Save changes and exit. Your computer should now boot into the old Windows system from the external drive.

Step 2. Download and Install Disk Cloning Software

EaseUS Disk Copy is a dedicated disk cloning software designed for secure, lossless data migration. It excels at cloning an external hard drive to an internal SSD or HDD. The software performs a sector-by-sector copy, ensuring your operating system, applications, settings, and all partitions are transferred intact. Its intuitive interface clearly guides you through selecting the source (external) and target (internal) disks, making the reversal of the standard cloning process straightforward and reliable for system recovery or drive upgrades.

Step 3. Perform Cloning Operation

Prior Notice:

• The "Sector by sector copy" asks the size of your destination disk to be at least equal to or larger than that of the source disk. Leave this feature unchecked if you wish to clone a larger hard disk to a smaller hard disk.
• All data on the destination disk will be completely erased, so take care.

Step 1. To start copying/cloning an entire disk to another, choose this disk as the source disk under "Disk Mode" and click "Next".

Step 2. Choose the other disk as the destination disk.

Step 3. Check the disk layout of the two disks. You can manage the disk layout of the destination disk by selecting "Autofit the disk", "Copy as the source" or "Edit disk layout". 

• "Autofit the disk" makes some changes by default on the destination disk layout so that it can work at its best status.
• "Copy as the source"does not change anything on destination disk and the layout is the same as source disk.
• "Edit disk layout" allows you to manually resize/move partition layout on this destination disk.

Tick the "Check the option if the target is SSD" option to put your SSD in its best performance.

A message now appears, warning you that data will be lost. Please confirm this message by clicking "OK" and then click "Next".

Step 4. Click "Proceed" to officially execute the task.

Step 4. Boot from the Cloned Internal Disk

• After cloning completes, shut down your computer.
• Disconnect the external hard drive.
• Power on the computer. It should now automatically boot from the cloned system on your internal SSD.

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2. Create a Bootable USB Drive - Boot from An Independent Environment

This is the most versatile and recommended method. It involves creating a bootable USB drive, which allows you to run a dedicated, independent operating environment separate from both your external and internal drives. This method is foolproof because it eliminates all potential software conflicts and file locks, making it suitable for any cloning scenario, even if the external drive is not bootable.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

Step 1. Create Bootable USB Disk

A key feature of EaseUS Disk Copy is its ability to "Create a Bootable Disk." This function packages the software into a portable, independent operating environment on a USB drive. It is also the recommended tool for cloning, whether you are cloning drives, recovering a system, or migrating to new hardware, making it a versatile and essential utility for any disk management task.

Download and install EaseUS Disk Copy on your computer, then follow the steps below to create a bootable USB.

• Launch EaseUS Disk Copy.
• Click the 'Emergency Disk' feature from the left panel.
• Choose USB and select the target USB.
• Click 'Create' to make a bootable media.

Step 2. Boot the Computer from USB

• Insert the bootable USB drive into your laptop.
• Restart the computer and press the key (e.g., F12, Esc) to open the boot menu.
• Select the USB drive as the boot device. Your computer will boot into the EaseUS recovery environment.

Step 3. Execute Disk Cloning Process

 Step 4. Boot from Cloned Internal Disk

• Once finished, you will see a completion message. Close the software and shut down the computer.
• Remove the bootable USB drive and the external hard drive.
• Turn on your computer. It should now boot from the newly cloned internal SSD.

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Comparison of Two Methods: How to Choose

Following the step-by-step guides, you might be wondering which method is the best fit for your specific situation. The choice largely depends on your technical comfort and the state of your drives. Below is a detailed comparison to help you make an informed decision.

	1: Boot from External Drive	2: Boot from USB Drive
Ease of Setup	Simpler if the external drive is already bootable.	Requires an extra step to create bootable media.
Reliability	Medium. Depending on the stability of the OS on the external drive.	High. Runs in a clean, dedicated environment with zero conflicts. Flexibility
Risk	Low risk if the external system is stable.	Minimal risk. The independent environment prevents accidental interruptions.
Flexibility	Low. Requires the external drive's OS to be functional and bootable.	High. Can clone any drive, regardless of the OS state on the source or target.
Best For	Users whose external drive is a fully functional, bootable former system drive and who prefer a quick setup.	All users, especially beginners. The recommended method for any cloning task, including data recovery, system migration, or dealing with non-bootable drives.

For most users, Method 2, create a bootable USB, is the strongly recommended choice. Its independent environment guarantees a smooth, error-free cloning process, making it the safest and most universal solution. Reserve Method 1 for situations where you are confident in the bootability and health of your external system drive.

Ultimately, whether you choose to boot from your external drive or a USB, EaseUS Disk Copy provides an effective and user-friendly solution. It streamlines the entire process, enabling you to perform a lossless system clone from an external to an internal drive with just a few clicks, ensuring a smooth and successful migration every time.

FAQs Related to External to Internal Disk Cloning

1. Is it possible to clone an external hard drive to the internal drive without using any bootable USB or CD?

Yes, but only under a specific condition: you must be able to boot your computer directly from the external drive itself. This requires that the external drive contains a functional operating system. If it does, you can set it as the primary boot device in your BIOS/UEFI, start the computer from it, and then use cloning software installed on that system to clone to the internal drive. This method avoids creating separate boot media.

2. Will cloning my external drive to an internal SSD make it bootable?

Yes, if you clone the entire disk (including all system and recovery partitions) from a bootable external drive, the internal SSD will become an exact, bootable copy. After cloning, simply set your computer to boot from the new internal SSD in the BIOS/UEFI settings, and your system should start normally.

3. Do I need to format or prepare the internal SSD before cloning?

The cloning process will automatically overwrite all data on the target internal SSD. No manual formatting is required. However, you must ensure the SSD's capacity is equal to or larger than the used space on the external drive. The cloning software will handle partition creation and sizing during the operation.