Unable to Migrate My Operating System to Another Drive - How to Fix?

"I'm unable to migrate my operating system to another drive. What could I be doing wrong?" Well, many issues may prevent you from successfully migrating an OS from your primary hard drive. This article will provide you with a comprehensive answer to how to fix the issue.

First, you will learn the common causes of this problem. Then, you will learn a checklist of things to complete before transferring the OS to a new drive. The article will also tell you how to migrate your OS without trouble using professional software.

Why Can't I Migrate OS to SSD

Migrating the OS from the hard drive to the SSD should be smooth and secure if everything falls in place. However, you may encounter situations where migrating your OS gets stuck or it doesn't start at all. The following are some of the most typical causes of this problem:

Ensure you fix any of these issues if your OS has failed to migrate data, then try again to check whether the problem has disappeared.

What to Do Before Moving OS to Another Drive

Before you think of moving an operating system between drives, there are some critical issues to keep in mind to avoid getting stuck. They include the following.

1. Ensure You've Connected the SSD to Your PC

The first thing is to connect the drive to your computer since you want to migrate your OS to SSD. The computer should be able to recognize and read the properties of your drive. Connect the SSD alongside your HDD or use a SATA-to-USB cable if you're using a desktop PC.

2. Clear Unnecessary Files from Your Hard Drive

To ensure you save your SSD disk space when moving files to it, you should only migrate the useful data and personal files. Before you initiate the migration process, ensure your hard drive is free of large files that would fill up unnecessary space.

3. Check the Partition Style of the Source and Destination Drives

When moving OS and other files from a local hard drive to the SSD, they must have a similar partition style. For example, you can use MBR-to-MBR or GPT-to-GPT disk partition styles. Incompatible partitions won't support OS migration.

4. Back Up Your C Drive Data

The OS migration process is not always a 100% sure ordeal. Sometimes, the unexpected could happen and result in losing important data when a migration fails. As a precaution, you should back up the C drive to an external hard drive.

5. Download OS Migration Tool (EaseUS Disk Copy)

Another important thing to carry out before moving OS to SSD is to have migration software. This allows you to create a system image to transfer your OS easily. EaseUS Disk Copy is one of the best tools that you can use to migrate your OS. To begin, click this download link and install the software on your computer.

Free Download

Windows 11/10/8/7

6. Connect Your Computer to Stable Power

Lastly, to ensure an OS migration process without any interruptions, your computer should have a stable power connection. This is critical in preventing data loss or incomplete OS transfer incidences.

Once you've made those preparations, you can move on to the following part, which explains how to properly migrate your operating system to a different drive.

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How to Migrate OS to Another Drive Without Trouble

We recommend you use efficient transfer software like EaseUS Disk Copy to avoid chances of getting stuck or your OS failing to work on the second drive. With this tool, you can migrate your OS to another drive in just one click. It's a great alternative to other software that are slower or get stuck along the way.

This fast and flexible software can also be used for cloning a hard drive when you want to make exact copies of the data on your local hard drive. More features of EaseUS Disk Copy include the following:

• Safely upgrade your hard drive without losing data.
• Make full backups for instant restore.
• Transfer data and files from one drive to another in your pocket easily.
• Conveniently clone an old drive to a new computer.
• Securely recover data from a hard drive with bad sectors.

After downloading this software, follow the guide provided below to migrate the OS to another drive.

Before cloning:

• If your computer has only one slot, connect the target disk to your machine via a USB-to-SATA/NVMe adapter.
• If your computer has an extra slot, install the target disk into the empty slot properly, and make sure it is compatible.

Step 1. Launch EaseUS Disk Copy and choose Disk Mode.

Install EaseUS Disk Copy cloning software on your Windows computer, then launch it and select Disk Mode from the left panel.

Step 2. Select the source drive.

Select the drive you want to copy, then click Select.

Step 3. Choose the target disk.

Choose the disk that you want to clone data to, and click Select. Note that the used space of the source disk should be less than the target disk capacity.

*At this step, you can also click the option "Save as an image file" to store your disk as a compressed image file, which can be restored without any data loss.

Step 4. Adjust disk layout.

Specify the target disk layout as your preference. You can choose among:

• Autofit the disk: makes some changes by default on the destination disk layout so that it can work at its best.
• Copy as the source: create a 1-to-1 copy of your source disk; the layout is the same as the source disk.
• Edit disk layout: allows you to manually resize/move the partition layout on this destination disk.

*If the target disk is an SSD, the option "Auto-alignment to 4K" will be checked automatically to optimize the performance of your SSD.

Step 5. Start cloning.

Click Proceed, and a message will appear, warning you that data will be lost. Confirm the message by clicking Continue.

Now, it will start executing the cloning task.

*The time it takes to clone a hard drive depends on how much data is on the source disk, and it will also be affected by the disk types, USB connection, etc.

Bonus Tip: How to Boot from Cloned Drive

After moving your OS to a new SSD, the next thing is to test whether the system can boot from it. Follow the steps below to boot from a cloned drive:

Step 1. Restart your computer, and then repeatedly press the "F1/F2/F3/F5/Esc" keys when the Windows logo appears. This allows you to enter the system BIOS setup.

Step 2. Under the "Configure boot options" window, click "Change boot order." Select your SSD as the new boot drive.

Step 3. Next, press "F10" to save these settings. Restart your computer to effect the changes made. Your system will boot from the new SSD drive now.

If you find yourself unable to boot from the cloned drive, read this article, and you might find the solution.

Cloned Hard Drive Won't Boot? Make Cloned Drive Bootable in 3 Fixes

 

Here useful tips about how to make cloned drive bootable are available. Try it to avoid or fix cloned hard drive won't boot issue in Windows 10/8/7 when cloning one hard drive to a new HDD or SSD. Read more >>

The Bottom Line

Moving an operating system to another drive is easy, provided you follow the right steps. Some of the common causes of the "I'm unable to migrate my operating system to another drive" problem include bad disk sectors, existing partitions on the target disk, or different partition tables. To help fix all the issues related to migrating your OS, we recommend you try a reliable migration tool like EaseUS Disk Copy.

Free Download

Windows 11/10/8/7

FAQs on Unable to Migrate My Operating System to Another Drive

1. Can I Move My Operating System to Another Hard Drive?

Yes, if your operating system isn't working properly, you can move it to a different hard disk. A running version of Windows can be moved using a migration tool and successfully installed on another hard drive.

2. How to Move the OS to Another Drive Without Reinstalling Windows and Applications?

Follow the steps below to move OS to another drive without reinstalling Windows and other installed programs using EaseUS Disk Copy:

• Download and run EaseUS Disk Copy on your computer. Next, click on "Disk Mode" and select the hard drive containing your OS. Click "Next" to continue.
• Select the "destination disk" that you want to move the OS to. Click "OK" to erase all the data in the target disk. Next, check and edit the disk layout in the target disk.
• Click "Proceed" to initiate the cloning process. The system will display the estimated time for moving your OS to another drive. Stay patient until the process finishes.

3. How to Move My Windows 10 OS from HDD to SSD?

You can move your Windows 10 operating system from HDD to SSD by cloning it. This ensures that you make a bit-by-bit copy of your OS. One useful tool when migrating Windows is EaseUS Disk Copy. You'll first need to install the software on your computer, and then after that, you start copying the OS from HDD to SSD.

4. Can I Migrate Just My OS to an SSD?

Yes, it's possible to only move your OS to an SSD and leave behind files on other partitions of your computer. To achieve this, you'll need to clone your OS using a tool like EaseUS Disk Copy and then transfer it to your SSD. This move helps to boost the overall performance of your computer.