Correct transfer of Windows to HDD or SSD

When replacing the HDD or transferring the system from one computer to another, you need to know how to transfer Windows 10 to another drive or SSD. This is done in order not to install Windu from scratch, but simply to make a copy from the old carrier and continue to use it.

Ways of transfer

You can transfer Windows 10 in various ways, but they are all quite similar and different, except for the programs with which we copy Windu to another hard disk or SSD.

You can transfer the OS to SSD or HDD, a regular optical disk or a flash drive with a large amount of memory. In this case, the technique will remain the same, only the time it may take more.

Migrated using standard Windows tools

On Windows 7/8/10, standard tools already exist that allow you to transfer the system to a third-party hard drive. Therefore, if you do not want to install or buy additional software, you can do this procedure by these means.

To create a copy, you will need two drives, one of which will be used as an image location, and the second as a means to restore the system. Usually, the role of the first is performed by HDD or SSD, and the role of the second is by a regular flash drive, which must first be formatted.

HDD and SSD

  1. Open the Control Panel, find the “Backup and Restore” item there.
  2. Then select “Create system image”.
  3. We specify the connected, chosen by us hard disk or SSD.
  4. We are waiting for the creation of the image.
  5. Select "Create a disk to restore the system" and indicate there flash drive.

Everything. The system has been successfully transferred to a hard disk or SSD.

AOMEI Backupper Standard

With the help of the program AOMEI Backupper Standard, you can also transfer Windows10 to a new carrier. It is absolutely free and easily performs this function. The process of creating a copy again consists of two stages: the creation, directly, of an image of the Windows 10 system and the creation of a boot disk.

  • Install the program AOMEI Backupper Standard.
  • Launch and select the “Create Bootable Media” section in the “Utilities” tab.

Create Bootable Media section

  • Select the second media type (WindowsPE).
  • Then we specify which media will perform this function. It is worth recalling that the flash drive must be formatted, since all information from it will be deleted during the creation of the media.
  • Open the “Backup” section and select “System bacup”.

System bacup

  • Further, in the first paragraph, we indicate the disk that currently contains Windows 10, usually the program determines it itself.
  • In the second paragraph, we specify the HDD, flash drive, SSD, to which the system will be copied.
  • Push the "Start" button below.

The system image on the other device and the installer are ready for it. To store the image of Windows 10, you can use any media, but it is better if these are devices using the USB channel, since transferring data via USB will come out faster than on an optical disc. In general, the speed depends on such parameters as the amount of data transferred, the speed of the USB port or the optical drive.

After that, you can restore the system to the SSD or hard drive, which you replaced with the same old computer device. For this:

  1. Run bootable media.
  2. A program window appears, select the "Restore" section.
  3. Using the "Patch" button set the path to a copy of the system.
  4. Click "Yes", and then "Next".
  5. Next, select the media on which the system will be deployed.
  6. Check the data and click "Start".

So, now we have completely transferred Windows 10 to another hard disk or SSD, which was replaced by the previous one.

Acronics True Image

Acronics True Image - one of the most common applications that performs this task. The developers also tried to move Windu as easy as possible. The program, unlike the previous one, supports the Russian language.

  1. Install and run Acronics True Image.
  2. Select the partition on disk cloning.
  3. We put a marker opposite the automatic mode.
  4. Select the source disk.

Acronics True Image will perform a full clone, after which the HDD will contain a copy of the entire system, which can be installed. Cloning usually takes 30–40 minutes, sometimes a little more, depending on the power of the PC itself.

In addition to these programs, there are plenty to offer to perform a similar procedure. As a rule, all these processes in them are performed at the same time, and accessibility for the user is about the same. However, most of these utilities or programs are paid, because they can still perform a lot of actions that interest us a little.

Transfer to another computer

Moving Windows 10 from one disk to another is much easier than transferring to another computer. In this case, inconsistencies may appear or the operation will end in failure. To avoid this, it is important to know the features of such a transfer.

First, it is worth removing the antivirus and image mounting programs (DaemonTools, Alcohol 120%) before you are going to make a copy, as it may prevent recovery in a new computer. And secondly, use a special utility to move Windows 10.

If you want to transfer the system to another computer using an old hard drive, not replacing it later, then it will be even easier to do all this. If you want to use another HDD or SSD, then after the execution of the algorithm below, you may also have to perform the algorithms that were described at the beginning of the article.

  • Open the command line as administrator

C: \ Windows \ System32 \ Sysprep \ Sysprep.exe

  • Enter: "C: \ Windows \ System32 \ Sysprep \ Sysprep.exe",
  • Runs Sysprep utility. She will prepare Windu for the move.
  • We put "Go to the system's welcome window (OOBE)", a tick next to the item "Preparing for use", "Shut down".
  • Disconnect the hard drive and mount the new computer.
  • We pass standard and easy registration procedures for a new user.

Everything, now Windows 10 is present in the previous configuration with all the files in the new computer.

Some utilities allow you to immediately mount the HDD or SSD containing the system, while not encountering errors when transferring "Windows". All you need to do is enter the product license key, then you can start using the old data.

It can be concluded that there is nothing difficult either in transferring "Vind" from computer to computer, nor in copying to third-party media, be it a hard disk or SSD. You can do it yourself, without the help of professionals. The main thing is to follow the instructions above.