how to clone hard drive to ssd without losing

HOW TO CLONE HARD DRIVE TO SSD WITHOUT LOSING UPGRADE
HOW TO CLONE HARD DRIVE TO SSD WITHOUT LOSING WINDOWS 10
HOW TO CLONE HARD DRIVE TO SSD WITHOUT LOSING FREE
HOW TO CLONE HARD DRIVE TO SSD WITHOUT LOSING WINDOWS

If you can make sure that your PC has at least 4 GB of RAM, an SSD upgrade will almost always be an upgrade worth considering.Īn SSD upgrade for your computer is by far one of the most effective ways to speed up your computer.

HOW TO CLONE HARD DRIVE TO SSD WITHOUT LOSING WINDOWS

That being said a minimum of 4 GB RAM or preferably more is recommended for Windows 10. Even if your PC is low on RAM the SSD upgrade will still increase speed because low RAM systems depend heavily on the hard drive as a means of virtual memory. Generally speaking an SSD upgrade is an excellent way to extend the lifespan of your older computer. With all of this covered, you might still have a few questions about upgrading your computer to SSD, so let’s go over a few common questions. SSD drives are completely silent and also consume less energy. Not only that, but your computer will now also operate without the typical noises of a mechanical hard drive. You will see that it now takes considerably less time not alone to start your computer, but also to start programs like your Microsoft Edge browser or Office programs. Enjoy Working With Your new SSD and Upgraded Computer Don’t be surprised if it takes less than half the time it previously took to start Windows (usually the decrease in startup time will even be higher).ġ0.

HOW TO CLONE HARD DRIVE TO SSD WITHOUT LOSING WINDOWS 10

Your computer will now boot Windows 10 from your new SSD drive and you will probably already notice the gain in performance. Windows should start normally now and you should be able to sign in with your username and password.Ĭheck your cable management: see if you can strap loose cables together and perform an extra check that no loose cables can get caught between the blades of rotating case fans of your computer. If that’s the case, reboot your computer again. Depending on your specific situation, you might get a notification that Windows detected new hardware and that you should restart your computer once again for the installation to complete. Normally your computer should load Windows 10 without any problem and you may already notice that it starts much faster. Power-up your computer now to see if it boots from your new SSD drive. Use the SATA and power cable that you unplugged from your old hard drive to connect the SSD drive now.

If you had connected your SSD drive temporarily to your DVD drive cables, now is the time to reconnect your DVD drive. Connect Your New SSD Drive as Boot Device You can leave the physical disk in the computer case for now so you can test if everything works on your SSD drive first.ĥ. You can also unplug the power cable for extra safety.ĭisconnect the SATA and power cable from your old hard disk (HDD). This is best done with the computer powered down. Now you are ready to disconnect your old hard drive and make the right cabling connections for your new SSD drive. Once the migration is complete, shut down your computer. HDD drives are sometimes referred to as spinning drives because of the spinning platters they contain (you can read more here if you want to brush up on your knowledge of HDD drives vs SSD). A SATA drive often has a 7 pin connector and an additional power connector.īelow is an image of the inside of a computer with a typical spinning hard drive with SATA connection.

SATA drives are very common and can be recognized by their flat and thin connectors, which often have a 90 degree angle. What Type of SSD Drive Should I Get to Upgrade my PC?Ĭheck your current hard drive connections in your PC to determine the type of drive.

HOW TO CLONE HARD DRIVE TO SSD WITHOUT LOSING FREE

(The 26.4 GB free space in the image above is certainly not an ideal scenario, which means I should opt for a larger SSD drive - maybe 1 TB or so). Windows will run less optimal if its system drive is almost full. If you can aim for at least double your current used space or more, that allows for more growth in your storage needs and also for a smooth running Windows. Your new SSD drive should at least have the capacity to store your used portion on your current hard drive but make sure that you have enough capacity so that your new SSD drive is not entirely filled up. You’ll also see the amount of used and free space on your hard drive. The total capacity (indicated with the arrow in the image above) tells you how much storage space your current Windows boot drive has in total.

How to clone hard drive to ssd without losing