Ok so my pc is about 4 years old and im paranoid that my HDD is going to fail because i run a gaming channel on youtube and i put it through alot of work for the past year. So my question is. If i buy a new drive how could i copy my drives data onto the new one. or atleast just the OS.
Swapping the OS
- Thread starter Chase25l
- Start date
Yes, no problem. The easiest way to do this is to use imaging software e.g. Acronis True Image. Make your image of the old drive, swap drives, boot into the Acronis Recovery media, restore your old image onto the new HDD - or SDD (better!). Re-boot. Job done!
so just to make sure this 100% clear before i do it. On acronis i would image my hdd then create bootable media on acronis. then put the new drive in and dl the data? is this going to image my OS too am i going to need a windows disk and all these other things (ps. sorry for the questions but i want to be 100% crystal clear on how to do this before i do it) and also acronis isnt free. do you know of any other software?
Unfortunately, Acronis isn't free. Something like this, whether Acronis or competitor (free or otherwise), is though, a highly recommended tool to have. Just make sure your images (have more than one) includes a recent one.
Though I haven't needed to check out free options commercial options (one shot purchase) will last you some years, covering multiple OS versions...eventually, though, a new version will be required.
A quick Google on free options shows the following examples:
http://www.techradar.com/news/software/applications/best-free-backup-software-11-programs-we-recommend-1137924
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/five-apps/five-free-and-reliable-cloning-tools/
A quick glance over some of them shows them to look very promising. Check them out (and Google a few more) to see if any fits the bill.
The general process for all these (including Acronis) includes the following-->
With Acronis (True Image, which I use regularly) the process is very straight forward.
With True Image installed...
- You will need an extra HDD installed or attach an external HDD or USB memory stick - make sure it has sufficient free space for your image! (the image process should allow you to select compression, so the space required can be smaller that the drive/partition you're imaging).
- Boot into Windows (your old HDD)
- Run True Image
- Create new backup image of your C disk (containing your OS and all data...). If you've partitioned the C disk then back up the OS partition - in this case, if you also have programs installed on a different partition than the OS then you'll need to back up that partition also (and re-create it in the new HDD/SDD). There are backup options to suite your own preferences (e.g. Full is easiest in some ways but takes up most space, others include Incremental...check out docs).
- Power down, swap to new HDD/SDD (remove old HDD)
- insert Acronis Recovery media (e.g. usb stick/cd/dvd) and boot into that.
- Use the Restore option to restore your old image onto the new HDD/SDD. If required, the process will allow you to navigate to where your image is located e.g. external media.
- Once Restore is complete boot into the new HDD/SDD.
You might have to tell the BIOS to change its 1st boot device during these steps.
Depending on Image size the Restore process can take as little as a few minutes. The other options in any unbootable system include a complete install of the OS and all your programs, then a long cycle of OS and program updates. Oh yes, you will also have to remember all you passwords, etc.
--> this shows you the great power of imaging software. You simply Restore the image. The vast majority of boot failures only affect the OS partition (not all - you can image other partitions if needed)...a tool like this will get you back to where you were in minutes.
If your old HDD is not partitioned then the above will be very easy to do (much easier than the way all this reads). If you have programs also installed on an additional partition then there will be additional steps you will have to do...someone knowledgeable in the above will be handy to have at hand - especially if you've never done this before. Alternatively, you can reinstall those programs after the OS partition Restore.
Though I haven't needed to check out free options commercial options (one shot purchase) will last you some years, covering multiple OS versions...eventually, though, a new version will be required.
A quick Google on free options shows the following examples:
http://www.techradar.com/news/software/applications/best-free-backup-software-11-programs-we-recommend-1137924
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/five-apps/five-free-and-reliable-cloning-tools/
A quick glance over some of them shows them to look very promising. Check them out (and Google a few more) to see if any fits the bill.
The general process for all these (including Acronis) includes the following-->
With Acronis (True Image, which I use regularly) the process is very straight forward.
With True Image installed...
- You will need an extra HDD installed or attach an external HDD or USB memory stick - make sure it has sufficient free space for your image! (the image process should allow you to select compression, so the space required can be smaller that the drive/partition you're imaging).
- Boot into Windows (your old HDD)
- Run True Image
- Create new backup image of your C disk (containing your OS and all data...). If you've partitioned the C disk then back up the OS partition - in this case, if you also have programs installed on a different partition than the OS then you'll need to back up that partition also (and re-create it in the new HDD/SDD). There are backup options to suite your own preferences (e.g. Full is easiest in some ways but takes up most space, others include Incremental...check out docs).
- Power down, swap to new HDD/SDD (remove old HDD)
- insert Acronis Recovery media (e.g. usb stick/cd/dvd) and boot into that.
- Use the Restore option to restore your old image onto the new HDD/SDD. If required, the process will allow you to navigate to where your image is located e.g. external media.
- Once Restore is complete boot into the new HDD/SDD.
You might have to tell the BIOS to change its 1st boot device during these steps.
Depending on Image size the Restore process can take as little as a few minutes. The other options in any unbootable system include a complete install of the OS and all your programs, then a long cycle of OS and program updates. Oh yes, you will also have to remember all you passwords, etc.
--> this shows you the great power of imaging software. You simply Restore the image. The vast majority of boot failures only affect the OS partition (not all - you can image other partitions if needed)...a tool like this will get you back to where you were in minutes.
If your old HDD is not partitioned then the above will be very easy to do (much easier than the way all this reads). If you have programs also installed on an additional partition then there will be additional steps you will have to do...someone knowledgeable in the above will be handy to have at hand - especially if you've never done this before. Alternatively, you can reinstall those programs after the OS partition Restore.
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