Cloned hdd to ssd, now recovery partition missing

nonaddictedgamer · May 5, 2018

I have a Hp 15 from 2016 with Windows 10 home. I recently did a clean install of windows 10 around nov of 2017. Then it sat for awhile because I had another pc I was using more often. I decided to start using this one last week and loaded all my programs and updated the heck out of it. Then played several old video games on it. Halo 2 pc was one of those. It played great. The hdd is a hgst 1 tb which is very slow. So bought a samsung evo 860 500 gb ssd. I loaded the win 10 usb tool with latest version and booted up a fresh copy with it. But after doing some updates and loading programs everything is not the same as with the copy of win 10 on my 1 tb drive. Halo 2 plays windowed and graphics look awful. It will not let me update any drivers audio and graphics and just seems broken in general. That's a whole issue within itself. In the meantime I decided to clone my 1 tb os that works onto my new ssd.

I realized I couldn't use my standard method of system image to load the os onto my new ssd. So I used samsung's migration software and cloned the drive. It looked good after and everything works as it should. But, My recovery partition that allows you to go into recovery mode and make recovery media is not there. I looked in disk management and only see 100 mb reserved and C. On the 1 tb there are three partitions which the third says Recovery.

Two questions,

1 What's the easiest way to get the recovery partition onto my new drive? and does it require putting the 1 tb back in and re using the migration software?

2 And why would two clean installs of windows 10 behave differently??

Third, please don't ask that I use acronis or macrium, I have always used windows system images and software that comes with the drives and always works well. Just need that missing partition back. Thanks in advance.

hang-the-9 · May 8, 2018

If you selected to clone the full drive, the new drive and old drive should have had the same partitions. Did you check the software manual to see if there is a restriction when using different size drives?

nonaddictedgamer · May 10, 2018

Samsung Migration only clones C: so no extra partitions which house the recovery data are included. I then tried todo us and macrium both gave me a lot of trouble and gave errors for wrong target size drive etc..

I then bought a sata usb clone kit at the local store that is made by apricorn. I used the cd to run clone installation and it did run.
But... It gave me three options for partitions,
1. let the software automatically adjust partitions for compatibility
2. choose manually how to size and adjust partitions
3. leave them alone and clone exact layout on original hdd.

I chose option three and told it to run even though target disc was smaller than source. Then it cloned the entire drive. When I booted up the new cloned ssd. It started freezing and wouldn't work. I did a hard reset several times and the hard drive failed to boot after that.

Then I tried again and selected auto partition and it worked. I can boot and use my laptop without issue, only the software adjusted those recovery partitions and will not work of course like I experienced with samsung data migration and macrium.

What does it take to make a copy from a 1 tb to a 500 gb with plenty of room available but want to keep exact partition layout?

Do I even need the recovery partition or is there a way for windows to restore it??
Thanks in advance!!!
So frustrated with this.

USAFRet · May 10, 2018

I use Macrium.
It will clone from a 1TB to a 500GB, IF the actual consumed space on the source drive is smaller than the target drive. Same with Samsung Data Migration.

You should use that Recovery partition and actually create your recovery media. If that drive were to die....that dies too.

Anyway, redo the clone.
Done correctly, I've not seen Macrium fail to carry over whatever partitions you tell it to. Drive space meeting requirements, of course.

Specific steps for a successful clone operation:
-----------------------------
Verify the actual used space on the current drive is significantly below the size of the new SSD
Download and install Macrium Reflect (or Samsung Data Migration, if a Samsung SSD)
Power off
Disconnect ALL drives except the current C and the new SSD
Power up
Run the Macrium Reflect (or Samsung Data Migration)
Select ALL the partitions on the existing C drive
Click the 'Clone' button
Wait until it is done
When it finishes, power off
Disconnect ALL drives except for the new SSD
This is to allow the system to try to boot from ONLY the SSD
Swap the SATA cables around so that the new drive is connected to the same SATA port as the old drive
Power up, and verify the BIOS boot order
If good, continue the power up

It should boot from the new drive, just like the old drive.
Maybe reboot a time or two, just to make sure.

If it works, and it should, all is good.

Later, reconnect the old drive and wipe as necessary.
Delete the 450MB Recovery Partition, here:
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/4f1b84ac-b193-40e3-943a-f45d52e23685/cant-delete-extra-healthy-recovery-partitions-and-healthy-efi-system-partition?forum=w8itproinstall
-----------------------------

hang-the-9 · May 10, 2018

I cloned a larger drive to a smaller with Macrium Reflect with no issues, 650 GB to a 120 GB SSD. Got the restore partition and everything with it, so as above, it should work for you.

nonaddictedgamer · May 11, 2018

I will try again. The actual space used on the 1 tb hdd is 82 gb, and 450 mb recovery part, 100 mb efi, 873 mb another recovery. I tried several times but macrium kept saying the layout didn't match both drives until I un checked one of the recovery partitions. But it needs both for some reason.

Don't even bother with apricorn. It either crashes the ssd with partitions left alone or if it auto configures them the recovery won't work

nonaddictedgamer · May 21, 2018

I am just responding to say I tried multiple attempts to clone my ssd to no avail. I ended up returning them and am using the standard hdd with no problems. That was just waaaay too much trouble.

nonaddictedgamer · Mar 21, 2019

I know this is an old thread, but I had to update it since finding my solution to the problem. I ended up buying two more ssd's and went with the crucial mx500 this time. And tried several tricks with shrinking the C partition in windows which sort of worked but gave lots of issues. Then I tried macrium again but wasn't too excited being that it didn't work in the past. I hooked the 500 gb ssd to my sata cord and tried to copy over from the 1 tb hdd that was in the laptop. It didn't work and said insufficient space available. At this point I was furious and ready to throw the computer and ssd against the wall. Then, I decided to google large hdd to small ssd, I watched a short youtube tutorial on macrium reflect.

Then it hit me, I was doing it all wrong. After dropping all the partitions down to the target drive manually, then adjusting the size of C, it all fit and cloned successfully. I was blown away...... Then I did the same thing with my other laptop, that one was even easier, it automatically adjusted the C part to fit. So, now both laptops are very fast and are usable again. Note to hp, your laptops suck serious balls, and are a pain in the A.. to change hard drives. And the stock hdd made me think the computer was dying. Nope just a sluggish piece of junk drive. With an ssd, it actually boots up and is ready to work in under 10 seconds. Vs 2 mins with the hdd and lots of noise and freezing.

Also I believe the samsung evo drives I bought last year were defective because they didn't clone properly and gave a lot of errors. Once the clone was complete I got one boot up out of them then crashed. Crucial makes a better, more stable ssd.

hang-the-9 · Mar 21, 2019

I have used Samsung EVO drives in 90% of the setups I do, and have cloned systems to several of them, did not have any issues. Just the options used to clone can be tricky to sort out, and at times you may have to look at some BIOS settings to get a new drive working.

Search

Cloned hdd to ssd, now recovery partition missing

nonaddictedgamer

Distinguished

USAFRet

hang-the-9

Titan

nonaddictedgamer

Distinguished

USAFRet

Titan

hang-the-9

Titan

nonaddictedgamer

Distinguished

nonaddictedgamer

Distinguished

nonaddictedgamer

Distinguished

hang-the-9

Titan

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page