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Aurora R7, replacing HDD with SSD, #4
My system came with a 2TB HDD drive. I am only using 120GB on it. I want to buy a 500GB SSD to replace this with. How hard will it be to cone the HDD and use the new SSD? I have been searching this and have read a lot of horror stories in trying to do this. If there is any problems is it possible to use a windows 10 ISO and just install my windows only and start from scratch? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
fireberd
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March 8th, 2018 06:00
Cloning a drive used to be iffy. Newer cloning software is much better. I've used the free (and popular) Macrium Reflect V7 to clone several drives (both SSD and conventional) and have not had any problems.
https://www.macrium.com/reflectfree
Use Macrium Reflect to create a bootable "rescue" flash drive. Connect the new SSD to a spare port in the PC.
Boot with the Macrium flash drive, and then select the option to "Clone this disk" for the hard drive and then select the SSD as the destination for the clone. After completion, disconnect and remove the hard drive and install the SSD in its slot (you may need an adapter if there are no mounting holes for the SSD).
If the cloning fails, then you will have to use the disc image function to backup the entire hard drive (all partitions) to a separate drive. Then use Macrium to "restore" to the new SSD.
I didn't post any screenshots/pictures of the procedure as this new forum (recent change) has an issue with posting graphics. Only the person that posts it can see it.
Samelan
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March 8th, 2018 12:00
Excuse my computer skills but I have a couple of last questions.
1) If the cloning fails, will the disc image to use be from the bootable rescue flash drive I made?
2) What seperate drive do I backup the entire hard drive since the only drive at this point is the new installed SSD that isnt working?
3)Will i be using the Macrium restore from the bootable flash drive?
Sorry for all the questions but after this I think I should be able to handle this. Thanks in advance for your help.
fireberd
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March 8th, 2018 13:00
1. If the cloning fails, you will still have your original hard drive that can be used.
2. You would need another (separate) drive for the disc image (hard drive backup). I would say to get an external USB connection drive. You can use it to make full disc image (backups) after you get the SSD going. I wouldn't touch the original hard drive. Leave it as is and if you ever decide to sell it you can reinstall it. I have a 2TB Seagate USB 3.0 drive (purchased at Costco) that I use for backups for my various PC's.
3. You will use the Macrium Bootable "rescue" flash drive to boot and run Macrium to do the clone (or to do the disc image backup if needed). There is no other data on the flash drive, just WinPE (a lite version of Win 10) and Macrium Reflect.
Here is some info on Macrium from the tenforums.com Tutorials. It covers everything except clone.
https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/61026-backup-restore-macrium-reflect.html
And something I found on cloning with Macrium (not sure if its the same instructions as I gave you but it has pictures.
https://technobb.com/easily-clone-a-hard-drive-with-macrium-reflect-free/
If there are more questions, just ask and I'll try to answer them.
Tesla1856
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March 8th, 2018 13:00
For an Aurora-R7 you have the option to go with a M.2/PCIe/NVMe SSD instead . It's even faster but maybe more expensive than a 2.5inch SATA SSD, and a maybe a little trickier to get working.
Ballpark read Speeds:
Spinning HDD: 100
2.5inch SATA-3/600 SSD: 500
M.2/PCIe/NVMe SSD: 3000
See this:
https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-General/Alienware-Aurora-R6-I-wanna-install-SSD-in-it-and-do-the-first/m-p/5596405#M97996
If you have a question, feel free to ask, but it might be quicker to consult the documentation, forums, or tech-support for the Cloning/Imaging software you are using.