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3616
March 10th, 2012 08:00
HDD Migration/Cloning advice
Hi All!
I want to install a new HDD into my Dell Dimension C521: http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dimc521/en/SM_EN/specs.htm and I need some advice. I plan to follow this guide: http://lifehacker.com/5517688/how-to-upgrade-your-tiny-hard-drive-to-a-spacious-new-one-and-keep-your-data-intact . As my PC only has two SATA inputs I am having to improvise. This is what I intend to do:
- Remove the DVD/CD Drive and put the new HDD in it's place.
- Use a LiveUSB of CloneZilla to Clone the HDD
- Replace the old HDD with the new HDD and put the DVD Drive back
- Boot and cross my fingers, then repartition.
I haven't done anything like this before and would like to know if this will work. Any and all advice will be greatly appreciated.
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shesagordie
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March 10th, 2012 09:00
guriini
If you wish to clone the exsisting primary SATA hard drive to the new hard drive, for a desktop system, the new HD needs to be installed in place of the DVD/CD drive, to make it the secondary.
Usually you install the cloning software on the exsisting primary HD, that's connected to the motherboard's SATA0 connector and image the exsisting primary HD to the secondary.
Immediately shut the system down, switch the data cable [SATA port 0] to the new drive, making the new hard drive the master and see if the system boots correctly.
Boot the system with only the new hard drive connected.
Remember to leave the original drive disconnected.
Before cloning a hard drive, be certain that existing drive has no corruption or virus on it, as these will be transfered to the new hard drive.
The cloning utility will usually resize the partitions to suit the new larger HD, you will need to check your cloning software's website for this info, as I never used 'Clonezilla', only Acronis, Casper and the old Power Quest Drive Image software for cloning.
Bev.
guriinii
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March 10th, 2012 16:00
Thanks!
I cloned the HDD with Clonezilla LiveUSB using the device-device option.
shesagordie
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March 10th, 2012 18:00
guriini
Sounds great and I appreciate the heads up. :emotion-21:
Bev.
skylarking
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548 Posts
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March 20th, 2012 03:00
The disk cloning wiki is a good historical primer and points to some issues you could face (if you image one system to multiple systems). The link to the disk cloning software wiki is also interesting but it doesn't list the tools provided by hdd manufacturers themselves.
In the past i have used Seagate DiscWizard which allows you to clone the contents of your old drive to a new Seagate drive. It's free to use and (from memory) it works within Windows and can perform disk (smart) testing. Other HDD manufacturers provide similar tools to accomplish the same.
I have also used a linux based boot disk called Disk Copy (sorry no link) which also worked a treat and does a bit for bit copy. You can then use use windows to grow the partition using the disk management plugin (administrative tools, computer management). In that case i had the new drive plugged into a USB/IDE adapter and moved my windows os.
Clonezilla looks like an improvement to the above linux tool as it is both a cloning and imaging tool. I'll have to try it some day :emotion-1: