It’s 2014 and if you have yet to hop onto the SSD bandwagon, you should really get started. It is actually a pretty simple process with plenty of prep to clone or copy your old HDD to a brand new SSD. I’ve scoured the web and I’ve put together this guide that is hopefully straightforward, fast and, most importantly, free.
The cloning process was executed on Windows 7 and please don’t hold me responsible if anything goes wrong along the way.
I have been apprehensive to take the leap because I –
- do not know how to make my own backups
- would like to save the hassle of reinstalling everything
- love my current computer’s settings
- am simply damn lazy
If you are any of the above, you’ve come to the right place. A few weeks ago, I took the leap and never looked back. Let’s get started shall we?
Step 1: Install your SSD into your PC case.
Might want to take the time to blow out all the dust and do some cable management.
Step 2: Cleaning house
First time you’d need to do is download and install: Defraggler and CCleaner and Macrium Reflect Free
Deleted all unwanted items from the source drive and run CCleaner. It’s a system cleaning tool that deletes all manner of unneeded files (recycling bin files, old temp files, cache files, etc.) that clutter up your system.
Next, run Defraggler and go grab a coffee, it might take a while to complete.
Step 3: Align your SSD
To prevent the possibility of having your disk alignment being off after cloning, you would need to execute the following steps. Think of it as an on boarding process from old tech to new of sorts.
- Click on the Windows button. Run command prompt and key the following commands in exactly this sequence. Doing it wrong will cause you to ERASE the wrong disk.
- Diskpart
- List disk
- Select disk n (where n is your SSD’s number as provided by the previous command)
- Create partition primary align=1024
- Active
- Exit
Step 4: Clone your disks
I used Macrium Reflect Free cos it was free and that was pretty much my only option. The upside of cloning the disk incorrectly would be that you still have your original disk to fall back on.
Select your new SSD drive
Choose to copy partitions and settings
I hope that you bought an SSD that’s bigger than your earlier HDD else you might be in a pickle.
Proceed to clone and grab another coffee and read a book, this process will be the longest.
Once the cloning is complete, power down your computer, unplug your original HDD (the original source of the clone). In some cases, you might need to plug your new HDD into the slot of the old HDD (I had to do that for mine) and reboot.
And that’s it, time to enjoy speedy boots and launching of your programs!
Gerald currently straddles between his love of video games and board gaming. There’s nothing that interests him more than trying out the newest and fanciest gadget in town as well. He dreams of publishing a board game sometime in the future!