Experience of moving to SSD. How to transfer a Windows system from HDD to SSD! Copying system partition of hard drive to ssd

SSD drives are becoming more and more popular. This is due to an increase in their reliability, a decrease in cost and an improvement in the characteristics that they possess. Therefore, it is great for installing an operating system. But in order not to reinstall it again, you can transfer Windows 10 from HDD to SSD, saving all the data.

Why transfer?

If you decide to use an SSD as a drive to store data (photos, video or audio files), it's a moot point since these devices have a limited overwrite limit. Active use will very quickly destroy it, unlike the HDD, which has been serving me for over 10 years and is still in excellent condition. But it has a SATA II connection interface, a small buffer size and low response time. Therefore, it was decided to purchase a solid-state drive to transfer Windows 10 to it.

SSD drives are great for OS installation because they have the following advantages:

• high read/write speed;
• silent operation;
• low level of heat generation.

In addition, Windows is “static files” that do not require constant rewriting, but only reading. Therefore, if you install the OS on a solid-state drive, this will speed up its operation several times and at the same time the resource of the device itself will be used very slowly.

Another reason why I decided to install an SSD in my PC was participation in the insider program.

Microsoft releases a new build for Fast Ring approximately once a week. It took about 1-1.5 hours to install it on an old HDD. If we add to this the startup time of Windows - about 1.5-2 minutes, it becomes clear that the solution has long been obvious.

SSD selection

Details on how to choose an SSD disk for a computer are described in the article “”. In my case, three parameters were priority:

• number of rewrite cycles before failure;
• memory type;
• manufacturer.

As for capacity, if you are going to use the SSD only to install Windows 10, choose models from 120 GB and larger.

Why shouldn't you buy 64 GB drives?

There are several reasons.

1. For stable and normal operation of the SSD disk, it must have up to 20% free space of the total volume. If you use a 64 GB model (in fact, its volume will be slightly smaller - 58-60 GB), only 40-45 GB will be available for active use. Microsoft's recommendations for free disk space for Windows 10 are 16 GB for 32-bit and 20 GB for 64-bit OS. And this is already half of the specified space.
2. After installing a new build or updating Windows 10, a copy of the old OS remains on the system disk, which is used during recovery. This is an additional 15-20 GB.
3. In addition to the browser and audio and video players, the average user uses various programs and utilities. Installing them also requires quite a lot of space (for me it’s about 8 GB). For a gamer or person involved in video processing, you will need even more free space on the system disk.

Therefore, in modern conditions, the minimum size of the SSD drive that is used in the device to install the OS is 120 GB.

Connection and setup

The transfer process will be shown using a solid state drive as an example.

1. Turn off the computer → disconnect it from the network by unplugging the plug from the socket → press and hold the PC power button for 4 seconds (this will completely cut off the power to the device).
2. Open the case and install the SSD. The new cases have bays for installing SSDs in the 2.5-inch form factor. Older models do not have them, so you can use a special adapter frame.
   
3. Connect power and SATA cable to the SSD → close the case.
4. Turn on your computer → enter BIOS → set the AHCI SSD drive mode → save changes and launch Windows 10.
   
5. RMB on the Start menu → Disk Management.
   

   Important! The table at the bottom of the window will display the connected SSD drive. It will be marked in black and labeled “Not distributed.”

   
   
6. RMB on SSD → Create simple volume → Next.
   
7. Set the maximum simple volume size → Next.
   
8. Select the volume letter → Next.
   
9. Set the radio button to “Format this volume as follows” → leave all default values ​​→ Next → Finish.
   

After this, Explorer will display a new drive under the letter that you set in the settings.

Transfer Windows 10 to SSD

To transfer Windows 10 to a solid-state drive, we used a program that has a wide range of functions. The choice fell on it because the SSD included a key for free activation. However, the program is paid, so it is not suitable for everyone.

There are other programs (paid and free) that can be used to transfer (clone/copy) a Windows partition to another drive:

• Seagate DiscWizard (works if the device has a Seagate drive installed);
• Samsung Data Migration (designed to work with Samsung solid-state drives);
• Macrium Reflect is a free program for cloning an entire disk or its individual parts, which has an English interface;
• Paragon Drive Copy is a paid program that has wide functionality.

The interface of all programs is different, but the operating algorithm is the same: they transfer data from one disk to another while maintaining all settings. There is no need to study instructions for their operation - everything is done so that the user intuitively understands what he is doing.

1. Launch Acronis True Image → Tools section → Clone disk.
   
2. Select the cloning mode: automatic or manual.
   

   Good to know! In order not to worry that you will do something wrong, select the “automatic” mode and the program itself will transfer all the data from one disk to another. In this case, the SSD drive must be no less than the amount of data stored on the HDD. To configure transfer settings, select the “manual” setting.

   I chose the "manual" cloning mode to transfer only the OS.
   

3. Specify the source disk from which data will be cloned.
   
4. Specify the drive to transfer information to.
   
5. Exclude files that do not need to be cloned to the SSD. To transfer only the OS disk, check the boxes for files on other disks to exclude.
   
   

   Important! The process of calculating information can take a long time (about 15-20 minutes).

6. Change the disk structure if necessary. In my case, it was left unchanged.
   
7. Review all source data → Proceed.
   

After completing the preliminary operations, the program will ask you to restart your computer. Then, instead of starting the OS, the Acronis True Image program window will open and display the cloning process. Wait until the operation is completed and then the computer turns off.

Selecting the primary drive in BIOS

Setting up the OS after the transfer

More details on how to configure an SSD disk after installation on a computer are described in the article “”. In general, you need to check the following parameters:

• whether the TRIM function is enabled;
• Is disk defragmentation disabled (it is not needed due to the way solid-state drives operate);
• Is file indexing disabled?

As for the hibernation file, many advise disabling it in order to reduce the amount of information written to the SSD drive to extend its “life.” I didn’t turn it off because I often use this mode at work. But you can do as you see fit.

Please note that due to the settings that I specified during cloning, disks will be created on the solid-state drive, as was the case on the HDD. You can merge them in the Disk Management utility.

1. RMB on the Start menu → Disk Management → select SSD drive.
2. RMB on an empty disk on a solid-state drive → Format.
   
3. RMB on this disk → Delete volume → Yes.
   
4. RMB on this disk → Delete partition → Yes.
   

Delete Windows 10 files located on the HDD by formatting the drive. This will eliminate confusion in the future and free up space for storing files.

Results

In addition, in the Winaero WEI tool, which calculates OS performance (similar to how the system score is determined in Windows 7), the “Primary Hard Drive” indicator increased from 5.6 to 7.95. (you can find out how else to determine the performance of the OS in the article “Determining and increasing the performance of a Windows 10 computer. “Pleasant” surprises

The warranty period is 3 years with a total number of written bytes of 113 TB. The volume is quite large. BUT!

Every day, much more information is written to disk than it might seem. This is service information, wear leveling algorithms. Thanks to them, the same SSD memory blocks are not constantly rewritten. Periodically, unused (or rarely used) files are moved to areas of the drive that are actively used. The free space that appears after redistribution is then used to record new information. This is a cyclical process that happens constantly.

As a result, in the worst case, 1 GB of useful data accounts for 1.5 GB of recorded information. Plus data cache in browsers and other information. As a result, on average, about 15 GB of information is recorded on my SSD every day. But even with such indicators, the resource of the solid-state drive will last approximately 15-18 years.

For people who actively write/erase data, this figure will be significantly lower. But even in this case, the relevance of the purchased SSD drive model will disappear faster than it fails. So stop believing the myth that SSDs are unreliable! In modern conditions, they are the best choice for installing Windows 10.

Quite often, many users have a question related to how to transfer Windows 10 from HDD to SSD, since solid-state drives are much faster. Now we will look at why this is necessary, as well as some basic methods that allow this operation to be carried out without much effort and time.

Why is transfer to SSD necessary, and what benefits does the user receive?

First, let's decide why we should try to do such operations at all. The whole point is that, as mentioned above, SSD-type hard drives have faster data reading speeds compared to regular HDD drives.

This suggests the simplest conclusion: after Windows 10 is transferred to an SSD drive, the system will work much faster, as they say, “fly”. It is supposed to copy only the operating system to the new hard drive, without any third-party garbage. With all this, if you give preference to some specific software products for or intended for transferring a system from HDD to SSD, in some cases you can copy only the system itself, clone Windows with all programs and user files installed in it, even create images with all user settings . Here, as is already clear, the main condition is the choice of the appropriate program depending on what you need to get in the end. But first things first.

General principles of transferring a system to an SSD drive

Let’s make a reservation right away: all those users who believe that a quick transfer of Windows 10 to an SSD can be done by simply copying all files and folders, even hidden ones, are deeply mistaken. Nothing good will come of this, and the system itself simply will not boot. Here you need to use a different technique. In this case, it is possible to use both Windows 10 and third-party software products specifically designed for this. Transferring Windows 10 to an SSD in both the first and second cases is quite simple and does not require much effort or special knowledge.

Let's consider several possible options, especially since none of them should cause difficulties even for the most unprepared or novice user, since in most cases all processes are as automated as possible.

Windows 10 Native Tools

First, let's look at the native capabilities of Windows 10. Transferring the system to an SSD drive is quite possible if you use the backup and recovery section, which can be accessed from the standard Control Panel. This is only due to the fact that in this case, Windows 10 will be transferred to an SSD without third-party programs, which greatly simplifies the task.

Here you will first need to create a system image to transfer it to a prepared drive, and then select the option to create a recovery disk from which to boot when replacing the HDD with an SSD. When the process begins, you will need to provide a link to the system image saved on the new drive. But the old hard drive needs to be disconnected to avoid troubles. If in the future you need to use the old hard drive, you should completely remove the boot partitions from it, since otherwise there is a risk of abnormal conflicts and failures. Actually, this is how Windows 10 can be transferred to an SSD on a laptop or on a stationary terminal, provided that the HDD is replaced with an SSD. Another thing is that you will have to open the laptop yourself, as they say, at your own peril and risk. You can, of course, use the services of service centers, but after replacement they will transfer the system to a new hard drive themselves, and this is an extra material cost. In addition, if the laptop is under warranty, opening the seals will only lead to the fact that in the future, if there is any breakdown, no one will accept it for free warranty service. So first think carefully about whether such things are worth doing.

But reviews from users and specialists about this method are ambiguous: some consider it the simplest, others, on the contrary, see it as unnecessary actions and are more inclined to use narrowly targeted utilities.

Most suitable utilities

It is much easier to use specialized programs that are designed specifically for such purposes. With all their diversity, some utilities of this kind are intended exclusively for hard drives of strictly certain manufacturers. So, for example, something like Acronis True Image is perfect for Western Digital drives, for Seagate hard drives the Seagate Disk Wizard utility is used, for Samsung drives the “native” Samsung Data Migration utility is suitable, etc. But the most universal, in terms of automation and security of all operations performed that will be required to carry out the migration, is Paragon Migrate OS.

Migrate Windows 10 to SSD: Paragon Migrate OS to SSD

There are quite a lot of utilities in this area among Paragon products. A special place is occupied by the software packages Paragon Migrate OS to SSD, Paragon Drive Copy 15 Professional, Paragon Disk Manager 15 Professional and “Home Expert 15”. Alas, unfortunately, these are paid utilities. However, you cannot ignore them.

Actually, the Paragon Migrate OS to SSD program itself is a real step-by-step Wizard, which is aimed at maximizing the automation of the system transfer process. Without going into the technical details of the process, we note that you can save space and time if you do not move your own documents or files to the new drive, having first unchecked them in the appropriate window. Well, the Master will almost independently perform all the necessary actions. After copying is complete, you must remember to change the BIOS settings, where the new SSD drive should be specified as the main (first) device.

Migration using Acronis True Image

Migrating Windows 10 to an Acronis True Image SSD is just as easy. But here for Western Digital hard drives it is better to use a special release of the WD Edition modification program. If your computer has a hard drive from this particular manufacturer, the application will become an indispensable assistant.

The whole process boils down to, after installing and launching the application, selecting the recommended (automatic) system transfer mode in the disk cloning section. Of course, this can take quite a lot of time. Everything here will depend on the amount of data being transferred and the speed of the old hard drive. However, the process itself is simple for a user who is not even familiar with such specifics.

Using the Seagate DiscWizard utility for Seagate drives

Here is another program for transferring Windows 10 to SSD drives. As is already clear, it should be used exclusively in cases where the computer or laptop has at least one hard drive from this manufacturer.

If we talk about how Windows 10 is transferred to an SSD, we can say that this application almost completely repeats the previous program and eliminates the user’s participation in the migration process almost one hundred percent. It goes without saying that there is an in-house Master who will carry out the entire process from start to finish.

Samsung Data Migration Program

Samsung hard drives have their own utility that works no worse than those described above.

Here, a special step-by-step Transfer Wizard is used in the same way, but the main advantage of this utility is the use of the selective data transfer mode. This is very important, because, you see, the size of an SSD is still much smaller than that of conventional hard drives. Well, as for the practical side, here, again, the user’s participation in the process comes down only to confirming automated actions. In most cases, you don’t even need to select any specific parameters - the program will do everything on its own.

Free Macrium Reflect app

Finally, you can migrate Windows 10 to an SSD using the free Macrium Reflect package. What is most captivating is that the program does not care at all what manufacturers’ hard drives are used as the initial and target disks.

In addition, the versatility of this software product (as evidenced by reviews of people who have used it) also lies in the fact that the program can not only clone hard drives or their partitions, but also quite simply creates boot disks and images, and also supports transferring data to based on Windows PE. Actually, this particular application can be classified as “all-in-one”.

What else should you pay attention to?

Finally, it remains to add that programs such as AOMEI Backupper Standard were not specifically considered here. Although this utility is distributed free of charge, however, when performing a transfer operation, it requires you to first create a flash drive, and only then, when loading from such media with the priority set in the BIOS, the Clone Wizard starts. However, without talking about the technical side, it can be used equally for Windows and Linux systems.

As for the choice of the means by which a solid-state hard drive will be produced, here, as they say, it is a personal matter. By the way, we did not delve particularly deeply into some aspects related to calling certain functions from the command line, because the average user, in general, does not need this. Extra headache. It’s much easier to launch a specialized utility and wait for the cloning process to complete.

What to prefer?

If you don’t have a suitable utility at hand, you can use your own Windows. Moreover, this applies not only to the “ten”, which in our case was taken as a basis. All these procedures are carried out in the same simple way in both the “seven” and the “eight”. The question here is rather different. The fact is that third-party utilities and applications work much more efficiently; at least, the simplicity of the performed and, in most cases, automated actions is beyond doubt. But as for the cloning speed, you shouldn’t delude yourself - you simply cannot jump higher than the read or write speed of the desired and target hard drives. So, even if you want to finish the processes quickly, you will have to be patient.

Otherwise, even when using the system’s own tools, no one should have any difficulties. But the presence of a Wizard in almost any specialized utility allows you not only to track each step with the action being performed, but also simply not to participate in the already highly automated process. Well, unless you have to press several buttons or select the desired sections or custom folders and programs for cloning.

Hello, friends! I often had the opportunity to transfer Windows 7 and Windows 8 from a simple HDD to an SSD. I mainly used the following programs: Acronis True Image, Paragon Migrate OS to SSD, Paragon Home Expert 12 and AOMEI Partition Assistant Home Edition. The longest, but most interesting, way to transfer Windows 7 from HDD to SSD using the tools built into Windows.

• If you are interested in the article, visit where they are collected all publications on our site on the very interesting topic of transferring operating systems from one storage device to another.

The easiest and surprisingly fast waytransfer Windows 7 from HDD to SSDusing the program Paragon Migrate OS to SSD , with the help of this program I suggest that you today transfer the system to an SSD.

The program is paid, it costs a fortune 390 rubles. If you have Windows 8, then only the latest version of the Paragon Migrate OS to SSD 3.0 program is suitable for migration.

Website http://www.paragon.ru/home/migrate-OS-to-SSD

Important Note: If you have Paragon Home Expert 12 installed, then the Paragon Migrate OS to SSD utility is included in the package of this program.

If you want to transfer Windows 7 from HDD to SSD using Paragon Home Expert 12, go to the end of this article, there are short instructions there.

After transferring the operating system from the HDD to the SSD, you need to check the correct alignment of the disk partitions relative to the SSD architecture. Aligned partitions ensure maximum performance, speed and longevity of your SSD, trust me, this is very important. We will check the correctness of partition alignment using the free utility AS SSD Benchmark.

How to migrate Windows 7 from HDD to SSD using Paragon Migrate OS to SSD program

So, pay attention to the Disk Management window of my computer, there is a 250 GB hard drive, divided into two partitions, on one of them - drive (C:) there is a Windows 7 operating system, we will transfer it to a 120 GB SSD solid state drive, representing unallocated space.

Launch the Paragon Migrate OS to SSD program. Next.

The program automatically found my SSD drive and is ready to transfer the operating system. Pay attention to the item “Use all available space for the partition with OS”, be sure to check the box here and all the space on the solid-state drive will be allocated to create one new disk (C:) with the transferred Windows. After all, solid-state drives are used mainly only for installing the operating system.
If you click on “Please select what folders should be copied”, then you can select the folders you need to copy. I need the whole Windows, so I'll leave everything as is.

Click on the Copy button.

A suspiciously short migration process occurs without any reboots.

I couldn’t help but remember the good old Acronis True Image, where you had to create an image of the operating system, then deploy it to an SSD, although Acronis works flawlessly, it takes several times longer.

While we were talking about Acronis, the Paragon Migrate OS to SSD program had already transferred our Windows 7 to an SSD. The final window in which we are offered to boot from the SSD. Let's reboot.

Now you need to enter the BIOS and set it to boot from the SSD. Select Boot Menu (F8).

Using the arrows on the keyboard, select our solid-state drive and press Enter. The computer is booting from the SSD.

Note: What I like about UEFI BIOS is that it has its own bootloader, which accommodates all existing bootloaders and will never get confused in them. The UEFI BIOS remembers the last operating system you loaded and will load it exactly next time. Switching between operating systems (no matter how many of them you have installed) is simple, fast and error-free.

If you have a regular BIOS, then the transfer should also occur without problems. The only thing you need to do is to find in it the parameter responsible for the primacy of Hard Disk Drives (AMI BIOS) or Hard Disk Boot Priority (AWARD BIOS) and set your SSD as the first device. How to find these parameters can be found in.

I think you managed it and booted from the SSD into the transferred system. We go to Disk Management and see this picture - the system has been transferred.

And then restore them in a clean installation of Windows. However, I'm sure there will be people who will want to move a carefully configured system from one drive to another. Initially, I did not plan this post, but having received another question by mail, I decided to highlight this simple process on the blog.

There are special programs for disk cloning (for example, Acronis or Paragon). In them, the marketing focus is often on transferring the system from HDD to SSD, as in the title of this guide :) However, you can solve this problem using free Microsoft tools, without unpleasant surprises, and my instructions apply to any disk types.

I want to emphasize that this guide describes the process of cloning a system and moving it to another drive within the same PC. Transferring the system to another PC (even with the same hardware configuration) is only supported for images generalized using the sysprep utility. Formally, Microsoft does not support cloning without sysprep at all (even with third-party software). In my proposed method, support is hampered by several technical limitations, but I do not consider them significant for home PCs.

Today on the program

You will need...

First, let's define the terminology. Where you see the phrases “installation disk”, “Windows PE disk”, “recovery disk”, you can equally well use either an optical disk (CD/DVD) or a removable USB disk (flash drive).

So, you need:

1. Environment in any form. It could be:

• Windows installation disk
• recovery environment on the recovery disk that matches your operating system (see instructions for Windows 7 or Windows 8 and later)
• Windows PE 3.1 or 4.0 disk you created

Why imagex and where to get the utility

With the release of Windows 8, the imagex utility has been deprecated, and Microsoft now recommends using DISM. However, imagex works and is still supported, while DISM requires you to create a bootable Windows PE disk with the .NET Framework and PowerShell, which complicates the process.

If you prefer a GUI, there's Gimagex, but I try not to add extraneous factors to the OS deployment process. The imagex utility can be downloaded as part of the ADK by installing deployment tools only about 50MB (thanks, Semyon Galkin). Once installed, you will find imagex in Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits.

There is an alternative and very interesting way - you can receive a link to the utility by mail from Microsoft by requesting it from the knowledge base article KB2525084.

Capture the system partition into a WIM image

Boot into Windows PE and run all the commands in its console. To reduce image size, page and hibernation files, as well as the Recycle Bin and shadow copies are automatically excluded during capture. If you want to exclude some other folders or files, create an imagex configuration file. You will definitely need it if you are using Windows Subsystem for Linux ( WSL) in Windows 10 - you need to add the %LOCALAPPDATA%\lxss folder to the exceptions (see also KB3179598).

Command line option /compress maximum You can slightly reduce the size of the image. I don’t use it because maximum compression delays the process, and I have no problems with free space to save the file.

At the end of the procedure, turn off the PC and connect the SSD in place of the HDD. The hard drive can be connected to a different connector.

Preparing the SSD for applying the image

The task comes down to creating a new partition in Windows PE. For SSDs, proper biasing is important to avoid performance degradation and shortened drive life. The installer automatically sets the offset to 1024KB, which is easy to verify. When creating partitions on a blank disk using the diskpart utility, the same thing happens, but in my commands the offset is specified explicitly to avoid accidents.

Here is a minimum set of partitions that is suitable for all supported Windows operating systems (a Windows RE partition is not created). Run the following commands sequentially in the Windows PE console. They imply that one main partition will be created on the SSD, occupying the entire disk.

Diskpart:: display a list of disks list disk:: select a disk (instead of N, specify the SSD letter) sel disk N:: clear the disk of partitions (erases all data) clean:: convert the disk to MBR convert mbr:: create a primary partition with an offset of 1024KB create partition primary align=1024:: make the partition active (nbh for booting from it) active:: format in NTFS, set the disk label format fs=NTFS label="Windows" quick:: assign a letter to the partition assign letter=W exit

Now you are ready to apply the saved image to the SSD.

Applying an image to an SSD

This operation is performed in Windows PE with one command:

Imagex /apply E:\migrate.wim 1 W:

• E:\migrate.wim— path to the saved image
• 1 – the index of the single image in the WIM file you created
• W– SSD drive letter in Windows PE, assigned a little earlier in diskpart

Your letters may be different, of course.

Setting up booting into a cloned system

MBR partitioning

Utility bootrec available in Windows PE when booted from the installation disk, but it may not be included in the built you Windows PE disk.

Bootrec /rebuildbcd

This command looks for installed Windows on all drives (equivalent to the /scanos parameter) and offers to add systems that are not there to the BCD. Pressing Y adds the OS to the boot store, and N rejects the offer.

It also makes sense to immediately run two more commands:

Bootrec /fixmbr bootrec /fixboot

GPT partitioning

In the GPT partition, the files necessary to boot the system are copied to the EFI (FAT32) partition with one command:

Bcdboot W:\Windows

Here W is the drive letter to which you transferred the OS.

This completes the transfer process. After restarting your PC, you will see the system that you transferred to the SSD in the boot manager list.

What to do if both drives were connected when creating the image

I warned above that it is better not to do this. In this case, the drive letters in the cloned system are mixed up, although this can be easily corrected in the registry (thanks to reader Artem for the addition). This is the picture observed after loading into the cloned OS. The system is booted from drive D, and profiles and programs are launched from drive C.

To fix this you need rename drive letters in the registry. In fact, you need to swap the letters in the names of the registry parameters corresponding to the problem drives (you don’t need to touch the values).

In this example, you must first change \DosDevices\C: V \DosDevices\K:, after which the name will be freed for renaming drive D.

Actions after cloning

Take a Windows Performance Assessment

Running an assessment will tell the system that it is installed on an SSD. As a result, Windows will apply the appropriate settings - from sending TRIM commands to disabling SSD defragmentation (a must for Windows 8 owners).

Set up a download manager

I cannot provide all possible multiboot configurations, but in any case, at the end of the process, you will have two systems with the same names (old and new) displayed in your boot manager. I will give some examples of commands that may be useful to you.

The command displays information about the systems displayed on the boot manager screen bcdedit. In its results, the system identifier (ID) is indicated by the parameter identifier. The system you are currently booted into always has an ID (current).

These examples assume that the commands are executed in new system.

Renaming a New System Entry

Bcdedit /set (current) description “My New Windows”

Bcdedit /default (current)

Deleting an old system entry

Bcdedit /delete ID

If you are unable to boot into the cloned system or need help setting up the boot manager, please write here following the thread rules.

Discussion and poll

From previous surveys, I know that most readers have already acquired an SSD. This survey will show you how you approached the issue of installing the system on a brand new drive.

If you transferred the system, write in the comments what software you used for this. I know some of you have already talked about this in other posts. But then it was off-topic, but now this will help other readers looking for information on the topic!

They have already reached attractive volumes and no less attractive prices, so more and more computer and laptop users are buying them as an additional or main system drive. And the only thing left to do is to transfer the existing Windows operating system from the old HDD to a new one, which will allow the system to boot faster and generally make your laptop and computer noticeably more productive.
Migrating a Windows operating system from a hard drive to a computer has now become a simple, fast, and completely free process. And even if you didn’t receive an operating system transfer utility with your new SSD, you can transfer Windows using the free version of the program.

To make the OS transfer process even simpler and clearer, we have prepared detailed step-by-step instructions.

The process of transferring Windows to a new one occurs in 4 stages:

1. Connect the SSD to your computer, turn on your computer, and run the trial version of Hard Disk Manager 12 Professional. Select from main menu Wizards > OS Migration. After that click Further to continue working. Please note that all data on the disk you are migrating to will be lost after the operation is completed. Before migrating, save them to another drive.

2. The wizard will search for the system partition that contains supported Windows operating systems. If more than one OS is found, you can specify the system to migrate. The OS Migration Wizard will automatically select one or two disk partitions and ask you to specify the disk to migrate to.

3. Clicking OK, you will see a warning that everything is ready to start the OS transfer operation. If you are going to use the SSD only for Windows OS, check the appropriate box to have the Wizard use the entire disk to place the partition. In order for the computer to boot from after the transfer is complete, you need to check this option. At the same time, the “donor” HDD ceases to be bootable.

4. Click Copy to start the migration process. After the migration is complete, first check that the Windows OS starts from the target SSD drive. If yes, remove the Windows OS partition from the original drive, then repartition it as you wish.

Using the free version of the Hard Disk Manager 12 Professional utility allows you to create a bootable one and transfer your Windows operating system to it as conveniently and quickly as possible. If you purchase the full version of the program, you will have access to much more features, but in our case, the free version is more than enough to migrate Windows.