5 Best Steps To Migrate Windows 10 To A New Hard Drive

Most Windows users find migrating their operating system to another drive a complex operation. With the help of expert Windows 10 migration solutions, migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive, whether it’s an HDD or SSD, maybe quick and straightforward for all levels of Windows users.

5 Easy Steps To Migrate Windows 10 To A New Hard Drive

Migrating a hard drive has several advantages, making it a simple method to get the most out of your storage options. It allows you to make a one-to-one clone of your hard drive, which comes in handy for backup and migrate windows data.

It’s critical to familiarise yourself with the process before attempting to “migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.” I’ll assist you in learning some technical terms and understanding how to clone a hard drive correctly.

What Are The Benefits Of Cloning OS Hard Drive?

You might want to clone your hard disk for a variety of reasons. You may want to increase your hard disk to a larger capacity, from 500GB to 2TB. Alternatively, you might want to consider upgrading your PC’s performance by switching from a standard hard-disk drive (HDD) to a solid-state drive (SSD).

Upgrading Hard Drive

Migrating your hard disk to a new one is a wise decision that will allow you to expand the storage of your PC without losing any of your existing contents. You could make a backup drive out of your original hard drive. 

Then you may make your new drive your primary storage device. This allows you to backup specific cloned files on your original hard drive, such as your Windows operating system. This is useful if you have any problems installing your new hard disk.

Boost Computer’s Performance

PC performance is crucial for everyone, but it’s essential for gamers, video editors, engineers, and other creative professionals who push their machines to the limit.

If speed and efficiency are essential, an SSD is a good choice. Alternatively, you could replace your SSD with one that has a larger storage capacity. Cloning the original hard drive to the new one is a terrific approach to save all of your data in any event.

When a low disk space warning appears on a PC’s main hard drive, it causes it to slow down. You won’t achieve your storage capacity if you clone that drive to one with a larger capacity.

If you’re a gamer, this means you won’t experience lag during a tense online match. This also helps video editors avoid crashes or slowdowns when rendering 4K video or other high-quality data. Consider “migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive” to enhance performance.

What do You require To Move Or Migrate Windows 10 OS To A New Hard Drive?

Cable for connecting two devices.

You can generally clone your new hard drive by installing it alongside your old hard drive in the same machine if you have a desktop computer. You’ll need a SATA-to-USB cable, which will allow you to connect a hard disk to your laptop via USB.

If you wish to use a SATA-to-USB cable to upgrade a mechanical 3.5′′ hard drive with spinning platters, you’ll need an external power source.

Back up your data.

Even if you’re transferring your drive, we recommend making a backup before beginning any large-scale data-writing operations like this one. Before continuing, read our guide on backing up your computer and ensure you have a complete backup of your vital files.

System repair CD for Windows.

You’ll be able to fix it in a matter of minutes by inserting the Windows repair disk.

Ready To migrate windows OS To New Hard Drive (C Drive)

1. Backup Your Data Files

To migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive, you should back up your essential files, regardless of whether or not you generate a new system image. While this operation should not affect your original drive or files, you may lose data if you unintentionally overwrite your original disk. 

You should perform an independent backup of files using portable media or online cloud storage to ensure that data is safe.

Follow these steps to build a full backup of Windows 10 using the system image tool before you migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

  • Open the Settings menu. Select Update & Security from the drop-down menu. Go to Backup and choose it.
Update & Security
  • Click the “Go to Backup and Restore (Windows 7)” option under the “Looking for an older backup?” column.
Looking for an older backup?
  • From the left pane, select the Create a system image option. Choose the option “On a hard disk.”
Create a system image option
  • Select the location to Migrate Windows 10 complete backup from the “On a hard disk” drop-down option.
looking for backup
  • Then press the Next button. To begin the backup, press the Start button.
  • Close the window with a click.
  • Proceed with next steps to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

2. Prepare New Hard Drive HDD/SSD For Migration

You must connect or install a new hard drive before migrating to Windows 10. If the destination disk has partitions and data, you should first back up your disk/partition and data to a different device, then erase all partitions and proceed.

  • Prepare a new hard disk drive (HDD) or solid-state drive (SSD) as well as a SATA cable.
  • The new hard drive/SSD must have more space than the system C drive on the source disk.
  • Connect the new SSD/HDD to the computer and set up the disk.
  • SATA and power cables connect the SSD/HDD to your PC. In Disk Management, locate the new disk and right-click it. 
  • Select “Initialise Disk” > GPT or MBR as the disk type.
Initialise Disk" > GPT or MBR as the disk type.

Migrate Windows 10 To HDD/SSD With Windows System Image Tool

  1. Create Windows 10 System Image (External Hard Drive)
  2. Create Windows Media Creation Tool
  3. Migrate Windows 10 System Image To Another New Disk
  4. Resize System Partition Using A System Image
  5. Restore Windows 10 System Image to Another New Disk

1. Create Windows 10 System Image (External Hard Drive)

The most reasonable way to migrate Windows 10 to a hard drive that is the same size or more significant than the original is to use Windows’ System Backup Tool. This will allow you to replicate your old drive to your new one precisely.

You’ll need to produce a fresh system image for your Windows installation. To do so, right-click the Start menu and pick Settings from the menu that appears.

  • Select Update & Security > Backup from the Settings menu.
  • Pick the Go to Backup and Restore (Windows 7) selection from the Backup menus. Looking for an older backup? Category.
  • Select the Create a system image option from the left-hand menu in the older Control Panel window.
Create a system image option
  • Unless you plan to put your system image on a network location, make sure to attach an external drive at this step.
  • A new Create a system image menu will appear, and it will begin searching for an appropriate external disk or network location to save the system image.
  • Select this option from the on a hard disk drop-down menu if you’re using a portable hard drive. Choose On a network location if you’re using a network storage location.
  • The partitions on your hard drive that will be copied to the new system image will be confirmed by Windows. To begin, select Start backup.
  • Allow the process of creating the system image to complete. Windows will request you if you want to make a new system repair disk when you’ve finished.
  • It might be a fine idea to do this, especially if you end up corrupting your MBR or GPT boot data. To advance, you must select either Yes or No.
  • After building it, you’re ready to use the new system image on your new drive.
  • Connect the substitute hard disk to the computer and remove the old one.
  • You might simply format your existing hard drive and repurpose it as a secondary storage device.
  • Proceed with next steps to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

2. Create Windows Media Creation Tool

Another feature of the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool is that it can assist you in creating installation media for a different computer or downloading an ISO file. When you choose Windows 10, you can choose from all Windows 10 editions. After that, you can install Windows 10 using a bootable USB device or DVD.

Create Windows 10 installation media and use it to install a new copy of Windows 10, reinstall Windows 10, or perform a clean installation before you migrate Windows.

  • A computer with an active Internet connection.
  • A blank USB flash drive or DVD with at least 8 GB of storage space is required.
  • If you’ve never installed Windows 10 before or wish to do a fresh install, you’ll need a product key.
  • Proceed with next steps to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

Procedure To Create Windows Media

  • Download the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool and follow the instructions. After that, select the second option. Next, create installation media for a different PC.
 Windows 10 Media Creation Tool
  • Select the Language, Windows Edition, and Architecture for creating the installation media that you want to utilize. After you’ve made your choice, click Next to proceed.
Language, Windows Edition, and Architecture for creating the installation media
  • You can also select Use recommended options, which will automatically select the language, edition, and appropriate architecture for the PC you are currently using.
Language, Windows Edition, and Architecture for creating the installation media
  • Select the type of media storage device you’d like to use. I’ll use a USB flash drive. Select USB flash disk and then click Next.
  • Click Next after selecting the USB disk you want to use to create Windows 10 installation disks.
selecting the USB disk you want to use to create Windows
  • Then, the Microsoft Media Creation Tool begins downloading the most recent Windows 10 installation files on your computer or device.
  • When the download is complete, creating Windows 10 media will begin.
  • When it’s finished, click Finish, and you’ll be able to load up your computer and install Windows 10 using that drive.
choose an ISO file
  • If the machine you wish to install Windows 10 has a DVD player, you can also choose an ISO file and then burn it on a DVD.
  • Proceed with next steps to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

3. Migrate Windows 10 System Image To Another New Disk

You can use the image to generate a complete clone of your Windows installation on a new hard disk if you have a fresh system image of your existing drive ready.

  • Use a portable USB memory stick or DVD to insert your Windows installation media.
  • After you’ve inserted the disk, ensure your BIOS or UEFI settings prioritize it over all other drives.
  • Select Next, then Repair your computer in the bottom left corner after the Windows installation menu opens.
  • Select Troubleshoot > System Image Recovery from the Advanced Options menu.
  • Windows will automatically detect the system image on the external hard drive in the “Reimage computer” menu. If it doesn’t, choose to Select a system image to locate it manually.
  • Otherwise, select Next to continue and leave the option selected from the latest available system image (recommended).
  • Utilizing the new system image, your new hard disk will be formatted with the same partition as the previous drive.
  • Select Exclude disks and uncheck any partitions you want to exclude initially. Otherwise, choose Next to proceed.
  • To begin the disk-imaging procedure, select Finish > Yes. This will take some time.
  • To restart your computer, select Restart Now. At this time, you can remove the Windows installation disk or disk.
  • To ensure that the new drive is picked as the initial boot disk, you must adjust your BIOS/UEFI settings.
  • You won’t require to do anything else at this point if you’ve copied your files to a new drive of the same size; Windows will boot normally.
  • However, if you’ve cloned your drive to a larger drive, you may need to take additional steps to make use of the extra space.
  • Proceed with next steps to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

4. Resize System Partition Using A System Image

A system image completely clones your disk, replicating all available partitions on the previous drive to their original proportions. You have to “migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

To use all of the available space on the new drive, you’ll need to resize the system partition (C:).

  • Sign in to Windows on your new hard disk. Select Disk Management from the Start menu by right-clicking it.
Disk Management
  • Right-click your system partition (C:) in the Disk Management menu and select Extend Volume.
Extend Volume.
  • Select Next from the Extend Volume Wizard menu, then makes sure the quantity of extra space is set in the Select the amount of space in MB box. To continue, select Next.
  • After you’ve double-checked that the information is correct, click Finish to finish the procedure.
  • Your system partition will be enlarged to incorporate the additional space on your disk after a few moments, ensuring that all available drive space is utilized.
  • Proceed with next steps to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive.

5. Restore Windows 10 System Image to Another New Disk

  • After connecting both the Windows 10 installation media and the Windows image backup drive, restart your computer.
  • To enter BIOS, press F1/F2/Del and select the installation media as the boot disk.
  • Restart your machine using the Windows Installation Media, then select “Repair your computer” from the Install Now dialogue.
  • Select “System Image Recovery” from the Advanced settings, then “Troubleshoot.”
troubleshoot
  • Select your Windows 10 system image disk by checking “Select a system image.” To proceed, click “Next.”
System Image Recovery
  • To exclude the existing system disk, click “Exclude disks”, leaving only the new HDD/SSD. To confirm, click “OK.”
 click "Next," and then wait for it to complete
  • To begin the restoration procedure, click “Next,” and then wait for it to complete.
finish the process
  • Windows 10 will restart and boot up once the restoration of the Windows 10 image to the new disk is complete.

Conclusion

Whether you want to update your hard drive from an HDD to an SSD or simply need extra storage capacity, cloning your hard drive is the most efficient way to do so. Without reinstalling the operating system or applications, you may quickly migrate Windows 10/8/7 to a new SSD or HDD. Follow all the methods illustrative above to “migrate windows 10 to a new hard drive” in 5 steps.

FAQs

Can I Migrate Windows 10 To A New Hard Drive?

Yes, the cloned drive may be inserted into the computer, and it will start automatically. Because Windows 10 has excellent hardware identification, you may attach it to another computer and boot from it. However, you will very certainly need to reactivate it with the product key. You will not be able to transfer an OEM license.

Can I Migrate Windows User Folder To Another Drive?

Right-click the folder you wish to move and choose Properties from the drop-down menu. Navigate to the Location tab. Select the Move option. Choose the corresponding folder in the new location.

Can I Migrate Windows To Another Drive?

To migrate Windows to more extensive or equivalent drives, create a new system image. The best method to migrate Windows 10 to a hard drive that is the same size or more significant than the original is to use Windows’ native system imaging tool. This will allow you to replicate your old drive to your new one precisely.

Is it Secure to move Program Files to D drive?

All system drive actions are dangerous; for example, a faulty registry can cause your computer to crash. Because shifting program files from C to D or from SSD to HDD isn’t just a “copy and paste” problem, you’ll need to be extra cautious.