SSD Install - OS Migration

palazzio

I am about to install an SSD in my win 10 PC.

I intend to keep the existing HD and use the SSD for the OS and Boot

Any recommendations for free software to migrate only the OS / Boot software.

Any pitfalls I should avoid would also be appreciated !!!

Thanks

Undervalued

I was recommended EaseUS ToDo. The free version is adequate for this purpose.

There is an article about doing it here

http://www.itpro.co.uk/operating-systems/26152/how-to-move-windows-10-from-your-old-hard-drive-to-ssd

One point not made very clear in the article is that the new disk needs to be significantly bigger than the amount of data you are cloning to allow the process to complete.

So, if you have something like, say, 200GB on a 250 GB drive and try to clone that to a new 250GB drive it may not manage it. You can usually get round this by manually copying some of the data elsewhere then deleting it from the original before cloning. Once the clone is complete you can then copy the saved data to the new drive.

Defragging the original drive helps to reduce this issue but does not eliminate it completely.

On a Mac it is so much easier and can be done with the built in Disk Utility!

Heedtheadvice

Just a few thoughts:
I recently did similar for a new install of win 10 but to take advantage of the speed offered by the ssd, put boot, all os system and programs on the ssd. If you have the space why not use to best advantage?

It was for an skhynix and they have software downloadable for free based upon macrium software procedures - that is well respected- and did it all in one go except for selecting it as a new boot device in the boot setup. So very straightforward. Check you manufacturer's web site or use same?

Now if you have data in some folders that you do not want to put on the ssd (mine was nearly clean install so not an issue) create a new partition on your hard drive and move it all over to "hide" the data could be one solution. You might need to go into win setup to set data folder locations to your new partition.
(I feel it is a good idea to keep progs and data separate anyway to make management such as this easier anyway)

In case of any problems take backups/images first and macrium reflect is good for this too and even set a restore point as well. All to reduce risks should things go wrong, but for me they did not. Best also to do a full virus check etc. prior to migration to prevent copying over any problems.

Afterwards it is also a good idea provided you have enough space on your ssd to use it for temp files and any other intensive disk operations to utilise the advantages to the full.

rsvtoddy

I used Macrium Reflex to clone a couple of laptops - works well and is free.

HTH

seatbeltnoob

If you have the capacity to do it, just clone the drive and put it in. My samsung came with a migration tool that resized partition blocks to make them optimal for SSD.

If the hard drive has too much data and cannot squeeze data onto the SSD then you should uninstall any unnecessarty apps, delete downloads, movies etc and then migrate the data.

If you cannot do a data delete then install the windows onto SSD clean and begin to reinstall stuff. Make sure the mechanical drive in not plugged in during clean install as it might put the boot sector on the mechanical drive and cause problems later on**. After you have installed Windows on the SSD, then plug in your old drive and migrate your documents onto the SSD.

**I have found that windows would put the boot instructions on a secondary slave drive. Then you always need to have the slave drive boot info otherwise the OS doesn't load.

It's too time consuming to try and selectivtly migrate certain aspects from the mehcanical drive even if there was a way to do it I would imagine something would break in the registery on configurations which would ruin how the software works requiring a reinstall anyway.