"I recently purchased a notebook that already had genuine Windows 10 installed." Unfortunately, it only has a SATA 1TB HDD and can be slow at times. As a result, I'd like to upgrade to an SSD drive. What about my original windows? Will I be able to move this genuine Windows 10 installation from my old hard drive to a new SSD? Furthermore, when I bought my laptop, I was not given a Windows installation disk... Please help me..."
If you use the new SSD on the same computer and it boots successfully with the appropriate priority, you can easily migrate Windows 10 from HDD to new SSD. If you don't have an installation disc, it will still work. Continue reading to learn more about the simplest way to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive!
Read Also: How To Solve Windows Cannot Be Installed On This Disk Error
What is the easiest way to move Windows 10 to another drive?
In fact, the most common method is to clean install a Windows system using an installation disc, but this will uninstall preinstalled programs and delete personal files. As a result, in order to avoid data loss, many users abandon this method in favor of a safer one.
Given the importance of data security, I strongly advise you to clone your Windows 10 hard drive to a new one using free disk clone software. If you want to clone a hard drive to an SSD using the same computer, AOMEI Backupper Standard is a good option. It will make an exact copy of your original drive, ensuring that no data is lost. You can also take advantage of the following benefits:
Clone any type of HDD or SSD: This software allows you to clone any brand of hard drive, whether HDD or SSD, and it supports hard drives with various interfaces, such as SATA, NVMe, PCIe, and so on. If you require higher performance, it is recommended that you use NVMe as a boot drive.
Clone a hard drive's only used sectors: By default, this software employs an intelligent clone method to clone a hard drive's only used sectors. At the same time, it will bypass bad and empty sectors. As a result, you can easily clone a larger drive to a smaller drive and ensure a secure boot, even if it contains bad sectors.
Clone HDD to SSD and align it: If you clone Windows hard drive to new SSD, you need to align it to improve the disk performance, otherwise you may find SSD low after cloning.
Consider watching this Video on How to Upgrade Laptop Hard Drive To SSD Without Reinstalling Windows (Keep All Files & Apps)
Read Also: 4 Ways To Bypass Windows 10 Password When Locked Out
How to move Windows 10 to another hard drive easily
Because disk cloning software is not included with Windows, you must download and install it on your computer. Connect your new hard drive (HDD or SSD) to your computer. Please ensure that it is visible in Windows Explorer.
- Launch the disk cloning software AOMEI Backupper Standard and navigate to Clone -> Disk Clone.
- As the source disk, select the hard drive that is currently in use by Windows 10. Then click Next.
- Select the newly connected hard drive as the destination disk. When you press the Next button, you'll be notified that all data on the destination disk will be deleted. Please create a backup of any critical files ahead of time.
- If the new hard drive is an SSD, select SSD Alignment to improve the reading and writing speeds of the SSD disk. Then, click Start Clone to transfer Windows 10 to the new drive.
- Restart your computer to allow the new drive to boot. If not, go to BIOS and set it as the first boot option, then save and reboot.
Tips:
- Don't format the old HDD until you can boot from the new one.
- If the new hard drive is smaller, you can also choose to transfer the operating system to it. Please keep in mind that this feature is only available in the professional version of AOMEI Backupper.
- Aside from cloning, it can move Windows 10 to a new hard drive using its backup and restore method, which is especially useful when moving a hard drive to a new computer with dissimilar hardware.
Read Also: How To Update And Fix Drivers In Windows?
Conclusion on How to Move Windows 10 to another Hard Drive
This article will demonstrate how to migrate Windows 10 to a new hard drive by cloning one hard drive to another using the disk clone feature, which retains all data on the disk, including not only the operating system but also programs and personal data. As a result, you will not experience data loss following cloning.