So here's my situation: I have a 1TB HDD that is starting to make noises (fail) so I bought a new 2TB HDD to put my old information on. But here is my question: If I were to make a System Image on the new HDD, can I format that System Image onto the same HDD? And after that would I be able to reformat that backup partition to extend my new windows 7 partition? Thanks in advance, guys.
1 Answer
I don't really understand what "format that system image onto the same HDD" means, but in general, a good technique to migrate to a new drive is:
- Grab EASEUS Partition Master.
- Connect your new drive to the computer in addition to your current drive.
- In Partition Master, select your current disk, then choose "copy", and select the new disk as the destination.
- In Partition Master, resize your data partition on your new disk to take up the maximum amount of space.
- Apply the changes. You may be asked to reboot. If so, Partition Master will run on boot and perform the operations. For 1-2TB of data, this could take a while, you may want to start it overnight.
When the operation is complete you will now have your new drive as an identical copy of your old one, but with the partition size increased to take advantage of the added space. You can now remove your old drive, replace it with your new drive, and boot like nothing changed.
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Ok. Thanks, man. That's basically exactly the type of answer I was looking for. A simple answer with a simple solution. Thanks again.– JackJun 28, 2014 at 22:24
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@Jack No problem. By the way, if you intend to throw away your old drive, I recommend also using Partition Master to wipe the old drive with zeros (after you've verified your new one is working correctly) before you throw it away. If you're super paranoid, or just impatient, you can also disassemble it and destroy the discs.– Jason CJun 28, 2014 at 22:28