I've a Windows 7 / Linux dual boot on a 512GB SSD (such an awkward size). The SSD was an upgrade from my HP Probook 4720's 500GB HD. When doing the upgrade I was cloning from a smaller drive to a larger drive so there was no issues. Also, I only set up the dual boot after changing hard drives.
I'm now looking to backup the 512GB SSD to a 500GB HD but am having a nightmare. The partitions on the SSD only total 477GB as per this image:
I've been trying to clone it using clonezilla. I thought a clone would just copy the existing partitions but it appears it also copies everything outside these partitions. My first attempt last night failed immediatley saying the target disk was too small. I then changed a few settings (think it was apportion based on target size) and the clone began but after 2 hours it said it failed to complete as it ran out of room.
I'm now looking into copying partition by partition which I think means I'll have to create the partitions on the external drive manually first? Is this the way to do it or is there an easier method?