Best Hard Drive Transfer Software: Move OS and Files Easily

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Quick Navigation:

• The case: need hard drive migration software
• What makes the best hard drive transfer tool?
• How to transfer data from an HDD to an SSD step by step
• Wrapping things up

The case: need hard drive migration software

Here are three common situations where you might need to transfer data between different hard drives:

● Upgrade a hard drive by replacing it with a solid-state drive (SSD) or cloning an existing SSD to a larger one, allowing for increased storage capacity and improved performance.
● Replace a faulty hard drive and retrieve data.
● You can use a USB external hard drive to transfer data from your old computer to the new one. Simply connect the external hard drive to both computers, and use the "File Explorer" or "My Computer" feature to copy files from the old computer to the external hard drive, and then from the external hard drive to the new computer.

To ensure a smooth and error-free data transfer process, you'll need reliable hard drive transfer software. This software will make it easy to transfer your data from one storage device to another, minimizing the risk of data loss or corruption.

What makes the best hard drive transfer tool?

When searching for disk cloning software for Windows 11/10/8/7, consider the following factors to choose the best tool for your needs. Various options are available online, but it's essential to take into account the specific requirements of your situation, such as the type of cloning you need (e.g., full disk, partition, or sector-by-sector), the size and complexity of your system, and any additional features you may require (e.

1. Capable of cloning disks of different types.

Different types of disks may be involved in a cloning process, such as cloning an MBR disk to a GPT disk or vice versa. Some hard drive transfer tools require converting the source and destination disks to the same type before cloning, which can be time-consuming. However, a tool that can clone disks without conversion can save a lot of effort.

2. Able to clone hard drives in different sizes.

Cloning to a larger drive can provide more storage space, but if the destination drive's partitions aren't resized, there will be unallocated space left that can't be used. To utilize the full capacity of the new drive, a tool that allows partition editing during the cloning process is necessary.

Some users also copy to a smaller drive. In this case, the software needs to clone only used sectors on the source drive.

3. Built-in SSD alignment feature.

When upgrading to an SSD, one key difference to consider is the 4K alignment, which significantly improves reading and writing times compared to traditional HDDs. To take full advantage of this, a disk cloning software that can make the SSD 4K-aligned during the cloning process is necessary.

Qiling Disk Master Professional supports all Windows PC operating systems, including Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP, and also has a erver edition for Windows Servers.server edition for Windows Servers.

Want to know how to use Qiling Disk Master for hard drive migration? To do this, you can download hard drive cloning software and follow a stepwise guide.

• Free Download
• Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7, 100% Secure

How to transfer data from an HDD to an SSD step by step

Before you start, you should backup files on the destination drive, because the drive will be overwritten during the cloning process. Then, follow the instructions below to transfer everything (files, programs and OS) from the old hard drive to an SSD.

Step 1. Connect the target SSD to your computer and ensure it is detected by the system.

Step 2. To transfer data from an old HDD to a new SSD, install and run Qiling Disk Master, then click on the "Clone" option and select "Disk Clone" from the menu.

Note: If you want to migrate OS only to the destination SSD, you can use the System Clone feature.

Step 3. Select the current system disk as the source disk and click "Next".

Step 4. Connect your destination SSD to your PC, and then select it as the target drive in the software you're using to clone your hard drive. Click "Next" to proceed with the cloning process.

Step 5. To improve the performance of the target SSD, tick the "SSD Alignment" option, confirm the operation, and then click "Proceed".

>> Edit Partitions: Once the cloning process is complete, you can resize the partitions on the destination SSD to suit your needs, allowing you to optimize the storage space as desired.
>> Sector by sector clone: This feature allows you to clone every sector on the source disk, including unused ones, making the "Edit Partitions" option unusable.

After the cloning process is finished, you can either change the boot order in BIOS or replace the current drive with the target SSD to boot from the target drive.

Wrapping things up

If you're looking for prime hard drive transfer software in Windows, consider Qiling Disk Master, which meets all your disk clone needs, and also serves as a great Windows backup utility, allowing you to create disk or system image as needed.

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