Skip to main content

How to clone a hard drive or SSD for free

WladimarBulgar/GettyImages

Cloning your hard drive or SSD is a straightforward way to bring all your data, apps, and settings over to a new drive. That lets you get all the benefits of a new drive, like faster performance, greater capacity, and more advanced features, without having to install everything from scratch. And with the right tool, you don't even need to pay anything.

Here's how to clone your hard drive, for free.

Recommended Videos

Difficulty

Moderate

Duration

1 hour

What You Need

  • A PC with at least two drives

Before you begin

This guide will assume you have a drive you're cloning from (a source drive) and a drive you're cloning to (the destination drive), and that both are installed and ready for use. If they aren't, check out our guides on how to buy an SSD, and how to build a PC -- or install an SSD in your laptop.

Before you get started, just double check that there isn't any data on the destination drive. If there is, and it's important, make sure you back it up, as that drive will be completely wiped as part of the cloning process.

How clone a hard drive

There are a number of great disk cloning applications out there, but to make this guide as widely useful as possible, we'll be using the free version of Disk Genius. There are paid-for versions which you can get for a one-off fee and add additional features, but they aren't necessary to clone a hard drive.

Step 1: Download DiskGenius from the official website, and install it like you would any other application. Take note of its specific instructions about where to install the app -- IE. Not on the destination drive.

Step 2: Launch DiskGenius. It'll open its main partition view, breaking down each of your drives into their respective partitions, and giving you lots of information about your various capacities and installations.

Make sure that both your source drive and destination drive are listed. Then, when ready, select Tools from the top-bar menu, followed by Clone Disk.

Disk Genius Free.
DigitalTrends

Step 3: In the pop-up window, select the source disk and select OK.

Selecting the source disk in Disk Genius.
DigitalTrends

Step 4: Select the destination drive where you want to copy the data, then select OK. Double check you're selecting the right drive, too, as the last thing you want to do is clone your drive over the top of important existing data.

If you select a drive with a bootable Windows installation, it will suggest you do a system migration, instead. If that's applicable to you, follow the on-screen instructions for that. The process is very similar to cloning, but with just a couple of extra, straightforward steps.

Selecting destination drive in Disk Genius.
DigitalTrends

Step 5: On the final screen, double check that the selected drives are the right ones, then tell it what to copy. Copying all files will be available whatever the drive sizes, but if you're cloning onto a larger destination drive, you can also copy over the sectors and partition layout.

If you're happy, select Start.

Step 6: Confirm you're happy to proceed, and select OK.

Step 7: Select how you want the cloning to take place. The first option, is "Hot migration," where it clones the drive while it's active. If you'd rather it closed everything down first, and makes a partition inaccessible during the cloning process to guarantee the sanctity of the data, select Lock and Execute.

Step 8: Wait for the cloning process to finish. Depending on the size and speed of your drives, this can take some time.

Jon Martindale
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Jon Martindale is a freelance evergreen writer and occasional section coordinator, covering how to guides, best-of lists, and…
How to clean a laptop keyboard without damaging the keys
how to clean a laptop keyboard

After a few months of use, oils, dust, drink drips, and food crumbs can build up in even the keyboards of our best laptops. No one is immune to this, not even tech experts like us. But there are ways to get your laptop clean again.

We’ve laid out the best ways to clean your laptop keyboard, whether you’re simply trying to disinfect or you need a deep clean. But there are a few critical steps to take before you start scrubbing. 
Prep work

Read more
How to clean a laptop screen without scratching it
How to clean a laptop screen

Laptop screens will attract dirt, dust, and grime -- that's just a fact of life. Whether you're using one of the best 2-in-1 laptops and want to clean off your fingerprints from the touchscreen or you use one of the best laptops and barely touch the display but have somehow gotten food or dirt on it, the cleaning process isn't necessarily intuitive.

You'll likely have lots of questions about it. Do you need a special cleaning fluid? How hard should you rub? What do you rub the screen with? Even using water to clean a laptop screen isn't necessarily completely safe, due to minerals. So join us as we list our favorite tools for each type of yuck removal and teach you how to clean a laptop screen without inflicting damage.
For dust: Microfiber cloth

Read more
The best free antivirus software for 2024
A close-up of someone's hands as the person sits on a couch and types on a laptop.

The best cybersecurity software requires a subscription, but if you're only looking for basic protection, there are some very good free antivirus options. You can enjoy premium features like malware removal, antivirus blockers, and ransomware protection at no cost.

Every free antivirus app on our list is available to download and start using immediately.
The best free antivirus software at a glance

Read more