WIndows 10 Create a Backup image on External HD that will install on new m.2 Drive ?

jo86

Member
Hey forum.
I just bought a new better m.2. Usually I'd just make a clone of my current OS Drive of the current m.2 onto the new m.2 using a m.2-USB adapter, but strangely mine is no longer working. It lights up when I connect it to the PC on its own, but with the m.2 plugged into it, nothing. So I'm looking for a way to make a Bootable backup image of my OS Drive on an external HDD, so that I can open up the PC, take out the current m.2 and place the new one in, start the computer and install the image from my external HDD to the new m.2 from BIOS. Haven't found a way to do that. Or is there another way, WITHOUT having a m.2-USB adapter ?
Thank you !
 

DavidG

Active Member
The M.2 drive will come with some cloning/backup software. Use the clone software make a rescue bootable USB. Then make a full image backup file (not a clone) of the current OS drive onto an external drive.
You can then swap out the M.2 with the new one, boot off the rescue USB and restore the image to the new drive
 

jo86

Member
The M.2 drive will come with some cloning/backup software. Use the clone software make a rescue bootable USB. Then make a full image backup file (not a clone) of the current OS drive onto an external drive.
You can then swap out the M.2 with the new one, boot off the rescue USB and restore the image to the new drive
No software came with the M.2 but I had Macrium Reflect anyways. This is what I did.
Clicked on "Clone This Disk" and cloned the C : Drive to the USB HDD.

v6AUIES.png


And this is what I've got now:
YcosbiH.png


The OS E is the clone of the C Drive on the external HDD, and System V is some partition (that I can't access btw lol).

I can't make both a clone AND a Windows backup on the same USB HDD. Are you saying I should use two different ones ?.. Could you just go over this, I feel I'm just one detail from getting it but it's a little vague for me right now.
 

DavidG

Active Member
OK you have created a clone onto an external hard drive. Now get a separate 4GB USB stick and use macrium reflect to create a rescue media USB that you can boot off. Swap out the new M.2 drive, so you have the new M.2 drive in the computer. Boot off the rescue media USB you created. You should then be able to use this to clone the external hard drive you made onto a new M.2 drive
 
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jo86

Member
OK you have created a clone onto an external hard drive. Now get a separate 4GB USB stick and use macrium reflect to create a rescue media USB that you can boot off. Swap out the new M.2 drive, so you have the new M.2 drive in the computer. Boot off the rescue media USB you created. You should then be able to use this to clone the external hard drive you made onto a new M.2 drive
It took me a bit of time to figure out how to format the new M.2 first, as I couldn't do it in Windows, but found a way to wipe it clean in BIOS by running Command Prompt there.
The Clone on the USB HDD seemed to not work too well, so I made an Image file instead and managed to finally install that onto the new M.2 using the method you described. Thanks btw.

Only problem now is:
a.png
It not only copied the content of the OS Drive, it copied its capacity as well lol. See OS C Drive on the left with its 237GB. Ignore DATA D in the middle (storage drive). And "EVO 2 (E: )" is what's left of the 500GB available on the new M.2, I went to Disk Partition and created this volume. I'm wondering whether I should keep it this way or if it might be a hindrance later as the C Drive fills up to near full capacity, making the PC slower, vs if it had its full 500GB capacity all in one drive, as it should. If I were to redo it, how could I copy the OS C content on the new M.2. but WITH the full 500GB capacity and no drive partitioning of the new EVO M.2. ?
 

DavidG

Active Member
It would be better to just have 2 partitions only. I would recommend expanding the C: drive as you only have 69GB free. You would have to reorganise the partitions with a partition manager - basically delete partition E to create unallocated space, then move the DATA (D: ) partition to the end of the drive so you would have 227GB of unallocated space between OS(C: ) and DATA (D: ) partitions. You can then expand the OS(C: ) partition to take up the unallocated space. I am not sure whether Macrium can do this but AOMEI Partition Assistant can
good luck
 

johnb35

Administrator
Staff member
It would be better to just have 2 partitions only. I would recommend expanding the C: drive as you only have 69GB free. You would have to reorganise the partitions with a partition manager - basically delete partition E to create unallocated space, then move the DATA (D: ) partition to the end of the drive so you would have 227GB of unallocated space between OS(C: ) and DATA (D: ) partitions. You can then expand the OS(C: ) partition to take up the unallocated space. I am not sure whether Macrium can do this but AOMEI Partition Assistant can
good luck
Data D drive is a totally different drive all together. So basically he just needs to extend the C partition using disk management or something like minitool partition wizard. I would just make it all one partition and not separate it since its only 500 gb.
 

DavidG

Active Member
Data D drive is a totally different drive all together. So basically he just needs to extend the C partition using disk management or something like minitool partition wizard. I would just make it all one partition and not separate it since its only 500 gb.

@johnb35 well spotted.
 

jo86

Member
Data D drive is a totally different drive all together. So basically he just needs to extend the C partition using disk management or something like minitool partition wizard. I would just make it all one partition and not separate it since its only 500 gb.
It took me a freaking hour but I finally got it done. It turns out there are intricate details to expanding a drive. Had to install/uninstall a couple of programs to try to do it, as Disk Management was too limited, areas greyed out, reading posts online etc... but it's done:

a.png

Turns out you can only expand a drive to its immediately adjacent neighbor drive, and I had some sort of Recover partition there blocking the path to the other 250GB partition of the EVO M.2. So I got rid of that, merged it... etc and finally managed to do it lol.
Whew.
Tested the M.2. and indeed the speeds are around 3.4 Gigs.
Thx for your help on this thread.
 
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