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We all can agree to the fact disk cloning is the most effective way to preserve the data and software installed on your PC. You can consider using disk imaging and other copying methods, but none of them provides the efficiency of cloning software. So, in this guide, we are going to explore the free disk cloning software for Windows 10. Let’s see how cloning tools can help us and learn about the popular options we have.
Jan 20, 2020 As free hard drive cloning software, MiniTool Partition Wizard offers two ways to clone hard drives for hard drive upgrade or data backup, including 'Copy Disk' and 'Migrate OS to SSD/HD' (if you only want to clone the system).
- Mar 10, 2019 It has Sector to Sector feature that helps in cloning all the files to a fresh hard disk. It is free disk cloning software, but also has paid version with additional features. MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition. Another easy to use cloning software for Windows 10 is MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition. It let you merge the partitions.
- Dec 26, 2019 As exhausting drives fail additional typically than we would like to admit, all pc users got to brace oneself for the worst and wish disk biological research software system. So top best disk cloning software window/mac 2020 are following. Also check- best dll file fixer software / best pc optimization software.
Part 1. The Main Reasons For Why Need To Clone Disk
Whether we own a hard disk drive or any other storage media, there is no harm in keeping a convenient backup of all the data stored on the drives. So, if you think that you don’t need to know about the free cloning software Windows 10, then think twice. We can give you some solid reasons to clone disk immediately:
- Every hard drive wears out after a certain period and as a result, you will start losing the data. So, you can clone the data of an HDD to an SSD which is obviously more durable.
- Cloning allows users to make a hard drive upgrade as smooth as possible. You will already have the system software and application in another drive just-in-case.
- When you have cloned a drive, you won’t be afraid that someday you might lose your data files due to a system crash or virus attack or mechanical failure.
- You will have a complete backup of your PC including the OS, installed applications, and the data stored on the PC.
All these reasons might be enough for the users who have gone through a data loss situation.
Part 2. Best Disk Clone Software for Windows 10 – iBeesoft DBackup
When there are unlimited options on the internet, it becomes difficult to decide the ultimate tool for cloning. But there is no other tool that can match up the effectiveness and reliability of iBeesoft DBackup. This free disk cloning software for Windows 10 has extensive features and a user-friendly interface. It will help the users to maximize the protection level of data and OS.
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Your Reliable Free Drive Cloning Software for Windows 10
- Every hard drive wears out after a certain period and as a result, you will start losing the data. So, you can clone HDD to SSD in Windows which is obviously more durable.
- Cloning allows users to make a hard drive upgrade as smooth as possible. You will already have the system software and application in another drive just-in-case.
- When you have cloned a drive, you won’t be afraid that someday you might lose your data files due to a system crash or virus attack or mechanical failure.
- You will have a complete backup of your PC including the OS, installed applications, and the data stored on the PC.
Here is the step-by-step guide for how to clone disk with this software in Windows 10 using iBeesoft DBackup.
Step 1: Download and install the tool on your system and launch it. Connect the external drive with the computer and let the system detect the drive first. From the best disk cloning software, select the 'Backup Drive' option and then specify the drive you want to backup.
Step 2: Set up the path to save the backup file and choose between the automatic backup or sector by sector options. After arranging everything, click on the 'Start' button and wait as the clone hard drive Windows 10 free software creates a clone disk.
Now, you can keep the clone drive backup file safe and sound until you need it.
Part 3. Top 5 Free Cloning Software for Windows 10
1: Acronis True Image
To clone hard drive in Windows 10, free software like Acronis True Image will be a good choice. This tool allows the users to replicate a PC’s OS, software, patches, and drives all together.
Main Features:
- Provide complete image backup of your PC
- Secure the disk using stringent security features
- Offers an easy way to backup and clone disks
Advantages:
1. Support various formats and ease to use
2. Free demo available
Disadvantages:
1. Demo version has limited features
2. Only compatible with Windows
2: EaseUS Todo Backup
Epson v600 software download mac. When you need to clone HDD to SSD Windows 10 for free, then using EaseUS Todo Backup will be a smart choice. This tool will literally ease up the cloning process of a drive to another big size disk and increase performance as well.
Main Features:
- Clone MBR disk to GPT disk and vice versa
- Allow users to clone one partition or multiple partitions at the same time
- Also, support data recovery and backup features
Advantages:
1. Complete functionality and excellent user interface
2. Wide range of backup modes and support clone and migration as well
Disadvantages:
1. It lacks Linux support
3: AOMEI Backupper
Another free disk clone Windows 10 is AOMEI Backupper. Take advantage of this software to migrate your operating system to another disk or drive without reinstallation and data loss.
Main Features:
- Supports cloning one drive to another without a bothering operating system
- Sector by sector cloning is possible
- Supports cloning HDD to HDD, SSD to SSD or HDD to SSD for data migration and upgrades
Advantages:
1. Backup & restore easily and quickly
2. Free trial version is available
Disadvantages:
1. Slow backup speed
4: MiniTool Partition Wizard
With this free hard drive cloning software for Windows 10, you can control disk partitions and review the file system. This software can help you copy your operating system to another SSD or HDD or clone a whole disk.
Main Features:
- Let you resize or move the partition
- Supports to convert NTFS to FAT format
- It enables you to recover data and partition
Advantages:
1. Easy installation
2. User-friendly interface
3. Featuring portable mode
Disadvantages:
1. Supports Windows only
2. With the free version, you can’t control dynamic drives
5: Clonezilla
Clonezilla is free to drive cloning software for Windows 10 or other versions too. With the help of it, you can close Intel-based Mac OS, FreeBSD, GNU/Linux and MS Windows with ease.
Main Features:
- Supports multicasting
- Restore several local devices
- Customize your cloning and imaging
Advantages:
1. Free to use
2. Supports cloning, disk imaging and portioning
3. Compatible with Linux as well as Windows OS
Disadvantages:
1. Bad interface
And that is all for free disk cloning software for Windows 10. We have provided you the best option available on the internet. You can use any of the listed software and use the disk cloning feature to have a safe and secure backup of your entire system.
Summary :
MiniTool Partition Wizard is the best hard drive cloning software which can be used to clone hard drive easily and safely. Download the freeware now!
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Why Clone Hard Drive?
Disk cloning is very useful in hard drive management. Simply put, disk cloning copies the complete contents of a hard drive, including the files, the partition tables and the MBR to another location.
It is worth mentioning that when you clone a hard drive, both the source disk and the target disk can be used directly, which is regarded as a simple, direct duplicate (however, cloning is different from copy & paste, check Clone VS. Copy & Paste for the detail).
In the following situations, you may consider hard drive cloning:
- To upgrade to larger hard drivewhen the current hard drive is too small and cannot meet your data storage requirements any longer. For example, you meet the 'low disk space' issue but all partitions are almost full.
- To upgrade hard drive to more advanced SSDto enjoy smooth computer performance. This is extremely useful for those who want to upgrade system disk, as SSD offers faster read-write speed.
- You have a batch of computers (with the same configuration) to be installed.To avoid installing all computers one by one, you can install only one at first and then turn to hard drive cloning software to save effort and time.
- To make an exact hard drive backup.Through disk cloning, you get a copy of disk backup and avoid the trouble of data restoration when the backup copy is needed.
So the conclusion here is that if you are upgrading your hard drive to a larger one, or replacing it due to a physical failure, cloning hard drive is the easiest method to complete that task. Besides, doing hard drive cloning reduces the risk of any accidental data loss.
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Recommended Hard Drive Cloning Utility
Since hard drive cloning is significant, you must be wondering: which is the best cloning software? In my opinion, MiniTool Partition Wizard is the top recommendation. I will give you my explanation.
Developed by MiniTool Solution Ltd., MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition is regarded as the best disk cloning software for Windows users, including those who are running 32/64 bits Windows 10, Windows 8, and Windows7.
Eagle eye app for mac. 3d home design software mac reviews. As free hard drive cloning software, MiniTool Partition Wizard offers two ways to clone hard drives for hard drive upgrade or data backup, including 'Copy Disk' and 'Migrate OS to SSD/HD' (if you only want to clone the system).
All you have to do is put the new drive in the computer as a slave or secondary drive and use this disk cloning software to clone the old drive to the new one. Once the process is complete, switch the new drive to the primary and then you are good to go (for hard drive upgrade).
Just press the button to have free hard drive cloning software downloaded!
Tip: For Windows Server users, MiniTool Partition Wizard Server Edition is the right choice. Please go to the Online Store to get a suitable edition.
Knowing what MiniTool Partition Wizard is, let's have a look on how to clone a hard drive by using MiniTool Partition Wizard. Here we just take clone hard drive Windows 10 for example, and MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition should be the right choice.
Note:- To use 'Copy Disk Wizard', both the source disk and target disk must be basic disks.
- The target disk will be cleaned during the cloning process. Please make sure it can be cleaned; otherwise transfer data out at first.
Step 1. Run MiniTool Partition Wizard to the main interface, then you can see all your hard drives connected to this PC are shown in the middle panel and some operable features are listed in the left panel. Now, select Copy Disk feature to clone hard drive.
Step 2. Here you need to select the target disk (must be basic disk) and click Next to continue. Make sure you know which drive you are cloning to so you do not overwrite the wrong drive.
Step 3. Here come the copy options. If you are copying from a GPT disk, you are able to see 2 options. (4 options when you are cloning an MBR disk, see details here.)
- Fit partitions to entire disk: all partitions will be cloned to the target disk and take up its full capacity according to the partition size proportion.
- Copy partitions without resize: all partitions will be cloned to the target disk according to the original partition size. This option is available when the target disk is large enough to hold all partitions on the source disk.
After you have made the copy options, you can customize each partition size according to your own preference. Then click Next to go on.
Step 4. Then you can see a note which reads 'To boot from the new disk, please configure computer BIOS settings. Make sure the new disk is configured as the default boot disk.' Please keep this in mind if you are cloning the system disk before you click Finish.
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Step 5. Finally, you need to press the Apply button located on the toolbar to start hard drive cloning.
Note: Any operations related to system partition require a reboot, and the time to finish hard drive cloning is closely related to the data amount and your computer configuration. So please be patient to wait until Partition Wizard completes all operations.
For a more intuitive guidance, please watch this video:
RECOMMEND:
Want to know more information about how to successfully boot computer from the new hard drive? Now, you can find answers from our previous post: 2 Ways to Boot from New Hard Drive after Copying Disk or Migrating OS.
In fact, MiniTool also puts forward another tool that helps disk cloning which is called MiniTool ShadowMaker. Although it is mainly designed for Windows backup, it also comes with useful Clone Disk feature. To get the details of how to use this disk cloning software, you are suggested to read Clone OS from HDD to SSD.
Tips for Cloning Your Hard Drive
Now you know how to clone hard drive by using MiniTool Partition Wizard Fee Edition. Here I would like to put forward some tips to help you deal with cloning issue better.
- Don't just copy & paste files to another location on your hard disk if you are leading the operating system. Use professional disk cloning software like MiniTool Partition Wizard to help you.
- Use another hard drive, especially an external hard drive for your backup copies, because there is less chance of losing/damaging computer and external hard drive at the same time.
- At least one cloning copy should be kept well. Don't erase the current backup unless you are going to create a new one.
- If you use your computer frequently, back up your data often. Having a recent backup is always good for data recovery. Apart from hard drive cloning software, professional disk imaging software is also recommended to save effort.
Further Reading: Cloning VS. Imaging
When dealing with backup issue, cloning or imaging is always the question asked by many users. Many people choose to make a disk image, while many prefer hard drive cloning. Before I state my opinion, I would like to start with cloning VS. imaging.
One may ask, 'what the heck is the difference between cloning and imaging?'
Imaging is frequently used for preventative backup, which means you never know when you need the backup image for data restoration. Today most disk imaging software offer schedule backup feature, and you can set to back up daily, weekly, or monthly. Paint estimating software for mac. Besides, incremental backup and differential backup are provided, making it possible to save hard disk space.
If something bad happens, you can have the original image for restoration purposes without having to reinstall Windows and other applications.
Disk cloning is more significant for hard drive replacement or hard drive upgrading, which means probably you will use the destination disk right away. When you clone a hard drive, actually you are cloning the entire contents of the drive instead of creating an image file.
The only issue you need to concern is that you need to have another physical hard drive that is large enough to contain all data in the original drive. During the cloning process, all contents on the target disk will be cleaned so be sure that you are operating the right disk.
The conclusion here is: although cloning and imaging both back up and restore data, whether to choose cloning or imaging all depends on what you want to accomplish. In a word, for frequent backup issue, imaging software is better; for hard drive upgrading issue, free hard drive cloning software should be given the priority.
Summary
Here comes to the end of this post. In this post, I mainly tell why you need to clone hard drive, which tool is the best disk cloning software, how to use it to clone hard drive, the differences between cloning and imaging, and several tips on hard drive cloning. Hope all these information is helpful in dealing with your hard drive cloning issues.
Now it's your turn to have a try. Just download this free yet professional hard drive cloning software - MiniTool Partition Wizard Free Edition and start cloning hard drive. I believe you can do everything smoothly as long as you follow the wizard correctly. For any suggestions or questions towards using MiniTool Partition Wizard, please contact [email protected] or leave us comments below. Much appreciated!