4 replies to this topic

[MazingerZ]

The setup...

Current machine has a SSD C:\ and a secondary HDD D:\ .  Windows is configured to put my Users folder on the D:\ because I obviously don't want temp files, internet cache and Downloads cluttering up my SSD.

The problem is that the secondary drive is a WD Green.  I had accidentally put that one in there when I thought it was a Black.  Turns out I didn't have a Black, I had a Green and all my Blacks were in use.  With the Steam Sale, I need to put some of the non-asset-heavy stuff on the secondary drive, but the Green's still showing some noticeable performance issues.

So I've bought a Black.  But I want Windows to not notice this, so I want to clone the Green's structure to the Black.  Either that or just migrate the data and completely reinstall Windows and GW2.

So is there an easy way to create an image of D:\, swap drives, not boot into Windows (because missing D:\Users will royally muck things up), clone the image onto the new D:\ and then boot back into Windows without it being any wiser that something might've changed on the filesystem... It'll probably notice the drive's different, but as far as operations and data, it won't notice something's changed.

[tijo]

Clone the drive with clonezilla or another piece of software like acronis.

[MazingerZ]

tijo, on 04 January 2013 - 09:01 PM, said:

Clone the drive with clonezilla or another piece of software like acronis.

I'm not totally stupid, but can you tell me how to go about doing that?  Specifically with when and where to switch out the hardware?  Do both drives need to be connected at the same time, etc?

Thanks.

[tijo]

Guide on how to clone with clonezilla: http://www.howtogeek...ith-clonezilla/ . You will need both drives in the machine when you clone, then you just swap the old one for the new and done.

Edited by tijo, 04 January 2013 - 09:26 PM.

[Quaker]

Easier still, install both drives in the machine. Copy everything from the D: drive (green) to the E: (or whatever letter it ends up as) drive (black) using simple drag and drop file/folder copy. Remove the D: drive. Get into Administrative tools and re-letter the E: drive to D:.

(You'll need to do that last step because of the way Win 7 keeps track of drive properties. Or you could simply keep the current drive letter of the black and re-do your library paths.)

P.s. This is assuming that you have a free SATA port and extra SATA cables. If not, you could temporarily use the optical drive's port and cables.

Edited by Quaker, 05 January 2013 - 04:35 PM.