Freeware cloning software? (Recommendations?)

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I've used HD Clone in the past, but last time I tried to use it there was some type of problem (don't recall the details) and I ended up using something else.

I'm going from a 1TB drive to a 2. I'd like to be able to clone the existing drive rather than reinstall Windows and then copy all my files and reinstall all my programs.

Can anyone suggest what would be the best freeware to use?

http://clonezilla.org/

Don't know if it's good, Ghost was my go-to tool for cloning discs.

If you're desperate, you can use Prodiscover Basic edition (free, used for E-discovery) and image different devices, last official version that was released was 7 and nothing above it.

Get it from a source you trust, versions later than 7 is probably filled with trojans.

I'd also be interested in finding a reliable program for cloning an entire hard drive. I've avoided trying stuff like Macrium Reflect, Acronis etc as I've read that they tend to mess up the MBR of older Windows systems. I've also been put off trying Clonezilla as it's apparently very complex.

I did try using the 'dd' command from the Linux terminal on a dual-booting Windows XP/Windows 7 hard drive, and although the dual-boot screen came up on the duplicated version, neither system could be accessed (possibly due to some devious anti-copying trickery by Microsoft?).

Have not used DD for that, did you copy the entire drive or specific partitions? System partitions are hidden, some laptops have specific partitions for recovery and then there are HPA and DCO partitions on some computer models that normally only the hardware sees.

There is so much nowadays, compared to a decade ago when you just duplicated partitions and everything just worked.

Could still be Windows comparing the harddrive SMART serial number and if it don't match, no joy on boot.

^ I tried to do a straight copy of the entire drive. The precise form of the command used was:

dd if=/dev/sda of=/dev/sdc bs=64k conv=noerror, sync

note, sda my internal hard drive, sdc external hard drive, linux usb drive was sdb


The error messages I got on the duplicate drive were:

(for Windows 7 system): Status 0xc000000e

"The boot selection failed because a required device is inaccessible."


(for XP system): Status (as previous)

"The selected entry could not be loaded because the application is missing or corrupt."

Macrium Reflect has always worked well for me by doing the cloning and then also "fixing boot problems" by making IDs and such match as they must.

Looks like you know what you are doing.

Are you cloning from a mechanical drive to a SSD? There are different drivers that the bootloader has to load and if it is not present, it wont boot.


A bit OT but: here is a DD replacement you could try if you run into a faulty drive and want to recover data from it
http://dcfldd.sourceforge.net/

I'll give a cautious recommendation for MiniTool Partition Wizard.

I cloned an entire hard drive with a Windows 7 operating system on it earlier today. It was straightforward to use, and seems to have worked well, despite a couple of 'scares': halfway through the 40 minute procedure, the word 'FAILED' was displayed on the screen, but the copying process continued to its conclusion. Then, when the duplicated disk was about to be booted, a message appeared offering to 'repair' the system due to a change in the hardware (the replacement hard drive, no doubt).

I opted to boot the OS normally, and it has worked flawlessly during an extended 4 hour test period. Windows 7 and all the files and programs from the original drive seem to have been transferred entirely intact and fully functional.

https://www.partitionwizard.com/free-pa ... nager.html