Clone HDD to SSD Different Sizes: Step-by-Step Guide (No Data Loss)

Replacing a hard drive, be it an HDD or SSD, is a common operation to improve your computer's overall performance and is proven effective. But what if the 2 hard drives have different sizes? Don't panic! We will tell you how to clone HDD to SSD different sizes and offer a second-to-none cloning tool to help you. Let's get started!

Can You Clone Hard Drives of Different Sizes

SSDs have significant advantages over HDDs in terms of read and write speeds, durability, security, energy-saving efficiency, noise reduction, etc. Additionally, with the recent drop in SSD pricing, computer users would like to replace laptop HDDs with SSDs for better performance.

The best way to replace an HDD with an SSD is to clone it, which can help you retain the Windows OS and data. In computing, cloning a hard drive is frequently used to boost a computer's performance, replace an old hard drive, or make a backup of a hard drive. But can you clone two different size hard drives?

Yes, it is possible to clone a larger HDD to a smaller SSD, but only if the used space on the HDD is less than or equal to the capacity of the SSD. You need to use cloning software that supports resizing partitions, and the target SSD must be large enough to hold all the data from the used portion of the HDD.

For example, you can clone a larger HDD to a smaller SSD: 1TB to 500GB, or clone a smaller hard disk to a larger one: 500GB to 1TB, as long as you use reliable disk cloning software to help you finish the cloning process.

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Hard Disk Cloning Software Free Download

Whether you want to clone a larger hard drive to a smaller one or clone a smaller hard drive to a larger one, you must use a third-party cloning program. This is because Windows doesn't provide such a cloning tool. EaseUS Disk Copy can suit you well when cloning an HDD to an SSD or an SSD to an HDD of different sizes.

EaseUS Disk Copy is a versatile and useful cloning utility for Windows 11/10/8/7 computers. It can help you transfer an operating system from one SSD to another and transfer data from HDD to SSD. The process of using Disk Copy involves selecting the source HDD and target SSD, adjusting partition sizes to fit the SSD, and then initiating the cloning process.

EaseUS Disk Copy can suit you well to clone hard drives with different sizes, no matter whether you want to clone a larger drive to a smaller one or clone a smaller drive to a larger one. You can download it on your computer to help you finish the cloning process.

Guide to Clone Larger Disk to Smaller Disk

Except for the merits mentioned above, EaseUS Disk Copy also has a simple and intuitive interface to help you upgrade to a larger drive or clone hard drives with different sizes.

📢Note: Ensure the smaller drive can hold the data on the larger disk if you clone a larger disk to a smaller one.

Steps to clone hard disks with different sizes via EaseUS Disk Copy.

Prior Notice:

• The "Sector by sector copy" asks the size of your destination disk to be at least equal to or larger than that of the source disk. Leave this feature unchecked if you wish to clone a larger hard disk to a smaller hard disk.
• All data on the destination disk will be completely erased, so take care.

Step 1. To start copying/cloning an entire disk to another, choose this disk as the source disk under "Disk Mode" and click "Next".

Step 2. Choose the other disk as the destination disk.

Step 3. Check the disk layout of the two disks. You can manage the disk layout of the destination disk by selecting "Autofit the disk", "Copy as the source" or "Edit disk layout". 

• "Autofit the disk" makes some changes by default on the destination disk layout so that it can work at its best status.
• "Copy as the source"does not change anything on destination disk and the layout is the same as source disk.
• "Edit disk layout" allows you to manually resize/move partition layout on this destination disk.

Tick the "Check the option if the target is SSD" option to put your SSD in its best performance.

A message now appears, warning you that data will be lost. Please confirm this message by clicking "OK" and then click "Next".

Step 4. Click "Proceed" to officially execute the task.

This video demonstrates how to use EaseUS Disk Copy for HDD to SSD with different size cloning:

 

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To Wrap Things Up

That is all about how to clone hard drive with different size. In short, to clone hard drives of different sizes or clone HDD to SSD with different sizes, you need to use professional cloning software to help you. Whether you want to clone to a larger drive or clone to a smaller drive, cloning software can meet your needs. EaseUS Disk Copy is a multi-functional cloning program that helps clone drives of different sizes. Just download and try it.

FAQs on Clone Hard Drive with Different Size

There are some questions about how to clone disk different size.

1. Why does my cloned SSD fail to boot?

A cloned SSD may fail to boot for several reasons, including incorrect boot order in the BIOS, incompatible BIOS boot mode (UEFI vs. Legacy BIOS), missing boot partitions or components, or a corrupted cloning process. In addition, the source drive might be unbootable, or the SSD might require specific drivers for boot.

2. Can I clone hard drives of different sizes?

Yes, it is possible to clone a larger HDD to a smaller SSD, but only if the used space on the HDD is less than or equal to the capacity of the SSD. Here is a breakdown of the whole cloning process:

• Check Used Space on HDD. Before cloning, determine how much space is used on your HDD. This is the amount that needs to be smaller than the capacity of the target SSD.
• Choose Cloning Software. Popular cloning tools like EaseUS Disk Copy and Acronis True Image support resizing partitions during cloning, allowing you to clone a larger HDD to a smaller SSD.
• Prepare the SSD. Connect the SSD to your computer. It can be installed internally or via an external enclosure and USB-to-SATA cable.
• Use the Cloning Software. Launch the software, select source and destination disks, resize partitions, and start the cloning process.
• Post-Cloning: After cloning, you may need to change the boot order in your BIOS to boot from the SSD and ensure all your data has been successfully cloned.

3. Can I clone a smaller hard drive to a larger one?

Definitely yes. You can clone a smaller drive to a larger one with the help of third-party cloning software. But you should remember to format the larger drive if it is new because it will not work properly if you do not format it. Additionally, if the larger drive is an old one, remember to back up data on it since the cloning process will erase everything on it.

4. Can I clone a 1TB HDD to a 500GB SSD if only 400GB is used?

Yes, it is possible to clone a 1TB HDD to a 500GB SSD if only 400GB is used on the HDD. The key is that the amount of used space on the source HDD (1TB drive) must be less than or equal to the capacity of the target SSD (500GB drive). Since you have 400GB of used space, and the SSD has a capacity of 500GB, this cloning operation is feasible. All you need is to find a reliable disk cloning tool, like Clonezilla or EaseUS Disk Copy.