Question Cloning boot drive to a larger SSD to create one large partition.

Hayabusa Rider

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Jan 26, 2000
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OS is Windows 10, tried Partition Magic.

I cloned a 500GB drive to a 1TB one and got two partitions, one the old "c" drive and one unallocated. Then I attempted to merge the two which PM said was done, but with a "Task not yet done" statement, which called for a reboot. I did so and I still have two partitions.

How to do this?

Correction- Explorer shows an E drive and F drive, the former is for the file system apparently. The unallocated space doesn't show
 
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TheELF

Diamond Member
Dec 22, 2012
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Show us a picture of the 1Tb drive from partition magic.

You would have to expand the C drive (or whichever is your main windows partition) towards the unallocated space.
If the second partition is between the two then this will not work,you could expand this second partition but if it holds system files it's not a good idea to be using it.This would mean that ,if you want/have to keep the second partition instead of deleting it, you will have to move it to the end of the drive so that the main partition has all the unallocated space to the right side of it so you can expand the main partition.
 
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Steltek

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Mar 29, 2001
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What software did you use to create your clone? Most of the decent ones allow you to expand a partition into unallocated space to increase its size.

Edit: Unless you used Partition Magic to do the cloning?
 

Hayabusa Rider

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Jan 26, 2000
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What software did you use to create your clone? Most of the decent ones allow you to expand a partition into unallocated space to increase its size.

Edit: Unless you used Partition Magic to do the cloning?

I wiped the SSD and used easus cloning software this time. As my TV comes from the main computer I can't do anything with it right now. Windows shows a 500mb reserved partition E:, A: which is the main partition cloned, another of 525MB (healthy recovery) and lastly left to right us 454 GB unallocated.
 
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Hayabusa Rider

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Goof on my part, not partition magic but partition master buy EaseUS.

Windows disk manager screenshot

Annotation 2020-01-08 204522.jpg
Annotation 2020-01-08 204049.jpg

That's the partition result claimed.

Upon reboot it becomes this

Annotation 2020-01-08 204838.jpg

That's where I am now.
 

Steltek

Diamond Member
Mar 29, 2001
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I'm glad you aren't running Partition Magic as it was discontinued and hasn't been updated in over 10 years..

Will the Easus software you are running allow you to click on A: and resize it? If not, will it allow you to move the partitions on Disk 1 around so that the unallocated space is after the A: drive and the 525MB partition is at the end (like it is on Disk 0)? If so, can you then resize A:?

Also, what brand and model of SSD are you trying to install?
 

Hayabusa Rider

Admin Emeritus & Elite Member
Jan 26, 2000
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I'm glad you aren't running Partition Magic as it was discontinued and hasn't been updated in over 10 years..

Will the Easus software you are running allow you to click on A: and resize it? If not, will it allow you to move the partitions on Disk 1 around so that the unallocated space is after the A: drive and the 525MB partition is at the end (like it is on Disk 0)? If so, can you then resize A:?

Also, what brand and model of SSD are you trying to install?

I'll see what Easus lets me do. The ssd is an evo 860
 

VirtualLarry

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Aug 25, 2001
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Is this an OEM system? Or a Win7 64-bit system that was installed in CSM / Legacy / MBR mode, and then upgraded in-place to Win10?

The reason that I ask is, a "normal" fresh Win10 installation onto a clean new SSD, will put those system/reserved/maintenance partitions all at the beginning, so cloning a setup like that is WAY easier, just clone, even if non-proportional, and then after booting the clone, even inside Windows, I think that you can simply re-size the last (main) partition to take up all of the space.

Moving partitions around is a bit... harder.

Edit: Maybe wipe the clone destination, and then clone the partitions of the main drive, ONE AT A TIME, and clone the two smaller ones FIRST, putting them at the BEGINNING of the drive, and then clone the main partition LAST, and then it will at least be on the RIGHT, and if you clone the last partition proportionally, it will even take up ALL of the remaining space.

Edit: Or an alternative, assuming that this is a custom install, and not an OEM one.

Wipe the clone destination drive, install it into the final hardware rig, INSTALL Windows 10 FRESH, and THEN, clone the OLD main partition, DIRECTLY OVERTOP the "fresh" main Win10 partition. That means that the system / maintenance / recovery partitions are already set up and correct, and the bootloader already on the drive.

I think that should work.
 

Hayabusa Rider

Admin Emeritus & Elite Member
Jan 26, 2000
50,879
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Is this an OEM system? Or a Win7 64-bit system that was installed in CSM / Legacy / MBR mode, and then upgraded in-place to Win10?

The reason that I ask is, a "normal" fresh Win10 installation onto a clean new SSD, will put those system/reserved/maintenance partitions all at the beginning, so cloning a setup like that is WAY easier, just clone, even if non-proportional, and then after booting the clone, even inside Windows, I think that you can simply re-size the last (main) partition to take up all of the space.

Moving partitions around is a bit... harder.

Edit: Maybe wipe the clone destination, and then clone the partitions of the main drive, ONE AT A TIME, and clone the two smaller ones FIRST, putting them at the BEGINNING of the drive, and then clone the main partition LAST, and then it will at least be on the RIGHT, and if you clone the last partition proportionally, it will even take up ALL of the remaining space.

Edit: Or an alternative, assuming that this is a custom install, and not an OEM one.

Wipe the clone destination drive, install it into the final hardware rig, INSTALL Windows 10 FRESH, and THEN, clone the OLD main partition, DIRECTLY OVERTOP the "fresh" main Win10 partition. That means that the system / maintenance / recovery partitions are already set up and correct, and the bootloader already on the drive.

I think that should work.

It was a bought copy then installed so I'll give your suggestion a try. Thanks!
 

Jiggz

Diamond Member
Mar 10, 2001
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The best way to fix your dilemma is to use Mini-Partition Tool software which is also free. First you need to move the unallocatted space right next to the main partition i.e. "A" partition (based on your posted pic). And then, expand the "A" partition by the amount of available space (unallocated space), i.e. 454.58 GB. Execute the tasks and you'll be done in no time.

Another option is to delete the 525MB partition making it also unallocated. And then within Disk Mgmt, expand "A" using all the allocated space. Disk Mgmt can expand a partition as long as the available space is adjacent right next to it.