Cloning a hard drive consists of reproducing, bit by bit, all of its content to an external drive. This is a lengthy operation that must be performed on fully operational systems known to be critical or difficult to reinstall. You can then use this clone to fully replicate your system in the event of a disk failure and even boot from it if necessary or even reproduce it on several materially identical computers. If all you need is security for your personal computer, you will save a lot of time by creating an image of your system disk instead.
Steps
Part 1 of 4: prepare to clone on Windows
Step 1. Obtain an external hard drive
You will need a disk that is at least the size of the one you want to clone.
- If your computer has a 500 gigabyte drive, look for one that's at least the same size.
- To check the size of the hard drive on your computer, click on the Windows start menu icon
, enter storage in the search bar, click on Storage and read the number to the right of This PC below the title Local hard drive.
Step 2. Make sure you have a spare flash drive
To use CloneZilla, you will need a flash disk with a minimum storage capacity of 2 GB.
Clonezilla being a minimalist program, you will need to install it on your flash drive before you can use it
Step 3. Format your external hard drive
This formatting is intended to ensure compatibility with other computers running Windows.
- When you select the option File system, be sure to click NTFS Where exFAT.
Step 4. Download and install LinuxLive USB creator
This is the program you will need to use to install Clonezilla on your USB flash drive. Proceed as follows:
- go to the site https://www.linuxliveusb.com/ with your web browser;
- Click on the button To download which is in the center of the page;
- at the top of the page, click Download LiLi;
- double-click on the downloaded file;
- follow the on-screen instructions.
Step 5. Download Clonezilla
Follow these steps to download this free open source program that you will use to clone your computer:
- go to the page https://clonezilla.org/downloads/download.php?branch=stable with your Internet browser;
- click on the drop-down menu titled zip that you will find in the downloads section and select the option iso;
- click on the gray button labeled To download which can be found below the selection menus;
- wait about five seconds for the download to start.
Step 6. Install Clonezilla on your flash drive
You will need to use the LinuxLive USB creator (LiLi) utility that you downloaded earlier. Follow these steps to do this:
- open the LiLi USB creator application if it did not open automatically after installation, then click Yes when prompted;
- at the top of the window, click on the drop-down menu titled Choose flash memory and select the name of your USB key;
- click on ISO / IMG / ZIP;
- select the ISO file corresponding to the downloaded Clonezilla archive and click on To open;
- check the box titled Format the USB key in FAT32 which is at the bottom of the window;
- click on the icon symbolizing a large lightning bolt at the bottom of the window;
- when prompted, click OK to start installing Clonezilla on your flash drive, then close LiLi USB creator after installation is complete.
Step 7. Leave your USB key and external hard drive connected
As soon as the installation of Clonezilla is complete, you will be able to proceed with cloning your hard drive.
Part 2 of 4: prepare to clone on Mac
Step 1. Obtain an external hard drive
You will need a disk that is at least the size of the one you want to clone.
- If your computer has a 500 gigabyte drive, look for one that's at least the same size.
- You can check the size of your Mac's hard drive by successively clicking on the menu Apple
, on about this Mac, on the tab Storage and read the hard disk capacity expressed in gigabytes which will be displayed on the left of the window.
Step 2. Format your Mac's external hard drive
Formatting this drive will ensure that it is compatible with your computer and all other Macs.
- During formatting process, take care to select the format Mac OS Extended (Journaled) when you come to that choice.
Step 3. Download and install the SuperDuper cloning program!. This program application is under commercial license and therefore paid, but you can use its free version to create a clone of your hard drive. Precede as follows:
- go to https://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html with your Mac's web browser;
- click on the blue link titled To download which is below Download now, in the upper right corner of the page;
- double-click on the DMG file you just downloaded;
- check the integrity of the downloaded file if prompted;
- click and drag the SuperDuper icon! to the applications folder;
- follow the directions on the screen.
Step 4. Make sure your external hard drive is connected to your Mac
When you have finished formatting it and installing SuperDuper !, you can proceed with cloning your Mac's hard drive.
Part 3 of 4: clone hard drive in Windows
Step 1. Open your computer's BIOS page
Click on the start menu icon, then on the power on icon and finally on To restart. Immediately start pressing one of the keys to access the BIOS page until it opens.
- In most cases, the key you need to press will be a function key like F8, Eff, or Esc.
- You can consult your computer's manual to find out which key must be pressed at boot time to access the BIOS page. If you no longer have the booklet for this manual, you can also search the Internet for it.
- If the function keys on your computer are reversed, you will need to hold down the Fn key on your keyboard while pressing the key to access the BIOS page.
Step 2. Set the boot order of the computer disks
You will need to do this so that your computer boots from the flash drive. The procedures to be applied will be slightly different from one brand of BIOS to another and we suggest that you consult the documentation corresponding to your computer for more specific information. In general, you should do the following:
- at the top of your screen, select a tab Start-up Where Advanced;
- locate a section titled Boot order;
- using the arrow keys on your keyboard, find the name of your flash disk and select it;
- press the key + to bring the name of your flash drive to the top of the menu. If that doesn't work with that key, find which one can be used for that function in the legend at the bottom of the screen or to its right.
Step 3. Save your changes and exit the BIOS page
This is done by pressing a key which is described in the legend located at the bottom or to the right of the screen.
Step 4. Accept the default settings
When the first page of Clonezilla loads, press the Enter key on your keyboard to continue with the default settings.
Step 5. Select a language
Use the arrow keys on your keyboard to scroll through the list of languages until you find the one you want to use, then press Enter to select the language to use and go to the next option.
Step 6. Select the keyboard layout to use
Select the do not change the keyboard layout option if you want to keep the default US keyboard layout, or use the arrow keys to scroll through the available keyboard layouts. Press the Enter key when you have arrived at the layout corresponding to the keyboard you are using.
Step 7. Select Start Clonezilla
This is the option offered to you at the top of the next menu. You will be taken to the next page by pressing the Enter key on your keyboard.
Step 8. Select the Disk to Disk option
It is halfway up the menu.
Step 9. Select Beginner
This choice will make Clonezilla take care of the most complicated settings itself.
Step 10. Select the first option offered on this screen
It is called
disk_to_local_disk local_disk_to_local_disk_clone.
Step 11. Select the hard drive you want to clone
Most often you will need to move the cursor to highlight the disk displayed at the top of the list of choices. This will be the named hard drive sda. The referred to the first known hard drive on the system. You can verify that you are making the right choice by referring to the size of the space left free on the disk which will be expressed in gigabytes.
- Clonezilla is based on a scaled-down version of Linux and follows that system's enumeration logic for disks attached to the computer it runs on. A hard drive labeled bathroom will be the second disk recognized by the system and the same will apply to disks labeled sdc and sdd which will be the third and fourth disk drives, respectively.
Step 12. Select your external hard drive
This will often be the only option offered on this page, but check the capacity displayed to the left of its name to be sure you make the right choice. It must be very close to 500 gigabytes.
Step 13. Select the -pa shutdown option
This choice will force Clonezilla to shut down the computer when your hard drive cloning is complete, allowing you to disconnect the flash drive before restarting the device.
If you do not disconnect your flash drive before restarting your computer, your computer will reboot to Clonezilla
Step 14. Confirm your choices
Type Y then press Enter when you see a warning that your external hard drive will be overwritten. Hit O again and press the Enter key again when Clonezilla asks you if you want to clone the boot sectors of your hard drive as well. This will make your clone bootable to the external drive when needed.
Step 15. Wait for Clonezilla to complete the cloning process
It can last for several hours. Clonezilla will shut down your computer at the end of the process.
Step 16. Disconnect your USB and flash drives from your PC
This will allow you to start a normal working session on your computer without having it boot up again on the USB stick or on the freshly made clone of its hard drive.
Part 4 of 4: clone hard drive on Mac
Step 1. Open Spotlight
In the upper right corner of your screen, click on the Spotlight icon which symbolizes a magnifying glass.
Step 2. Open SuperDuper
Type superduper in the search bar, then double-click SuperDuper! when you see it appear in the results list.
Step 3. Click on the selection box titled Copy
You will find this option on the left of the SuperDuper window!. You will see a new drop-down menu.
Step 4. Select your Mac's hard drive
In the drop-down menu titled To copy, click the name of your Mac's hard drive.
Step 5. Click on the selection box labeled To
It is located to the right of the selection menu titled To copy. This will display a new drop-down menu.
Step 6. Select your external drive
To do this, click on the name of your external drive in the drop-down menu.
Step 7. Click on the selection box titled Mode
It is located below the selection box titled Copy.
Step 8. Click Back Up All Files
You will find this option in the drop-down menu. This choice ensures that your entire hard drive, whether system files, settings, and user documents, will be duplicated on the clone.
- You will not be able to create a full clone of your hard drive if you select the option Back up user files.
Step 9. Click Copy Now
This is a blue colored button that you will find in the lower right corner of the program window.
Step 10. Enter your administrator password
When prompted to enter your password, enter the one you usually use to log into your Mac and then press Enter on your keyboard.
Step 11. Click Copy when prompted
SuperDuper! will begin the process of cloning your Mac's hard drive to the external drive.
Step 12. Wait for your hard drive to finish cloning
The cloning process can take several hours. When it's finished, SuperDuper! will ask you for confirmation. You will then just have to click on OK to end the cloning process.
You will be able to use the procedure to eject your external hard drive and disconnect it from your Mac after confirmation
Advice
You don't need to clone your hard drive if you just want to back up your data files
Warnings
- Most software for cloning a hard drive is based on commercial licenses and therefore has to be paid for. All of the apps described in this article are still free at the time of this publication, but some may change that.
- Windows 10 and Mac OS operating systems do not have any disk cloning applications among the software they bundle.
