This tutorial tells how to clone your Windows 11 system to a new SSD, and introduces the best cloning software that to finish the task securely, and ensure the cloned SSD can boot without issues.
Cloning the Windows 11 system to the new SSD can greatly improve the system boot speed, shorten the time from a few minutes to more than a dozen seconds, and can also be accelerated when the Windows system is running, making the whole system faster.
However, reinstalling Windows 11 system can be a time-consuming and laborious task. So today we are going to cover the best way to clone your Windows 11 system on a new SSD.
You can use a reliable third-party software ---- AOMEI Backupper Professional, if you want to install Windows 11 to SSD more safely.
You can benefit a lot from its powerful features listed as follows:
✮3 clone types: It offers three cloning types (system clone, disk clone, partition clone) to meet the needs of different users. ✮Smart Clone: In default mode, you can easily clone a larger HDD to a smaller SSD and then boot successfully from the cloned SSD. ✮SSD alignment: It can speed up reads and writes when your cloning destination is SSDs. ✮Live clone: It can operate the disk clone task in the background without affecting the normal use of the computer. ✮Sector-by-sector clone: It will clone all sectors, whether they are used or not. ✮Multiple SSD types and brands: It supports various types (SATA, NVMe, PCIe, M.2, U.2) and brands (Samsung, Seagate, WD, Intel, etc.).
Before cloning a Windows 11 system to new SSD, make sure the SSD is properly installed and initialized on your computer. If you don't know how to do it, read the detailed steps below:
✎ Open the computer case with a screwdriver, and then install the new SSD into the computer. (If your computer is a desktop, you can install the SSD directly, and if it is a laptop, you should prepare a SATA to USB adapter.)
✎ Restart your PC and initialize the SSD to GPT partition style if this is new.
Step 1. Download AOMEI Backupper, install and run it. It is designed for all Windows systems including Windows 7/8/10/11/Vista/XP.
Step 2. Select the "Clone" option in the left menu column, and then select the "System Clone" option on the left. (As shown)
Step 3. The program will automatically select the system partition and boot related partition for you. You just need to select simply select SSD as the new location and click "Next" to continue.
Step 4. Then tick "SSD Alignment" to speed up the performance of the SSD, click "Start Clone."
If you're using a desktop, after you have successfully cloned Windows 11, restart the computer to boot from the new SSD. You may need to enter the BIOS/UEFI settings and ensure that the newly installed disk is the first boot device.
If you are using a laptop (Your PC has only one SSD slot), after you have successfully cloned Windows 11, shut down your computer, remove the old drive from your computer, and install a new SSD there. Then you can boot from the cloned SSD successfully.
How to change boot drive to SSD on Windows 11:
Step 1. First, restart your computer, and then press and hold the F2\F8\F11\DEL key on your computer's keyboard to enter the BIOS.
Step 2. Go to the boot option to change the boot order. Set SSD as the first boot option.
Step 3. Press F10 to save your changes and exit the BIOS. Then restart your computer so that your Windows 10 will boot from the cloned SSD.
Of course, you can choose to install Windows 11 on a new SSD using another, more complex method.
This article describes the best way to clone Windows 11 to new SSD. If you use the first method, you will find that the system and all data on the system drive have been safely migrated to the SSD. No need to reinstall software or copy any data. You don't need to change anything, just use your computer as before.
In fact, AOMEI Backupper is not only a professional disk cloning software, but also a Windows backup software with excellent performance. You can also use it to perform Windows 11 system restore from boot. Don't hesitate, come and try it out now!