Hard drive cloning software creates an exact copy of a hard drive, including Windows, applications, files, partitions, and system settings. It is commonly used when upgrading from HDD to SSD, replacing an old drive, or migrating Windows to a new disk. MiniTool provides 2 disk cloning software that help users clone drives easily without reinstalling Windows.
Why Do You Need Hard Drive Cloning Software?
Manual file copying can only copy personal files, while hard drive clone can create an exact copy of an entire drive, including the operating system, partitions, boot files, installed programs, and personal data.
You may need disk cloning software for the following reasons.
- Upgrade from HDD to SSD or upgrade to a larger disk without reinstalling Windows, games, and other apps.
- Replace an old or failing hard drive without manually installing and configuring everything again.
- Deploy identical computer configurations without manually installing Windows and applications on every computer.
- Create a complete system backup, which is useful before major system changes, hardware upgrades, or risky operations.
2 Best Disk Cloning Software
MiniTool offers 2 disk clone software—MiniTool Partition Wizard and MiniTool ShadowMaker. Both are free hard drive cloning software if you plan to clone a data disk. However, if you are going to clone the system disk, paid editions are needed.
The two programs are designed for different purposes. MiniTool Partition Wizard is mainly a disk and partition management tool with cloning and OS migration features, while MiniTool ShadowMaker focuses on backup, restore, synchronization, and disk cloning.
How to choose between them? You can refer to the table below.
| Feature | MiniTool Partition Wizard | MiniTool ShadowMaker |
| Clone entire disk | Yes (Copy Disk) | Yes (Clone Disk) |
| Clone individual partitions | Yes | No |
| Migrate Windows | Yes (Migrate OS to SSD/HD Wizard) | Limited to disk cloning scenarios |
| Resize partitions during disk cloning or OS migration | Yes | No |
| Convert MBR to GPT during disk cloning or OS migration | Yes | No |
| Partition management tools | Extensive | No |
| File/folder backup | No | Yes |
| Scheduled backups | No | Yes |
| System backup and restore | Limited | Yes |
| Best for | Partition management, disk upgrade, and OS migration | Data backups and disaster recovery |
How to Clone a Hard Drive with MiniTool Partition Wizard
MiniTool Partition Wizard offers the Copy Disk feature to help you clone the system disk or a data disk easily. If you just want to migrate the OS, Migrate OS to SSD/HD feature is more suitable.
Here is how to clone a hard drive using the MiniTool Partition Wizard Copy Disk feature.
MiniTool Partition Wizard DemoClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
Step 1: Make sure both source and target disks are connected to the computer. Then, launch MiniTool Partition Wizard. Select the source disk in the disk layout section and click Copy Disk from the action panel.
Step 2: Select the target disk and click Next. The data in the target disk will be destroyed. Click Yes to continue if you accept it.
Step 3: Review the changes. Here you can resize partitions by the Copy Options and Target Disk Layout. If the source disk is MBR style and you want the target disk to be GPT style, select the Use GUID Partition Table option. Then, click Next.
Step 4: Read the NOTE and click Finish. Then, click Apply at the bottom left corner to execute the hard drive cloning operation.
For a more intuitive guidance, please watch this video:
How to Clone a Hard Drive with MiniTool ShadowMaker
MiniTool ShadowMaker also offers a Clone Disk feature. The cloning process is as follows.
MiniTool ShadowMaker TrialClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
Step 1: Connect the source and target disks to PC. Launch MiniTool ShadowMaker and click Tools > Clone Disk.
Step 2: Click the Options button in the bottom left corner. Select the target disk ID option and the disk clone mode. Then, select the source disk and the target disk. After that, click Start to clone the disk.
Summary
MiniTool offers two disk cloning software. MiniTool Partition Wizard is designed for OS migration, hard drive upgrade, and partition management. MiniTool ShadowMaker is mainly for data backup and restore. Both of them are free disk cloning software for data disks.
Now it’s your turn to have a try. For any suggestions or questions towards using MiniTool software, please contact [email protected]. Much appreciated!
Hard Drive Cloning Software FAQ
About The Author
Position: Columnist
Linda has been an editor at MiniTool for seven years. She continuously learns about computers and puts her knowledge into practice. Moreover, she is particularly knowledgeable in disk management, data recovery, system installation, and PDF editing. Her articles typically reference multiple examples or are based on her own experience, providing users with the most suitable solutions.
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