Beta · early version
A free app for Windows 10 and 11
Move Windows to a new SSD. Any brand.
Bought a bigger drive? Clone Windows Disk copies your Windows, apps and files onto it and makes it bootable, so you can swap drives without reinstalling anything.
- Any brandSamsung, Crucial, WD and more
- NVMe + SATAin either direction
- 1 filenothing to install
- $0no ads, no account
Why it exists
Drive makers’ tools only work with their own drives.
Samsung’s migration tool needs a Samsung drive. Most “free” cloning apps now put the clone button behind a paywall. This one uses the tools already built into Windows, so the brand doesn’t matter.
Your old drive stays safe
It is only read, never changed. If anything goes wrong, you still boot from it like before.
Hard to pick the wrong disk
The drive Windows is running from is never offered as a target, and you confirm the target’s name and serial before anything is erased.
Bigger or smaller
The Windows partition is resized to fill the new drive. A smaller drive works too, as long as your files fit.
Clone while you work
It copies from a snapshot, so Windows keeps running during the clone.
Nothing leaves your PC
It never connects to the internet. No account, no tracking.
Built on Windows itself
Under the hood it runs Microsoft’s own disk, imaging and boot tools, in the right order.
How it works
Four steps, one window.
Connect
Fit the new drive in a spare slot, or plug it in with a USB adapter.
Pick
Choose the new drive from the list and confirm it can be erased.
Clone
Watch the progress bar while Windows is copied and made bootable.
Swap
Restart, choose the new drive in your boot menu, and you’re done.
Read this first
Before you clone.
Be careful
- The new drive is wiped. Everything on the target drive is permanently erased. Copy anything you need off it first.
- This is a beta. It is an early version that has not been tested on many PCs yet. Back up important files before you start.
- Keep the old drive untouched until you have started Windows from the new one and checked your files.
Good to know
- It copies your C: drive. Extra partitions, like a separate D: drive, are not copied.
- Modern PCs only. Your PC must start in UEFI mode, which nearly all Windows 10 and 11 PCs do.
- OneDrive files: online-only files can stop the copy. Pause OneDrive or keep those files on the device first.
- BitLocker: the copy is not encrypted. Turn encryption on again on the new drive afterwards.
Ready to swap drives?
Free to download and use. One small file, nothing to install.
Unzip it
Open the download and drag CloneWindowsDisk.exe to your desktop.
Run it
Double-click the app and click Yes when Windows asks for administrator permission.
You’ll see a warning
Windows may say it “protected your PC”. Click More info, then Run anyway.
Clone
Pick the new drive, tick the box, click Start cloning and wait for it to finish.
Why the warning? The app isn’t code-signed yet, which is a paid certificate that tells Windows who made an app. Until then Windows asks you to confirm.
Questions
Good to ask.
Is it really free?
Yes. There is nothing to buy, no ads and no account.
Which drives does it work with?
Any brand of SSD or hard drive that Windows can see, NVMe or SATA, fitted inside the PC or connected by USB.
Can I clone to a smaller drive?
Yes, if your files fit. The app needs room for a temporary copy as well, so on a tight drive use the “temporary image folder” box to point it at a third drive.
How long does it take?
It depends on how much is on your C: drive and how fast both drives are. Expect anything from a few minutes to a couple of hours.
Can I stop it halfway?
Not safely, so the app won’t let you close it while cloning. If it does get interrupted, your old drive is unaffected and you can simply start again.
My PC still starts from the old drive. What now?
Open your PC’s boot menu or BIOS as it starts (often F2, F12, Esc or Del) and choose the new drive. Once that works, you can remove the old one.
Something went wrong. Can you help?
Yes. Copy the text from the log box in the app and email it to me.