How to Clone Hard Drive While Windows Is Running

Can You Clone a Hard Drive While in Use?

Yes, you absolutely can clone a hard drive while Windows is running or use your PC while cloning a hard drive. This process, often referred to as "live cloning" or "hot cloning," allows users to duplicate the entire contents of a disk, including the operating system, applications, files, settings, and boot records, without shutting down or rebooting the PC.

Correspondingly, there is a cold cloning that requires you to turn off the device before cloning the disk and enter Windows PE mode or boot the CD during the cloning process. Cloning a hard drive while the system is in use is particularly useful for users who cannot afford downtime. Whether you're backing up your entire system or upgrading to a larger SSD, this method ensures that your work isn't interrupted.

Best Live Cloning Software Free Download

So, after you know the affirmative answer to the question - Can you clone an HDD while it is running, you may wonder what the best live cloning software is to clone your drive while Windows is running. One of the most reliable and reputable tools is AOMEI Cloner, which lets you perform a clone without interrupting your workload.

With a user-friendly interface, this AOMEI Cloner software offers Disk Clone, System Clone, and Partition Clone. You can use it to clone your boot drive, migrate only Windows OS, or copy a specific partition to another drive, without interrupting your work or restarting your PC. Also, it comes with other advanced features:

AOMEI Cloner

Best Live Cloning Software

• Intelligent Cloning - Only copies used sectors (by default), reducing the cloning time and allowing to clone to smaller SSDs or HDDs.
• Sector-By-Sector Cloning - Creates an exact, byte-for-byte copy of your old disk, including unused and bad sectors.
• SSD Alignment - Optimizes the target SSD for better performance and lifespan.
• Partition Resizing - Resizes partitions or converts partition style of the destination disk to make full use of your disk space.

Free Download
Win 11/10/8/7/Server

100% Secure

How to Clone Hard Drive While Windows is Running

The following is a step-by-step guide on cloning a disk while running Windows using AOMEI Cloner.

Before you start:✎...

Please connect the target hard drive (HDD or SSD) to your PC, and make sure it has enough storage to accommodate the source drive. If there are important files on it, please back up them in advance, as the cloning process will erase all data on the target drive.

Step 1. Install the AOMEI Cloner on your computer, then open it, and click Clone to select Disk Clone.

Step 2. Choose your current system drive that contains the running Windows (usually labeled Disk 0) as Source Disk.

Step 3. Then, select the new HDD or SSD where you want to clone the data as the Target Disk.

Step 4. Check SSD Alignment if the target is an SSD to improve read/write performance. If needed, you can also tick Sector-By-Sector Clone for a full copy, including unused space.

Step 5. Click Start Clone. The AOMEI Cloner software will begin cloning your drive while Windows is running in the background. And you can also run other programs without interruption.

Troubleshoot: Cloned Hard Drive Won't Boot on Windows 10/11

Cloning your hard drive while Windows is running is incredibly convenient, but sometimes things don’t go exactly as planned. One of the most common post-cloning issues users face is this: the cloned drive won't boot. This can be frustrating, especially after a seemingly successful clone. Here are some of the most commonly used solutions to get your system up and running again.

• Wrong boot order in BIOS/UEFI: After cloning, your system may still be trying to boot from the old drive. You can enter BIOS/UEFI by pressing Del, F2, or Esc, go to the Boot tab, and set your new cloned drive as the first boot device.
• MBR vs GPT conflict (Boot Mode Mismatch): Windows 10/11 requires UEFI boot mode for GPT partition style and Legacy boot mode for MBR. If there's a mismatch, your system won't boot. You can go to Disk Management, and then right-click the disk > Properties > Volumes > Partition Style to check it.
• Secure Boot blocking the new drive: On newer machines, Secure Boot may block booting from a newly cloned drive. You can disable Secure Boot in BIOS/UEFI settings to have a try.
• Driver conflicts or hardware compatibility: In some cases, Windows won't boot due to driver mismatches, especially if cloning to a new platform or cloning from SATA to NVMe. Here, you may need to update or reinstall relevant drivers via Device Manager.

FAQs on Cloning Hard Drive While Windows is Running

#1. Can I clone my hard drive including the operating system?

Yes! Using tools like AOMEI Cloner, you can clone hard drive while Windows is running, including the OS, programs, user settings, and hidden boot sectors. This creates a fully bootable clone of your current system.

#2. How long does it take to clone a 1TB hard drive?

It depends on several factors, including drive speed, interface type (SATA vs NVMe), cloning mode (intelligent vs sector-by-sector), and the actual data size. On average, it may take about 30-60 minutes with the Intelligent Clone method.

#3. Why is it taking so long to clone my hard drive?

Several factors could be slowing down the cloning process, like

• Bad sectors or drive errors.
• A large number of small files that slow down read/write processes.
• Using USB 2.0 instead of faster interfaces.
• Running apps in the background that constantly read/write data.

Conclusion

Now you know how to clone hard drive while Windows is running with the best hot clone software, AOMEI Cloner. Also, it is equipped with a Bootable Media Creation function, which allows you to create a bootable USB or CD/DVD, so that you can clone hard drive from WinPE when your Windows fails to load.