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How to Resolve "The Selected Disk Is Too Small"

The selected disk is too small when cloning from a large disk to a small disk? Here's how to fix it.

Lily

By Lily Updated on November 12, 2025

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If you clone a disk to a smaller one, you may encounter “The selected disk is too small” error. How to solve this?

1. Please check if the used space of your source disk is larger than the target drive. If so, you can’t continue the clone operation.

2. If the used space of source disk is smaller than the target drive, please check whether the source disk is encrypted. The program will clone encrypted partitions with sector-by-sector mode by default, which means it will clone all sectors on source disk whether used or not. You could disable the encryption to be able to clone.

3. If the error persists, please check the file system of source partitions. If the partition is not using NTFS or FAT32, the program will clone it with sector-by-sector mode too. In this situation, you might need to use a bigger disk as target drive.

Lily
Lily · Editor
Lily Green joined AOMEI in 2018 and has since become a professional in the areas of data protection and data transfer. She is committed to helping users protect their precious computer data and troubleshoot Windows system errors. She consistently stays vigilant about the latest trends in technology, guaranteeing that the given information aligned with the ongoing advancements in the field.