Windows 10: Need to clone SSD opsys with only one M2.2280

Scared to death of catastrophic Op Sys SSD failure Only one slot on motherboard for SSD m.2 2280 I’m hoping this project of me making an exact copy of my hard drive which only has operating system and a couple of programs on it. I will be able to achieve if this one fails that I’m using now I can just simply pop in another one in its spot and be up and running. If this is possible using Windows 10 and some third-party software, I would also need to know what is the best connection method for the second SSD that I’m transferring the files to I would like it to go as fast as possible I do have

:)

 

Switch HDD to SSD + Add m2 2280 SSD then Activation? Or Activate then swap all the HDD/SSDs around?

Good Afternoon,

Just purchased a brand new desktop PC (it still in the box). Its preinstalled with Windows 10 Professional (awaiting activation) on the a single drive which is a 2.5" HDD. I don't' want that drive in the computer and I've purchased two new SSD's to upgrade
the system. Once I remove the HDD, its no longer part of my equation.

Current out of the box setup:

2.5" HDD with Windows 10 Pro awaiting first startup / initiation and activation.

Where I want to go:

M.2 2280 SSD as Primary drive with Windows 10 Pro installed and activated here

2.5" SSD as secondary drive for my files/documents/data.

How do I get the preinstalled Win10Pro off the HDD, and activate it on the M2 SSD as the primary OS boot drive? Should I activate windows before making all these hardware changes? Or should I clone/reinstall Windows 10 Pro to the M.2 SSD then activate?
Last step is adding the additional SSD for data, but that's not a priority … or is it? Add it before activation?

This is the headache I get for buying an pre-built system that wasn't originally spec'd the way I wanted. Oh well.

Do the HDD/SSD changes make a diff to the activation process? or is it all hardware encoded to the motherboard which remains unchanged?

Advice?

 

Transfer Windows SATA M2 to NVME M2 - clone not working

Hi All,

I am attempting to breath some life into a 4 year old HP Laptop running windows 10. Memory upgrade to 16GB was straightforward, and I planned to move from th 256GB SATA M2 SSD to a 256GB WD SN750 NVME SSD - which in theory should be a bit of a boost too...

I use macrium reflect for cloning duties, and it has been rock solid on previous migrations.

On installing the cloned NVME device, it appears to start booting but then windows goes into a automatic repair loop which I cant break out of.

My assumption is there is a driver problem in the cloned image (which came from an SATA M2 Drive) as the NVME SSD appears fully functional otherwise (Ive tested it in an external enclosure and run an HDTUNE error check on it as well).

I know a fresh install is best, but its the other half's laptop and I would prefer not to have to do a clean install.

Any ideas what I can check/need to install on the SATA M2 before I clone ?

 

2 ssd migration to larger m2 ssd

Hi The

If you can connect both M2's to your system then you can clone the old Ms onto the new one - most systems do not have a second M2 port - you should check to see if that is possible . . .

If you can connect both drives to your system then the free version of Macrium Reflect would be a good choice to perform the cloning . ..

If you cannot connect both drives, then you will be unable to clone the old drive and your only choice will be to backup your data and clean install Windows 10 onto the new M2 SSD