Windows 10: Windows 11 clone backup fails to boot

I have a USB C external SSD drive which tests good with no errors. I am attempting to backup my Windows 11 system drive by cloning it on to the external ssd. The cloning process appears to go fine. When I attempt to boot off the external drive it gets through most of the boot process and then blue screens with "boot drive not found". Of course it was found or it would not have gotten as far into the boot process as it did. The google seach AI suggested a couple of things, explicitly make the external ssd the 1st boot device, make sure that all USB compatability setting are turned on, and

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Need Help Booting from Cloned Windows 11 HDD and File Transfer Query

I'm currently facing an issue that has me stumped and in need of some guidance regarding a Windows OS cloning and booting problem.

Here's the situation: I used Macrium Reflect to clone my Windows 11 operating system from my internal SSD onto an external HDD. My intention was to downgrade back to Windows 10. However, upon attempting to boot from the cloned drive, I encounter the dreaded "inaccessible boot device" error. As a result, the system automatically boots back into my original SSD, which currently runs Windows 10 (after the attempted downgrade).

I've tried several troubleshooting steps, including adjusting BIOS settings, checking for driver compatibility, and attempting different boot options without success. I'm seeking advice on how to resolve this boot issue and successfully boot from the cloned drive containing Windows 11.

Furthermore, if booting directly from the cloned drive proves unsuccessful, I'd appreciate any suggestions on how to transfer files and applications (if possible, I understand some apps may not function properly due to the OS difference) from the Windows 11 cloned drive to my internal SSD running Windows 10. Doing this without manually copying each file and searching for its respective location would be immensely helpful.

Any insights, suggestions, or step-by-step guidance would be greatly appreciated.

 

Do window 10 offer a clone image feature for backup system?

Hi, oemSoft

I am sorry to tell you that there is no built-in clone feature in Windows 10. If you just create a system image backup, you can follow the steps below to create a system image in Windows 10.

Step 1. Open Control Panel, go to System and Security > File History, then click System Image Backup at the lower-left corner. Or you can directly type backup and restore in the search box and select it from the search result list.

Step 2. Connect the USB drive to your computer and select it as the destination path, then click Next.

Step 3. Confirm your backup settings and click Start Backup.

However, if you want to clone your system directly, you can choose a third-party software like AOMEI Backupper. This is a professional clone software that allows you to

clone system to different places such as external hard drive, USB drive or Network, etc. without booting problems. With it, you also can clone the entire disk to HDD or SSD.

 

Failing HDD and Cloning

You seem intend on this install clean install windows when I have said windows does not run on that drive and TeraCopy doesn't even budge anymore.
for moving files from that drive. Then there are those that have suggested imaging and 1 or 2 that talked about cloning software.

I now have 3 HDDs left...

So nothing is copying, no cloning and imaging, now what?