Is it possible to completely duplicate my current Hardrive onto a new Hardrive and install it, and boot up my computer as if nothing changed? My computer is 4 years old and my Hardrive is dying after a lot of use.
Cloning is a direct transfer from the old drive to the new, in real time.
Imaging requires that you make an image file and then restore it to the new drive for it to be bootable.
Both can work. Both can fail. Imaging is more commonly used.
The process can be more complicated depending on the number of partitions involved and the size of the drives and partitions.
The state of your current hard drive might have an affect if it is failing. You might be better off just reinstalling to a new hard drive rather than cloning or imaging. All you can do is try.
My Computer
At a glance
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bitIntel Skylake i5-6600K, not overclocked8 GB HyperX DDR4-2666 (2 x 4 GB)none; graphics are integrated on CPU
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Ignatz Special; 4 speed manual gearbox; factory air conditioning; one of one
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bit
CPU
Intel Skylake i5-6600K, not overclocked
Motherboard
AsRock Z170M Extreme 4, micro ATX
Memory
8 GB HyperX DDR4-2666 (2 x 4 GB)
Graphics Card(s)
none; graphics are integrated on CPU
Sound Card
onboard: Realtek ALC1150; external: USB Behringer UF0-202
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell S2340M 23 inch IPS
Screen Resolution
1600 x 900
Hard Drives
System: Crucial MX100 series SSD, 128 GB;
Data: Samsung Spinpoint 103SJ, 1 TB;
Backup: WD Caviar Green WD30EZRX-00D8PB0, 3 TB
Microsoft Security Essentials and Malwarebytes Premium
Browser
Pale Moon
Other Info
All fans PWM; speeds at idle: CPU circa 500 rpm; intake circa 600 rpm; exhaust circa 600 rpm; CPU temps 27 idle and 47 C load in a warm room (27 C/81 F) when running Intel Extreme Tuning Utility stress test.
As stated by ignatzatsonic it definately can be done generally quite easily.
You can use Windows inbuilt imaging to image the system reserved partition (if you have one) and your OS partition. Windows will take care of this automatically.
I suggest you backup any data partitions independently.
Makesure your replacement HDD is at least the size of the original HDD then simply take the new HDD out of the bag replace on it's own and reimage. Then restore your data partitions.
My Computer
At a glance
Windows 7x64 Home Premium SP1Intel i7 2600kG.Skill Ripjaws (DDR3-1600) 2x4GBNvidia GeForce GTS 450; Intel HD Graphics 300...
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Own build
OS
Windows 7x64 Home Premium SP1
CPU
Intel i7 2600k
Motherboard
ASUS P8Z68 Deluxe
Memory
G.Skill Ripjaws (DDR3-1600) 2x4GB
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia GeForce GTS 450; Intel HD Graphics 3000(GT2+)
