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How to migrate Windows 7 OS from HDD to SSD on a multi partition disk with system & boot volume seperate

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Hi there,

Need expert advice how to rebuild my Samsung SSD boot drive after my system got corrupted and messed up. Note that my PC technical skills are limited. 

Would like to recvover using Acronis True Image 2016 where possible but wil use other tools if needed and/or more appropriate.

Current system and situation:

Have a Gigabyte desktop PC ruuning Windows 7 Home premium currently equipped with:

1 WDC HDD 465 Gb with 2 partitions:

     C - New volume - which hosts my current (active) Windows 7 Home OS partition

     F - Data - which contains a number of data files

1 Samsung 830 Series with:

     System Reserved - volume currently active & boot

     D - (no label) which contains a corrupt old version of Windows 7 Home OS

See screenshot taken from Mini Tool Partition Wizard 9.1 Free (PNG & PDF format)

Problem description:

A few weeks ago my desktop PC got completely corrupted after an unsollicited Windows 10 upgrade.

End result was that: system could not boot anymore not from SSD nor from HDD.

Meanwhile I have succesfully rebuild my Windows 7 Home desktop from scratch on the WDC HDD leaving the SSD as it was. 

Due to a mistake during the rebuild and recovery phase, I ended up having my bootable and system volume each on a separate disk (see screen shot) which currently  keeps me from properly cloning and rebuilding my SSD.

This situation keeps me from using traditional SSD migration tools and methods such as Clone disk, Clone Partition, etc.

Question(s):

  • How can i go about migrating my active Windows 7 Home system currently residing on my WDC HDD back to the Samsung SSD?
  • How do I fix the issue with the boot and system volumes currently residing on separate drives?
  • What are the best and safest steps to fix this?

Thanks a lot in advance for your help !

IOWizard

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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IOWizard,

Welcome to the forum.

Do you have recent ATI backups of the drives?  If you have the backups, you should be able to restore them to their respective drives.  This would be accomplished booting from rescue media.

Unfortunatly, I am not tech guru qualified...however I am confident one of the other MVPs will be able to help.

FtrPilot

Hello FtrPïlot,

Thank you for your prompt reply!

Yes I have a very recent backup of my Windows 7 OS currently installed on my HDD made with Acronios True Image 2016.

The backup made is a backup of the entire WDC HDD so i assume it contains a backup of all WDC content including 2 partitions (new volume and data), system files, etc.

Looking forwarde reiving further guidance by one of your MVP's.

Thanks and best regards,

IOWizard

 

What are the best and safest steps to fix this?

I moved this question to the top, because it's the most important right now.  Backup everything 'as is' right now.  Worse case, you have that backups to revert to before you do anything else.  Ideally though, if you had a third "test" drive to use instead of the 2 current drives, then you could practice on it without any risk to what you currently have at this point.  

How can i go about migrating my active Windows 7 Home system currently residing on my WDC HDD back to the Samsung SSD

It sounds like you want to take your new OS build that resides on the WD and move it to the SSD?  Is that correct?  I'm a little confused, becasuse you're booted into Windows in your screenshot already, so is that a different machine or do you hae a working OS install at this point?  If you have a working OS install that you can use, why not take a new backup image of it and restore it back to the SSD using the full disk retore option?  That should be relatively easy to do. As long as the full size of the restored data does not exceed the 250GB of the SSD, that should work.  Just format the SSD and restore the image to it.

How do I fix the issue with the boot and system volumes currently residing on separate drives?

Using minitool parition wizard, you can shrink space on either drive and create a parition where you need to be - front of the disk, between existing paritions, etc.  Assuming you're trying to put the 100MB System parition on the WD drive (I'm sitll confused here as to what you're wanting to move where), it seems like it would be easiest to shrink the C: drive of your WDC HDD 465 Gb by 100MB and move the newly created free space to the front of the drive and format it as FAT32, but without a volume letter.  Then use your Acronis recovery media and do a "parition" recovery (not disk) and restore the 100MB system reserved parition to it from the backup image.  It should most likely boot after that, but if not, then run a Windows system repair and it should straighten itself out. 

 

 

What are the best and safest steps to fix this?

if you had a third "test" drive to use instead of the 2 current drives, then you could practice on it without any risk to what you currently have at this point. 

>> As said in my previous reply - I do have a 'Entire PC' backup from my new build OS on the WD made a few days ago - so thats fine.

>> Looking for a 3rd drive to test 'migrate' on is an interesting new angle - thanks for that.  I currently do not have a 'spare' SSD on which I could 'practice' but perhaps I should get myself a new 256 SSD for 'future' use, since the current Samsung 128 Gb one is getting very cramped.  I'll check prices and revert my decission back to you.

How can i go about migrating my active Windows 7 Home system currently residing on my WDC HDD back to the Samsung SSD

It sounds like you want to take your new OS build that resides on the WD and move it to the SSD?  Is that correct?  

>> Yes that is correct.

I'm a little confused, becasuse you're booted into Windows in your screenshot already, so is that a different machine or do you hae a working OS install at this point?  

>> The screenshot supplied is from the rebuild OS on the WD that works fine.  The current system however is not very fast during Windows start up, that's why I want to move it to the SSD and boot from that instead.

If you have a working OS install that you can use, why not take a new backup image of it and restore it back to the SSD using the full disk retore option?  That should be relatively easy to do. 

>> You mean making a disk or partition image back-up on top of the 'Entire disk' back-up I already have?  Just to check if I undertstand you right?

As long as the full size of the restored data does not exceed the 250GB of the SSD, that should work.  

>> The size of my current Samsung SSD is 128 GB not 256 Gb I'm afraid so a liitle cramped but perhaps not impossible.  Perhaps I should not worry too much since I cleaned up the size of my new build OS on the WD so that it currently only takes 65 Gb from a total of 196 Gb capacity of the 'New Volume' on C (as you can see on the screenshot).  Is my reasoning right here or do i miss something?

Just format the SSD and restore the image to it.

>> Format my Samsung 128 Gb SSD will overwrite and destroy the 'System Reserved' part currently sitting in front of the D partition where I want to restore the new rebuild OS to.  Is that not a problem?  With Windows 7, do i not need this 'System Reserved' partition to function properly and also to boot from??  Or, will I rebuild the 'System Reserved' disk portion later as part of the restore or another follow-on action? Can you clarify this point?  So far I've been very afraid getting a SSD with a copy my new build OS on WD but from which I cannot boot.  Is that not an issue and will I be able to fix that after the image restore ??

How do I fix the issue with the boot and system volumes currently residing on separate drives?

Using minitool parition wizard, you can shrink space on either drive and create a parition where you need to be - front of the disk, between existing paritions, etc.  

>> OK - I understand I can do that but do you mean here: Shrink the 'New Volume' - C partition or 'Data' - F partition to create 'unallocated space' in between those two partitions?  Should this 'unallocated space' not go to the front of the WD? 

Assuming you're trying to put the 100MB System parition on the WD drive (I'm sitll confused here as to what you're wanting to move where), it seems like it would be easiest to shrink the C: drive of your WDC HDD 465 Gb by 100MB and move the newly created free space to the front of the drive and format it as FAT32, but without a volume letter.  

>> Ok , I'm with you here - working to get my 'boot volume'  back 'united' with my 'system volume' on my WD right? Only you speak in your last sentence above of 'moving the newly created free space to the front of the drive' (versus 'in between existing partitions)

Then use your Acronis recovery media and do a "parition" recovery (not disk) and restore the 100MB system reserved parition to it from the backup image.  It should most likely boot after that, but if not, then run a Windows system repair and it should straighten itself out.

>> I'm a bit confused here.. You mean: after putting (restoring) the '100 Mb boot volume' curruntly residing on  the Samsung drive on the WD drive then use Acronis recovery media to do a 'partition' recovery from the New Volume - C partition?? Where does the unallocated space or the restored 100 Mb boot volume come at play here ?  Can you clarify this furter ?

Thanks a lot in advance for helping me oput so far.  Apologies for my lack of technical skills for getting the full grasp of what needs to be doine here.

I will keep youi posted on getting myself an extra 256 SSD to test thinghs with.  I'm inclined to do that.

Thanks a lot,

IOWizard

OK, now we can see your screenshot.

I'm still confused.  

If you remove the SSD, does the WD boot by itself?  I'm guessing not if the 100Mb system parition lives on the SSD, but I have no idea how it could live on the SSD and boot to the WD.

And as a test, if you remove the WD and try to boot the SSD, does it boot?  Again, guessing not, based on your description of the setup, but it seems like it should.

If not, then what volumes to you actually want on the SSD as identified in the picture above, D, C or F?  It seems like you want to move C in between system reserved and F on the SSD?