How to Clone a Disk in Windows Server: A Comprehensive Guide for 2024

• Applies to: Upgrading or cloning a Windows Server disk to a larger, newer, faster HDD/SSD without data loss.
• Duration: 30 minutes - 1 hour.
• Supported: Windows Server 2022, 2019, 2016, 2012/2012 R2, 2008/2008 R2, and more.

Can you clone a server hard drive? This article will walk you through the complete guide to clone disk to a larger or new HDD/SSD on your Windows server computer without losing data or reinstalling the server OS.

If you have the same need, follow these instructions to begin your disk upgrade.

Before you begin: Prepare a new hard drive or SSD

When your Windows server disk encounters the above issues, it's time to clone and upgrade the server disk:

• The data or system drive is full.
• A Windows Server computer runs slowly as the disk space is running out.
• The System C drive on Windows Server is full, and you can't extend available space any more.

How to clone a disk and upgrade to a larger or faster new HDD or SSD in Windows Server? Before you start, you need to prepare the new disk for the disk upgrade cloning.

Here are some quick guidelines to help you prepare a new disk:

• Get a new larger HDD or an HDD-SSD hybrid drive for upgrading the data disk of your Windows Server. • If you aim to migrate the system disk of a Windows Server, prepare a faster and larger SSD. • After getting the new hard drive, install and initialize it in your Windows Server.

So, how to initialize a new disk in Windows Server? Firstly, you can directly install the new disk to your Windows Server and then open Disk Management to initialize the new drive.

Here's a comprehensive guide you can follow to proceed:

Complete Guide: Initialize SSD/HDD for Free

If you've added a brand new disk to your computer but it doesn't show up in File Explorer, you might need to assign a drive letter or initialize it before use. There're 3 ways to initialize an SSD or HDD in Windows and Windows Server.

How to Clone Windows Server Disk? Here Are 2 Reliable Ways

Here, we have compiled two reliable methods to upgrade disks on a Windows server. You can choose either one:

• #1. Clone Disk on Windows Server with Third-Party Disk Cloning Software
• #2. Back Up and Restore to New Disk with Microsoft Windows Server Backup

Which disk cloning tool should you choose? Here are the ones recommended by our editors:

For a simpler method, third-party disk cloning software like tools Partition Master Enterprise is more suitable for Windows Server administrators of all levels.

Please provide the English content you would like translated, and I will do my best to translate it into Chinese.

• You can try using Windows Server Backup, which is free and allows you to migrate your Windows Server disk data to another drive. The process is a bit more complicated than Method 1.
• If you want to clone the entire server operating system disk to a new drive, this solution will do the job and ensure that Windows programs and installed software will run after cloning.

Now, let's start cloning the disk in Windows Server.

#1. Clone a Windows Server Disk with Disk Cloning Software

• Tool: Third-party disk cloning software - AOMEI Backupper Technician Plus with its Disk Clone feature.
• Supported: Windows Server 2022, 2019, 2016, 2012, 2008, and more.

The most efficient way to upgrade and clone disks on a Windows Server computer is by using reliable Windows Server disk cloning software. AOMEI Partition Assistant Server with its Disk Clone feature can help any Windows Server user successfully clone and upgrade their disk.

Here's your complete guide to cloning a Windows Server disk to a new, larger SSD or HDD:

Step 1: Select the source disk.

• In the left menu, click "Clone." Choose "Clone System Disk" or "Clone Data Disk," then click "Next." • Select the source disk, then click "Next."

Step 2: Select the target disk.

Select your desired HDD/SSD as the destination location, then click “Next” to proceed. Read the warning message and confirm by clicking the “Yes” button.

Step 3: Review the disk layout and edit the target disk partition sizes if needed.

When prompted that all data on the target disk will be erased, click “Continue” (make sure to back up any important data on the target disk beforehand).

You can choose to “Autofit to disk,” “Clone as source,” or “Edit disk layout.” (Choose the last option if you want to allocate more space for the C drive.)

Step 4: Click “Start” to begin cloning the hard drive.

Then, you can restart your computer, and your data will be completely cloned to the new disk in Windows Server.

If some of you clone the Windows Server operating system disk to a new drive but the computer fails to boot after the cloning, stay calm. There could be two issues preventing you from accessing and running the Windows Server system:

• 1. You didn't set the newly cloned disk as the boot drive. Please read: How to set a cloned drive as the boot drive.
• 2. You need to configure the boot mode for your OS disk: MBR - Legacy, GPT - UEFI. Please read: How to disable/enable UEFI mode.

In addition to cloning disks in Windows Server, the Partition Master Enterprise tool can also help you manage disk partition space better with the following features:

• Fix "Cannot Extend Volume" error in Windows Server
• Extend C drive or resize partitions
• Convert GPT to MBR or change MBR to GPT without data loss
• Erase or wipe hard disk partitions in Windows Server

#2. Backing Up Server Data with Windows Server Backup and Restoring to a New Disk

• Tool: Microsoft Windows Server Backup.
• Supported: Windows Server 2022, 2019, 2016, 2012, 2008, and more.

Windows Server users might want to turn to Windows Server Backup, a free disk imaging solution. Although Windows Server Backup is a backup tool for disk volumes, it can serve as a perfect alternative to Windows Server disk cloning.

Experienced Windows Server users might want to try this method. Here's the full process for backing up your hard disk data to another drive:

First, back up the Windows server hard drive.

• Launch “Server Manager,” go to “Manage,” click “Add Roles and Features.”

In Server Manager, click on “Tools,” then select “Windows Server Backup.” Click on “Backup Once…” or “Backup Schedule…” – for this example, we'll choose “Backup Once…”

• In the left pane, click Select backup items. Most users will want to choose the default Bare Metal Recovery option, as it provides the most recovery options. • Click Add Items > Backup to begin backing up the disk.

Next, restore the contents of a disk backup to another drive.

1. Launch "Windows Server Backup," click on "Local Backup" and select "Recover." 2. In the "Get Started" window, choose "This server," then click "Next" to initiate the disk backup recovery process.

Choose the backup date, restore point, and items to restore, then put the backup on a new disk that you've added to your computer. Click “Restore” to begin.

Then, all you have to do is wait for the process to complete.

Additional Tip: What to Do with the Old Hard Drive after Cloning

After successfully cloning or moving all disk data to the new drive, what do you plan to do with the old one? It's essential to clean the old drive. But some may want to reuse the disk. So, how to manage the old drive?

"Disk Management tool - Partition Master Enterprise provides a complete solution to clean up and repartition your old hard drive with just a few simple steps."

1. Wipe old hard drive

We have two options for clearing your data. Please choose the one you need.

Option 1: Erase Partition

- Right-click the partition you want to wipe and select “Erase.” - In the new window, set how you want to erase the partition, then click “OK.” - Click “Execute 1 Task” in the bottom-right corner to review your changes, then click “Apply.”

Option 2: Erase the disk

Select HDD/SSD, then right-click "Erase Disk." Choose the number of times you want to overwrite the data (up to 10 times). Then click "OK." Click "Perform 1 Task" and then "Apply."

2. Drive that has been partitioned and formatted

Step 1: Run AOMEI Partition Assistant and enter the "Partition Management" interface. Click "Allocate this hard disk" in the popped up "New Disk Wizard" window.

Step 2. Set the number of partitions you want to create, as well as the disk partition style – MBR or GPT.

Alternatively, you can accept the default settings offered by Partition Master. When ready, click Proceed.

Click “Execute 1 Task” and “Apply” to partition the new HDD/SSD or external drive.

It's incredibly easy to clone a disk in Windows Server with a reliable disk cloning software.

On this page, we provide a complete guide to help Windows Server users easily clone and upgrade their server computer disks to larger, newer drives.

As long as you have the new hard drive ready, you can choose any of the methods provided on this page to successfully perform a disk upgrade. To make things easier, don't miss the free disk cloning software - AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional, and select the appropriate version to upgrade your hard drive right away.

Frequently Asked Questions About Cloning Windows Server Disks in UTF-8 Format

If you have other questions about cloning a Windows server disk, check the following FAQs and get your issues solved quickly.

**1. Can you clone a Windows Server?**

Yes, you can clone a Windows Server disk to another drive using a reliable disk cloning tool. On this page, we offer two methods: 1. **Partition Master Enterprise Tool** - Suitable for Windows Server owners at all levels, IT service providers, and business owners. 2. **Windows Server Backup** - Utilize the built-in server tool to upgrade the disk. For detailed steps on both methods, please follow the instructions provided.

How can I clone a physical Windows Server?

When cloning a physical Windows Server, you need to decide whether you want to clone the entire Windows Server disk to a new drive or just clone and migrate the Windows Server system to a new disk.

If you simply want to clone a Windows server disk to another drive, refer to the guide above; you have two disk cloning methods to choose from.

If you want to migrate Windows Server to another disk, you can refer to this tutorial page: Migrate Windows Server OS to a New Drive.

How to clone Windows Server 2016 to another disk?

To clone a Windows Server 2016 disk to another drive, follow the instructions on this page.

Here's a guide on how to clone the Windows Server 2016 operating system to another drive:

• Connect a new hard drive to your Windows Server 2016 or install a new one.
• Initialize the new hard drive with the same partition style as the OS disk of Windows Server 2016 - MBR or GPT.
• Run tools Partition Master Enterprise and choose "Clone", then click "Clone System".
• Select the target new hard drive, and then click "Execute 1 Task".
• Click "Apply" to start cloning and migrate Windows Server 2016 to the new hard drive.