What you will learn from this article

Disk cloning refers to the process of copying the contents of one hard drive to another. This is typically done to upgrade to a larger drive or to transfer data to a new computer. As such, disk cloning is usually a one-time operation.

Have you heard of scheduled disk cloning? It allows you to automatically clone your hard drive according to a predetermined schedule, eliminating the need for manual operation each time.

In other words, scheduled disk cloning can help you create automatic backups of your hard drive so you can keep your data safe. In the event that your hard drive fails or gets attacked by a virus, you can immediately use the cloned disk to replace the old one. Compared to backup, scheduled disk cloning can save you a lot of time since you won't need to go through the data recovery process.

Why Clone a Disk Regularly?

There are advantages to cloning a disk, which is why you would choose to use this feature:

    • Disk cloning enables you to create an exact replica of a hard drive, including the operating system, applications, data, and preferences. This way, you can immediately replace the original disk with the cloned one without reinstalling Windows or apps.
    • Scheduled disk cloning allows you to back up your hard drive regularly. Thus, you don't need to do it manually every time.
    • Compared to regular backups, scheduled disk cloning saves you a lot of time since you don't have to go through the data recovery process.
    • Automatically cloning a hard drive helps protect your data from hard drive failures, virus attacks, or other disasters.

Now that you know what scheduled disk cloning is and why it's useful, you're probably wondering which tools can help you clone your disk on a schedule. In the next sections, we'll introduce you to three of the best scheduled disk cloning software for Windows.

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How to Automatically Clone a Hard Drive as Backup for Your PC

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Automatically Clone a Hard Drive as Backup for Your PC

Top 3 Disk Cloning Software for Windows

1. Tool Todo Backup Enterprise

Compatible Systems: Windows Server 2022/2019/SBS 2008/11.10, 8, 7

Pricing: Starts at $49/year

The Todo Backup Enterprise, designed for businesses and organizations, is a reliable and professional backup and recovery solution. Apart from the main features of file, system, disk, and partition backup and recovery, it also supports scheduled disk cloning, helping you clone hard drives easily and quickly and create scheduled backups. During the backup cloning process, there's no need to shut down your computer, nor will it affect normal computer usage. Just set the automatic cloning time, and the software will work automatically without compromising your computer's performance and copy the hard drive to a new one. It's also among the best software to automatically clone a hard drive.

Tool: Todo Backup Advanced Server

Main features of Todo Backup Enterprise include:

    • File/Disk/Partition/System Backup and Restore
    • SQL Server Backup and Restore
    • Full/Differential/Incremental Backup
    • Scheduled System/Disk Cloning
    • Scheduled Backup
    • Universal Restore
    • Backup to Cloud/Drive/Network/FIPS Compliant Space
    • Centralized Management
    • Transfer System to Different Computers
    • Fast Backup, Restore, and Clone Speed
    • Create Portable USB
    • Create WinPE Disk to USB/CD

We also offer various editions designed for different business sizes, including Workstation, Server, Advanced Server, and Technician. Please refer to the Enterprise & Server Backup Solutions page for more information.

2. Macrium Reflect 8 Workstation

Compatible with: Windows

Pricing: Starts at $75 per year

Macrium Reflect 8 Workstation (secure link: https://www.macrium.com/products/business/standalone/workstation) is another software option for scheduling disk cloning, enabling you to create scheduled clone backups of your hard drives. It provides a comprehensive disaster recovery solution for your computer, facilitating easy disk cloning and scheduled backups. Additionally, it supports scheduled disk imaging, incremental and differential imaging, file and folder backup, and a bootable rescue media builder. You can use it to protect your data from hard drive failures or virus attacks.

Macrium Reflect lets you schedule automated clone jobs, and you can clone your drive while still using your computer. The software also supports command-line scripting for easy automation of scheduled clone tasks.

Macrium Reflect 8 Workstation

Main features of Macrium Reflect 8 Workstation:

    • File, folder, system, and disk backups
    • Create an image of a running Windows operating system
    • Direct disk cloning
    • Scheduled disk cloning
    • Scheduled backups
    • Bootable Rescue Media Builder
    • Incremental and differential images
    • Backup to cloud/network location/FTP server
    • WinPE 11 rescue media

3. Backup Chain

Compatible Systems: Windows Server 2022 - 2008, Windows 11/10/8/7

Pricing: Starts at $62.99/year

BackupChain (secure link: ) is a reliable and customizable backup tool for PCs and Windows servers that also allows you to create disk clones while Windows is running, without affecting anything on the server or PC. Once the cloning process is complete, you can even keep the clone version alongside the original disk, using it as a backup when needed. In case of total failure of the original disk, you can change the BIOS settings to boot from the cloned disk. Alternatively, you can use the clone to boot on another server or at a different location on a PC. With BackupChain, you can create various backup strategies.

BackupChain

Main features of BackupChain include:

    • Clone live MBR + GPT disks without rebooting Windows
    • Schedule disk cloning: automatic or on-demand hard drive cloning
    • Full and complete Windows system disk-to-disk duplication
    • Image replication from remote disks
    • Clone multiple disks and RAID arrays simultaneously
    • Back up local and remote PCs and servers
    • Hot-swap eSATA and USB external drives without configuration changes
    • Free setup of your own secure cloud storage for cloud backup

Summary

Above are the top 3 recommended Windows disk cloning software for 2022. You can choose the appropriate tool based on your needs. Of course, if you want to clone your hard drive effortlessly, you can try Todo Backup Enterprise. It will create an exact copy of your hard drive, which you can use as a backup if needed. Plus, it supports scheduled disk cloning and file synchronization.

Give it a try when you need to clone your hard drive or create scheduled backups. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions. We'll do our best to help.

Frequently Asked Questions About Disk Cloning Software

1. Does Todo Backup Home support scheduled clone backup?

Scheduled cloning can only be achieved with the Todo Backup Enterprise tool. So, you cannot perform scheduled backups with the Todo Backup Home tool. However, the Home version has the cloning feature that allows you to copy or migrate your HDD to another SSD/HDD.

What is the difference between a Scheduled Clone and a Scheduled Image?

A clone creates an exact replica of your hard drive, which you can use as a replacement if the original fails. An image, on the other hand, is more like a snapshot of your system at a given time, which you can use to restore your system to a previous state.

3. Can I use Acronis to schedule a drive clone?

Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office allows scheduling full system images or backups of only files and folders. It doesn't support scheduled cloning operations. If you want to clone a disk, you'll have to do it manually with this software.