Copy Windows 8.1 OS from RAID 0 to Single HDD

So I have a bad HDD in my RAID 0 setup and I'm trying to migrate the OS to a new HDD and as a result remove RAID. I have been at this for ~11 hours and I am more or less pissed off at this point so I'm going to get straight to the question: What is a STRAIGHT-FORWARD way to essentially copy the OS/Files/Programs/Etc. from my RAID setup (I am using 230gb of my RAID setup) to my single 750 HDD? So far the System Image Method has failed me (I'll show the error message later, I'm tired + going to sleep). Thanks in advance for the help.

 

If you have "a bad HDD" in your RAID- 0, doesn't that mean all your data is in trouble as well?

 

I don't know, I can access everything and nothing appears damaged. Just error messages prompted from Intel RST and in quick diagnostics in my pc.

EDIT: Here is the message I get when I try sys. image restore:

Dell/Alienware only provided OEM recovery media, for Win. 8 (no options to install saved system image) and I don't know how/ if I can make a sys. repair disk for Win. 8.1.

Re. EDIT: I created a system repair disc on a standalone USB with the sys image on an external HD. When I go to perform the System Image Restore I get this message:

I get this AFTER I selected the system image, so it is being detected. Any ideas?

EVEN MORE EDIT(s):I found out the only way windows system image recovery will work is if the image is restored on the exact same hard drive setup that it was taken from. I.E.: I can't restore the image on a new hard drive. Does this have anything to do with the RAID 0 setup and if so how do I work around this?

 

Hate to bump but this is a time-sensitive issue and I wanted to get any help that I could. I did try google searching and since Windows 8.1 is relatively new there aren't really any results that correspond to my specific situation.

 

I can only recommend HDClone. Windows System Image and Restore tools are a joke.

 

Would cloning work going from RAID 0 to a single Hard drive? The hard drive it's going to is big enough to hold all the data that's in the Raid setup since the other ~750gb are unallocated

 

Highly recommend to not do this.


Do a clean install to the single HDD instead.

If this was RAID1, we'd be having a different conversation, but RAID0 is a throwaway installation of an O/S and Programs and it seems like right now, it is time to throw this one away and do it right (single HDD in AHCI mode).


Good luck.

 

So will I have to go through the hassle of re-downloading and re-installing all my drivers? Main reason was I don't really have the time available to be doing all that, plus some programs I need and I'm not sure if I have the media to re-install them.

 

Yes, if you want to do it right.

RAID0 is not for a carefree setup - it is to do a specific type of workload (fast sequential speeds) for big, big files.

Was the notebook shipped with RAID0 or did you reconfigure it afterwards?

If it was shipped like that, see what options the manufacturer offers for a conversion to a more stable/much more supported (and recommended) setup. If you're lucky, you may just need to pay shipping charges for the proper recovery disks (for non-RAID setups).


As for the drives and programs - this is why I have a copy of the installers (and the install order) on at least a dozen computers and the install codes for my paid programs in my safe.

Nothing guarantees a computer to keep working (RAID or not) - the backup of critical files and codes has always been the responsibility of the owner.

 

Because I'm stubborn and I want to find a solution that doesn't require me to basically start from the beginning, would it be possible for me to do a clean install and using AOMEI, cloning ONLY the OS partition to the other hard drive, replacing the OS partition on the new HD and leaving all other part. intact? (Whether you say it will or won't work I will try it just in case)

 

Stubborn is good when we're young and learning (seeing it first hand is how it gets drilled in our heads). You may even teach me something new.

I wish you luck in your search of shortcuts.

 

Sooooooo remember when I said cloning didn't work? Yeaaaaaaah it did, kinda. Dell sent me a USB tool that restores Windows 8 to my HDD, apparently it also repairs issues with bootable drives. So since I still had the drive cloned when I tried using it to install Windows 8 on the drive, it repaired the drive without deleting everything. In short: I was able to clone my RAID 0 setup to my Single replacement HDD and got it working .

Now I just have to deal with slow loading times until I pick up an mSATA drive.

EDIT: 2 more questions: 1 - How do I remove RAID from the other 2 HDDs?/ 2 - If I were able to use the one good 750gb hd with these other 2, should I run in RAID 5?

 

While you may have seemingly transferred your system from RAID0 to a single drive, that is not my definition of cloning 'working'. Time will tell if a re-install is necessary anyways; I wish you luck.

What is the fixation with RAID arrays? Nothing cool about them except in very specific situations which you don't seem to have a need for?

Nothing needed to 'remove' RAID from the old RAID0 array drives. Once you format the good one (or use it in another RAID array) it will be setup properly once again.

To properly answer if you should run in RAID5, tell us what you do with your system and how stable/dependable/reliable and available it needs to be for you.

 

I'll be working with videos doing recording/editing/rendering, and I'll need ample space to store many videos on my system. I'll also (try) GFX work and possible heavy photo editing as well.

 

I don't see how cloning is problematic, I did it multiple times with a Windows 7 installation - from a 512byte drive to a 4K drive to an SSD without any major problems...

HDClone can see RAID arrays and has multiple options for dealing with partitions and empty space.