Using ssd's without clean install?

Is there a guaranteed way of using ssd's without the need to clean install everything?
I heard the new intel drives have a backup utility but i was looking more to getting a 256gb c300, c400, or samsung drive; whixhever comes out cheaper and more stable in reviews.

 

You could perhaps try use Macrium Reflect FREE Edition as recommended here: Alignment from Windows 7 clone - Crucial Community

 

Thanks for the tip, have you tried it yourself?

 

I have not (I always do a clean install and then attach the old hard drive via eSATA and copy the files over), but I generally trust what comes out of targetbsp's mouth.

I must say that it seems that with this program you need to make an image of the drive first, not just a direct copy which could be highly problematic for laptop users.

 

ok gives me hope. most people in this forum and most tech sites advise a clean install but thats just too much hassle for me.

 

I used my Lenovo recovery disks to put the factory image on to the SSD. I suppose you could also restore from backup if you like.

How full is your boot drive? I suppose you could also simply clone the OS/Program drive image over. You are using Win 7 so shouldn't have an alignment problem on the clone.

Perry

 

my drive right now is 155gb full and i intend on getting a 256gb ssd. so there are no alignment problems in win7? i used to see a lot of threads about ssd misalignment and they got me worried.

 

Partition Wizard 6.0 Home Ed (free)

Main Features:
.
.
.

"Copy Disk Wizard: Copy the entire hard disk to another without having to reinstall Windows"

http://partitionwizard.com/free-partition-manager.html


Watch there video on how to use Copy Disk Wizard

http://partitionwizard.com/help/copy-disk-wizard.html

and more help

Copy Disks - Partition Wizard Help

Set your SSD- Partition Starting Offset at 1,048,576 bytes,,thru partition tools in Partition Wizard,

Can use external Sata to usb 2.0 enclosure--your new ssd in it and disk copy to it, then exchange them, done !


This program may not get the job done,,,they have changed there wording upon looking closer at there modules...



Cheers
3Fees

 

thanks i was gonna try marcium reflect but this could be another alternative.

 

I have reviewed a few programs ,,new Acronis True Image 2011 appears to have the right stuff to do what you want. You will have to get Acronis® True Image™ Home 2011 Plus Pack also.

http://www.acronis.com/

Cheers
3Fees

 

how about using windows backup for the hdd, clean install win7 on ssd and restore backup on ssd.
would that work?

 

^^ was wondering that too. making restore image on dvd backups and then restoring to clean ssd. i'd rather NOT do a clean install, but it seems to be the best option. hassle of putting important stuff back and getting latest drivers, rather than messing with "problems", especially unexpected ones.

 

yeah that clean install thing is a major reason thats turning me off from ssd's.

another is the comments i see about ssd's performing poorly when they are almost filled up.

 

OK, I am assuming you don't have a new computer. So you want to move your complete HDD image to an SSD?

If that is the case and you are using Win 7 simply clone it over. On some machines I have heard that you should put the 'to be cloned' drive in the main drive slot and clone from out to in, but that is likely not necessary with most machines.

Acronis TIH 2011 will maintain alignment but won't correct bad alignment. So download AS SSD and run it on your HDD. If the HDD is OK in green than it is aligned. If so, a clone of a Win 7 disk will also be aligned.

But, goodness, AS SSD is free. Just try it and than check it. No problem as long as the result is aligned.

Perry

 

Tonite I installed a C300 Crucial 256 GB SSD in place of my Crucial C300 120 GB OS drive.

I used Acronis TIH 2011 clone. I did put the new drive in the main bay (Lenovo W520) and the source drive in the ultrabay. But other than that nothing special. I did check alignment with AS SSD before the clone and after the clone. Both show OK in green.

EZ and good to go.

Perry

 

im thinking of getting a c300 256gb too. thanks for the feedback. what other tweaks did you do make it operate as it should? did you keep your power setting on high performance to avoid the 'freezing bug'?

 

I used that Windows Forum tips and tweaks thread and went through it step by step.

Perry

 

so you did:
clone present windows
format ssd
update ssd firmware
clone to ssd
check alignment
install irst
turn off virtual memory
turn off indexing
turn off defragmenting
put laptop in high performance
use jjb/staxmatix registry tweak

is that what you did?

i dunno to me that seems like a lot of work to make my 400usd ssd work as it should.
to top it off, i may need to clean install if i get a misalignment plus i lose the energy saving benefits of the ssd since i need to keep my laptop on high performance and my cores unparked to avoid the stuttering/freezing bug.
i reall, really wanna try an ssd, but i want something that works out of the box without the need to clean install.
is this still a pipe dream with present ssd tech?

 

From the mentioned steps following is not neccessary IMO:

format SSD, cloning will replace the NTFS filesystem with that of the HDD.
put laptop in high performance
registry tweak

I would also only reduce the size of the pagefile to 512 - 1024 MB
Also I would disable hibernate

 

the high performance/registry tweak seems to solve the freezing issue. i dont want an ssd that takes 3-5 seconds to open a file windows as experienced by others. have the new firmware upgrades solved this? and in what 256gb models?

i need pagefile for legacy programs at least 2gb would that be an issue?

 

I have a Samsung 470 128 GB connected to the Intel PM45 chipset. I never had the mentioned lags. Neither in AHCI, nor in RAID0!
You have 12 GB of RAM therefore I thought you don't need a big pagefile.
Let it the setting at the default and you will waste 12 GB of SSD space plus the space for the hibernate file, at least another 12 GB!
Specify of the pagefile size as high as your legacy applications need and deactivate hibernate. 2 GB pagefile is no issue.

Regarding the lags, I see you have a SB notebook with a 6X chipset. Do you know they have also the 5X chipset lag bug?

Maybe you have the opportunity to order the SSD, try it and return it if you're not satisfied. At least this possible in Germany.

 

yes i forgot to include disable hibernate. i already have it disabled on my system as i never use it.
i will have to order the ssd from the states and have it delivered to me here in my country. that gives me almost no option to return it. that is the reason why i want to be sure of these issues before i get an ssd.

 

Intel offers a migration tool if you get an Intel drive. One of many tools that Intel offers over the others, which is another reason (of many) that I choose Intel. Until imaging software can catch up, not sure why it takes so long, I'll stick with Intel or do a clean install.

I do have a setup I'd rather not do a clean install again too, but so far can't find anything.

 

@ht

but you got yourself an ssd. what do you mean by cant find anyhting?

 

I meant can't find any software to clone and fix or ensure alignment.

 

i see. so you want to update firmware and want to backup your system but you have not found a proven solution for this aside from intel's utility.
btw hows your drive performing?

 

Excellent. Actually I have several. 60GB Vertex 2 in my gaming desktop, Kingston V-series 64GB in my "productivity" desktop (Shuttle), 120 GB Intel in both my Sager and M11x.

 

You can accomplish this with DriveSnapshot. It offers 30 days full functional trial. It is simply an exe, you need no installing. If you need it once more, download it again and you have another 30 days trial.
Here's the link to the website: Drive Snapshot - Disk Image Backup for Windows NT/2000/XP/2003/X64

1. You have to take an image of your partition(s) with DriveSnapshot. Just run the exe in Windows. There is a trick in the advanced options. I can tell you if you want.
2. Install the SSD.
3. Install Windows 7 on the SSD, that assures correct alignment. No activation required.
4. Starting Windows from the SSD, invoke DriveSnapshot.exe again as described at link Drive Snapshot News "it is possible to restore the system drive during next system Restart"
5. You're done.

I'm using it often, but I do the restore with WinRescuePE.

 

Didn't read the whole thread but I'm using Acronis True Image > Disk Cloning tool. Works like a charm, over and over again.

 

Is Acronis True Image for free?

 

Normally not. I believe WD has a free version.

 

No. <ten chars>

 

i think that feature has been disabled for the trial version