How to Clone NVMe to NVme SSD of Different Sizes?

Wondering how to clone NVMe SSD drive to another one? Refer to the post to know detailed steps to clone NMMe to NVMe in Windows 10 whether your PC has two or one NVMe M.2 slot.

Bryce

By Bryce / Updated on May 12, 2023

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Why clone NVMe to NVMe SSD?

NVMe (non-volatile memory express), is an open logical device interface, specially developed for M.2 SSDs, usually attached via PCIe (PCI Express) bus. Compared with AHCI SSD, NVMe SSD has better performance, lower latency, and higher I/O operations per second. That’s why more users change to NVMe drive from AHCI. For more information, refer to AHCI VS NVMe.

M.2 SSD

Cloning one NVMe SSD to another means you can get a copy of all content, covering Windows operating system, on the source drive. Normally, users plan to clone NVMe drive under those two conditions:

▪ To replace the current boot NVMe SSD with a new disk and don’t have to reinstall OS and other apps on the new drive from scratch.
▪ To get a backup of all the data on the source NVMe drive in case of issues like system crash, data loss, or something else.

What to do before cloning NVMe SSD to NVMe SSD?

It is necessary to check out the following tips before cloning the NVMe SSD drive so as to make sure the subsequent cloning process can go on successfully.

1. Check whether the M.2 slot supports NVMe

Please ensure the M.2 slot supports the NVMe drive through the OS or motherboard manual. If it does not support, you can not enjoy the all advantages of NVMe SSD drive. In such a case, you may need consider upgrading your computer motherboard.

2.  Install the new NVMe SSD on your PC

If the slot supports NVMe drive, next you can try to install the new NVMe SSD on your PC.  For computers with more than one M.2 slot, you can do it with the following steps.

Step 1. Turn off the computer,  remove the power plug and open the computer case.

Step 2. Locate the M.2 slot on the computer motherboard and insert the NVMe drive into the slot at about a 30 degree angle untile there is no more give. 

Insert SSD

Step 3. Then, gently press down the tail of the NVMe drive towards the motherboard.

Press SSD

Step 4. Insert the screws and tighten it to a comfortable point. Take care not to overtighten or you will risk damage to the drive and even the motherboard.

Tighten

Finally, put the case cover back on.

★Tip:
 If you are using a laptop that has only one M.2 slot, you need to use an adapter from M.2 to PCIe or M.2 to SATA for connecting the new NVMe SSD.

M2 Adapter

3. Intiliaze the NVMe SSD drive

After the new SSD drive has been installed correctly, you can reconnect the power cable and reboot up your computer. Then you need to intialize the SSD to GPT partition style, which can be easily done in Windows built-in Disk Management.

Initialize SSD

Clone NVMe SSD via a professional cloning software

In Windows 10, there is no built-in tool to help you perform NVMe to NVMe SSD copy. Thus, it’s necessary to resort to third-party drive cloning software. Here I would like to recommend AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional.

Its “Disk Clone Wizard” enables you to complete NVMe SSD to NVMe SSD bootable clone as it won’t even miss a hidden partition, like EFI system partition in Windows.
Apart from cloning to NVMe M.2 SSD, it supports cloning to SATA M.2 SSD, HDD, USB flash drive, or SD card.
In the capacity demand of the destination NVMe drive, it can clone to a larger, smaller drive or a drive with the same size, if the usable space of the target drive is not smaller than the used space of the source drive.

AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional enjoys other advanced functions, including Migrate OS to SSD, Dynamic Disk Converter, etc. in Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7. To manage disk and partition in Windows Server, you can turn to AOMEI Partition Assistant Server.  Now, let’s walk through the detailed steps of NVMe to NVMe SSD copy.

PS.: It is available to download the demo version of AOMEI Partition Assistant to have a try at first.

Download Demo Win 11/10/8.1/8/7/XP
Secure Download

Step 1. Run the NVMe SSD drive cloning tool and go to “Clone”> “Clone Disk”.

Software to Clone NVMe to NVme SSD

Step 2. It has two cloning methods. If you clone to a larger NVMe SSD, you can choose one as you like. If you clone to a smaller drive, you need to choose “Clone Disk Quickly” to clone only used sectors.

Methods

Step 3. Select the old Windows NVMe drive as the source disk.

Source Disk

Step 4. Choose the new NVMe SSD as the target disk and check "Optimize the performance of SSD" to make 4K alignment.

Target One

Step 5. On this screen, it is available to adjust partitions on the target disk or leave it alone.

Edit

Step 6. You’ll go to the main console automatically. Click Apply and Proceed to execute SSD cloning operation.

Apply

Follow-up work after NVMe to NVMe copy

After cloning NVMe to NVMe drive, take a look at how to boot from the new cloned NVMe SSD. 

If there is one NVMe M.2 slot on the computer, you can remove the old NVME SSD drive, install the new one, and boot from it.

Install New NVMe M.2 SSD

If your PC has more than one M.2 slot, then you can keep two NVMe SSD drives simultaneously. You need to enter BIOS to set the new NVMe drive as the prior boot device to boot. Here are the detailed steps:

1. Reboot your PC and tap a functional key constantly to enter BIOS and choose "Enter setup".

2. Select "Change boot order" and set the new NVMe SSD as the first boot device.

Change Boot Order

3.Press "Enter" to boot from the new NVMe SSD drive.

Bryce
Bryce · Staff Editor
Bryce is an editor of AOMEI Technology, he covers backup & restore, hard disk & partitions management, cloud files transfer, website & database backup and so on for AOMEI. He enjoys helping people find solutions to their problems. He loves traveling, Sleeping, reserching and so on. He enjoys helping people find solutions to their problems. He loves traveling, Sleeping, reserching and so on. He would like to spend all time on reaserching computer problems. He is a very cute boy.