Need to copy partition to VHD or restore data to a physical drive? Discover how to transfer VHD partition data to HDD and manage virtual disks with our comprehensive step-by-step guide.
VHDs have transformed from niche developer tools into essential assets for everyday IT management. Whether you are creating a sandbox environment to test software or looking for a portable backup solution, the ability to clone partition to VHD allows you to create a replica of your drive in a single file.
However, moving data between physical and virtual states isn't always intuitive. Users often struggle to find a direct path to copy partition to VHD using standard Windows options. This article will explore why this process is beneficial, how to handle it manually, and how to utilize professional software to streamline the workflow.
Creating a virtual clone of your partition offers flexibility that traditional backups cannot match, allowing you to mount and access your system state on any compatible machine. By choosing to backup partition to VHD, you are essentially encapsulating your operating system, applications, and files into a portable container.
There are several scenarios where this is critical. First, it simplifies "Physical to Virtual" (P2V) migration, allowing you to move an old system into a virtual machine before the hardware fails. Second, it acts as a sandbox; if you clone partition to VHD, you can boot from that virtual file, test potentially dangerous updates or software, and discard the changes without affecting your main physical host. It provides a layer of security and portability that standard file copying simply lacks.
While Windows is compatible with VHDs, its native tools, like Disk Management and Xcopy are not designed for direct partition cloning.
To copy partition to VHD using only Windows tools, the process is manual and fragmented. You must first open Disk Management, manually create and attach a generic VHD file, initialize the disk, and create a new simple volume. Once mounted, you cannot simply "clone" the partition structure. Instead, you are forced to use file-level copy commands (like Robocopy) or create a system image via the Control Panel, which is slow and often fails if the target VHD size doesn't perfectly align with the source. This lack of a direct "Clone to VHD" button drives most users toward third-party solutions.
For a seamless experience that ensures bootability and data integrity, AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional is the industry-standard choice. It bridges the gap between physical and virtual storage with ease.
AOMEI Partition Assistant is a robust disk management utility designed to handle complex storage tasks that Windows natively cannot. As a professional-grade SEO tool for storage management, its specialized "Virtual Disk" function allows users to manipulate VHD/VHDX files as if they were physical hardware. Under this function, users can choose to create a new VHD or attach an existing VHD, providing the necessary foundation to clone partition to VHD directly.
Step 1. Click the tab "Virtual Disk", you will see 3 options available for VHDs: create VHD, attach VHD, and detach VHD. Select the "Create VHD" option after clicking the "Virtual Disk" tab.
Step 2. You can specify the virtual disk location and size.
Optionally, you can click the "Advanced" option to set the virtual hard disk format and type. (By default, the VHDX format and the Dynamically expanding type are checked.)
Virtual hard disk format: VHD and VHDX are supported.
For VHD, it supports virtual disks up to 2040GB in size.
For VHDX, it supports virtual disks larger than 2040GB in size. (Up to 64TB) This format is not supported in operating systems earlier than Windows 8 or Windows Server 2012.
Virtual hard disk format: Fixed size and Dynamically expanding are supported.
For fixed size, the virtual hard disk file will be allocated its maximum size when it is created. So it will take much longer to create.
For Dynamically expanding, the virtual hard disk file will grow to its maximum size as data is written to it. (Recommended)
Click "Browse" to select a location to create the VHD. Please enter a file name for the virtual disk and click "Save".
Step 3. Once the virtual disk location and size are set up, you can click "OK" to start creating the VHD.
Step 4. After the reload process is finished, you will see that the VHD has been created successfully. It will be attached automatically.
You can also view the VHD in Windows Disk Management.
The created VHD will be uninitialized, so it is empty without any data or a file system. To make it useful, you need to initialize the disk, create a partition, and assign a drive letter.
You can initialize the drive in Partition Assistant.
Before cloning partition to VHD, it must be attached so that Windows can treat it like a real drive. Once mounted, the VHD shows up in Disk Management with all its partitions and data available.
Select the "Attach VHD" option after clicking the"Virtual Disk" tab.
Click "Browse" to locate the location where the .vhd or .vhdx file is saved. Select the .vhd or .vhdx file you want to attach and click "Open" to attach it.
Once the virtual file is selected, you can click "OK" to start attaching the VHD.
Now we can clone a single partition to a VHD.
Step 1. Launch AOMEI Partition Assistant, right-click the partition you want to clone and select the "Clone Partition" tool to run partition clone. (You can also click the "Clone" main tab and select "Clone Partition".)
Step 2. In next window, select the destination partition or unallocated space to hold your source partition, and then click "Confirm".
Step 3. Then, you will enter the Confirm interface where you can check the source and destination clone location. After all is set, you can click the "Confirm" button to continue.
Notes:
Step 4. In the next window, you can click the "Settings" button to adjust the target partition size. As you can see from the screenshot, you could adjust the size of source partition in order to fit the target partition as per your need, or directly skip the step and click "Save".
Step 5. You can preview the partition copy operating by viewing the "Pending Operations". To commit the "Pending Operations", please click "Apply" and "Proceed".
The cloning process will start and you can check the cloning process. Once the process is completed successfully, you will get a congratulatory window. Finally, you can check the partition layout on the destination disk will be identical to the source partition.
Note: If you want to clone boot partition on a Windows PC, you need to choose "Migrate OS" function, which can migrate the system partition and other OS-related partitions to another drive and ensure a smooth boot from the cloned drive.
✨ Tip: AOMEI Partition Assistant isn't just for virtualization. It includes an "App Mover" to free up space on your C: drive, a "PC Cleaner" to remove junk files, and the ability to "Convert MBR to GPT" without data loss, ensuring your drives are ready for Windows 11 upgrades.
Mastering the ability to clone partition to vhd gives you unprecedented control over your data backup and system migration strategies. While Windows native tools struggle with direct cloning, utilizing a dedicated tool like AOMEI Partition Assistant simplifies the process. By leveraging its "Virtual Disk" capabilities to create and attach drives, and its cloning engine to copy partition to vhd or figure out how to transfer vhd partition data to hdd, you ensure your data is safe, portable, and accessible whenever you need it.
Q1: Can I boot from the VHD after I clone my system partition to it?
A: Yes, provided you configured the boot records correctly. AOMEI Partition Assistant clones the data accurately, but to boot from a VHD, you may need to add the VHD path to your Windows Boot Manager using the bcdboot command or use AOMEI’s "Windows to Go Creator" feature for a bootable USB VHD.
Q2: What is the difference between VHD and VHDX?
A: VHD is the older standard, limited to 2TB in size. VHDX is the newer format (supported by Windows 8 and later), which supports up to 64TB, offers better performance, and has resilience against power failure data corruption.
Q3: Is "Clone Partition" the same as "Copy Paste"?
A: No. Copying and pasting files does not copy the partition table, Master Boot Record (MBR), or hidden system files required for the OS to run. Cloning creates an exact functional copy of the partition structure.
Q4: Can I clone a larger partition to a smaller VHD?
A: Yes, as long as you use AOMEI Partition Assistant's "Clone Partition Quickly" method. This method only copies the used space. For example, if you have a 500GB partition with only 100GB of data, you can clone it to a 150GB VHD.