planning to replace my 1TB "spinning" hard disk drive

@Brink
Hi Shawn,
I am planning to replace my 1TB "spinning" hard disk drive in my laptop with a new blank identical HDD. The drive is only 2 years old but HWINFO reports: "Number of Reported Uncorrectable Errors: 14" the error number is still the same (1 week now) and all other SMART checks are good but it worries me.

To restore my new HDD with a Windows backup image (on an external drive) I want to use my recovery USB thumb drive to access Windows RE: All I can find on the web on this topic is this: "System Image Recovery. Use System Image Recovery for file backup and system image backup. System Image Recovery requires an external storage device" and also "When you deploy Windows by applying images, you must manually configure the hard drive partitions. When WinRE is installed on a hard drive, the partition must be formatted as NTFS."

That's all; no tutorials anywhere except a lot of (off topic) You Tube posts. I am looking for a clear step by step guide how to format the blank HDD and then restore it, is this formatting option a menu on the recovery disk (Windows RE, Troubleshoot, Advanced Options)? Then I plan to perform a "System image recovery" with that same recovery disk. I can figure all this out by trying it on my old W10 laptop but I may screw things up and rather do it with guidance from a technical person.

If you know of a link that describes this simple procedure in detail without using any 3rd party software I would be very grateful. AOMIE documents have something that is very vague and EaseUS is offering me online remote assistance for a fee. Maybe elevenforum can write a tutorial "How to replace a laptop Hard Disk Drive using Windows RE USB drive"? IMO non-technical users like myself would be helped with that.

Thanks

Frank

Meanwhile I found this (see attached), would that work?

Sorry Shawn, I should have looked in EightForums, that whole procedure has been spelled out by you there:

System Image Recovery - Restore Image on Computer in Windows 8​

Hello Frank,

Personally, you might consider using something like Macrium Reflect to create and restore a full system image with.

If this is your main drive, you should give serious consideration to replacing the drive with an SSD (from £80 approx).

You will see a big difference in peformance.

Brink said:

Hello Frank,

Personally, you might consider using something like Macrium Reflect to create and restore a full system image with.

Backup and Restore with Macrium Reflect

How to Create and Restore a System Image Backup with Macrium Reflect

www.tenforums.com

Click to expand...

Hi Shawn
I considered it but want to try a recovery with the Windows image file, I will post the results.
Thanks for the Macrium guide.

cereberus said:

If this is your main drive, you should give serious consideration to replacing the drive with an SSD (from £80 approx).

You will see a big difference in peformance.

Click to expand...

Laptop has an internal SSD slot (empty) and 2.5" HDD slot. I want to replace my HDD first and may add later a 250 GB SSD. Not after speed so much more interested in carefree/hassle free use, while preserving my files (just web browsing, banking and e-mail).

FrankW said:

Laptop has an internal SSD slot (empty) and 2.5" HDD slot. I want to replace my HDD first....

Click to expand...

2.5" SATA SSDs are available that are a direct replacement for any HDD. Here is just one example....

"When you deploy Windows by applying images, you must manually configure the hard drive partitions."

Click to expand...

That is deployment which is usually used to deploy the same .wim image to multiple devices.
It is not the same as restoring a windows system image.

If you want to restore a windows system image to a different disk using the simple gui:

If you havent done it before, it is simplest to detach all disks except the one containing the image and the new disk.

Attach the new disk to port previously occupied by the old disk. Boot up something that has the system recovery options> Select system image recovery.

To do it that way the new disk should be at least as large as the old one.

Bree said:

2.5" SATA SSDs are available that are a direct replacement for any HDD. Here is just one example....

https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Intelligent-Magician-Software-Internal/dp/B08PC5DKZQ

Click to expand...

Thanks for the link, very nice, but already ordered my Toshiba MQ04ABF100, on recommendation of Acer Support.

When you get your new disk, get a USB enclosure for it so you can check it easily before fitting it to your computer.
- Check that it has been initialised. If it is formatted then it must have been initialised. The formatting is not important of itself because restoring the image will overwrite the formatting anyway.
- If you are in any doubt, post the Disk mgmt display - C:\Windows\System32\diskmgmt.msc
How to Post a Screenshot of Disk Management - TenForumsTutorials

If it has been initialised, you can then restore the image.

FrankW said:

To restore my new HDD with a Windows backup image (on an external drive)

Click to expand...

You do know MS told us to stop using it in 2017?
If you insist on using it then also make a Macrium reflect image as a fallback.

FrankW said:

I want to use my recovery USB thumb drive

Click to expand...

It is menu driven. You can explorer the menu system safely to find the Restore system image entry then take it from there.
If you actually meant an installation USB then, at its main Install now screen, click on Repair my computer to get into the menu system.
The procedure is pretty much the same as it was in Win8
System Image Restore - Eight Forums

Best of luck,
Denis

FrankW said:

Thanks for the link, very nice, but already ordered my Toshiba MQ04ABF100, on recommendation of Acer Support.

Click to expand...

You should cancel that order. That's a 5400rpm hard drive. Slow as a drunk snail.
If you insist on buying a hard drive, at least get a 7200rpm drive.


Like this...


Or an SSD like this...

SIW2 said:

That is deployment which is usually used to deploy the same .wim image to multiple devices.
It is not the same as restoring a windows system image.

Click to expand...

I made an image of my disk in Windows and the 4 steps in my post above were from MS so I will try to restore it with my recovery Window RE, if it fails I have the EaseUS Todo backup to try (and my original HDD that stiil works)

FrankW said:

Laptop has an internal SSD slot (empty) and 2.5" HDD slot. I want to replace my HDD first and may add later a 250 GB SSD. Not after speed so much more interested in carefree/hassle free use, while preserving my files (just web browsing, banking and e-mail).

Click to expand...

I have replaced all my hdds with ssds. They are much more robust from a dropped laptop perspective as no moving parts. Windows 10/11 just works so much better with ssds - none of those freezes whilst Defender catches up etc.

A 1tb sata ssd will fit in 2.5" hdd slot.

Once you have ssd rather than hdd, you will always wonder why you never changed sooner.

PS forget all the bs re. write cycle life from SSD. If your photo remotely reflects your age, drive will last longer than you LOL.

FrankW said:

the 4 steps in my post above were from MS

Click to expand...

I think you are mistaken. Those words are not in MS's normal style.
See my earlier post for a link to a decently-documented procedure.

I trust Ghot's posts in this forum. If he says it is a bad choice then at least cancel that order to buy yourself some time to think it over & investigate its performance for yourself.
As for it being recommended by Acer support team, I find that very surprising. You didn't accidentally put words in their mouths, did you? You didn't perhaps say you were only interested in HDDs not SSDs?

Best of luck,
Denis

FrankW said:

Thanks for the link, very nice, but already ordered my Toshiba MQ04ABF100, on recommendation of Acer Support.

Click to expand...

In researching availability I found out that Samsung UK have a very good discount at present. I've just ordered one for myself as an upgrade for the perfectly healthy (but slow) Seagate ST1000LM035-1RK172 in my own Acer, System One below.

And that is one of the best looking picture of me

Bree,

You do realise that Samsung UK's warranty for SSDs, SD cards & USB sticks necessitates your paying for the non-refundable postage to the Netherlands for any warranty claim?
Samsung-Seagate UK SSD-USB-SD warranties - TenForums
I got my money back only by appealing directly to the Samsung UK CEO.
I don't like people stealing from me.

Denis

@SIW2
"
If you havent done it before, it is simplest to detach all disks except the one containing the image and the new disk.

Attach the new disk to port previously occupied by the old disk. Boot up something that has the system recovery options> Select system image recovery.

To do it that way the new disk should be at least as large as the old one."

Eactly what I have in mind, the two disks (old and new) are identical

I will post the results, still waiting for my Toshiba.

Try3 said:

You do realise that Samsung UK's warranty for SSDs, SD cards & USB sticks necessitates your paying for the non-refundable postage to the Netherlands for any warranty claim?

Click to expand...

No, I didn't. But I've not yet had a Samsung SSD fail on me, at that price I think I can afford to take the risk.....

@Try3
"As for it being recommended by Acer support team, I find that very surprising"
This is what Acer Philippines wrote me:
We are adding below a list of all the recommended hard drives for your unit which we have extracted from the serial number for your best reference

HDD WD 2.5" 5400rpm 2000GB
WD20SPZX-21UA7T0 , 7mmzh 2D
, 1TB/P , MN1000M SATA III
128MB LF F/W:01.01A01

HDD WD 2.5" 5400rpm 2000GB
WD20SPZX-21UA7T0 , 7mmzh 2D
, 1TB/P , MN1000M SATA III
128MB LF F/W:01.01A01

HDD WD 2.5" 5400rpm 1000GB
WD10SPZX-21Z10T0 , 7mmzh 1D
, 1TB/P , MN1000S SATA III
128MB LF F/W: 02.01A02

HDD TOSHIBA 2.5" 5400rpm
1000GB MQ04ABF100 , 1TB/P,
acer code SATA III 128MB LF+HF
F/W:JU001J

The Toshiba (SATA 6) is made in PH and only costs US$ 35.-

This is the HDD that I have now that according to HWINFO:
"Number of Reported Uncorrectable Errors: 14 (all smart checks are OK)" The number is still 14.

HDD SEAGATE 2.5" 5400rpm
1000GB ST1000LM035
,1RK172-190 ,Rosewood 1TB
,7mmzh HDD - SATA III 128MB LF
F/W:ACM2

Bree said:

In researching availability I found out that Samsung UK have a very good discount at present. I've just ordered one for myself as an upgrade for the perfectly healthy (but slow) Seagate ST1000LM035-1RK172 in my own Acer, System One below.

View attachment 37447

870 EVO SATA 2.5” SSD 1TB | MZ-77E1T0B/EU | Samsung Business UK

See the benefits and features of this product for your business at Samsung Business UK. Click here to contact us. (SATA SSD / MZ-77E1T0B/EU)

www.samsung.com

Click to expand...

That is good price in the UK. I got one last year for £68 which was a bargain at the time.