XPS 8930, swapping boot SSDs for larger SDDs on old Dells

Question

Hi there I have two older Dells with full C: drive SSDs I'd like to replace with larger SSDs

One is a XPS 8930 with a 512GB M.2 drive and the other is a Inspiron 3910 with a 512GB M.2

I used NTI Echo 6, which cloned both drives easily. The XPS got a 4TB SDD and the Inspiron got a a 2TB, both from different major manufacturers.

However *both* fail to boot when I swap them for the new drives. They just get stuck in Boot loops. If I put the original drives back in, they are fine.

What am I missing here? I must need to do something else to make this work and I don't know what it is. I was under the mistaken impression it'd be a straight swap after cloning.

Appreciate any advice anyone can give.

Thanks!

--Brian

virtualbri · Answer

They are both Win 11, FWIW

redxps630 · Answer

the cloning software is third party which may have bug

try Windows built in cloning

https://www.dell.com/community/en/conversations/optiplex-desktops/how-to-clone-ssd-to-another-ssd-without-third-party-tool/652b338043dbba53b173f0b7?keyword=clone

RoHe · Answer

Did you change BIOS from RAID to AHCI before creating images of the original SSDs?  If not, that could prevent PC from booting from its new SSD. You have to configure BIOS and Windows properly or you'll make the PCs unbootable even from the original drive. So, put original SSD back in each PC and boot from it. Then: Open CMD prompt window, run as administrator Copy-paste this command, which will start Windows in Safe Mode the next time you boot: bcdedit /set {current} safeboot minimal and press Enter Restart the computer and tap F2 at the Dell screen to enter BIOS setup Change SATA Operation from RAID to AHCI Save the change and exit Setup. Windows automatically boots in Safe Mode Open CMD again, as in step #1 Copy-paste this command, which will start Windows in Normal Mode the next time you boot: bcdedit /deletevalue {current} safeboot and press Enter Reboot and Windows will automatically start with AHCI drivers enabled Confirm everything works properly Create an image on the new SSD Swap new SSD in place of original SSD and see if it boots now...

XPS Desktops

XPS 8930, swapping boot SSDs for larger SDDs on old Dells

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