How to Move Windows Boot Partition to A New Drive [Full Guide]

Do you know how to move boot partition to a new drive without reinstalling? Then you have come to the right place! This post from MiniTool will tell you the steps to how to move Windows boot partition to another drive.

The Brief Introduction of Boot Partition

The boot partition is stored in a separate area on the computer’s hard drive which contains the boot loader. Also, the boot partition contains the operating system folder. It can (but does not have to) be the same as the system partition.

The system partition, also known as the system volume, contains all the startup files. Usually, the C drive we talk about is both the system partition and the boot partition.

Below is a picture of the boot partition, which is the partition that contains the boot loader and is set as the active partition.

After having a preliminary understanding of boot partition, the following will tell you why you should move boot partition to a new drive and how to move it. Let’s dive in!

Why You Transfer Boot Partition to A New SSD

Most people move the boot partition to a new drive for the following reasons:

Get more disk space: If you are running low on space on your boot drive, moving the boot partition to a new drive with more space is a good solution.
Improve PC performance: New SSDs run faster than older drives, which can improve boot times and PC performance.
System recovery: If your current hard drive fails or fails to boot, moving the boot partition to a new drive is a quick way to recover your system without reinstalling your operating system.
Have a dual-boot configuration: If you are setting up a multi-boot system with different operating systems, you may want to move the boot partition to a specific drive.

Here’s how to move Windows boot partition to another drive. See below for a detailed guide.

How to Move Boot Partition to A New Drive

If you want to transfer boot partition to a new SSD, you can use the third-party tool MiniTool Partition Wizard to complete the migration.

MiniTool Partition Wizard is powerful hard drive clone software that can help you copy/create/merge/format/extend/resize partitions on Windows PC easily and safely. Moreover, it can be used to change cluster size, convert FAT32 to NTFS without losing data, hide/unhide partition, recover data from hard drive, change drive letter, USB drive formatter, and more.

To move boot partition to a new drive, first click the button below to get MiniTool Partition Wizard, and install it on your PC.

MiniTool Partition Wizard FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Move Boot Partition to A New Drive via Copy Partition

If you only want to move your boot partition, you can use the Copy Partition feature of MiniTool Partition Wizard. The Copy Partition Wizard feature copies all data from one partition to another without any data loss with ease. Here are the steps below:

Stage 1: Create Unallocated Space

Before copying the boot partition, you should check if there is unallocated space on another drive. If not, you can create unallocated space by shrinking the partition. Here is the guide:

Tips:

Make sure that the unallocated space is enough to accommodate all the data on the source partition.

Step 1: Run MiniTool Partition Wizard to its main interface. Right-click on the partition that needs to be shrunk and select Move/Resize. Alternatively, you can select Move/Resize Partition from the left action panel.

Step 2: In the pop-up window, move the arrow to the left to shrink the NTFS partition. Also, you can manually type the specified partition size in MB, GB, or TB. Then click OK.

Tips:

In the Move/Resize Partition interface, you can see the option Using Enhanced Data Protecting Mode which is checked by default. Please keep it checked since it gives the strongest protection to our data.

Step 3: MiniTool Partition Wizard will return to its main interface. Here you can preview all the changes you want to make. Click Apply to make the operation effective. You can see that the unallocated space has been created.

It can be seen that using MiniTool Partition Wizard is very convenient, and it only takes a few steps to create unallocated space. The software can also create multiple unallocated spaces and the location is not restricted.

Stage 2: Copy Boot Partition to a New Drive

Once the unallocated space is created, you can migrate the boot partition. Here are the detailed steps:

Step 1: Run MiniTool Partition Wizard to enter its main interface. Right-click the boot partition and select Copy from the pop-up menu.

Step 2: Select the drive that you’re ready to move the boot partition to and click on Next.

Step 3: You can move the handle to extend or shrink the new partition. Alternatively, you can type the exact partition size in MB. In addition, you can choose the partition type (primary or logical) for the new partition. Then, click Finish.

Step 4: Click the Apply button to make changes performed.

Move Boot Partition to A New Drive via Migrate OS to SSD/HD

If you want to migrate the entire system disk, you can use the Migrate OS to SSD/HD feature of MiniTool Partition Wizard. This feature is designed to help you who just want to move the OS to another hard drive.

Note:

Before cloning a hard disk, you need to be aware that the migration process will destroy all data on the target disk, so you should back up their data in advance. Then the available space on your target disk should be greater than or equal to the used disk space on the source disk.

MiniTool Partition Wizard DemoClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Step 1: Launch MiniTool Partition Wizard to get its main interface.

Step 2: Click on the disk that needs to be cloned and select Migrate OS to SSD/HD Wizard from the left action panel. You can also right-click the disk you want to copy and choose Migrate OS to SSD/HD.

Step 3: Choose the method you want to migrate the OS and click Next. There are two migration options. No matter which option you choose, the data on the original disk won’t be deleted.

If you want to copy all partitions on the system disk, choose option A.
If you decide to move just the operating system from the HDD to SSD, choose option B.

Step 4: Select SSD as the destination disk and click Next.

Step 5: Then a warning box prompts that the data on the disk will be destroyed. To perform the cloning operation successfully, click the Yes button.

Step 6: Select a copy option and click Next.

Fit partitions to entire disk: All the partitions will be cloned to the target disk and occupy their entire capacity in proportion to the partition size.
Copy partitions without resizing: This option is available when the destination disk is large enough to hold all partitions on the source disk.
Align partitions to 1MB: This can improve the performance of the target disk if it is an SSD.
Use GUID Partition Table: This option only appears when the original disk is an MBR disk. It can support disks larger than 2TB.

Step 7: After the migration is complete, a note will appear showing how to boot from the target disk and you need to follow the instructions. Read the instruction and click Finish to go back to the main interface.

Step 8: Click Apply to execute all changes.

Tips:

If you want to clone your HDD to a smaller SSD but don’t know how to do it, you can refer to this article: How to Clone HDD to Smaller SSD in Two Ways.

After moving boot partition to a new SSD, you need to set the SSD as the first boot device and boot the computer then from this SSD. Here are the steps:

Step 1: First, you need to shut down your computer.

Step 2: Turn on the computer and immediately press the F2 key or another function key (F1, F3, F10, or F12) when the computer brand logo appears to access BIOS Setup Utility.

Tips:

The message disappears very quickly, and many people complain they miss the key information during computer restart. In this case, you need to reboot again.

Step 3: Go to the Boot tab by pressing the right arrow key. Boot (or another name) that is responsible for changing the boot sequence.

Step 4: Press and hold the Enter key to expand the Hard Drive.

Step 5: In this pop-up window, you should move the drive you want to boot from to the top of the list (using the + and – keys). Afterward, make sure that the boot order is correct and that the first boot drive contains valid and complete boot files.

Step 6: When you’re sure everything is correct, you should press the F10 key to save the change and exit the window.

Now you can restart your computer with the new boot order. When you click Restart under the Power icon, your BIOS will start booting from the first drive in the boot order you modified. Then, you will successfully enter the Windows.

How to move boot partition from HDD to SSD on Windows 10/11? If you wonder about this question, this article will help you. It provides a professional cloning tool – MiniTool Partition Wizard software to help you do that.Click to Tweet

Bottom Line

This article ends here. What is a boot partition? Why do you need to transfer boot partition to a new SSD? How to move boot partition from HDD to SSD on Windows 10/11? This post offers you a detailed explanation. Moreover, as a piece of professional cloning software, MiniTool Partition Wizard is worth trying.

If you have any questions or suggestions while using MiniTool Partition Wizard, you can contact us via [email protected] to get a quick reply.

Move Boot Partition to a New Drive FAQ

1. What is the difference between boot partition and system partition?

In simple terms, the boot partition contains the Windows operating system files, while the system partition holds the boot files. Usually, the C drive is both the system partition and the boot partition. However, if you install multiple operating systems on the same disk, the partition containing the Windows operating system is the boot partition.

2. Can I move boot partition to a new drive? How do I boot from a new SSD?

Yes, you can move boot partition to a new drive. To boot your computer from the new SSD, follow the steps below:
Step 1: Shut down your computer first, and while it's restarting, press and hold F2 to enter the BIOS environment.
Step 2: Navigate to the Boot tab, change the boot order, and set the cloned SSD as the boot drive in BIOS.
Step 3: Press F10 to save your changes. Now you can successfully boot your computer from the SSD.

About The Author

Cecilia

Position: Columnist

Cecilia is a new member of MiniTool. She works as an English editor on the MiniTool team. She likes to learn articles about computers and is passionate about partition management and Windows operating systems. She is committed to allowing readers to use simple, efficient, and fast methods to solve the computer problems they encounter. To provide more professional solutions, she will continue to learn and master computer knowledge.