I can't offer the advice on which program to choose since there are so many ones available.

However, I can say that I used a cloning program on a new hard drive to replace a failing one, and the process took about 15 minutes. Every single program except one ran perfectly. I had to do a disk install and authorization and that one also ran perfectly. Didn't lose a single file. This was many years ago so I'm pretty sure it's even easier now.

BUT REMEMBER THIS: Cloning and imaging are generally used on the same machine in the event of a crashed HD. Pop in a new drive and reinstall on the same machine, as I did, or recall the image to restore a corrupted HD. All the hardware settings are the same. Cloning to a new computer isn't like that.


Then, there's this from a website:
Quote:
Unfortunately, what you describe isn't practical. And that's as true with cloning the drive as with imaging it.

When you install Windows onto a PC (or, for that matter, when it's installed at the factory), the operating system configures itself to that particular hardware. Put an exact copy onto a different computer and you're going to have nothing but trouble.


Not being a computer geek.... I would say that installing the programs manually, although it will take some time, might be the best option to insure success. You can always copy the databases without any issues.

If you clone, the hardware is different and that might present issues as the writer expressed. Worst case, you'd have to wipe the drive, reinstall the OS and go manually.

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