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How to clone a hard drive?

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ASilver76:

If you do choose to go from IDE to SATA, or just want to clone from IDE TO IDE OR SATA OR SATA, but you are not comfortable with a software solution (like clonezilla), you might want to look into a standalone hardware drive cloner. There are available for between $20-$60, and most can also be plugged into PCs and used as multislot hard drive adaptors. The benefit of this method is that it's fire-and-forget, doen't involve any software, and can easily work with both IDA and SATA drives. The downside is that you have to physically remove the drive from the system prior to cloning. In the end, it boils down to personal preference as much as anything else.

I also agree that SSDs would probably be a bit of overkill in this situation, but if you are looking for an inexpensive SATA solution that offers SSD-like speed, I suggest you try to pick up an Seagate Momentus XT Hybrid drive - preferably the 750GB version. They provide a substantial boost in boot speed, and if you're only running a few things on DAPHNE, it should speed it up as well - at least after a couple of runs.   

southpaw13:

Good stuff!  The reason I have to stay with an older MB is that I need a serial port to run Daphne's scoreboard.  Also, I am only looking at a 32GB SSD for what I need to run.  So I am hoping that I can hook the drive up as a slave with an IDE to Sata adapter clone it, then make it the master and remove the hard drive completely just for reliability.  Just hoping this will work and maybe speed up boot time.  Low end for sure!

ChanceKJ:

Gonna get shot in the foot for saying this, but too bad it's not a Mac. "Disk Utility" for the win.

southpaw13:

Can I just buy a 32GB compact flash with a IDE adapter to get the same results?

dkersten:

Most newer motherboards still have the serial header, you just need to plug in a d-sub and mount it in a slot..

A CF or SD card will never perform like a modern SSD.  The memory is not nearly as fast to begin with and the controller can't even come close to comparing to what is in a newer SSD. 

I run an SSD for my data for my mame cab, and the FE and games load a bit faster, and in Daphne when I parse the video at the beginning it takes like 6 or 7 seconds instead of the 30-45 seconds it took on a mechanical drive in a slower machine.  But this has a faster processor (i7 vs c2d), more memory, and a faster chipset too.  I only use the SSD because I had it laying around collecting dust. 

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