Best Hard Drive Cloning Software

How Many Hard Drive Cloning Software Products Does G2 Track?

Total Products under this Category: 29

Category Stats (Sep 2026)

  • Average Rating: 4.26/5 (↓0.01 vs Aug 2026) The average rating of products in this category, based on all submitted ratings

Last updated: September 23, 2026

How Does G2 Rank Hard Drive Cloning Software Products?

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G2's software rankings are built on verified user reviews, rigorous moderation, and a consistent research methodology maintained by a team of analysts and data experts. Each product is measured using the same transparent criteria, with no paid placement or vendor influence. While reviews reflect real user experiences, which can be subjective, they offer valuable insight into how software performs in the hands of professionals. Together, these inputs power the G2 Score, a standardized way to compare tools within every category.

G2 Grid® for Hard Drive Cloning Software

G2 Grid® for Hard Drive Cloning Software plotting products by satisfaction and market presence

Highlighted products: Macrium Backup & Restore, Acronis True Image, EaseUS Todo Backup Business, MiniTool Partition Wizard, AOMEI Backupper, Daemon Tools, Paragon Hard Disk Manager Business, and Clonezilla.

Underlying data: [Grid® JSON](https://www.g2.com/categories/hard-drive-cloning/grids.json?focus%5B%5D=macrium-backup-restore&focus%5B%5D=acronis-true-image&focus%5B%5D=easeus-todo-backup-business&focus%5B%5D=minitool-partition-wizard&focus%5B%5D=aomei-technology-aomei-backupper&focus%5B%5D=daemon-tools&focus%5B%5D=paragon-software-group-paragon-hard-disk-manager-business&focus%5B%5D=clonezilla)

Macrium Backup & Restore

Macrium Backup & Restore is a suite of image-based backup and disaster recovery software for Windows systems. It enables IT teams in manufacturing and operational technology (OT) environments to protect data, restore systems rapidly, and reduce downtime after hardware failure, user error, or cyber threats. The suite includes four distinct products: Macrium Reflect (Standalone) for Workstation & Server Backup, Macrium SiteBackup, Macrium Reflect LTSC, and Macrium Technician’s License. Each product serves a specific purpose in supporting resilient IT and OT infrastructure: Macrium provides comprehensive backup and disk imaging for individual endpoints such as critical manufacturing systems and production lines. It supports full, differential, and incremental backups, allowing organizations to create reliable recovery points and restore systems quickly. Macrium SiteBackup offers centralized management of backups across multiple endpoints and servers. With Macrium Site Manager, IT teams can automate backup schedules, monitor backup status, and access detailed reporting — all from a single interface. SiteBackup supports physical and virtual machines and is suited to small IT teams or large enterprise environments. Macrium Reflect LTSC (Long-Term Service Channel) is a perpetual license version of Reflect with built-in maintenance. Designed for organizations that require long-term stability and minimal software change, Reflect LTSC is well-suited to regulated industries, industrial control systems, and manufacturing environments where consistent platform behavior over time is essential. Macrium Technician’s License is a portable backup and recovery toolkit for IT professionals. It enables technicians to run Macrium Reflect directly from a USB or external drive, supporting ad hoc backup, restore, or system troubleshooting across multiple machines — without installing software on each device. Key features across the product suite: - Image-based backup for Windows workstations, servers, and virtual machines - Bare metal restore with support for dissimilar hardware - Centralized management and reporting - Support for incremental and differential backup strategies - Built-in encryption and protection against ransomware threats - One-time and subscription licensing models to suit different IT needs Macrium Backup & Restore is used by IT teams across healthcare, education, manufacturing, and corporate IT to ensure business continuity, maintain operational uptime, and reduce the impact of system outages. Speak to one of our experts here: https://www.macrium.com/contact

Average Rating: 4.7/5.0

Total Reviews: 92

How Do G2 Users Rate Macrium Backup & Restore?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Macrium Backup & Restore?

Who Uses This Product?

  • Who Uses This: IT Manager
  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Manufacturing
  • Company Size: 54% Small, 33% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Macrium Backup & Restore?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the ease of use of Macrium Backup & Restore, finding it intuitive and simple for daily backups.
  • Users praise the flawless reliability of Macrium Backup & Restore, valuing its ease of use and effective automation.
  • Users find the easy setup of Macrium Backup & Restore fast and straightforward, enhancing their backup experience.
  • Users value the effective data restoration capabilities of Macrium Backup & Restore, ensuring peace of mind with reliable backups.
  • Users find Macrium Backup & Restore to be extremely reliable, offering flawless performance and effortless automated backups every time.
Cons
  • Users face backup issues such as lack of cloud options and inconvenient restore processes, complicating data recovery.
  • Users find that some features need improvement for broader usability, as advanced management feels too specific and complex.
  • Users face challenges with restore processes, including timeouts and issues with BitLocker security during restores.
  • Users find insufficient information on adding drivers and using Rescue Media, which complicates the experience with legacy machines.
  • Users find the lack of features in Macrium Backup & Restore limits advanced management and usability with legacy machines.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Macrium Backup & Restore?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Macrium Backup & Restore?

Acronis True Image

In today’s digital world, it's not if you'll be attacked, but when. Cyber protection can be complex and costly — unless you have Acronis True Image. This single, simple solution delivers reliable fast backup and recovery, AI-powered security, and Identity Protection.* Manage everything easily, from any device. Stop the frustration; save time and money. Acronis True Image protects your computers, mobile devices and online identity* with effortless, "set-and-forget" peace of mind. Acronis True Image features include: - Backup: Flexible local backups – from full system images to individual files. Or select files and folders on a flexible schedule that enables your cybersecurity. - Encrypted cloud backup: Reliable, secure and speedy backup to Acronis data centers. Offering additional protection, easy recovery and anywhere access. - Cybersecurity protection: Integrated award-winning antimalware capabilities protect both your device and backup data from ransomware, cryptojacking, and never-before-seen cyber threats - Disk cloning: Create a complete replica of your data as a backup or a way to migrate to a new drive or computer. - Easy-of-use: Intuitive interface to manage your protection. - Affordable subscription plans: starting from just $49.99/year. *Available in the U.S. for Advanced and Premium subscriptions Acronis is majority-owned by EQT.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 70

How Do G2 Users Rate Acronis True Image?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.2/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.5/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Acronis True Image?

  • Seller: Acronis
  • Year Founded: 2003
  • HQ Location: Schaffhausen
  • Twitter: @acronis
    94,498 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    1,923 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Ownership: Acronis is majority-owned by EQT

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 46% Small, 39% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About Acronis True Image?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users appreciate the robust data security features of Acronis True Image, ensuring protection for their sensitive data.
  • Users appreciate the prioritization of data security in Acronis True Image, ensuring their sensitive data is well-protected.
  • Users find Acronis True Image to be highly user-friendly, making it easy to use and implement effectively.
  • Users find Acronis True Image to be easy to use and implement, enhancing their backup experience effortlessly.
Cons
  • Users criticize Acronis True Image for its poor interface design, finding it non-intuitive and visually unappealing.
  • Users report significant backup issues with Acronis True Image, citing poor MacOS support and ineffective customer service.
  • Users report significant compatibility issues with Acronis True Image on newer MacOS versions, alongside inadequate customer support.
  • Users find Acronis True Image to be expensive and ineffective, particularly due to poor customer support and compatibility issues.
  • Users express frustration over Acronis True Image's lack of compatibility with MacOS and inadequate customer support.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Acronis True Image?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Acronis True Image?

EaseUS Todo Backup Business

EaseUS Todo Backup Business is a commercial backup and disaster recovery software solution for small to medium-sized businesses. It provides comprehensive data protection by allowing users to create backups of their entire system, individual disks or partitions, specific files and folders, and applications such as email, SQL, and Exchange. The incremental and differential backup methods also minimize storage usage and speed up the backup process.

Average Rating: 4.8/5.0

Total Reviews: 132

How Do G2 Users Rate EaseUS Todo Backup Business?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.4/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind EaseUS Todo Backup Business?

  • Seller: EaseUS
  • Year Founded: 2004
  • HQ Location: Sichuan, China
  • Twitter: @easeus_software
    3,358 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    87 employees on LinkedIn®
  • Total Revenue (USD mm): $500

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Computer Software, Information Technology and Services
  • Company Size: 83% Small, 14% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About EaseUS Todo Backup Business?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users find EaseUS Todo Backup Business to be extremely user-friendly, making complex backups simple and reliable.
  • Users value the reliable backup solutions of EaseUS Todo Backup Business, ensuring quick recovery and user-friendly performance.
  • Users commend the excellent customer support from EaseUS Todo Backup Business, noting responsiveness and helpfulness throughout their experience.
  • Users appreciate the easy setup of EaseUS Todo Backup Business, making initial configuration quick and uncomplicated.
  • Users praise Reliability in EaseUS Todo Backup Business, ensuring consistent and safe backups for critical data management.
Cons
  • Users often face backup issues, particularly with unclear storage limits and the automatic deletion of old backups.
  • Users find the error messages unhelpful, complicating backup management and understanding storage usage limits.
  • Users report frequent authentication issues with EaseUS Todo Backup Business, leading to frustration and access problems.
  • Users report frequent backup failures, leading to frustration and concerns about data integrity and reliability.
  • Users find the error messages unhelpful, making troubleshooting and resolving issues more difficult with EaseUS Todo Backup Business.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of EaseUS Todo Backup Business?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About EaseUS Todo Backup Business?

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MiniTool Partition Wizard

MiniTool Partition Wizard is a comprehensive disk partition management software designed to optimize disk usage and safeguard data for Windows users. It offers over 50 features, enabling users to manage partitions and disks effectively, from partition creation to data recovery and system migration. Key Features and Functionality: - Partition Management: Create, delete, resize, move, merge, split, format, and wipe partitions to better configure disk storage space. - Disk Conversion: Convert between MBR and GPT, primary and logical partitions, and FAT to NTFS file systems. - Data Recovery: Recover lost or deleted partitions and files from damaged or inaccessible hard drives. - OS Migration: Migrate the operating system to faster SSDs or larger HDDs to enhance computer performance. - Disk Benchmark: Measure disk performance by testing sequential and random read/write speeds. - Space Analyzer: Analyze disk usage to identify files consuming significant disk space. - Bootable Media Creation: Create bootable media to resolve disk issues when the system fails to boot. Primary Value and User Solutions: MiniTool Partition Wizard addresses the need for efficient disk management by providing a user-friendly interface and a wide array of tools to manage partitions and disks. It simplifies complex tasks such as resizing partitions, converting disk formats, recovering lost data, and migrating operating systems, thereby enhancing system performance and ensuring data integrity. This all-in-one solution eliminates the need for multiple specialized tools, streamlining disk management workflows for both routine maintenance and critical recovery scenarios.

Average Rating: 4.4/5.0

Total Reviews: 55

How Do G2 Users Rate MiniTool Partition Wizard?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind MiniTool Partition Wizard?

  • Seller: MiniTool Software
  • Year Founded: 2001
  • HQ Location: Surrey, Canada
  • Twitter: @minitool_
    6,584 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    49 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 52% Small, 43% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of MiniTool Partition Wizard?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About MiniTool Partition Wizard?

AOMEI Backupper

AOMEI Backupper is a comprehensive Windows backup and recovery software designed to safeguard personal and business data. It offers a user-friendly interface suitable for both novice and professional users, providing robust features for data protection and disaster recovery. Key Features and Functionality: - Backup Options: Supports full, incremental, and differential backups for files, folders, partitions, disks, and the entire system. - Restore Capabilities: Allows restoration of backed-up data to its original state, including system recovery to dissimilar hardware configurations. - File Synchronization: Offers real-time, mirror, and two-way sync to keep data consistent across different locations. - Cloning Tools: Enables disk and system cloning for OS migration or disk upgrades without reinstalling Windows. - Advanced Utilities: Includes tools like PXE Boot, bootable media creation, and command-line backup for enhanced data management. Primary Value and User Solutions: AOMEI Backupper addresses the critical need for reliable data protection by offering versatile backup, restore, sync, and clone solutions. It ensures data integrity and system availability, minimizing downtime and data loss risks. Its intuitive design and comprehensive features make it an ideal choice for users seeking efficient and effective data management solutions.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 18

How Do G2 Users Rate AOMEI Backupper?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 7.6/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind AOMEI Backupper?

  • Seller: AOMEI Technology
  • Year Founded: 2010
  • HQ Location: Jiangxi, China
  • Twitter: @aomeitech
    3,173 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    32 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 56% Small, 39% Medium

What Do G2 Reviewers Say About AOMEI Backupper?

AI-generated summary from verified user reviews

Pros
  • Users praise the feature-rich design of AOMEI Backupper, highlighting its ease of use for data management.
  • Users appreciate the backup frequency of AOMEI Backupper, simplifying their data storage, copying, and backup processes.
  • Users appreciate the rich features and ease of use in AOMEI Backupper for data backup and storage.
  • Users find AOMEI Backupper to be easy to use, simplifying the process of storing, copying, and backing up data.
  • Users value the reliability of AOMEI Backupper, noting its past effectiveness and beneficial features.
Cons
  • Users report frequent backup failures and poor support, causing frustration and dissatisfaction with AOMEI Backupper.
  • Users report backup issues with AOMEI Backupper, facing failures and lacking support for troubleshooting their problems.
  • Users report insufficient information in AOMEI Backupper, making troubleshooting and support nearly impossible.
  • Users are frustrated by the lack of backup options and inadequate support from AOMEI Backupper, leading to failed backups.
  • Users often face licensing issues, needing to contact support to re-register their license numbers.

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of AOMEI Backupper?

Daemon Tools

DAEMON Tools for Mac is more than just imaging software. It allows you to play FLAC or APE Audio images, work with VHD and mount everything from ISO to BIN.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 49

How Do G2 Users Rate Daemon Tools?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.7/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Daemon Tools?

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services, Computer Software
  • Company Size: 58% Small, 28% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Daemon Tools?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Daemon Tools?

Paragon Hard Disk Manager Business

Hard Disk Manager Business helps organizations of all sizes build a reliable Disaster Recovery framework, from storage management to system integrity and data protection. It facilitates managing IT assets throughout the entire lifecycle, from deployment to disposal, to ensure no business continuity gaps exist across heterogeneous systems in hybrid environments.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 27

How Do G2 Users Rate Paragon Hard Disk Manager Business?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.6/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.6/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Paragon Hard Disk Manager Business?

  • Seller: Paragon Software Group
  • Year Founded: 1994
  • HQ Location: Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
  • Twitter: @ParagonSoftware
    2,711 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    87 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services
  • Company Size: 56% Small, 33% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Paragon Hard Disk Manager Business?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Paragon Hard Disk Manager Business?

Clonezilla

Clonezilla is a partition and disk imaging/cloning program similar to True Image or Norton Ghost. It helps you to do system deployment, bare metal backup and recovery. Two types of Clonezilla are available, Clonezilla live and Clonezilla SE (server edition).

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 15

How Do G2 Users Rate Clonezilla?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 6.8/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 7.0/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Clonezilla?

  • Seller: NCHC
  • Year Founded: 1991
  • HQ Location: HsinChu, Taiwan
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    211 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 53% Small, 47% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Clonezilla?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Clonezilla?

AOMEI Image Deploy

AOMEI Image Deploy is a image deployment and network cloning software designed to support deploying/restoring an image to multiple computers over network.

Average Rating: 4.5/5.0

Total Reviews: 12

How Do G2 Users Rate AOMEI Image Deploy?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.6/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 7.8/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind AOMEI Image Deploy?

  • Seller: AOMEI Technology
  • Year Founded: 2010
  • HQ Location: Jiangxi, China
  • Twitter: @aomeitech
    3,173 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    32 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 75% Small, 25% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of AOMEI Image Deploy?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About AOMEI Image Deploy?

NovaStor DataCenter

NovaStor DataCenter is a complete server backup solution for network files servers, VMs, and applications as well as data centers running Windows and/or Linux OS. With complementary setup assistance and knowledgeable, in-house backup experts to support you, you never have to tackle backup issues alone.

Average Rating: 3.9/5.0

Total Reviews: 20

How Do G2 Users Rate NovaStor DataCenter?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 7.8/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.8/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind NovaStor DataCenter?

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Computer Software
  • Company Size: 104% Medium, 30% Small

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of NovaStor DataCenter?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About NovaStor DataCenter?

O&O DiskImage

O&O DiskImage provides a wide range of options for backing up systems. You have the choice of creating images or making file backups. With images you can restore a system1:1 back to its original status. File backups let you save selected files and folders that you can keep in a safe place for future access. O&O DiskImage supports the VHDX format. VHDX protects against file corruption by logging changes in the metadata. On top of that, it can support images of up to 64 TB. Imaging and restoration in Hyper-V environments make it easier for IT departments to migrate from physical to virtual machines. Reduce costs O&O DiskImage allows even less experienced IT staff to run simple backups and more complex backup jobs with only a minimum amount of labor. This allows you to save or avoid expenses you’d otherwise need to spend on integration, schooling, or overall operations. Protection against sabotage It happens time and again that malware creeps into a company, infecting many, maybe even all, computers and then starts systematically destroying data. This is often noticed only when it’s too late, when important data has been lost forever. In cases like this, restoring the system and its data is top priority. O&O DiskImage provides the necessary mechanisms needed to recover single files or entire systems in the blink of an eye. Machine Independent Restore on/from virtual environments Hardware that reaches the end of its lifespan must be exchanged. At that point it’s important to decide how best to get the computer’s operating system and all its data onto a new computer. To do this, O&O DiskImage provides Machine Independent Restore (in short M.I.R.) which enables the restoration of a system image onto a machine with different hardware components. Drivers and settings are automatically replaced to keep the system in working order. O&O DiskImage simplifies migration from physical to virtual machines. VHD and VHDX support along with direct restoration in Hyper-V environments makes virtualization of your IT systems really easy.

Average Rating: 4.1/5.0

Total Reviews: 10

How Do G2 Users Rate O&O DiskImage?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind O&O DiskImage?

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 70% Small, 20% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of O&O DiskImage?

Paragon Hard Disk Manager™ Business

Hard Disk Manager™ Business helps organizations of all sizes build a reliable Disaster Recovery framework, from storage management to system integrity and data protection. It facilitates managing IT assets throughout the entire lifecycle, from deployment to disposal, to ensure no business continuity gaps exist across heterogeneous systems in hybrid environments.

Average Rating: 4.6/5.0

Total Reviews: 11

How Do G2 Users Rate Paragon Hard Disk Manager™ Business?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 8.9/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.4/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Paragon Hard Disk Manager™ Business?

  • Seller: Paragon Software Group
  • Year Founded: 1994
  • HQ Location: Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
  • Twitter: @ParagonSoftware
    2,711 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    87 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 73% Small, 18% Large

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Paragon Hard Disk Manager™ Business?

Active@Disk Image

Active@ Disk Image creates an exact copy of entire computer or selected disks and restores them from backup in case of hardware failure or data corruption New! Fully supported disks 4096 bytes sectors (ADI & RAW images) Multi-language support (English, French, Portuguese, Spanish). Installation & Boot Disk Creator as well. Active@ Virtual Disk (RAW & ADI images can be mounted and visible in Windows Explorer, read-only mode) Generic uncompressed raw images support Pre- and post-execution commands for scheduled tasks Copy Disk to Disk feature (direct copying partitions with resizing) Scheduled incremental backups support (Pro version) Incremental backup of unknown file systems is supported Create Backup Disk Image & Raw Disk Image Back up to almost any media Disk Image Explorer

Average Rating: 4.2/5.0

Total Reviews: 11

How Do G2 Users Rate Active@Disk Image?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 10.0/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 8.7/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.3/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Active@Disk Image?

  • Seller: LSoft Technologies
  • Year Founded: 1999
  • HQ Location: Mississauga, Ontario
  • Twitter: @lsoft_net
    258 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    6 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 55% Small, 27% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Active@Disk Image?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Active@Disk Image?

ISO Editor

UUByte ISO Editor is a complete toolkit for managing ISO images files. There are 5 features available: burn ISO to USB, editor an existing ISO image, create new ISO image from files and extract content from ISO file. Currently, it supports Windows and macOS.

Average Rating: 4.0/5.0

Total Reviews: 14

How Do G2 Users Rate ISO Editor?

  • Has the product been a good partner in doing business?: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 9.0/10)
  • Quality of Support: 7.5/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 8.1/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind ISO Editor?

  • Seller: UUByte
  • HQ Location: N/A
  • Twitter: @uubyte
    25 Twitter followers
  • LinkedIn® Page: www.linkedin.com
    1 employees on LinkedIn®

Who Uses This Product?

  • Top Industries: Information Technology and Services
  • Company Size: 53% Medium, 27% Small

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of ISO Editor?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About ISO Editor?

Syncronize Backup

Syncronize Backup is a backup software for Windows platform that copies data directly on the hard disk or CD-rom, allowing you to keep and preserve your work and to protect it from any risk of loss.

Average Rating: 4.3/5.0

Total Reviews: 10

How Do G2 Users Rate Syncronize Backup?

  • Quality of Support: 8.3/10 (Category avg: 8.2/10)
  • Ease of Use: 9.2/10 (Category avg: 8.8/10)

Who Is the Company Behind Syncronize Backup?

Who Uses This Product?

  • Company Size: 45% Large, 36% Medium

What Are Recent G2 Reviews of Syncronize Backup?

What Are G2 Users Discussing About Syncronize Backup?

Tian Lin
TL
Researched and written by Tian Lin
Updated October 3, 2024

Hard Drive Cloning Topics

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Learn More About Hard Drive Cloning Software

What is Hard Drive Cloning Software?

Hard drive cloning software allows users to copy their hard drive disk content to another source. The cloned drive is usually a complete copy of the original operating system (Windows, Linux, macOS, etc.) including all files and configurations. Once the cloned hard disk is plugged into a new computer, it is bootable without any setup or additional software installation. Organizations use hard drive cloning to implement their configuration on user devices, servers, and so on. This systemic approach streamlines a base configuration to every other device. Otherwise, the IT admin would have to reinstall and reconfigure a system manually. Hard drive cloning should be automatic, replicable, and manageable so users can replicate their configuration into other devices with ease.

Another type of hard drive cloning is hard drive imaging. This method involves storing cloned content into a disk image file and managed online for version upgrades. Users can save the cloned system into a compressed file so that it is easier to manage and can be stored online. 

What Types of Hard Drive Cloning Software Exist?

Disk cloning

Disk cloning allows users to copy the exact content of one hard drive to another. This will transfer all operating system data and applications to the new hard drive. The cloned hard drive is ready to use in a new environment. Users can plug and play on the new computer without setup.

Mirror cloning

Mirror cloning provides a compressed single file (mirror image) used for backup and disaster recovery. The image can be stored on-site or online and updated regularly. Since they are compressed, multiple images can be stored on a single hard drive to save space. Users can restore the system or uncompress the file to a new hard drive with mirror imaging. However, mirror cloning requires setting up for a new hard drive so it is not plug and play compared to disk cloning.

What are the Common Features of Hard Drive Cloning Software?

The following are some common core features within hard drive cloning software that can help users to effortlessly clone their devices:

Backup hidden and uneditable files: Most critical system files cannot be edited or even seen from within the operating system itself. For example, a Windows 10 system has hidden files in C drives that not even a regular admin account can copy and paste these files into another drive. To have an effective drive clone, the cloning software has to be able to both access and create an exact copy of those generally inaccessible files.

Uninterrupted cloning: Backups and cloning can be concerning because they could interrupt day-to-day workflow. Disk cloning software should clone a drive while that drive is actively in use without rebooting. If the system shuts down during cloning, users can resume cloning at the point of stoppage. This saves time and protects the integrity of the cloned image.

Load balancing: Cloning can strain resources and cause lagging and slow processing speeds. Uploading the image file can also slow internet connections. Some software vendors address this problem by load balancing the resource consumption and internet uploading/downloading speed. This will prevent workflow disruption for users who have slow internet speed or low processing power devices.

Ready to use: For a disk cloned hard drive, it should be installed straight onto a computer or server ready to be used. Hard drive cloning software should be able to clone from one hard drive to another regardless of drive type (hard disk drive (HDD), solid-state drive (SSD), USB flash drive) or size difference (1TB HDD to a 10TB SSD). Without this feature, users often waste time setting up new configurations on the new device. 

One image, several drives: Many disk cloning applications can clone images to several drives at once. This feature is a huge time saver for those who need to clone numerous drives as a part of their project.

Remote access and maintenance: Many vendors offer remote access to manage the image file. If the drive image is stored online, users can access drive images remotely, perform maintenance, verify configurations, and download images in a single user interface.

Virus protection: Some hard drive cloning software scan and protect the disk backup image and clone disk from malware and ransomware. With this feature, users can restore the affected files without restoring the whole system.

What are the Benefits of Hard Drive Cloning Software?

Mass deployment: Using hard drive cloning software can benefit businesses greatly by saving time during setup, expansion, and upgrades when they have hundreds of devices. Large and growing companies tend to perform heavy onboarding, substantial hardware expansions, and frequent drive replacements or upgrades. But replacing and reconfiguring a hard drive can be costly because of the significant work hours needed to configure and install new systems from scratch. Hard drive cloning software facilitates quick, easy drive configuration—manageable by one or a few IT specialists—that can be standardized to a company’s needs. The result is faster turnaround times and fewer human resources.

Flexible management: Users can set up drive images with whatever base configurations their business needs, implementing new devices is as simple as cloning the image to a new drive. They can also manage their image remotely from the internet in a central location.

Short downtime: Hard drive cloning software creates a full backup of the computer or server. Since the operating system and all applications in the system are saved on a different drive, in the event of a hard drive failure or system crash, the clone drive is swapped into the computer in place of the failed drive. This provides an immediate solution during disaster recovery which saves time.

Who Uses Hard Drive Cloning Software?

Computer users: Since this software is not complicated to use, most users can create their cloned hardware online, on the same computer, or another external hard drive. They can use it as a backup solution or for replicating their setting on a new computer

IT administrators: Hard drive cloning is exceptionally beneficial for IT administrators in a medium to large size organization. They can set up new computers or servers in groups without a manual setup for each device.

Software Related to Hard Drive Cloning Software

Related solutions that can be used together with hard drive cloning software include:

Disaster recovery software: Disaster recovery (DR) solutions help businesses quickly and efficiently recover software, settings, and data to an as-before state in the event of computer, server, or other infrastructure failure. Hard drive imaging can be a part of disaster recovery solutions as it can completely restore the user devices from system to file level. 

Server backup software: Server backup software is used to ensure the information stored or processed through server hardware remains intact in case of mechanical failure or user error. Server backup tools differ from other backup technology in that they communicate directly with the server and operate solely to store its information. So while users can use hard drive cloning for server backup, it is not recommended as hard drive cloning isn’t automatic and designed for server backup. 

Challenges with Hard Drive Cloning Software

Software solutions can come with their own set of challenges. 

Software licensing: Software licensing is an important consideration when cloning. While hard drive cloning allows users to clone all file information—including licenses—from one drive to another, some software might look for the hard drive’s unique serial number as an identifier for validating the software license. This is highly suspicious to software vendors and may cause a software audit. Users should reach out to IT admin or software providers before cloning their hardware into multiple devices.

Hardware risk: A cloned hard drive connected to the same source drive is susceptible to malware. If the virus infects the original hardware, it is also likely that the cloned hardware is infected, as well. Outside of virus attacks, hard drives can also be damaged by a power surge or hardware failure. Lastly, unwanted guests can steal or vandalize the internal and external drives stored nearby. To prevent these hardware failures, users should consider storing their cloned image files securely online. 

Incomplete backup solution: Hard drive cloning isn’t a good standalone backup solution because it doesn’t support incremental backup and differential backup. These backup features allow users to backtrack previous versions of backup. If the current backup version is infected by a virus, users can use the backup’s previous version. Without these features, users can’t restore their device to a time before the most recent backup. This is important because if there is a virus when the hard drive is cloned, the virus will be copied to the clone drive. Therefore, users should consider the cloned drive to be a way of avoiding downtime, not a standalone backup solution.

How to Buy Hard Drive Cloning Software

Requirements Gathering (RFI/RFP) for Hard Drive Cloning Software

Whether a company is looking for its first hard drive cloning software tool or looking to replace an existing one, g2.com can help find the best disk cloning software or disk imaging software.

Hard drive cloning software often comes with specifically desired features and capabilities. To start, companies should first think about their core requirements. They should think about the number of physical and digital resources that will be cloned, storage location (cloud services or physical hard drive storing backups), applications that will clone the data, and constraints related to budgeting, staffing, or continued maintenance. Industries involving large amounts of sensitive data should also factor compliance and security needs into their proposal as well. Also, many companies already have other backup solutions, so these companies can first ask if their current vendor offers hard drive cloning as part of their backup solutions.

Prioritizing the desired feature set that meets the requirement can help narrow down the potential pool of hard drive cloning solutions, allowing teams to then apply further considerations for budget, ease of administration, security requirements, and more. This holistic approach empowers buyers to move forward with a focused checklist, which can be used in conjunction with G2 scoring to select the best hard drive cloning product for the business.

Compare Hard Drive Cloning Software Products

Create a long list

Requirements gathering for hard drive cloning solutions is fairly straightforward, but can still vary greatly depending on the scope of capability. From the bottom of the list, there are open-source cloning software and original OS cloning software. They are usually free but have limited features and may require complex tutorials to use. On the other hand, there are expensive hard drive cloning solutions that offer additional features such as security scans, online image backups, good user interfaces, and so on. Some of these solutions may offer free versions, too. There are many options so companies need to prepare their list of requirements to get through the long list quickly. Since budget and staffing will largely dictate what products end up on the shortlist, a vendor’s ability to meet each of the company’s requirements and budget will make it to the short list.

Create a short list

From the long list of vendors, it is helpful to narrow down the list of vendors to come up with a shorter list of contenders, preferably no more than three to five. With this list in hand, businesses can produce a matrix to compare the features and pricing of the various solutions.

Conduct demos

To ensure a fair comparison, the user should demo each solution on the shortlist with the same use case and datasets. This will allow the business to evaluate like-for-like and see how each vendor stacks up against the competition. 

Selection of Hard Drive Cloning Software

Choose a selection team

To choose a selection team, decision makers need to involve subject matter experts from all teams that will use the system. This primarily involves product managers, developers, IT, and security staff. Purchasing team can also help with negotiation.

Negotiation

Using the requirements prioritization, users can organize the data to help people understand how each solution meets their requirements. This can prevent siloed thinking and serve as a catalyst for internal debates and bring new questions for the vendor. Every product will have pros and cons, but the selection analysis should paint a clearer picture of each product’s ability to meet the company’s unique needs. The identified cons can then be used to either eliminate options from the shortlist or serve as leverage for discounts and other offers.

Final decision

After this stage, it is important to perform a trial run if possible with a small selection of IT professionals. This will help to ensure that the software of choice integrates well with the company’s hardware setup. If the hard drive cloning tool is well liked and well utilized, the buyer can take that as a sign that their selection is the right one. If not, reevaluation of the options may be necessary.