I have a question when cloning to this SSD. I originally purchased a Dell Windows 7 computer and then subsequently upgraded to Win 8.1 pro. Under disk management, I see three separate partitions on my C:\ drive namely: a) OEM Partition (39 MB), b) Recovery Partition (21.15 GB NTFS), and c) OS C:\ partition ( NTFS). Since my computer has gone through several changes since I bought it in 2012 including the Win 8.1 upgrade, what is the need for cloning, if any, of the OEM Partition and Recovery Partition. Would it not be better to ONLY clone the “OS c:\ partition” (which presumably has the O/S, all my programs and files) and then create a new recovery partition after cloning? Also, will the SSD boot if I just clone the OS C:\ partition (or is there a hidden or separate boot partition?)

Question

I have a question when cloning to this SSD. I originally purchased a Dell Windows 7 computer and then subsequently upgraded to Win 8.1 pro. Under disk management, I see three separate partitions on my C:\ drive namely:  a) OEM Partition (39 MB), b) Recovery Partition (21.15 GB  NTFS), and c) OS C:\ partition ( NTFS). Since my computer has gone through several changes since I bought it in 2012 including the Win 8.1 upgrade, what is the need for cloning, if any, of the OEM Partition and Recovery Partition. Would it not be better to ONLY clone the “OS c:\ partition” (which presumably has the O/S, all my programs and files) and then create a new recovery partition after cloning? Also, will the SSD boot if I just clone the OS C:\ partition (or is there a hidden or separate boot partition?)

Accepted Answer

Newer windows versions require the "System Reserved" partition. My advice would be to perform a fresh install of Windows 7 after re partitioning.

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