Question How to restore W11 from disk image & dual boot Linux

[Geos54]

I'm replacing my 128GB SSD C: drive with a 240GB SSD. I've created a disk image on an HD. My goal is to restore my current Win11 system and dual boot with Linux. I'm not clear on how to do this. Once I remove my current C: drive I no longer have an OS so how do I go about resoring W11? Thanks.

 

[Ajay]

What did you use to make the image?

If it were me, I'd use clonezilla (boot usb) to create the copy of the current drive onto the HDD. Then, after the hardware change, boot into the clonezilla usb, and copy that back to the new SSD. Should work fine.

 

[Geos54]

I used the W11 Backup/Restore utility to make a DVD. So the DVD is bootable and I would boot and restore W11 via the DVD then install Linux?

 

[Ajay]

Is linux already installed in dual boot on the 128GB drive?

 

[Geos54]

Is linux already installed in dual boot on the 128GB drive?

No. Just W11.

 

[manly]

I used the W11 Backup/Restore utility to make a DVD. So the DVD is bootable and I would boot and restore W11 via the DVD then install Linux?

I've never used that utility myself, but you could try if you really wanted to.

Otherwise, there are dedicated disk imaging tools that will get the job done. @Ajay mentioned CloneZilla, which is open source and works. The UI is a bit ugly but if you follow guides carefully, it shouldn't be a problem.

Or you can download Macrium Reflect Free, which is a Windows application that will clone your existing SSD. Reflect Free has been discontinued, so Macrium will no longer update it. But you can still download the last free version from MajorGeeks or CNET. According to my notes, that is version 8.0.7279 .

Macrium Reflect can create a bootable USB disk for restoring images, but in your case, that is optional. The Windows application can just clone your 128GB to the new SSD. The easiest thing to do is to not grow (or shrink) the existing C: drive when you're cloning. This will leave almost half of the new SSD "unallocated," and any Linux installer will know how to deal with that. Follow a good guide when you're installing Zorin Linux to dual boot.

If you do want to resize your C: drive while cloning Macrium Reflect can easily do that as well.