Looking for a Good External HD


Even if cloning is faster, if you are only getting 750ish KB/s to your external drives....there is a substantial problem somewhere. That problem will still exist after the cloning is done.

Cloning is faster than imaging a drive, as with an image you are backing up the drive to a file, and then turning around and then copying that file back to a secondary hard drive. So you are really doing the transfer 2x. With cloning, you have both drives connected and you just go from 1 drive to the other in 1 shot.
When the regular copying starts, it starts out great! Then it slows to a snails speed. Surely I didn't purchase 2 bad drives. I got them on eBay, so I'm protected by PayPal. I'll get my money back if i have to.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
When the regular copying starts, it starts out great! Then it slows to a snails speed. Surely I didn't purchase 2 bad drives. I got them on eBay, so I'm protected by PayPal. I'll get my money back if i have to.
Approximately what speeds are you getting when it starts out? Doing some testing with a single file, and then a file files and tracking how much data you have to move before it slows down is going to be a key.

It's highly unlikely that you got 2 bad drives.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Beelink SEI8
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-8279u
    Motherboard
    AZW SEI
    Memory
    32GB DDR4 2666Mhz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Iris Plus 655
    Sound Card
    Intel SST
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Asus ProArt PA278QV
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    512GB NVMe
    PSU
    NA
    Case
    NA
    Cooling
    NA
    Keyboard
    NA
    Mouse
    NA
    Internet Speed
    500/50
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    Mini PC used for testing Windows 11.
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Ryzen 9 5900x
    Motherboard
    Asus Rog Strix X570-E Gaming
    Memory
    64GB DDR4-3600
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA GeForce 3080 FT3 Ultra
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ASUS TUF Gaming VG27AQ. ASUS ProArt Display PA278QV 27” WQHD
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    2TB WD SN850 PCI-E Gen 4 NVMe
    2TB Sandisk Ultra 2.5" SATA SSD
    PSU
    Seasonic Focus 850
    Case
    Fractal Meshify S2 in White
    Cooling
    Dark Rock Pro CPU cooler, 3 x 140mm case fans
    Mouse
    Logitech G9 Laser Mouse
    Keyboard
    Corsiar K65 RGB Lux
    Internet Speed
    500/50
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Defender.
Approximately what speeds are you getting when it starts out? Doing some testing with a single file, and then a file files and tracking how much data you have to move before it slows down is going to be a key.

It's highly unlikely that you got 2 bad drives.
When it first starts out, it's like 137-140MB/s, then slows town to 1.08MB/s then down to roughly 733KB/s lol Then doesn't go up any further than that.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
When it first starts out, it's like 137-140MB/s, then slows town to 1.08MB/s then down to roughly 733KB/s lol Then doesn't go up any further than that.
When it first starts out, it's like 137-140MB/s, then slows town to 1.08MB/s then down to roughly 733KB/s lol Then doesn't go up any further than that. It was going to take anywhere from 12-16 hours to copy all 2.75TB, now it's going to take about 4 and a half hours (cloning)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
No... I just switch the cables, when I want to switch from the Win 11 SSD to the Win 10 SSD.
Takes me under a minute.
I have 8 drive bays in my pc, all have drives in them, some just storage, and some with OS's from Win 7 to LTSB to LTSC to 8.1 to 10 to 11. I can shut down and boot from any of the OS drives in less than 30 seconds, of course not any of my PC's have the doors on them. :-)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 LTSB & 11 Pro 23H2 & Windows 7 Pro and Ultimate.
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware PC
    CPU
    Intel i7 4790K
    Motherboard
    ASROCK Z97 EXTREME4
    Memory
    32GB DDR3 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 7770 2GB GDDR5
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    SAMSUNG UE57 Series 28-Inch 4K UHD
    Hard Drives
    SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2
    PSU
    EVGA 850 watt
    Case
    Alienware Area 51 Black Tower Case
    Keyboard
    HyperX - Alloy Elite 2 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard.
    Mouse
    Microsoft Wireless
    Internet Speed
    1.2 GHz
    Browser
    Chrome..Edge..Firefox
I have 8 drive bays in my pc, all have drives in them, some just storage, and some with OS's from Win 7 to LTSB to LTSC to 8.1 to 10 to 11. I can shut down and boot from any of the OS drives in less than 30 seconds, of course not any of my PC's have the doors on them. :-)
I have about that many bays in mine too. . I also have two slots where you can mount laptop HDD or an SSD (2.5")
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
I have 8 drive bays in my pc, all have drives in them, some just storage, and some with OS's from Win 7 to LTSB to LTSC to 8.1 to 10 to 11. I can shut down and boot from any of the OS drives in less than 30 seconds, of course not any of my PC's have the doors on them. :-)


All I need to do is switch the cable with the YELLOW dot, up one, to get to Windows 10. :-)


image1.png
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦26100.3476 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦24H2 ♦♦♦non-Insider
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 5002)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Internet Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 15 years?

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
How come you just don't Dual Boot? You can select which OS you want


Cause I don't want them both sharing the same boot manager
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦26100.3476 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦24H2 ♦♦♦non-Insider
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 5002)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Internet Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 15 years?

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
Cause I don't want them both sharing the same boot manager
I'm in the same boat as you are with desktops and dual boots. If i can just disconnect 1 hard drive and connect another hard drive easily, I just do it this way. Therefore, absolutely nothing can accidentally be put on an unexpected drive, and nor can a goof up in the boot loader in one system impacting another one.

I rarely run dual boots anymore. 90% of what I want to do in a dual boot can be done in a virtual machine. When I want actual hardware access and I want to run another copy of windows, I install it into a vhdx and just add that to my boot loader. That works great for me. For example, my gaming box is still running WIndows 10, but I wanted to see if 11 would install and all of my hardware ran as expected and doing it as a .vhdx was the easiest way to do it.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Beelink SEI8
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-8279u
    Motherboard
    AZW SEI
    Memory
    32GB DDR4 2666Mhz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Iris Plus 655
    Sound Card
    Intel SST
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Asus ProArt PA278QV
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    512GB NVMe
    PSU
    NA
    Case
    NA
    Cooling
    NA
    Keyboard
    NA
    Mouse
    NA
    Internet Speed
    500/50
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    Mini PC used for testing Windows 11.
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Ryzen 9 5900x
    Motherboard
    Asus Rog Strix X570-E Gaming
    Memory
    64GB DDR4-3600
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA GeForce 3080 FT3 Ultra
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ASUS TUF Gaming VG27AQ. ASUS ProArt Display PA278QV 27” WQHD
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    2TB WD SN850 PCI-E Gen 4 NVMe
    2TB Sandisk Ultra 2.5" SATA SSD
    PSU
    Seasonic Focus 850
    Case
    Fractal Meshify S2 in White
    Cooling
    Dark Rock Pro CPU cooler, 3 x 140mm case fans
    Mouse
    Logitech G9 Laser Mouse
    Keyboard
    Corsiar K65 RGB Lux
    Internet Speed
    500/50
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Defender.
I'm in the same boat as you are with desktops and dual boots. If i can just disconnect 1 hard drive and connect another hard drive easily, I just do it this way. Therefore, absolutely nothing can accidentally be put on an unexpected drive, and nor can a goof up in the boot loader in one system impacting another one.

I rarely run dual boots anymore. 90% of what I want to do in a dual boot can be done in a virtual machine. When I want actual hardware access and I want to run another copy of windows, I install it into a vhdx and just add that to my boot loader. That works great for me. For example, my gaming box is still running WIndows 10, but I wanted to see if 11 would install and all of my hardware ran as expected and doing it as a .vhdx was the easiest way to do it.
I don't run two operating systems at all one the same PC. . . I have my main computer with windows 11, and my weather PC running Windows 10 (only because there's too much crap to do for a fresh install of 11) I have a lot of weather software that I use, placefiles, shapefiles, etc. ..
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
I got to 93% and ended up getting (Error code 9 failed CRC check)

All the files seem to be ok though. the 2.57TB of files matches the 2.57TB on the "old drive". . So, I assume it went ok.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.3037
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built Myself in 2017
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 1800X 8-Core @ 3.60GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Crosshair VI Hero
    Memory
    16GB G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce gtx 1660 Super
    Sound Card
    On Board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 X AOC 27" , PLANAR 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    ~ P34A60 512GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2
    ~ 6TB Toshiba HDD
    ~ 6TB HDD (Backup)
    ~ SanDisk 250GB SSD
    ~ 2 X 1TB HDD
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    PSU
    Corsair RM850 Fully Modular (850watts)
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 630 CA-PH630-W1
    Cooling
    CORSAIR iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT
    Keyboard
    Nulea RT05 Wireless Ergonomic
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280 Wireless Vertical Mouse
    Internet Speed
    761Mbps (Download) / 692Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    *This is my Main Computer That I use*
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro x64 24H2 v26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Xeon E3-1246 v3 @ 3.50GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Radeon R7 350X
    Sound Card
    onBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    eMachine 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    250GB SSD
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Nulea MD280
    Internet Speed
    752Mbps (Download) / 537Mbps (Upload)
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    I use this computer for photo/video editing and to track severe weather
Since others on this thread are more familiar with various external drives sold as one piece, is Western Digital the only one who markets Encryption as a feature? The current My Passport 2TB drives appears to be 4800RPM compared to the 5200RPM based on what Crystal Disk reports of the previous model but seems to be faster in being detected and connected for what I am using it for, connected to a DISH Hopper 3 Satellite TV DVR. Not sure about actual transfer rates though. The Western Digital Black 10 2TB is actually 5400RPM per Crystal Disk.
 
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My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows XP/7/8/8.1/10/11, Linux, Android, FreeBSD Unix
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 15 9570
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i7-8750H 8th Gen Processor 2.2Ghz up to 4.1Ghz
    Motherboard
    Dell XPS 15 9570
    Memory
    32GB using 2x16GB modules
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel UHD 630 & NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti with 4GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC3266-CG
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6" 4K Touch UltraHD 3840x2160 made by Sharp
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    Toshiba KXG60ZNV1T02 NVMe 1024GB/1TB SSD
    PSU
    Dell XPS 15 9570
    Case
    Dell XPS 15 9570
    Cooling
    Stock
    Keyboard
    Stock
    Mouse
    SwitftPoint ProPoint
    Internet Speed
    Comcast/XFinity 1.44Gbps/42.5Mbps
    Browser
    Microsoft EDGE (Chromium based) & Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender that came with Windows
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