How to Clone and Move System Reserved Partition to Another Drive or Disk in Windows 11/10

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Tracy King 

Last updated on April 19, 2024

Overview of the System Reserved Partition on a Windows Mobile Device

If you are not clear about the system reserved partition, you can read "What is System Reserved Partition".

There are two instances when you might need to move the System Reserved partition to another drive or disk:

Scenario 1: Can I move the System Reserved Partition to an SSD?

"Hello, do you know how to move the system reserved partition to my new SSD? I added a new SSD to my computer yesterday and migrated the operating system to the new disk."

The problem is, the System Reserved Partition is still on the old hard drive. So I'm wondering if it's possible to move the System Reserved Partition to my new SSD and how?”

Scenario 2: The System Clone retains the System Reserved Partition on the source disk. How do you move the System Reserved Partition to another disk?

"I cloned my system to a larger disk the other day. Everything is running fine. However, the System Reserved partition is still on the original old disk and did not move to the new drive. Is it possible to move the System Reserved partition to the new disk?"

How to Move the System Reserved Partition to a New Disk

Do you encounter the same problem and have no idea how to move the system reserved partition to another drive or disk? Don't worry. Read on and learn how to move the system reserved partition without boot issues with 2 methods.

Method 1: Move the System Reserved Partition with Free Partition Management Software

To simplify the operation and make the process of moving the system reserved partition to another disk easier, you can directly use the free partition manager - AOMEI Partition Assistant Free. With a few simple clicks, the cloning feature of this software allows you to move the system reserved partition to another drive.

Step 1. From the left-hand menu, choose "Clone." Click "Clone Partition" and "Next."

Step 2: Select the source partition, and click Next.

Step 3: Select the disk partition that you want to convert and click “Next” to proceed.

If you clone a disk partition to an existing one, move or back up your data first so it will not be overwritten. Review the warning and click Yes to continue.

Click “Start”, and wait for the cloning process to finish.

You can view this video tutorial to learn how to clone a partition or the System Reserved partition.

Then, you can change the partition label to “System Reserved,” and make the new disk's partition active.

In addition to disk/drive cloning, Partition Master Free also offers more disk partitioning features, such as:

• Resize/Move Partition to solve low disk space problem.
• Create/Delete/Format partition, Merge partitions.
• Erase data, Convert disk/partition (such as, Convert MBR to GPT) and so on.

You can download and install this free software on your computer, and then follow the steps below to move the system reserved partition to another drive or disk without booting issue.

Method 2: Move the System Reserved Partition to Another Drive with Disk Management

If you don't want to use a third-party disk partition tool, you can move the System Reserved Partition with the built-in Disk Management utility in Windows. This process can be somewhat complicated, so follow the steps in the guide below carefully. Read through the tips below first.

• To prevent system failure due to accidental mistakes, it's recommended that you first back up your system and create a system image on a USB drive.
• The steps below explain how to move the System Reserved partition to another disk. The process is similar if you want to copy the System Reserved partition to another drive.
• In Windows 7, the System Reserved partition is 100 MB, 350 MB in Windows 8, and 500 MB in Windows 11/10.

Step 1: Right-click the Start button and select Disk Management.

Step 2. Right-click on the unallocated space on your system disk, for example Disk 0, and select "New Simple Volume". If there is no unallocated space, you can shrink an existing partition first.

Step 3: Assign a drive letter to the new simple volume.

Step 4: Copy everything in the System Reserved partition, including the Boot folder, bootmgr, and BOOTSEC.BAK, to the new drive.

Step 5: Remove the drive letter assigned to the System Reserved partition on Disk 1.

Step 6: Name the new partition “System Reserved.”

Step 7. Remove the drive letter assigned to the new 'System Reserved' partition, and set it as Active.

Step 8. Restart the computer. If it boots normally, you can delete the System Reserved partition on the original disk 1. If it doesn't boot, recover the system from the backup image you created in Step 1.

Summary

There are two ways to move the System Reserved Partition on Windows 11/10 to another disk or drive. If you are familiar with both methods, you will know that the easiest and safest way to move the System Reserved Partition is by using a free partition management tool.

With the help of a free partition master tool, you can clone and move the system reserved partition to another drive or disk with just a few clicks. You don't need to manually create partitions, copy files, or delete partitions. Its cloning feature allows you to clone a larger HDD to a smaller SSD, clone an SD card, clone the entire hard drive, and more. Give it a try to manage your hard drives and free up disk space for improved system performance.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Mobile System Reserved Partition

If you have any of the following questions about how to move the System Reserved Partition on Windows 11/10/8/7, get help here.

How can I move the System Reserved partition to another drive?

You can move the System Reserved partition to another drive using one of two methods:

• Use the Partition Master Free tool to easily clone the System Reserved Partition to another drive or disk without boot issues in just a few steps.
• Manually move the System Reserved Partition to another drive in Disk Management, which is a more complicated process.

What will happen if I format the system reserved partition?

If you're planning a clean installation, you should delete all partitions instead of just formatting the System Reserved partition. The System Reserved partition will be created again when you set aside the first partition for Windows during installation.

Can the System Reserved Partition be deleted?

On a GPT disk, you can delete the System Reserved partition without causing any boot issues. While it's not recommended, you can still delete the System Reserved partition. It gets automatically created when you partition the drive for the system.

How do I resize the System Reserved partition?

You can easily resize the System Reserved Partition with the Resize/Move Partition feature in the free partitioning tool Partition Master Free:

Step 1: Right click on the System Reserved partition and select “Resize/Move Volume”.

Step 2: Drag the partition handle to resize the partition.

Step 3: Click the Perform Action button, and then click Apply to save the changes.

How do I label the System Reserved Partition?

Quickly set the System Reserved Partition as an active partition:

Step 1: Download and launch the partition manager.

Step 2: Right-click on the System Reserved Partition on the disk map and select "Set as Active". The software will automatically mark the System Reserved Partition as an active one.