FarStone DriveClone Free 11

Overview

FarStone DriveClone is an advanced SSD and HDD cloning application that can reliably backup Windows and all your files. It can backup whole applications, including their settings and with just one click you can clone your whole drive, regardless of size. Apart from the several backup tools and features it has, extra functions are included for various purposes, like a defragmentation tool and automatic partition resizing.

Installation

Installation is quite straightforward and you don’t have to do much, other than clicking the Next button. If you have a serial key, you will be prompted to enter it in one of the steps along with the User Name and Company Name. Otherwise leave that box empty and continue normally.

Supported operating systems are Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, as well as Windows Server 2003 and 2008. It is compatible with 32 and 64-bit edition systems too.

With version 10, DriveClone becomes Free for non-commercial use.

Interface

The interface is lean and uncluttered, with all the available features gathered in one place for you to easily choose what kind of task you want to perform. At the main screen of the program, you have two choices: Clone Drive and Clone Partition. Their differences are obvious; from the first option you can copy the contents of one disk to another, whilst from the second option you can copy one partition to another. After choosing what kind of cloning you want to do, you can continue the cloning procedure by following the instructions in the next screen.

Pros

The main purpose of DriveClone is to clone both SSD and HDD. This feature of DriveClone is probably its strongest point, and depending on your objective you can use different tools. For example you can update or migrate to a new PC or Server, or migrate HDD to SSD. One-click migration is supported as well. Cloning a disk includes not files and folders, but Windows, applications and their settings. The cloned Windows drive is bootable right from the beginning, without requiring you to make any special settings. Cloning is also supported for RAID systems.

Automatic partition resizing is a new feature in version 8. In addition, the perfect defrag feature can boost speed by 20%.

Cloning of open files is also supported, so that you can perform the operation without interrupting your current work.

The new features added in version 10 will make any user rejoice. Available in all Editions are:
- Support for New UEFI/GPT Hardware
- Support for Bigger Drives and RAID: 2/3/4TB and larger

The Workstation and Server Editions now have:
- Backup Previous File Versions
- Mirror Drive
- Incremental Cloning
- Convert to VMware and Hyper-v (Virtualization)

Cons

No cons in this program. It completes every task without problems and relatively fast. We found no bugs during our tests, and we are quite sure that the program will not cause you any problems.

Alternatives

HDClone is a shareware with many tools for cloning hard disks and other mass storage media. Like DriveClone, it can clone hard disks or partitions, including installed software and operating systems. It also has a feature called SafeGuard, which is perfect for saving data from corrupt drives. For Mac users, Carbon Copy Cloner is a very good choice with many features.

Conclusion

Highly recommended program that will solve all your cloning tasks. FarStone definitely flags this software area as its own territory, so DriveClone’s competitors will have a hard time competing with it.