Can I clone a micro sd card. How?

fredlave · 06-18-2012, 12:46 PM

I'm running Cyanogenmod 7 from an 8GB micro sd card. I'd like to be able to clone the card so I don't have to go through setup, settings, etc., with a new installation if this card fails. I tried the backup in Clockworkmod but it failed to complete (not enough space!).

Mujokan · 06-18-2012, 02:11 PM

What you want to do is create an image of the SD card. The exact details depend on your computer operating system. You fire up some software, point it at the card, and make an image which you store on your computer. Then you can write that image back to a card later.

You may already have such software on your computer (e.g. some Nero products often come preinstalled), or for some operating systems you can use the command line. This is a Windows one that they mention at XDA.
http://www.roadkil.net/program.php?ProgramID=12

Just be careful at the time you write the image back. If you designated the wrong drive to write to, obviously it would be a big disaster.

goldberry · 06-18-2012, 09:40 PM

Simple task if you are going to run from an SD card. Simply pop card in a USB reader and using Win32diskimager simply use read and copy the image to your hard drive. Then use write to put it on each SD card. It will make an identical copy.

Whether it will run when you place the card and boot in a different Nook is something I haven't tried but it should be fine. I use this method to back up mine to different SD cards when I want to try out a different ROM.

fredlave · 06-20-2012, 11:53 AM

Thanks for both replies. I'm still trying to get the cloned card to boot past the initial Team-B splash screen. If I'm successful I'll post my "how to".

Asawi · 06-20-2012, 12:07 PM

I copied my card a few weeks ago and put it in a brand new Nook Color. First bootup took a very long time, but the one after that was the same as in my regular Nook Color.
It was just like having my own Nook. Apps and Google Play working flawless.
I'm not 100% sure, but I think I used WinImage.

fredlave · 06-20-2012, 02:43 PM

I d/led HDDGURU's HDD Raw Copy Tool (http://hddguru.com/software/HDD-Raw-Copy-Tool/) and it worked great. In fact, I'm running my NT off the cloned microSD card now. I did a direct card to card copy. The Raw Copy Tool is a bit rough around the edges but it works. Mujokin's advice to be cautious when using it is well founded. It does not list your disk drives as A:, B:, C:, etc. and it's easy to mistake the target drive for the source and erase your precious microSD card. What I did was to put my source card into an SD adapter and then write protect it with the little slider on the left edge of the adapter. This saved me on my first attempt to clone and my second attempt was successful. Thanks for the great advice, guys.

livramax · 06-21-2012, 04:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fredlave

...
Mujokin's advice to be cautious when using it is well founded. It does not list your disk drives as A:, B:, C:, etc. and it's easy to mistake the target drive for the source and erase your precious microSD card.
...

There are worse accidents than erasing one's original microsSD card image: some folks have accidentally overwritten their Nook internal drive or even their PC/Laptop C: home drive

OldSeaDog · 03-21-2013, 01:45 PM

I found the simplest way to clone a micro sd card, was to use two USB card readers and MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro v7.5. Use the "copy disk wizard" to make an exact copy of the original micro sd card onto the new card. Be patient if you have a lot of data on the original sd card.
If copying a 16gb to a 32gb sd card, you will see a large "unallocated partition" left over. Use the "Move/Resize Partion" to expand to the full 32gb and you're done.
Dave

livramax · 03-21-2013, 02:54 PM

One thing I learned from cloning cards is that cards of the same nominal size (e.g., "8GB", "16GB", etc.) don't necessarily have the precisely same capacity, especially if they are from different manufacturers -- so the cloning happens to be from one card to another tiny-bit smaller card it would un-variably fail.

fredlave · 03-22-2013, 11:28 AM

See my post from 6/20/13 for the cloning "how to". I have copied several μSD cards using the method I outlined above. Though time consuming ( a 16 GB card can take about an hour to complete) the technique makes perfect copies as long as the cards are identical in brand and capacity. Yesterday, I cloned a card before I upgraded to a newer build of succulent's CM 10.1 ROM "just in case" something didn't work right.

06-18-2012, 12:46 PM	#1
fredlave Connoisseur Posts: 66 Karma: 510748 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: none	Can I clone a micro sd card. How? I'm running Cyanogenmod 7 from an 8GB micro sd card. I'd like to be able to clone the card so I don't have to go through setup, settings, etc., with a new installation if this card fails. I tried the backup in Clockworkmod but it failed to complete (not enough space!).

06-18-2012, 02:11 PM	#2
Mujokan Connoisseur Posts: 77 Karma: 271776 Join Date: Jun 2012 Device: Nook Simple Touch	What you want to do is create an image of the SD card. The exact details depend on your computer operating system. You fire up some software, point it at the card, and make an image which you store on your computer. Then you can write that image back to a card later. You may already have such software on your computer (e.g. some Nero products often come preinstalled), or for some operating systems you can use the command line. This is a Windows one that they mention at XDA. http://www.roadkil.net/program.php?ProgramID=12 Just be careful at the time you write the image back. If you designated the wrong drive to write to, obviously it would be a big disaster. Last edited by Mujokan; 06-18-2012 at 02:17 PM.

06-18-2012, 09:40 PM	#3
goldberry Groupie Posts: 199 Karma: 1105816 Join Date: Sep 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindles (wife's), now obsolete Nook and Sony	Simple task if you are going to run from an SD card. Simply pop card in a USB reader and using Win32diskimager simply use read and copy the image to your hard drive. Then use write to put it on each SD card. It will make an identical copy. Whether it will run when you place the card and boot in a different Nook is something I haven't tried but it should be fine. I use this method to back up mine to different SD cards when I want to try out a different ROM. Last edited by goldberry; 06-18-2012 at 09:44 PM.

03-21-2013, 01:45 PM	#8
OldSeaDog Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Washington Device: calibre	Cloning a micro sd card I found the simplest way to clone a micro sd card, was to use two USB card readers and MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro v7.5. Use the "copy disk wizard" to make an exact copy of the original micro sd card onto the new card. Be patient if you have a lot of data on the original sd card. If copying a 16gb to a 32gb sd card, you will see a large "unallocated partition" left over. Use the "Move/Resize Partion" to expand to the full 32gb and you're done. Dave

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06-20-2012, 11:53 AM	#4
fredlave Connoisseur Posts: 66 Karma: 510748 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: none	Thanks for both replies. I'm still trying to get the cloned card to boot past the initial Team-B splash screen. If I'm successful I'll post my "how to".

06-20-2012, 12:07 PM	#5
Asawi Gadgetoholic Posts: 1,467 Karma: 3865860 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Sweden Device: Kobo Libra2, Tolino Vision 6	I copied my card a few weeks ago and put it in a brand new Nook Color. First bootup took a very long time, but the one after that was the same as in my regular Nook Color. It was just like having my own Nook. Apps and Google Play working flawless. I'm not 100% sure, but I think I used WinImage.

06-20-2012, 02:43 PM	#6
fredlave Connoisseur Posts: 66 Karma: 510748 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: none	I d/led HDDGURU's HDD Raw Copy Tool (http://hddguru.com/software/HDD-Raw-Copy-Tool/) and it worked great. In fact, I'm running my NT off the cloned microSD card now. I did a direct card to card copy. The Raw Copy Tool is a bit rough around the edges but it works. Mujokin's advice to be cautious when using it is well founded. It does not list your disk drives as A:, B:, C:, etc. and it's easy to mistake the target drive for the source and erase your precious microSD card. What I did was to put my source card into an SD adapter and then write protect it with the little slider on the left edge of the adapter. This saved me on my first attempt to clone and my second attempt was successful. Thanks for the great advice, guys.

03-21-2013, 02:54 PM	#9
livramax Addict Posts: 275 Karma: 1115510 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: USA Device: Nook ST, Aura HD, Galaxy Note 8, Fire HD10, Galaxy S6 Lite	One thing I learned from cloning cards is that cards of the same nominal size (e.g., "8GB", "16GB", etc.) don't necessarily have the precisely same capacity, especially if they are from different manufacturers -- so the cloning happens to be from one card to another tiny-bit smaller card it would un-variably fail.

03-22-2013, 11:28 AM	#10
fredlave Connoisseur Posts: 66 Karma: 510748 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: none	See my post from 6/20/13 for the cloning "how to". I have copied several μSD cards using the method I outlined above. Though time consuming ( a 16 GB card can take about an hour to complete) the technique makes perfect copies as long as the cards are identical in brand and capacity. Yesterday, I cloned a card before I upgraded to a newer build of succulent's CM 10.1 ROM "just in case" something didn't work right.