UPDATED 3/26/2025: You can clone a Windows 11 installation to another Solid-State Drive (SSD), NVM Express (NVMe), or Hard Disk Drive (HDD) for free using Clonezilla, eliminating the need to reinstall the operating system. Clonezilla is a free, open-source Linux tool designed to clone virtually any drive containing any data. It achieves this by copying all the bits from one drive to another of equal or larger size.

If your device runs Windows 11, you can use Clonezilla to transfer the entire installation (including settings, applications, and files) to a new (faster) SSD, NVMe, or HDD that matches or exceeds the original drive’s capacity, all without reinstallation. Additionally, Clonezilla proves useful for cloning a drive as a backup before implementing system changes.

In this guide , I’ll explain how to use Clonezilla to clone a Windows 11 installation to another drive.

Clone Windows 11 to a new drive for free with Clonezilla

The cloning process is straightforward, but you still need some preparation. For example, you must connect the new drive to the computer, create a Clonezilla bootable USB media, complete the cloning process, and reconfigure the hard drive to ensure you use the entire available space.

Connect the clone drive

Connecting a traditional HDD, SSD, and NVMe M.2 drives will vary by manufacturer and computer model. For more specific details on completing this task, check your computer manufacturer’s support website.

You shouldn’t use an external USB drive as a boot device because it can’t be set as one. However, you can use it to create a backup.

Create a Clonezilla bootable media

The most straightforward approach to creating a USB bootable media is to use the Clonezilla ISO file with Rufus, a third-party tool designed to create bootable USB flash drives for Windows 11 and other platforms.

You could download the Clonezilla zip file, but if you make a mistake following the instructions, your current installation may break.

Download the Clonezilla ISO file

To download the Clonezilla ISO file, use these steps:

  1. Open the Clonezilla download page .
  2. In step 2 , select the ISO option as the file type.
  3. Click the Download button.

After you complete the steps, you can use Rufus to create a USB bootable media.

Create a Clonezilla bootable USB with Rufus

To create a bootable media for cloning, connect a USB flash drive with at least 4GB of storage and use these steps:

  1. Open the Rufus website .
  2. Click the download option for the latest version under the “Download” section.
  3. Double-click the file to launch the tool.
  4. Select the USB flash drive with the “Device” drop-down menu.
  5. Click the Select button.
  6. Select the Clonezilla ISO file.
  7. Click the Open button.
  8. Click the Start button.

Create a Clonezilla bootable USB with Tuxboot

You can also create a Clonezilla USB with the Tuxboot app with these steps:

  1. Download tuxboot from SourceForge . (Select the latest stable version available.)
  2. Double-click the tuxboot-x.x.x.exe file.
  3. Click the Yes button to bypass the warning.
  4. Select the On-Line Distribution option.
  5. Select the clonezilla_live_stable option with the “On-Line Distribution” drop-down menu.
  6. Select the USB Drive option with the “Type” drop-down menu.
  7. Select the flash drive with the “Drive” drop-down menu.
  8. Click the OK button.

Once you complete the steps, you need to make sure that the device can boot from USB before you start your device with the tool.

Usually, you will need to access the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) by hitting one of the function keys (F1, F2, F3, F10, or F12), the ESC, or the Delete key during boot.

Once inside the firmware, find the “Boot” section, ensure the boot order is set to the Windows 11 drive, and save the configuration.

The firmware can differ depending on the manufacturer and computer model. Check your manufacturer’s support website for more specific instructions.

Clone Windows 11 to a new drive using Clonezilla

To use Clonezilla to clone Windows 11 to a new SSD or HDD, use these steps:

  1. Start the computer with the bootable media.
  2. Select the Clonezilla live option and press Enter .
  3. Choose your language and press Enter .
  4. Select the “Keep option to stay with default keyboard layout” option and press Enter .
  5. Choose the “Start_Clonezilla” option and press Enter .
  6. Select the device_device option and press Enter .
  7. Choose the Beginner mode option and press Enter .
  8. Select the “disk_to_local_disk local_disk_to_local_disk_clone” option and press Enter .
  9. Choose the (source) drive containing the data you want to clone to another drive and press Enter . Important: If you don’t specify this option correctly, you can wipe out the wrong drive.
  10. Select the (destination) drive (the empty drive to replace or backup storage), and press Enter .
  11. Choose the sfsck option to skip checking and repairing and press Enter .
  12. Select the action to perform after the cloning is complete, including “choose,” “reboot,” or “poweroff.” You can select any option.
  13. Press Enter to continue.
  14. Type Y and press Enter to confirm the cloning process.
  15. Type Y and press Enter again to reconfirm that the process will delete everything on the destination drive.
  16. Type Y and press Enter to close the boot loader, the code that makes the Windows 11 drive bootable.

Once you complete the steps, Clonezilla will clone the data from the source (Windows 11 drive) to the destination drive.

After the process, either replace the old drive with the new one on the computer or remove it to store it as a backup.

Reconfiguring the cloned drive

If the drive you have cloned has more storage capacity than the original hard drive, you can extend the volume to make the additional space usable. However, the Recovery Partition won’t let you reconfigure the volume. If this is the case, you would have to delete the Recovery Partition, extend the “C:” drive, and then recreate the Recovery Partition at the end of the drive.

You can reconfigure the drive layout after cloning Windows 11 to a new drive using these steps:

  1. Open Start .
  2. Search for Command Prompt , right-click the top result, and choose the Run as administrator option.
  3. Type the following command to disable the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) and press Enter : reagentc /disable Quick note: This command disables the recovery environment and moves the “Winre.wim” image from the “Recovery Partition” to the “Recovery” folder in the “C” drive.
  4. Type the following command to launch DiskPart and press Enter : diskpart
  5. Type the following command to list the system drives and press Enter : list disk
  6. Type the following command to select the “C” drive and press Enter : select disk 0
  7. Type the following command to list the partitions and press Enter : list partition
  8. Type the following command to select the Recovery Partition and press Enter : select partition X In the command, replace “X” with the number that corresponds to the Recovery Partition on your setup.
  9. Type the following command to delete the recovery partition and press Enter : delete partition override
  10. Open Settings .
  11. Click on Storage .
  12. Click on Advanced storage settings u nder the “Storage management” section.
  13. Click on Disks & volumes .
  14. Select the Windows 11 volume and click the Properties option.
  15. Click the Change size button.
  16. Specify the “Max” value in the New (MB) field, but leave at least 1024MB (1GB) to recreate the Recovery Partition .
  17. Click the OK button.
  18. In Command Prompt, type the following command to create a new partition and press Enter : create partition primary
  19. Type the following command to format the partition and press Enter : format fs=ntfs quick
  20. Type the following command to register the new partition as the Recovery Partition in the system and press Enter : set id=de94bba4-06d1-4d40-a16a-bfd50179d6ac override
  21. Type the following command to lock and prevent users from modifying this partition and press Enter : gpt attributes=0x8000000000000001
  22. Type the following command to close the DiskPart tool and press Enter : exit
  23. Type the following command to enable WinRE and press Enter : reagentc /enable Quick note: This action will also copy the “Winre.wim” from the “Recovery” folder to the “Recovery Partition.”
  24. Type the following command to confirm the Windows Recovery Environment is working correctly, and press Enter : reagentc /info

After you complete the steps, the “C:” drive will extend to the remaining space, and the new Recovery Partition will be created next to the partition with the Windows 11 setup.

Update March 26, 2025: This guide has been updated to ensure accuracy and reflect changes to the process.

  • To fix a not working printer on Windows 11, use the “Printer” troubleshooter.
  • Alternatively, you can uninstall and reinstall the printer driver to fix common issues.
  • You can also try checking the physical connection, revising the configuration, and resetting the spooler.

If your printer isn’t working correctly on Windows 11 (be it an HP, Canon, Brother, Epson, or another brand), several factors might be responsible. For example, likely causes include:

  • Connectivity issues: The computer may have lost connection with the printer due to software glitches or physical disconnections.
  • Driver problems: Outdated or corrupted printer drivers can prevent proper operation.
  • Print spooler errors: Malfunctions in the print spooler service can hinder print jobs.
  • Incorrect printer selection: Accidentally sending print jobs to the wrong printer can result in no output.

Regardless of the problem, you can follow different troubleshooting steps to fix the printing issue on Windows 11, from simple actions like restarting the devices and checking the physical connection to using the troubleshooters to resetting the printer spooler and reinstalling the device driver.

In this guide , I’ll teach you several ways to troubleshoot and resolve common printing problems on Windows 11.

Fix not working printer on Windows 11

On Windows 11, you have several different ways to troubleshoot and fix issues when your printer is not working, no matter your brand (HP, Epson, Canon, Brother, etc.). To fix a printer, you can restart the device, check the connection, configure the default settings, run a troubleshooter, reset the printer spooler, and reinstall the printer.

1. Restart printer method

Although it might be obvious, it’s easy to forget that turning off, unplugging the power cord from the printer, and turning the peripheral back online can resolve the most common issues. For example, if Windows 11 is not detecting the USB printer, the printer suddenly starts having issues, or the device is unavailable.

Once the printer restarts, you can try to print again. If the printer is still not working, restart your computer and try again. If the printer doesn’t respond, continue with another troubleshooting method.

2. Check connection method

If you have a USB printer, ensure the data cable is properly connected to the printer and computer. You can try disconnecting and reconnecting the cable. Also, you may want to try a different USB port on the device.

If this is a wireless printer, ensure that the wireless functionality is turned on and working. You can also try to run the wireless connectivity test from the printer. Typically, the printer will have a blue wireless icon indicating the connection. You may need to check your device manufacturer for more specific details.

If you have problems with other wireless devices, you may need to restart the router or access point to fix the connectivity issue.

3. Configure default printer method

It could also happen that you have multiple printers installed on the computer and are sending the print job to the default printer, which is unavailable at that specific location.

You can quickly fix this problem by selecting the correct device when printing or changing the default printer settings.

To change the default printer settings on Windows 11, use these steps:

  1. Open Settings on Windows 11.
  2. Click on Bluetooth & devices .
  3. Click the Printers & scanners page.
  4. Turn off the “Let Windows manage my default printer” toggle switch under the “Printer preferences” section.
  5. Select the printer from the list.
  6. Click the “Set as default” button.

Once you complete the steps, you can try to print again.

However, if you already sent a print job to the wrong device, you may also need to open the queue and cancel any pending jobs before printing to the correct printer.

You can cancel the print job by going to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners > (your) printer > Open print queue , right-clicking the job, and selecting the “Cancel” option.

4. Printer Troubleshooter method

Windows 11 comes with many troubleshooters, which are tools that run different scripts to diagnose and fix common problems automatically. After checking the connections, you may want to run the “Printer” troubleshooter to resolve common driver and settings problems or issues after an update with the wireless or USB printer.

To fix printer problems with the troubleshooter option on Windows 11, use these steps:

  1. Open Settings .
  2. Click on System .
  3. Click the Troubleshoot tab.
  4. Click the Other troubleshooters setting.
  5. Under the “Most frequent” section, click the Run button for the “Printer” troubleshooter.
  6. Continue with the on-screen directions from the “Get Help” app (if applicable).

Once you complete the steps, the troubleshooter will run a series of scripts to resolve the printing problem.

5. Reset printer spooler method

One of the most common issues while printing is a document getting stuck in the queue and trying to cancel the job won’t work. If this happens, the problem is likely to be with the “print spooler,” which is the service that sends the printing jobs to the printer.

To fix the print spooler service to continue printing on Windows 11, use these steps:

  1. Open Start .
  2. Search for services.msc and click the top result to open the Services console.
  3. Right-click the Print Spooler service and select the Properties option.
  4. Click the General tab.
  5. Click the Stop button.
  6. Use the “Windows key + R” keyboard shortcut to open the Run command.
  7. Type the following path to access the “printers” folder and press Enter :
  8. C:\Windows\System32\spool\printers
  9. Click the Continue button (if applicable).
  10. Select everything in the “ printers” folder ( Ctrl + A keyboard shortcut) and hit the Delete button to remove the contents.
  11. Click the General tab on the “Printer Spooler Properties” page.
  12. Click the Start button to restart the service.
  13. Click the OK button.

Once you complete the steps, you can try to print a document one more time, and the printer should work as expected.

6. Reinstall printer method

If the printer isn’t working because of corruption or a bug with the driver, you may be able to fix this problem by uninstalling and reinstalling the printer driver.

Uninstall driver

To remove a printer on Windows 11, use these steps:

  1. Open Settings .
  2. Click on Bluetooth & devices .
  3. Click the Printers & scanners page.
  4. Select the printer to open its properties page.
  5. Click the Remove button.
  6. Click the Yes button.

Once you complete the steps, you can delete the driver from Windows 11.

Install printer automatically

To add a wireless printer on Windows 11, make sure the printer is turned on and connected to the network, and then use these steps:

  1. Open Settings .
  2. Click on Bluetooth & Devices .
  3. Click the Printers & scanners page.
  4. Click the “Add device” button in the “Add a printer or scanner” setting.
  5. Click Add device to install the wireless printer to Windows 11.

Once you complete the steps, Windows 11 will automatically set up the wireless printer. This guide provides more ways to install a wireless printer on your computer.

Install printer manually

If this is a USB printer, disconnect and reconnect the USB cable to trigger the installation once you remove the driver.

If Windows 11 fails to find the printer, you may need to install it manually with these steps:

  1. Open Settings .
  2. Click on Bluetooth & Devices .
  3. Click the Printers & scanners page.
  4. Click the “Add device” button in the “Add a printer or scanner” setting.
  5. Click the “Add a new device manually” option for the “The printer that I want isn’t listed” option.
  6. Select the “Add a printer using a TCP/IP address or hostname” option.
  7. Click the Next button.
  8. Select the Autodetect option in the “Device type” setting.
  9. Check the “Query the printer and automatically select the driver to use” option.
  10. Confirm the IP address of the printer. Quick tip: This information can be found in the printer’s settings.
  11. Click the Next button to install the wireless printer on Windows 11. Quick note: If the setup doesn’t recognize the printer, you may have to select the brand and model from the wizard to install the correct drivers. If you can’t find the printer, click the “Windows Update” button to download the driver library. (This action can take a long time.)
  12. Confirm the printer’s name.
  13. Click the Next button.
  14. Select the “Do not share this printer” option.
  15. Click the Next button.
  16. (Optional) Click the “Print a test page” button to test the printer connection.
  17. Click the Finish button.

After you complete the steps, you can start printing from your laptop or desktop computer.

Additional troubleshooting steps

If this process didn’t resolve the issue, but the issue is related to the printer driver, you may need to uninstall and remove the driver from the computer before trying to reinstall the printer.

When the problem occurs after a driver or system update, rolling back to the previous version of the driver may resolve the problem or uninstall the most recent system update . Alternatively, you can also try downloading and installing an older printer driver version.