Can you help with this confusion over cloning?
QI’m considering cloning my computer, as suggested in your magazine. However, File Explorer tells me that my operating system (OS) is still Windows 8, in spite of my having updated to Windows 10 a long while ago. Why is this? Will it affect my ability to clone? Also, is cloning better than simply copying the C drive using a backup tool such as Paragon’s Backup & Recovery? Barrie Colman
ADon’t worry – your PC is running Windows 10. What you’re seeing in File Explorer is the name of your C drive, which is literally just a label. This label doesn’t necessarily bear any relation to what’s actually on the drive, or your computer’s OS – and in your case certainly doesn’t. In all likelihood it’s a hangover from when your PC was made, where the factory labelled the drive as ‘Windows 8’ simply because that’s what was originally installed on the PC.
You’ve since upgraded to Windows 10 but that process doesn’t change drive labels, so your C drive is still called ‘Windows 8’. To change it, in File Explorer simply right-click the C drive and then choose Rename. Now type Windows 10 (or anything else you fancy) and press Enter (see screenshot).
As for cloning versus other backup types, it’s really a question of what you want to achieve. Cloning creates a literal bit-for-bit copy of a drive, typically for the purposes of recreating your existing PC setup on a new drive. For most people, a ‘differential’ method makes more sense, as this backs up only those files and folders that have changed since the last backup – and the Paragon program you mention offers this facility.