How to Backup Laptop to External Hard Drive in Windows 10/11

Scenarios of backing up laptop to external drive

Speaking of backing up laptop, there are generally two scenarios:

• Backup files: Protect important documents, photos, videos, and other personal files from accidental deletion, corruption, or hardware failure.
• Backup operating system (OS): Preserve a clean, stable state of the operating system to revert back to in the event of a system crash, malware infection, or other critical failures.

You may choose an external hard drive as the backup location for the following reasons:

• External hard drives provide a secure and separate location to store backup copies, protecting them from being lost due to hardware failures, accidental deletions, or malicious software attacks such as ransomware.
• External hard drives offer portable storage solutions, allowing you to access your backed-up data from different locations and devices.

Then, how to backup Windows 10 laptop to external hard drive? Please continue reading.

Top 3 Windows 10/11 backup tools

To backup your laptop in Windows 10/11, you need reliable backup tools. Here are the top 3 choices on my list.

1. AOMEI Backupper Standard

AOMEI Backupper Standard is free backup and recovery software designed for Windows systems. It offers a range of features to ensure data protection and system stability.

• System Backup: Allows users to create a full backup of the operating system, including system files, installed applications, and settings.
• File Backup: Enables selective backup of specific files or folders to safeguard important data.
• Disk/Partition Backup: Provides the capability to create disk images for complete PC backup or create partition images to protect specified partitions.
• Scheduled Backup: Allows users to schedule automatic backups at specified intervals to ensure regular data protection without manual intervention.
• Incremental and Differential Backup: Supports incremental and differential backup methods to optimize storage space and reduce backup time by only capturing changes since the last backup. (Differential backup is a paid feature.)

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👉 How-to guide: Backup laptop files, backup laptop OS

2. File History

File History is a built-in backup feature in Windows 10 and Windows 11 that automatically backs up files and folders to an external drive or network location.

• Automatic Backup: Automatically backs up files and folders stored in user libraries, desktop, contacts, and favorites at regular intervals.
• Versioning: Maintains multiple versions of files, allowing users to restore previous versions or recover deleted files.
• Customizable Backup Settings: Allows users to customize backup frequency, file retention period, and backup drive selection to suit their preferences and storage requirements.
• File Exclusion: Enables users to exclude specific files or folders from the backup process, providing flexibility and control over the backup content.

👉 How-to guide: Backup laptop files

3. Backup and Restore (Windows 7):

Although Backup and Restore is primarily associated with Windows 7, it is still available as a legacy feature in Windows 10 and Windows 11, providing basic backup and recovery functionality.

• System Image Backup: Allows users to create a complete system image backup, including the operating system, installed applications, and user data.
• File Backup: Enables users to manually select and backup specific files, folders, or libraries to an external drive or network location.
• Scheduled Backup: Supports daily/weekly/monthly backups to automate the backup process.
• System Repair Disc Creation: Provides the option to create a system repair disc, which can be used to boot the system and restore backups in case of system failure.

👉 How-to guide: Backup laptop OS

How to backup laptop files to external hard drive in Windows 10/11

This part offers you two ways to backup laptop files. Learn how to backup laptop to external drive in detail below.

Note: Before you create a backup, connect an external hard drive to your laptop and make sure it is recognized by Windows.

Way 1: Backup laptop files with AOMEI Backupper

Step 1. Install and open AOMEI Backupper. In the left tab page, select Backup > File Backup.

Step 2. Give the backup a distinguishable name in the “Task Name” box. Then, click Add File or Add Folder to choose the files/folders you want to backup.

Step 3. Choose the external hard drive you prepared as the destination path to store the backup image.

Step 4. Enable Schedule Backup based on your need. Confirm your settings and click Start Backup to launch the backup process.

Way 2: Backup laptop files with File History

Step 1. Type “backup” in the search box and choose Backup settings from the result list.

Step 2. In the initial backup window, click + Add a drive button and select the prepared external hard drive. Then, it will turn on the slide button under “Automatically back up my files” link.

Step 3. Click More options to set File History backup settings. By default, the backup interval is "Every hour" while backup retention is "Forever".

Step 4. Click Add a folder under the “Back up these folders” section and choose specific folders you want to backup in Windows 10/11. Afterward, click Back up now at the top location and start your first file backup.

How to backup laptop OS to external hard drive in Windows 10/11

This part offers you two ways to backup laptop OS. Learn how to backup my laptop to external hard drive in detail below.

Note: Before you create a backup, connect an external hard drive to your laptop and make sure it is recognized by Windows.

Way 1: Backup laptop OS with AOMEI Backupper

Step 1. Open AOMEI Backupper. Click Backup and then select System Backup.

Step 2. The program automatically chooses the system-related partition(s) as the source data. Just choose the external drive to store the system image.

Step 3. Confirm the operation and click Start Backup to begin backing up your laptop OS.

Way 2: Backup laptop OS with Backup and Restore (Windows 7)

Step 1. Type “backup” in the search box and choose Backup settings from the result list.

Step 2. In the next window, click Go to Backup and Restore (Windows 7).

Step 3. In the pop-up window, click the Create a system image option from the left pane.

Step 4. Choose the external drive to save your system image, and click Next.

Step 5. The drives that are required for Windows to run are included in the backup by default. Add any other drives to be backed up as you wish and click Next.

Step 6. Confirm your settings, and then click Start backup.

Conclusion

That’s all about how to backup laptop to external hard drive in Windows 10/11. To backup laptop files, you may choose AOMEI Backupper or File History. To backup laptop OS, you may choose AOMEI Backupper or Backup and Restore (Windows 7).

As you see, AOMEI Backupper offers you all-around Windows backup solutions. You can backup any content to different locations as per your need. What’s more, AOMEI Backupper works as the best SSD data migration software. Don’t hesitate to try it out!