Can You Use Rufus to Clone SD Card? If Not, How?

Rufus is a free and open-source utility that can format and create bootable USB drives, such as USB keys/pendrives, memory sticks, etc., in Windows 8 and later. You can download its executable and run it without installation.

Some users are wondering if it is possible to clone SD card with Rufus, scroll down to learn more (if you are one of them). Also, we will introduce you to simple but specialized cloning software below.

Can You Use Rufus to Clone SD Card?

No, Rufus can’t clone SD cards, but imaging. If you want a copy of the original SD card, you can choose to write the image to another SD card. But this is not cloning, as there are some differences between them.

How to Clone SD Card with Rufus by Imaging

Although Rufus can’t clone SD card, it allows you to image SD card and write it to another one. You need to go to the official website and download Rufus on your computer. Note that it only supports Windows 8 and later.

Note: All files will be destroyed on the SD card. The size should be at least 16GB. For better performance, it’s advisable to use an class 10 SD card or higher.

Step 1. Connect the SD card to your computer via a card reader. Open Rufus, it will detect your SD card automatically and display it in the "Device" menu.

Step 2. Click the disk icon next to “Device” menu, select a location to save the image file, and specify a name for it.

Step 3. Click Save. You can also choose to create a compressed VHDX image or an uncompressed VHD image in the Save as type drop-down menu. The VHDX is more compatible. When it finishes, the status will change to ready.

Step 4. Insert the new SD card into your computer. Open Rufus and select it in the “Device” menu.

Step 5. Under the Boot selection menu, click Select and navigate to the location where you save the SD card image file. Select it for writing an image.

Step 6. Rufus may automatically configure the partition scheme, target system, and file system based on the selected image file. You can also change them accordingly. Finally, click Start and OK (when it prompts, all data on the target SD card will be destroyed) to write image to the new SD card.

Notes:✎...

Rufus saves the image file as a VHD image file. You can actually rename the extension to .img if you prefer to work with the more common .img format.

The target SD card needs to be equal to the image file, and for better performance, it’s suggested to use a larger one.

If you are using a specific device like a Raspberry Pi, you need to check the documentation to see whether there are any special configurations in Rufus.

How to Clone SD Card to Another One without Imaging (Faster)

Rufus can't clone SD cards directly, and the interface is not very user-friendly for most newbies. If you are using this software for the first time, you will definitely feel very confused, and there is very little info about imaging using Rufus.

It provides users with multiple options, but we don’t know what they are, when to use them, and when not. The procedure is confusing. You can’t even use it on Windows 7. Thus, it’s wise to use a simple and professional cloning software like AOMEI Cloner.

Note: The existing partitions on the destination disk will be overwritten or deleted. So please backup files to external hard drive or other devices if there is any important data.

Step 1. Connect the SD card you want to clone to your computer using a card reader. If the target drive is an SD card, please connect it as well. Then, open AOMEI Cloner, click Clone > Disk Clone.

Step 2. In the Select Disk window, select the SD card you want to clone and click Next.

Step 3. In the Destination Disk window, select another SD card to save it and click Next.

Step 4. You will be prompted that the target disk will be overwritten or deleted. Please be sure you backup your important files and click OK to continue.

Step 5. By default, this software will enable the intelligent clone feature, which clones only the used sectors of the original SD card, greatly saving your precious time. You can also enjoy the Edit Partitions features in the following two situations. At last, click Start Clone to clone SD card to another one.

Try it if you want a faster way to clone SD card!

FAQs

1. What is the best software to clone SD cards?

AOMEI Cloner is a top choice to clone SD cards as it offers a straightforward GUI interface and allows you to clone the entire SD card or specific partitions on it quickly, according to your needs. You don’t need to create an image of SD card first.

2. How to format an SD card to FAT32 using Rufus?

Rufus is mainly used to create a bootable USB or SD card. You need to download the ISO image file from Microsoft or another official website first and then add it during configuration. If your SD card is not bootable, you can directly skip this step and select Non-bootable in the Boot selection menu.

Step 1. Open Rufus. It will select your SD card automatically in the Device menu.

Step 2. In the Bootselection menu, click Select to add the ISO file you want to use.

Step 3. Under the File system section, select FAT32.

Step 4. At last, click Start to format and create a bootable SD card.

3. Can I use SD card as bootable drive?

Yes, you can use SD card as a bootable drive and install an operating system from it. But you need to create a bootable SD card first. Rufus helps and it allows you to configure the partition scheme (MBR or GPT) and boot mode (BIOS or UEFI).

4. Can you use Rufus with SD card?

Yes, you can use Rufus with SD card, which allows you to format SD card, create a bootable SD card, create an image of SD card, etc. Before using it, you need to learn Rufus in depth, as it can be confusing, especially for newbies.

5. Can every SD card be formatted as FAT32?

No, not every SD card can be formatted as FAT32. Usually, it’s suggested to format SD card smaller than 32GB to FAT32 and SDHC, SDXC, and SDUC cards larger than 32GB are pre-formatted asexFAT (required by the SD card standards). FAT32 is limited to 32GB, and each file size is 4GB.

Conclusion

Rufus can’t clone SD card but imaging. So if you insist on using it, try to create an image of the SD card and write the image file to a new SD card. It does create a duplicate copy, but it takes much longer.

It’s wise to use a simple and specialized cloning software, such as AOMEI Cloner, to clone SD card to another SD card quickly. The target SD will remain bootable as well (if the original card is). Also, it has high compatibility with different types, brands, and sizes of SD cards.