{"id":"external-drives.can-i-copy-the-storage-studio-folder-to-a-new-drive-myself","url":"/faq/external-drives/can-i-copy-the-storage-studio-folder-to-a-new-drive-myself","category":{"id":"external-drives","title":"External drives"},"subcategory":{"id":"upgrading-and-copying","title":"Upgrading, transferring and backing up the drive"},"question":"Can I copy the Storage Studio folder to a new drive myself in Finder?","alt_questions":["Manually move fast drive contents to another SSD","Drag Storage Studio folder to new drive","Clone drive with Finder instead of Transfer Drive","copy fast drive manually","Can I use Carbon Copy or Disk Utility restore instead?","Why not just copy the folder?"],"short_answer":"A Finder copy won't switch Storage Studio over — your shortcuts would still lead to the old drive. Use Transfer Drive, which copies, verifies and re-points everything in one step. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.","answer_markdown":"You can copy files that way, but it won't switch Storage Studio over. Your Mac's shortcuts would still lead to the old drive, and Storage Studio would keep treating the old drive as the active one.\n\n**Transfer Drive** exists for exactly this: it copies, verifies, inspects the copy and then re-points every shortcut and its own records at the new drive in one safe step. Use it rather than a manual copy whenever you want the new drive to become your working drive. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.","answer_html":"

You can copy files that way, but it won't switch Storage Studio over. Your Mac's shortcuts would still lead to the old drive, and Storage Studio would keep treating the old drive as the active one.

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Transfer Drive exists for exactly this: it copies, verifies, inspects the copy and then re-points every shortcut and its own records at the new drive in one safe step. Use it rather than a manual copy whenever you want the new drive to become your working drive. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.

","answer_text":"You can copy files that way, but it won't switch Storage Studio over. Your Mac's shortcuts would still lead to the old drive, and Storage Studio would keep treating the old drive as the active one.\n\nTransfer Drive exists for exactly this: it copies, verifies, inspects the copy and then re-points every shortcut and its own records at the new drive in one safe step. Use it rather than a manual copy whenever you want the new drive to become your working drive. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.","tags":["manual copy","transfer drive","finder"],"related":[{"id":"external-drives.how-do-i-move-everything-to-a-new-external-drive","question":"How do I move everything to a new, bigger external drive?","url":"/faq/external-drives/how-do-i-move-everything-to-a-new-external-drive"},{"id":"external-drives.transfer-drive-vs-backup-drive","question":"What's the difference between Transfer Drive and Backup Drive?","url":"/faq/external-drives/transfer-drive-vs-backup-drive"},{"id":"external-drives.what-checks-run-before-transfer-drive-starts","question":"Why won't Transfer Drive or Backup Drive let me pick a drive?","url":"/faq/external-drives/what-checks-run-before-transfer-drive-starts"}],"applies_to":"all","last_reviewed":"2026-10-01","title":"Can I copy the Storage Studio folder to a new drive myself in Finder? — Storage Studio FAQ","description":"A Finder copy won't switch Storage Studio over — your shortcuts would still lead to the old drive. Use Transfer Drive, which copies, verifies and re-points everything in one step. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.","crumbs":[{"name":"Home","path":"/"},{"name":"FAQ","path":"/faq/"},{"name":"External drives","path":"/faq/external-drives/"},{"name":"Can I copy the Storage Studio folder to a new drive myself in Finder?","path":"/faq/external-drives/can-i-copy-the-storage-studio-folder-to-a-new-drive-myself"}],"jsonld":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/can-i-copy-the-storage-studio-folder-to-a-new-drive-myself","inLanguage":"en","dateModified":"2026-10-01","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Can I copy the Storage Studio folder to a new drive myself in Finder?","alternateName":["Manually move fast drive contents to another SSD","Drag Storage Studio folder to new drive","Clone drive with Finder instead of Transfer Drive","copy fast drive manually","Can I use Carbon Copy or Disk Utility restore instead?","Why not just copy the folder?"],"acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"You can copy files that way, but it won't switch Storage Studio over. Your Mac's shortcuts would still lead to the old drive, and Storage Studio would keep treating the old drive as the active one.\n\nTransfer Drive exists for exactly this: it copies, verifies, inspects the copy and then re-points every shortcut and its own records at the new drive in one safe step. Use it rather than a manual copy whenever you want the new drive to become your working drive. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/external-drives/can-i-copy-the-storage-studio-folder-to-a-new-drive-myself"}}]},"fragment":"
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External drives · Upgrading, transferring and backing up the drive

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Can I copy the Storage Studio folder to a new drive myself in Finder?

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Short answer: A Finder copy won't switch Storage Studio over — your shortcuts would still lead to the old drive. Use Transfer Drive, which copies, verifies and re-points everything in one step. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.

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You can copy files that way, but it won't switch Storage Studio over. Your Mac's shortcuts would still lead to the old drive, and Storage Studio would keep treating the old drive as the active one.

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Transfer Drive exists for exactly this: it copies, verifies, inspects the copy and then re-points every shortcut and its own records at the new drive in one safe step. Use it rather than a manual copy whenever you want the new drive to become your working drive. A manual copy is fine as an extra backup.

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