HDD to SSD

noelw

noelw

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Hi all. I think i am in the right section. I am going to replace the old clunker hdd with a Samsung SSD. They are both 1tb drives. I would like to clone the new drive. Is using dd as listed below ok or is there another way.

Clone Linux System With dd​

dd can be used to clone your entire hard drive that contains your Linux operating system installation. Everything will be copied, including partitioning information and all data present on the hard disk at the time of cloning.

The easiest way to use this tool is to insert your backup hard drive into your computer. You do not need to partition or format the backup disk in any way, as dd will write to it as a block device.

Once the hard disk has been inserted, execute the following command to clone your Linux system onto the backup disk:

$ sudo dd if=/dev/sda of=/dev/sdX bs=64K conv=noerror,sync

  • if (input file) is block device /dev/sda
  • of (output file) is block device /dev/sdX
  • bs (bit size) is 64K, as small chunks are less likely to encounter errors
  • conv settings are noerror, and sync which will try again on error and synchronize input and output
In this example, /dev/sda is the disk that contains our Linux system (the disk being cloned). /dev/sdX is the backup disk which we are cloning to. You can use fdisk -l to obtain the device paths to your own hard drives, and then adapt the command above as needed.

After successfully running the command, you can pop your backup hard disk into any computer, and you will load into the Linux system just as you would on the original disk. Thanks for any feedback.
 


Not really an answer to your question, but an option:

Use Clonezilla. That's what it's made for.

I'm reasonably sure that when I last used Clonezilla it was kind enough to keep my partitions the same on the cloned drive.

Actually, this might be a question for @bob466 as he's big on cloning drives and making full-drive backups. He'd have used these tools more recently than I would have.
 
noelw said:
Hi all. I think i am in the right section. I am going to replace the old clunker hdd with a Samsung SSD. They are both 1tb drives. I would like to clone the new drive. Is using dd as listed below ok or is there another way.

​

Click to expand...

Welcome to the Forum,
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Yes there is with Foxclone https://www.foxclone.org/
Download the ISO and burn it to a Flash Drive with etcher...plug in an External HDD and create a folder and name it.
With your External HDD plugged in...boot to the Foxclone Flash Drive and create an image of your HDD...once done shut down your computer...remove the HDD and put in the SSD.

Boot to Foxclone with your External HDD plugged in...select the new SSD and put the image on it...instructions are here...
https://www.foxclone.org/uguide.html
It's been over 4 years since I did this so memory is a little rusty but it works...don't have any other Drive connected to the motherboard when doing this...hope this helps.
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And just to expand the choices, there is the backup app which I use

RescueZilla

Easy disk cloning and imaging | Rescuezilla (Clonezilla GUI)

Free bare metal restore solution with graphical interface on a live CD. Point-and-click to backup and restore an entire computer. Bare metal disaster recovery restores all programs, documents and settings. GPL open source.
rescuezilla.com rescuezilla.com


Download it, 'burn' it to a thumb drive

Boot the thumb drive

Allow the first couple of screens to do their thing...takes around 20 seconds...

Follow the prompts...which drive to backup.....where to store it...etc etc

It will also Verify any backup that you do

Hint:...wherever you are going to save the backup (external drive) be sure to create a New Folder there before you start

Give it a name...the day's date is enough to identify it when you are actually selecting it to store the backup files it.

It works flawlessly. It is still being developed at Git Hub

it compresses the backup so that my backup on a 250gb SSD ends up as 14.5GB. Admittedly only 15% of the drive is used.

A WORD OF CAUTION:
If you use dd, be EXTREMELY careful when selecting drives. dd is extremely unforgiving.
 
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I'm not familiar with this cloning software, that is how my old HD was transferred to this SSD and this OS (my old Mint OS: through cloning. But there is a device that I'm guessing you can get at NewEgg in which you simply plug an USB connection into the transfer device to your drive. It is really quick too. Less than an hour. But you would have to go to New Egg to see what I'm referring to.
 
I didn't use Foxclone years ago as Foxclone didn't exist back then...I used Macrium rescue free to create an image of my HDD and put it on my SSD. The problem with Macrium is you need a friend with windowz because it wont run in Linux...get them to create a rescue media Flash Drive or put the rescue ISO on a Flash Drive with Ventoy for it to work.
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I think Foxclone...Redorescue or Rescuezilla will do the job...I haven't used a HDD for over 4 years...so fingers crossed.
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Well first i would like to thank you all for your input. My new Samsung ssd arrived this morning. I chose Foxclone to clone the drive. Went very well and only took an hour and a half to do it. I will admit i was a little fearful at first but as i said all went well. So tomorrow i will remove the screen and install the new ssd. I have looked at videos on removing the screen. If i go steady all should be good. I have the new strips and the cutting wheel to do it. I will let you all know how it went on completion. Again i thank you kindly for the assistance.
 
What is the make/model of the laptop, Noel ?

(just curious)
 
Not a laptop Condo. It is a 2012 27 inch iMac. There is a photo of it on here. I think my iMint post.
 
Just had a look at this ...seems striaghtforward enough.

Sometimes a pic (mobile phone) is worth it......takes away any memory uncertainty
 
Holy crap...so much easier to replace the HDD with an SSD in my Asus 12 year old Laptop...disconnect battery...remove 2 cover screws...remove 4 screws that hold the HDD to the Laptop...slide it back and remove screws holding HDD to metal plate...replace HDD with SSD...put it back together...connect battery...done.
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The only thing I hate about Laptops is the tiny bloody screws.
t1949.gif
 
Apple products are notoriously difficult to work on, and the problem worsened considerably this past decade. Apple consistently rates low on ease of repair. Your work may start with a heat gun to soften the glue ... :mad:

I rely on and recommend the iFixit website for step-by-step instructions with photos for many common repairs and upgrades such as disk replacement, RAM upgrades, etc. They go way beyond Apple Macs to cover many different types of products and brands. The list of Macs and repair scripts for them is extensive and quality is very high.

(My current Mac is a 2016 MacBook Pro. The RAM and SSD are soldered to the motherboard at production time and not upgradeable or changeable. I maxed out RAM at 16 Gbytes, but was very unhappy with that limitation. I wanted 32 Gbytes due to my heavy virtual machine use. This laptop works for me, but I am still unhappy with its "low" RAM. It may be my last Mac. We'll see.)
 
sphen said:
Apple products are notoriously difficult to work on, and the problem worsened considerably this past decade. Apple consistently rates low on ease of repair. Your work may start with a heat gun to soften the glue ... :mad:

I rely on and recommend the iFixit website for step-by-step instructions with photos for many common repairs and upgrades such as disk replacement, RAM upgrades, etc. They go way beyond Apple Macs to cover many different types of products and brands. The list of Macs and repair scripts for them is extensive and quality is very high.

(My current Mac is a 2016 MacBook Pro. The RAM and SSD are soldered to the motherboard at production time and not upgradeable or changeable. I maxed out RAM at 16 Gbytes, but was very unhappy with that limitation. I wanted 32 Gbytes due to my heavy virtual machine use. This laptop works for me, but I am still unhappy with its "low" RAM. It may be my last Mac. We'll see.)
Click to expand...

I'm sure if people were going to buy a mac and knew this...they'd never buy one...I'm lucky I've never owned one lucky me.
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Well i tackled it this morning and all went well. Took me an hour and a half. Did it exactly as i should have and no shortcuts. The biggest worry with me was if i cracked the screen somehow. Oddly enough that was the easiest part to do, well for me anyhow. Booted her up, 17 seconds it took. Now that is great however the best bit to me is how quick and fluid it is with opening apps etc. I am absolutely wrapped. I have had ssd,s prior so i know how they go. This job was a little different though. A bit like heart surgery. lol. Anyhow i am off now. Thanks for all the help everyone.
 
Good Job....well done, Noel !!!

Really pleased to hear it was a resounding success
 
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