[SOLVED] Upgrade Lenovo laptop to SSD?

[LifelineIT]

System is a Lenovo G510, fresh out of the box, one user set up. I want to swap the drive for a Samsung 840. I've done similar jobs before but never had this issue.

I've plugged in the 840 to my bench rig and formatted it. I tried using basic clone software, but it just wasn't having any of that, says no OS on boot.

So I tried Lenovo One Click Recovery, wrote the image to a USB thumb drive. My understanding is that I plug that in, boot from the "novo" button, and choose system restore---but if I do that, it says no media. Both the flash and the SSD show up in BIOS and my bench rig.

I start the system and it tries twice to PXE boot, ignores the flash drive (both pressing the "Novo" button or the main power button), and tells me it can't find boot media. Won't let me into BIOS at all via DEL/F1/F11/F12/Fn+F1. Secure boot was turned OFF before the drive was inserted.

Any suggestions?

Edit: Derp I can get into bios from the "novo" button.

 

[Porthos]

Try using macrium and make an image to an external swap drives and restore.
Macrium cam make a UEFI compatible boot disk. If i remember you need to install the PE componets in macrium.


What size is the ssd?

If it was me I would clean install to the ssd.

 

[Bootman 650]

Pretty sure Acronis would take care of this pretty easily and flawlessly.

 

[ohio_grad_06]

Yep, also the free program backupper should be able to do this. Once did a full system that had a drive starting to die that was cloned to an SSD. User was very happy with it.

http://www.aomeitech.com/

I think it even can align the partition on the SSD as well.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

When I got my SSD for my Thinkpad, Acronis didn't work. Used Crucials migration tool.

 

[altrenda]

Don't the 840's come with migration software? I just got a couple on sale from Amazon and was going to try using it.

 

[LifelineIT]

Thanks. Aomei coughs because the original drive has 7, yes 7 partitions. Macrium failed. Haven't tried acronis. It did come with software but I thought it was just for data, not partitions.

Ssd is 120gb. I can't clean install without media, one touch recovery is supposed to provide that for me but it won't boot to thumb.

 

[cypress]

Easeus ToDo also has this option. Love their software.

 

[coffee]

Just use DD in linux:

dd if=/dev/sdb of=/dev/sdc

will make a one-to-one clone of the drive. Adjust your drive info as required.

coffee

 

[shamrin]

This reminded me a little of a problem I had last year with an older Lenovo Thinkpad. I ended up doing a "Reverse Clone". I think your problem is different but if you're looking for ideas... http://blog.crosbydrive.com/?p=395

 

[LifelineIT]

Easeus ToDo also has this option. Love their software.

EaseUs failed, drive would not boot.

I'll check the other link. I'll give acronis a shot tonight. The OneTouchRecovery is supposed to make this super simple...supposed to.

If I do a system backup from Windows 8---would that allow me to recover to new media? Any idea?

 

[Porthos]

Ssd is 120gb. I can't clean install without media

You havent sourced a win 8.1 iso yet?

120 might not be big enough.

 

[LifelineIT]

You havent sourced a win 8.1 iso yet?

120 might not be big enough.

120 isn't big enough for bit-for-bit, but most of the imaging software will let you drop to smaller. It's POSSIBLE, maybe even LIKELY, that I'm butting up against some weird UEFI issue and/or I'm reading that maybe lenovo only wants to USB boot from a certain port.

And I have an 8.1 iso, that's not the issue, it's that my understanding is that OEM keys won't work on retail ISO's, unlike Win 7. I have limited experience with Win 8 refreshes though, I'd love for someone to tell me I'm wrong.

It appears that I'll just pull over the boot.wim out of the recovery partition and install it that way.

 

[LifelineIT]

Don't the 840's come with migration software? I just got a couple on sale from Amazon and was going to try using it.

Altrenda is the winner winner chicken dinner. It did come with a disk, I just generally assumed it was some drivers or cruddy migration software. It worked in ~10 minutes. Of course, I lose the recovery partition and whatever else, but it cloned it over in minutes.

For the record, I tried...Macrium Reflect, Acronis, Aomei (single partition AND whole disk), Lenovo OneTouchRecovery, Windows 8 Rescue Disk tool, and probably something else that I've forgotten now.

I didn't even have to turn off secure boot for it to work,it must have added its own EFI entry. Woo too the hoo.

Edit: I would like to add a Solved tag, not sure how though, don't see it anywhere.

 

[Porthos]

It did come with a disk

Make a copy. Might work on other lenovos.