Best way to copy new internal drives

[Weerez935]

I know there are post on how to copy drives but my situation is unique, I've never done this before and I want to make sure I do it the right way.

My wife has a white (7,1) macbook and I have a 2011 air.

I bought her 8gbs of ram and a 128gb owc ssd.
I got myself a 180 gb owc ssd for extra storage.

I want to copy the hard drives currently in the computer to the new ones.
Should I put the new drives in the enclosures and allow them to copy before installing them? Or should I install them and boot from the enclosure?

What is the best software to use? I've heard a lot about carbon copy but was curious if the license would work on both macs or if I'd have to buy 2 license. Or if disk utility is sufficient for this task?

[simsaladimbamba]

Get the SSDs and put them in an enclosure for 2.5" SSDs and the adapter you probably get with the OWC kit.
Format the new SSDs properly:

How to format a new HDD to install Mac OS X onto (or make a bootable copy onto)

Then download and install CarbonCopyCloner (version 3.4.7 is still free and available for download and works with OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion) and select the internal HDD/SSD as source and the external SSD as target. Then press clone and wait.
Once the cloning process is complete, switch the drives and upon starting your Mac and once booted into Mac OS X, make sure that in System Preferences > Startup Disk*, the correct SSD is set.

MacBook, MacBook Pro: Replacing the Hard Disk Drive, transferring data to the new HDD

the guide includes:

• 0. Identify your MacBook or MacBook Pro
• 1. Getting a new HDD
• 2. Guides to replace the internal HDD with a newer one
• 3. Transferring data from the old HDD to the new HDD
• 4. Using the optical disk drive (ODD) slot for placing an SSD or HDD inside the MB/P (OPTIBAY)

[Weerez935]

Thank you that was quick!

[simsaladimbamba]

Originally Posted by Weerez935

Thank you that was quick!

Forgot to add: http://www.bombich.com/download.html

[Weerez935]

The link says that version 3.4.7 doesn't support mountain lion. Ill try it since its free though.

[simsaladimbamba]

Originally Posted by Weerez935

The link says that version 3.4.7 doesn't support mountain lion. Ill try it since its free though.

It also does state, that it does not support Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, but it does, and the versions before 3.4.7, when it was still free, supported Mac OS X 10.7 Lion quite well.
Only when it became version 3.5 and had to be paid for some months ago, 3.4.7 suddenly became that old. It works. And even if not, you can always use the trial of 3.5 they offer. Or SuperDuper!.

[Weerez935]

That was what I was thinking. Thank you for clarifying.

[chown33]

Originally Posted by simsaladimbamba

...
Once the cloning process is complete, switch the drives and upon starting your Mac and once booted into Mac OS X, ...

I recommend testing that the cloned drive is bootable BEFORE moving it into the laptop. It's much easier to recover if anything does turn out badly.

Personally, I'd boot from the external clone and run it for at least a day or so before disassembling the laptop and installing the cloned drive.

[Weerez935]

A warning pops up and says, " if you intend to use the designation volume as a primary startup disk, you should create a Recovery HD partition on that disk". What do I do?

[Fishrrman]

"The link says that version 3.4.7 doesn't support mountain lion. Ill try it since its free though."

Even the latest, "pay for" version runs "free" for the first 30 days.

For "duping" one drive to another, I recommend a USB/SATA "docking station". Here are a couple to check (I use the first one):
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00APP6694?...SIN=B00APP6694
or
http://www.amazon.com/Plugable-Docki...SIN=B003UI62AG

[Weaselboy]

Originally Posted by Weerez935

A warning pops up and says, " if you intend to use the designation volume as a primary startup disk, you should create a Recovery HD partition on that disk". What do I do?

Tell it yes you want a Recovery HD on the drive. This will create a recovery partition on the new drive should you ever need it.