Dual Booting EC & Lion then Delete Lion Partition?

[pj4444]

I would like to now upgrade to EC from Lion. I had planned to create a new partition to install and test EC.
Once everything is running OK, I would then remove Lion. However, I understand that as Lion is the top partition I will not be able to move the EC partition up to utilise the empty space on the HD.

I would like to avoid having to install EC and all the applications a second time.

Is there a way to recover the Lion partition without having to do a second install of EC?

 

[Buggyflayer]

If you don't have a spare HDD to try EC on, why not buy a USB 3.0 16GB USB stick then download & install to that to try it? It will be a little slower but give you a feel for the latest OS. Then if you like it, you could simply upgrade 10.7 to 10.11 & save yourself all that reinstalling time.

Hope you have a Time Machine backup.

(Even if your Mac doesn't have a USB3.0 port the cheapest USB2.0 sticks can be horribly slow when using like this. Yes it will only run at USB2.0 but it will run at it properly, not only get 2.0 in bursts...)

 

[MacUser2525]

Get Carbon Copy Cloner once you are comfortable with everything in the new EC install. Clone the EC to the Lion partition boot from it to confirm cloning worked. Now just take and delete the partition you installed EC on in the first place resize the newly cloned to take its space.

 

[pj4444]

Get Carbon Copy Cloner once you are comfortable with everything in the new EC install. Clone the EC to the Lion partition boot from it to confirm cloning worked. Now just take and delete the partition you installed EC on in the first place resize the newly cloned to take its space.[/QUOTE

Thank you for the replies. So as I understand it:

On the understanding that my MBA has only one partition, called "Lion Install"

1. Create new partition called "EC Test"
2. Install EC on EC Test Partition
3. When happy with EC, clone EC to an external harddrive
4. Then clone the EC on the harddrive to the Lion Install partition (erasing the Lion install)
5. Delete EC Test Partition
6. Resize the original partition

 

[MacUser2525]

Thank you for the replies. So as I understand it:

On the understanding that my MBA has only one partition, called "Lion Install"

1. Create new partition called "EC Test"
2. Install EC on EC Test Partition
3. When happy with EC, clone EC to an external harddrive
4. Then clone the EC on the harddrive to the Lion Install partition (erasing the Lion install)
5. Delete EC Test Partition
6. Resize the original partition

3 & 4 are unnecessary clone directly to the internal installed drive once happy with the test partition then go to 5 & 6 to recover that testing space.

 

[pj4444]

Gotit Thanks. One issue that seems to cause problems is the recovery partition. If I follow your process will the EC recovery partition be automatically created when I clone EC? And, when I replace Lion with EC will this also create an EC recovery partition?

 

[MacUser2525]

The CCC program offers to create/update the Recovery HD if it is not there or needs to be updated on a bootable disk, it pops up dialog telling you which it needs to do. Also I think when installing it automatically updates the Recovery HD from the EC installer not positive on that one though I have not installed/upgraded to it.