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After two years of heavy use, our company laptops have started showing performance degradation and disk failures. Many colleagues use their docking stations at awkward angles, which likely contributes to mechanical HDD wear. The solution? Replace all spinning disks with SSDs. But there's a catch - these drives are encrypted with BitLocker.

While I've successfully cloned disks using dd in Linux environments:

dd if=/dev/sda of=/dev/sdb bs=32M

BitLocker adds complexity. The encryption metadata and recovery keys must be preserved during the transfer. A raw copy might render the disk unbootable or trigger BitLocker recovery mode.

After testing multiple approaches, these methods work reliably:

Method 1: Using Windows Native Tools

# First, suspend BitLocker protection
Manage-bde -protectors -disable C:

# Then use diskpart for sector-by-sector copy
diskpart
select disk 0
select disk 1
clone disk

Method 2: Third-Party Tools (Macrium Reflect Example)

Commercial tools often handle BitLocker better:

1. Create recovery media
2. Select "Clone this disk" option
3. Enable "BitLocker-aware" copying

After cloning:

• Run chkdsk /f on the new drive
• Verify the partition alignment matches (especially important for SSDs)
• Re-enable BitLocker and confirm all recovery keys work

When moving from HDD to SSD:

# Check SSD alignment in PowerShell
Get-PhysicalDisk | Select-Object DeviceID, MediaType

Ensure the partition starts at sector 2048 for optimal performance. Most cloning tools preserve this, but it's worth verifying.

We replaced 47 laptops using this method. Key takeaways:

• Always test with one machine first
• Budget extra time for BitLocker recovery scenarios
• Document each machine's recovery key before starting

When migrating from HDD to SSD in a BitLocker-encrypted Windows environment, a simple dd approach might not be sufficient. BitLocker adds encryption layers that require special handling during disk cloning.

• Original BitLocker-encrypted source disk
• Target SSD (equal or larger capacity)
• USB-to-SATA adapter or docking station
• Backup of your BitLocker recovery key

While dd works for raw disk copying, these tools handle BitLocker better:

# Linux option (requires dislocker)
sudo apt-get install dislocker

# Windows tools:
- Macrium Reflect
- Clonezilla
- AOMEI Backupper

Here's a reliable method using dislocker on Linux:

# Install required packages
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install dislocker

# Create mount points
mkdir -p /mnt/bitlocker /mnt/decrypted

# Mount the encrypted volume
dislocker -V /dev/sda -uYOUR-RECOVERY-KEY -- /mnt/bitlocker

# Mount the decrypted filesystem
mount -o loop /mnt/bitlocker/dislocker-file /mnt/decrypted

# Clone to new SSD
dd if=/mnt/decrypted of=/dev/sdb bs=32M status=progress

# Clean up
umount /mnt/decrypted
umount /mnt/bitlocker

For those preferring a GUI approach in Windows:

1. Suspend BitLocker protection (Control Panel > BitLocker Drive Encryption)
2. Use Macrium Reflect to create a disk image
3. Swap disks and restore the image to the new SSD
4. Resume BitLocker protection

After cloning:

# Check disk integrity
fsck /dev/sdb

# Verify BitLocker status (Windows)
manage-bde -status C:

When cloning to SSD:

• Align partitions properly (use 2048 sector alignment)
• Disable defragmentation on the SSD
• Enable TRIM support

If you encounter boot problems after cloning:

# Repair bootloader (Windows)
bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot
bootrec /scanos
bootrec /rebuildbcd