replacing 2011 mini HD clone to include recovery partition

[Fox]

I want to replace the 320gb drive in my 2011 mini with a Seagate 500gb XT. What is the best way to clone the old drive onto the new so as to include the Lion recovery partition? I know about the Lion Recovery Disk Assistant. Is it best to first create a small partition on the new drive, then to move over the recovery partition with the Lion Recovery Disk Assistant and then clone the main volume, or would I be better off to wipe the external, install Lion fresh and then migrate files, apps and settings?
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Mini 1: 2.3 ghz Core i5; 8 gb RAM, Corsair 240gb SSD, 500 gb Seagate XT
Mini 2: 2.26 ghz Core 2 duo, 8 gb RAM, 500 gb Seagate
Also a Cube, 13" MacBook Air, 20" 2.66 ghz iMac & 11.6" Acer 1810TZ running Ubuntu, Mint & openSuse

[saul]

Just use Lion's Disk Utility to copy the drive. It automatically copies the recovery partition using the "Restore" function.

[Fox]

Thanks, Saul. I just completed the clone as per your instructions and now I will install the drive. I checked that it boots, and I hope it got the restore partition.
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Mini 1: 2.3 ghz Core i5; 8 gb RAM, Corsair 240gb SSD, 500 gb Seagate XT
Mini 2: 2.26 ghz Core 2 duo, 8 gb RAM, 500 gb Seagate
Also a Cube, 13" MacBook Air, 20" 2.66 ghz iMac & 11.6" Acer 1810TZ running Ubuntu, Mint & openSuse

[Cypher]

you should be able to test the restore partition when you booting by holding Option Key at start up. (option/alt = choose startup disk at boot time)
A list of available boot drives should show up and you should see the restore partition as an option.
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Phil

Mac Mini 2.53GHz - iMac 2.0Ghz - Macbook Pro 2.4GHz - iPad 1 32GB 3G
6TB Netgear Ready NAS NV+ - 6TB Drobo S

[Fox]

Thanks, Cypher. I can see the restore partition under System Information, so saul's suggestion clearly worked. The HD replacement operation went relatively smoothly except that I was unable to re-seat the IR cable. I'm not sure it's used for anything, and I can't find any reference to IR in System Information, so I don't know that this is a problem. I'll post a separate query about it.
_________________
Mini 1: 2.3 ghz Core i5; 8 gb RAM, Corsair 240gb SSD, 500 gb Seagate XT
Mini 2: 2.26 ghz Core 2 duo, 8 gb RAM, 500 gb Seagate
Also a Cube, 13" MacBook Air, 20" 2.66 ghz iMac & 11.6" Acer 1810TZ running Ubuntu, Mint & openSuse