Installing a new hard drive on a MacBook

[ParksM5]

Thank you so much for this! I've been trying to fix my Mac for weeks (hard drive AND disc drive both crashed) and after I put it all back together, it didn't recognize the new hard drive--so this video showed me how to fix it. YOU ARE SUCH A BALLER! Thanks again!

[ahndajong]

good video! Can any notebook hard drive go into macbook?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@ahndajong Yes, any 2.5 inch harddrive will fit into a MacBook or MacBook Pro.

[barbocovers]

Is it possible to just change the hard drive without wanting to backup it so the new one would be empty, if yes, how i make it ?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@barbocovers Yes, you would need the OS disc's, and just follow the last part of the video. I would still recommend making a back-up of the current information on your Mac, in case there are some files you want to still have.

[barbocovers]

@JohnnyConthismofo I think that I won't need a backup because it's my mom's computer and I don't want her things, oh and by the way , thank you for answering so fast ! :D

[kjeezy101]

I have a MacBook Pro and all though I've done this plenty of times on my old MacBook for some reason my new drive isn't coming up in Disk Utility.. Could the Hard Drive be defective already? I have to admit when putting the studs on the side of it I dropped it from like 2 feet, it rolled down my leg and landed on my carpet. Wasn't that much of an impact by any means I think an egg would survive it but it definitely raised concerns, more than ever now that it doesn't show up.

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@kjeezy101 It could be from the drop, the best bet would be to take it back and inform them that your computer is not finding the hard drive and you want a new one. I would recommend leaving out the fact you dropped it.

[hamaka11]

@JohnnyConthismofo i did the same is you said but my macbook said "partitionfailed error:input/output error" can you help me with that thank you very much

[burnseyman151]

I have a MacBook 2.2ghz core 2 duo

It has a 120gb hard disk which I want to upgrade. I have no original disks to instal the os can I use my full retail copy of leopard to instal os? Or where can I get some original instal disks from?

Thanks

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@burnseyman151 Yes.

[ningr4t107]

Thank you so much bro...

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@benmejia93 You can just purchase the older version and then if you want you can upgrade to Lion. There should be no issues, I assume your used MacBook has a Intel processor.

[chivaschamps4life]

Hey i wanted to ask you can i put this on my late 2006 macbook i currently have 70gb witch is not too many i want to get 1tb of memory so can i do it?

Also i have osx lion but i don't have the disk i bought it on the apple store so how will i install osx lion if i don't have it on my macbook? can i just put it on a external harddrive and install it that way?

also i don't know if you know or not but how much ram can i install to my late 2006 macbook?

thanks in advance

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@chivaschamps4life I assume you can install up to a 1TB hard drive, as long as its a 2.5 drive. Lion is a App Store download or you can purchase a USB from Apple. If you install your older OS you can again for free download Lion. The max memory I could install is 4GB, although the computer would only see 3.33GB. So I would recommend that you only upgrade to 3GB.

[chivaschamps4life]

@JohnnyConthismofo

Thanks and something else

I bought Lion on the App Store and i bought my mac from my friend who did not have the original install disk. So what i wan't to do is this

1: Buy a USB drive

2: Transfer OSX Lion to the USB Drive

3: Install my new harddrive

4: Install OSX Lion using my USB Drive

So can it work like that? Thanks again & sorry if i have so many question im a NOOB lol :)

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@chivaschamps4life No that way will not work. Unless you copied Lions file after you downloaded it, and before you installed it.

[chivaschamps4life]

@JohnnyConthismofo

I think i did because i have a file on my computer named "Install Mac OSX Lion" i don't know how it got there but yeah i have it so will that work?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@chivaschamps4life Google search how to and what file you need. Than it should work, with that same file you can burn it to a DVD so you have a disc copy also.

[juanmiguel1144]

Hello. Firstly, amazing video, man! Very good!! I want to ask a couple of things.

1) I have an external 1TB hard drive, i use time machine with it. I have to back up everything on it and then I can re-instal everything on my new hard drive with just the external drive? Like you did? Did you do something else?

2) Can I put 500 GB or 1TB on a macbook late 2009 like yours? I dont know if it can run with it, or if it's too much?

Thanks in advance, man!

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@juanmiguel1144

1. Install the OS first and it will ask you if you want to do a new user or restore from a back up point, which it will then ask you to plug in the external drive.

2. I assume as long as it is the 2.5 drive then you can use as big of a one they make. Newegg has some up to 1TB, I am thinking about putting one in my MacBook Pro. Thanks for watching.

[juanmiguel1144]

@JohnnyConthismofo perfect, man! Thanks! But, if I have snow leopard running now on my macbook and when i bought it, the macbook came with leopard operating system, I have to insert the DVD my laptop came with (the leopard) or should i insert the snow leopard DVD? I just wanna be sure not to make a mistake. Thanks again, you're being very helpful! Hello from Venezuela

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@juanmiguel1144 I put the SL discs in and there were no issues. But if you wanted to make 100% sure nothing happens, install Leopard then SL.

[Muaaz5903]

What is the Maximum amount for this macbook??

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@Muaaz5903 What ever is the biggest laptop hard drive you can get.

[Muaaz5903]

@JohnnyConthismofo so all types work?? no matter what size they are?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@Muaaz5903 I have not ran into a problem so far, so as long as it is a laptop hard drive then it should work. Newegg.com has 1TB 2.5inch hard drives for around $100.00 USD.

[grapla]

also when you do the "install mac disk 1 hold "c" start up". dont be a dumb ass like me and >insert disk>shut down> restart> hold "c" i had the notion you had to insert disk first then shut down in order to hold c and use funtion. Yea yea ima fool instead, Power on> Hold C > insert disk + still hold C until screen changes, it may take a while. Make shure ur start up disk have no fingerprints or it will spit the CD out. agian, im not mac pro just telling my experience. this video helped!

[grapla]

good vid and big help. for every out there make sure u find out the macbook/ pro, imac, (version, model and year), you are using because there might be different ways to go about booting, fixing error messages and so on. Im not really a computer savy person so vids like this one helped.

[TroubletRoY]

Thanks for the help.

[spursmurf]

Fantastic tutorial, we followed it step-by-step to install a new Hard Drive on our Mac Book (the other died spectacularly last night)

Many thanks!!

Ren, London

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@spursmurf Thanks, and glad my way was able to help you out.

[DJPowersXD]

do you recommed a Segate hard drive ?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@DJPowersXD I have always used Western Digital, they are the same. At one point one company owned the other. I would suggest getting the best value for your money, Microcenter has hard drives only with out the packaging for far cheaper then what Best Buy would carry them for. However if there isnt one near you then you have to order it online and wait.

[DJPowersXD]

@JohnnyConthismofo thank you for your feedback =] it helped me out alot

[vivasm101]

So, I replaced the hard drive w a 500g and I loaded os leopard on it, it took a while, it did the apple screen, went blue, then did the beach ball. I got impatient and thought maybe the hard drive wasnt pushed in properly, so I took it out and when I went to restart and load the OS it was just the ? foler and kept ejecting the disc, did I ruin the new hard drive?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@vivasm101 I would suggest bring it back to where you purchased it from and getting a new one.

[vivasm101]

@JohnnyConthismofo The hard drive? Why does it keep blinking the "?" folder? How long should the OS take to install? Should I try to boot it from a usb in case my cd drive is not working?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@vivasm101 Yes replace the hard drive, the question mark is more then likely because it cant see the hard drive, I have never used a USB to boot from so I would not know what to tell you in that area. The whole process depending on what you do should be about an hour.

[AxelsAlive95]

You are a life saver man! My dad needed me to replace his old HD which crashed on him with a new one. But it wouldn't boot. I thought about it for awhile and figured I must reformat the HD for the Mac. I searched youtube for like 30 min to an hour until I finally found your vid. Didn't think about partitioning it as the way to get it to be recognized. Thanks man!

[boriqua54b]

I need your help, I bought a new hard drive but now I need to find the caddy to put it in. I threw away the old one by mistake, and I'm having trouble finding a caddy for it. Do you know of any legit websites that sells one?

[burialsnake]

do u know where to get that screwdriver?

[MontyGarza]

Thank you so much for this video. I was freaking out when it did not recognize it but disk utility did... I was stuck at that point

[neijab]

disk utility isnt recognizing my hard drive...and the hard drive is brand new>>> I have a macbook 2,1

[turnstray]

Thank You So Much! This was a great deal of help. Just intalled a 500 gb WD Scorpio. Works Great!

[defigio]

Tools: A small phillips screwdriver to remove the bracket, and a Torx 8 for the hard drive screws.

[CaptainAppleFan]

Thank you! I was looking for a video for a while then found yours. Short and to the point. Perfect!

[aferdi3]

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!

[macmanvh1]

thank you so much this was just what I needed to know how to do!

[pugzlie18]

Thanks man ki thought I did something wrong when my hard drive wouldn't show up

[davidbassplanc]

so i want to upgrade my mac's hard drive. do i do a time machine back up on an external hard drive so i can take my current hard drive's memory with me?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@davidbassplanc Yes, if you wanted the same stuff you have now, if you wanted to completely start over like new out of the box then no you would not use Time Machine.

[davidbassplanc]

@JohnnyConthismofo sweet because it will be a hassle re installing Office.

[GabrielYfz450]

Where can i get the screw drivers and what are the name of the tools?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@GabrielYfz450 Any computer parts store like Microcenter should have the kit needed to do this project, Philips 00 is the bit size I think.

[GabrielYfz450]

@JohnnyConthismofo but what kind of screw driver do u need to remove the hard drive cady screws

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@GabrielYfz450 Its comes in the kit, it is a bit that attaches to the screwdriver. There are a wide variety of bits that can do different tasks. The exact name, I do not know. Sorry.

[GabrielYfz450]

@GabrielYfz450 is it the kit that cost $9.99 at micro center.com

[defigio]

@GabrielYfz450

The hard drive case requires a Torx 8 driver.

[ths453]

@GabrielYfz450 T6 torx bit

[MontyGarza]

@GabrielYfz450 the screws are torx screw T8 is the size to remove the screws from the hardrive and just find a tiny screw driver in the same area where the torx drivers are. I got my stuff at sears bought craftsman stuff

[ronbo30215]

 Thanks........my son drugged a magnet a crossed the top of the keyboard on his macbook wiped out the hard drive. The Apple Care has expired. This video saved me time and money. Thanks again...good job!!!!!!

[MidiaDub]

Thank youuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!

[LSFulgham]

Did you have to install the discs that came with your macbook first? Then the newest operating system?

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@LSFulgham I installed the newest version I had.

[LasStyleTV]

@JohnnyConthismofo

How?? It doesn't work for me, I can only see a flashing question mark no matter what I do when I'm trying to boot from the OS X install dvd.. :/

[Laurencia7]

Thanks, I needed to know the format part.

[Chiodosrox247]

Thanks for the helpful video!

[BananaBean03]

wats the sata connector 3gb/s???

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@BananaBean03 If you are talking about transfer rates its roughly 1.5Gb/s.

[Rubenstr]

Thank you so much!! This was just the video I was looking for, most videos only show how to replace it physically. I just needed to know how to go through the menus and most of all how to search for my new HD and how I could make it get recognized. Thankssss!! :D

[ssingh5]

Hey i have the same macbook as you i have 160gb hard drive running a 5400rpm. If i put a hard drive in running at 7200rpm will the the hard drive actually run at that speed??

[JohnnyConthismofo]

@ssingh5 Shouldn't be an issue, it may just get a little hotter then it already does.

[defigio]

@ssingh5

I installed a 250GB Seagate Momentus 7200 rpm drive and it works great.

[sungsmin]

thank you so much, this is just what I was looking for.  thanks a million!

[w0554548]

thanks man just what i was looking for

[gekkogreaver]

is it true u dont have to make a partition and u could just erase and format it

[JohnnyConthismofo]

Either way works, the way I read was to partition it so that is the way I showed people how to do it.

[latinng204]

you dont really need to partition the drive, just go to the next tab that says erase and you will see at the bottom it says "name of hard drive", format and lastly a button that says erase. first you selct the name of you hd if you want, next you click journaled extended, and then you click on erase. now you have formatted the drive

[Habariclothing]

Thanks man Need that

[flaco7777]

thanks for the help !!! easy 2 follow

[barajitas2k]

thanks it helped a lot.

[gamerjoe22]

thanks for the video this really helped me instan my new hard drive