Mac mini (Unibody, Spring 2010) Hard Drive Replacement How To

[guidobertisch2]

i there room for a second hard drive or is that just for mac mini 2011 users?

[331319]

Does this process void the warranty?

[sinoperture]

Nice. Vid but you don't have to keep giving yourself permission to "go a head" to do anything. Lumberg.

[BlondynCh]

just did it a couple of days ago here are some pictures and comments photobucket,com/kwiatekch

[PedroJimenezIbanez]

Thanks a bunch for this great video! This saved me so much time and frustration, you wouldn't believe (or perhaps you know exactly what I'm talking about ;)!

Not only are you really professional in making this video, you're also very pedagogical!

Again, impressive video! You're a true philanthropist considering how much time, effort and pain you've saved everyone that has had use of this video!

Thank you so much!

[GuyWithGuitars1]

Damn! I'm a pretty good tech, and I'd never try to tackle this! Would a 7200 RPM HDD help the Mac Mini's performance?

[iLifeVlog]

Great Tutorial. You made my life a little easier !

[BDawgNGP]

Ha. This guy's funny. I liked the video



[michelemandrioli]

Everything seemed to work find and I can start up from an external drive, but the new drive isn't mounting. The old one didn't either. I have tried Disk Utility, but the new drive isn't showing up.

[kevenzz]

is it possible to put a 2tb western digital caviar green 3.5 inch sata hard drive in a mac mini?

[knightnz]

I've already put 8GB into mine, I've got the SSD sitting on my desk and girlfriend willing, will attempt the SSD upgrade tonight, thanks for the video, and fingers crossed! :)

[Highendaudiodoc]

For those with trouble getting the antenna back in, here is the solution (at least it was for me). The problem is you need all the little cut edges of the grille to engage properly in the slot of the body. Insert a very thin screwdiver through a grille hole near the edge and pull up slightly while pushing the grille into the slot. After struggling a long time with mine, it easily engaged with this trick! Thanks for the great video!

[MSBGold1]

Thanks for the video. I switched back and forth between the video and the iFixit pages and got all the info I needed.

Only glitch I had was that I almost destroyed one of the temperature sensor wires while trying to replace one of the four wifi antenna screws. Make sure all wires are properly tucked out of the way before replacing screws.

[umblikal]

I broke HDD thermal sensor pins. Can't even get pin sheath out of the slot. I wished you showed how to take those pins out of the slot. Saying "up" I missed it and I ended up pulling semi vertically which broke thermal sens pins. Also I can't find any replacement part for it. Any ideas where to get them? The fan was stuck at 5000 rpm and minimac become noisy. Also there is another easy and safe way to pull the board out. You should have told about it. It will make it easier.

[1fatbastard]

You sound like Owen Wilson... Look it up if you don't know who it is... Hey Can I install a WD Passport drive in this Mac Mini? I got a few 750's sitting around, though I could put one in there. Thank for the vid.

[mastersirus1985]

@jbrige I uninstalled iLife...now what?

[tyhhxsw]

Fuck that ill wait not fucking with my shit

[carios23]

I would advice not to work on top of a towel or at least wear a static bracelet. Good video though. I think the Geek Squad can barely upgrade the memory :p

[knightnz]

@carios23 If you ground yourself on the metal casing every now and then, then you've got the same electric potential as the device, no risk of static shock. The casing is aluminium anyway so it'd take some work to build up a decent charge.

[towdow3]

"uninstall life." XD

[leandrodafontoura]

after you put a blank SSD, how do you install Snow Leopard?

[DetroitBORG]

I've just been convinced that I better wait for Apple to offer an SSD in their Mac mini before trying this myself, I will definitely botch something up! ;)

[malangr]

i think if it dosent have a problem with the internal HDD it's betther an externa HD

[TIRanald]

Alternatively, you could buy an external hard driver...

[ElijahLynn]

If anyone is wondering more specifically how you remove the fan connector from the logic board you just pull up, I was trying to pull out, horizontally (X plane) and didn't want to break anything so finally Googled it and found that out so I thought I would post it here.

[supersaiyanvegeta013]

seriously, like how many times are you going to use that stupid special effects? FAIL!

[lowspiritxp]

Just got a Vertex 2 SSD into my Mac mini thanks to this video, had your video on my iPad next to me and just went through it step by step pausing where needed and your guide was pretty much flawless, no missing ends and you pointed out everything that proved to be tricky (antenna cover etc). Huge thanks from a not very mechanically savvy Swede.

[photodreamer]

Thank you for this video it helped me put a larger 500gb hd in it, but god that antenna cover is defective. Every time I would get one side to line up the other side would go out of line. Has to be an easier way to let people access what they own and upgrade it themselves. I left one screw out like other people on here. What a pain.

[StoneGateFilmStudio]

I actually do work for best buy geek squad lol :]

[macwoman12]

hi. i am looking to buy the mac mini but before i do i need to know if it can connect to my macbook the newest version. thanks.

[Kray1975]

@MrVinney96 I think those are the screwdriver bits

[MrVinney96]

i saw 3 left screws at the end. Where did they come from...

[darshany2d]

hey man i tried for like an hr to get the antenna to get back in its place... its not happening...

any tips or tricks?

and what do you mean when you said "slot design"

i can manage to get the right or the left hand side screw in... but the other side always sticks out a bit...

HELP!!!

[tmdennie]

@darshany2d I had a little trouble myself. It's not the easiest thing to do by any means. I just kept fooling with it and finally got the antenna in place. It's a pain.

[bmattrho]

@darshany2d

The antenna plate is made of a very thin sheet of aluminum which makes it more pliable than it looks.

When you removed the antenna plate, it was kinda tough right? You had to pull it up a bit and then slide it out. Well when you pulled it up you very slightly bent the plate into a concave shape. Make small adjustments to the plate by bending it into a more convex shape until it's flat. Eventually you'll get it to fit perfectly; it just requires alot of patience.

[readyfe]

@darshany2d After over an hour of trying I gave up. Ended up getting a drill bit and drilling the hole out to the next larger size on the shield. Allowed me to fit the screw back in - but not after hours of pain and bending of the shield.

[kostashow]

This is the best assembling/disassembling video on youtube!!! Nice work men!!! I have a question!! I want to buy a Mac Mini.....i;m wondering if there's a problem if the mac is on 24/7!!! (I love t0rr3n7s :-D)

Problems of heat etc!

Thanks again!!

[tmdennie]

@kostashow I wouldn't see a problem with that. Torrents don't require that much processor power, so it'll never really heat up because of downloading them.

[ChipperMist]

@kostashow I am on a Mac mini 2010 right now and it has been up for about 4 days at a stretch and no heat at all.

[thecomputerman100]

@kostashow I keep my mac mini on 24/7 and if you put your hand on the top of it, of course it will feel warm at 130 F. It's been on for about 5 months and i never shut it down.

[amlichada]

is it 2.5 HD?

[airforcepuddy]

"If you can't do this, please stop now and uninstall life." LOL Made my day.

[xg3000]

"uninstall life.". Hilarious.

[mavantix]

Thank you for this well done video! Just installed a Kingston SSDNow V+100 256GB in my new Mac Mini with your help. Installing OS X now. Whohoo!

[JP6428]

Does it work with SSD Drives?

[jasunto]

I want to replace my dual 500GB hard drives with bigger capacity hard drives on my unibody mac mini server, but i hear they have to be a certain thickness to fit properly.

[rmshanahan]

Thanks for the video. Replaced my drive with an old (piece of crap) Imation SSD. My mini is my HTMAC (HTPC, haha) and contains NO data (all on NAS) and is my music server running 7x24. Trying to reduce heat and power. Your video saved me a lot of time/frustration. I fiddled with the antenna for 10 minutes, never did get it totally back in (could only put in 1 of the two bottom cover screws). No biggie. Mini on all night, totally cool to the touch, gotta love SSD!

[tmdennie]

@rmshanahan Wonderful! Glad it was a success!

[daneeehhhh]

Will I void the guarantee if I do this?

[tmdennie]

@daneeehhhh I would imagine so.

[daneeehhhh]

@tmdennie now that's one nice little detail I'd like to clear out before I tear the box appart

[TechCrazy]

@tmdennie : Do we have to replace it with the same brand HD? I saw that you replaced yours with a intel SSD. But i read somewhere that you have to replace it with the same brand HD as the thermal sensor is built in the hard drive, which the mini reads through the connectors.

[tmdennie]

@TechCrazy Hey there. All modern hard drives have built-in temperature sensors, and the Mac mini has additional sensors that 'stick' to the hard drive's outer casing. You can replace the stock Mac mini hard drive with any other SATA hard drive that will fit inside the mini's enclosure. Technically speaking, a 3.5" internal desktop drive will function perfectly as well, but of course it wouldn't fit inside the case.

[RunUpHill]

The insanely-small motherboard connectors are now NOT press-on / pull-off. Instead, they are slide-in and click to lock. REALLY difficult to remove safely. Be very careful!!!

[mamaway]

@RunUpHill Are you sure about that? They'll pop off with the slightest tug. I've done two swaps on my mini by popping them off and no problems so far.

[ferrari360modenaf1]

Thanks for the video and thanks for the warning about getting the wifi antenna back in. If you hadn't mentioned it I would have assumed that there was something stuck at the back and was getting in the way. I got in in eventually. Many thanks once again.

[tmdennie]

@ferrari360modenaf1 My pleasure. Glad everything went well!

[theapeman10]

you would think that Apple could have more money by putting the harddrive in a small hollow - deeper case - and provide space for a second drive. which would allow for better cooling, Apple are so nuts for trying to make a the mac mini as small as possible. It would be so much cooler if the mac mini was a cube shape - Apple probably love the fact they don't do a model with an i5,1TB,6gb model for 1000 bucks - apple are more into selling screens with computers attached -i.e the imac

[undefined1024]

Looks like a pain in the ass.

[vengeanceunlimited11]

I bet even MacGyver would have had problems with that

good video, thanks

[petiekas]

Wow! Easy swap! I replaced a HD in my old iBook G4 and that was nutz! you have to take it all the way down to a frame just to swap a HD. I am happy to see what an easy job it is to do on the Mini. I had a feeling it would be a lot worse.

Thanks for the good video.

[tmdennie]

@petiekas Thanks for the kind words.

[TheOmnipotentidiot]

Will this drive fit? I just got my mac mini today but I am ready to upgrade the hard drive.

h tt p : //cgi .ebay .com /WD -2-5-1TB-WD10TPVT-SATA-3-Gb-s-­5400RPM-8MB-LAPTOP-OEM-/170454­767921?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&h­ash=item27afe55931

[PaceyPimp]

Whats the largest hard drive that will still fit in the mac mini not SSD normal?

[tmdennie]

@PaceyPimp I actually put my Intel SSD in another computer, and ended up putting a 500GB Seagate in the mac Mini. It fit just fine, but I don't know if anything bigger would fit.

[birolakbay]

@tmdennie thank you. Great job. I just installed a Seagate 320gb 7200rpm disk without a problem.

[iLimeMoose]

i got a blue screen when i tried uninstalling life :(

[birolakbay]

@iLimeMoose you r in a Mac World not Win world :D

[iLimeMoose]

@birolakbay jk, but i did have to re-install OSX. I had my machine for one day and killed it that short time :( Im on my 4th install now

[kingcom2008]

thank you. keep going

[WhiteHawk7798]

@stefimke I just removed the hard drive connector and the thermal sensor from the logic board and tilted up the Mac mini towards me so the hard drive would come out a bit easier, but it still takes some wiggling to get it over the RAM slots.

[stefimke]

@WhiteHawk7798 I managed to get it out and also managed to squeeze the OCZ Vertex2 SSD in. This was a -very- thight squeeze however and I really don't think I can get it out again if needed, without sliding out the logic board. So hopefully I don't need this.

Mini is flying now with the SSD :)

[WhiteHawk7798]

@stefimke Congrats. :-)

[stefimke]

I must be doing something wrong. I got all the way to the point where the logic board is supposed to be shifting out... but my board doesn't shift out at all. I'm sure I removed all necessary screws, but no way it shifts.

Tips?

[bmattrho]

@stefimke

Just give it force and be patient. What you're doing is pushing (using a rod) directly out towards the I/O panel. While you're doing this, keep your eyes directly on the I/O panel to see if it's separating (even by a fraction of a millimeter) from the aluminum body. You only need to push it out about 5mm. It will require a somewhat strong force to separate but the key is to apply a smooth increase of force over a long time.

[TheAppleReviewGuy]

Could I install a 7200rpm 1TB HD or a 60GB SSD?

[lahensmb]

last question do you know if is space for two HDrive? I ask because in the other model contain two HD

[lahensmb]

the HDrive for this these Mini Macs are like laptop HD? or have different characteristics, do you mind to send me wish one you choose or those that you said that newegg has now?

[lahensmb]

where did you purchase you new HDrive for the Mini Mac?

[tmdennie]

@lahensmb I ordered mine from Mwave dot com, but only because Newegg had jacked the price up. Now Newegg's prices are back down to way below what I paid for mine.

[zillomab]

Thank you for the tutorial. I am pretty confident in taking a computer apart but this Mac Mini is particularly difficult. I rather pay to someone to do it for me.

[MEelillitas89]

will this void warranty?

[tmdennie]

@MEelillitas89 I think so, but I'm not entirely sure.

[PaceyPimp]

@MEelillitas89 if you send it with a larger hard drive to Apple then yes if you put it back the way it was then i don't think they will notice so NO.

[WhiteHawk7798]

Nice video, but you don't need to slide the logicboard out at all, it's a tight fit and you will mark the black hard drive cover but the hard drive can be removed and reinserted just fine without doing all that, just put a Momentus XT in yesterday and what a difference in performance. :-) And the Torx bits you need are size T6 and T8.

[stefimke]

@WhiteHawk7798 Can you give a bit more detail on what you do instead of moving the logic board? I tried to follow this guide (and the guide from ifixit) but at the point where I am supposed to slide out the logic board I got stuck: I simply cannot slide out the logic board. Not sure how smooth it is supposed to go, but the legs of the tiny screwdrivers which I'm putting in two holes are bending from my force.

[WhiteHawk7798]

@stefimke I didn't move the logic board at all, unlike some instructions like the iFixit one and this video you don't actually need to do that. I just followed the iFixit guide but skipped steps 15 and 16 to do with removing the logic board. As I mentioned it's possible to take out the hard drive anyway, it's just a very tight squeeze and will scuff the black hard drive cover a little, but that's not a problem.

My Mac mini is still going strong. 4Gig of RAM and Momentus XT drive, it's great.

[stefimke]

@WhiteHawk7798 I guess you also skip step 12 then?

I tried to get the drive out without sliding out the logic board but also that didn't go that smooth so I stopped the process and put all the screws back in.

When wiggling out the drive there's no chance harming any of the sensors or wires?

[WhiteHawk7798]

@stefimke Not sure what else to tell you, but if there is anything specific let me know.

[nsvanteson]

Hi!

Thanks for this video.

How do I remove the logic board connectors? I'm afraid to damage the logic board. Should I lift it up in the cables or bend it up using a small screw driver?

[tmdennie]

@nsvanteson Its been a month ago that I made this video, but I do remember that some of the logic board connectors simply pop up perpendicularly from the logic board. I thought some of the connectors had a flip-up tab that holds them in, though.

[MortenPingel]

Hey Dude, i got a Question ..

Is it possible to change the DVD SuperDrive with a Blu-Ray Drive ?!

I found a Slim BluRay drive ..

on fastmac com ;)

Thanks.

[tmdennie]

@MortenPingel I'm sure there's a way to do it. If the drive you found is the same form factor and has the mini-SATA connectors on it, sure -- it'll fit like a glove. I'd say there is software available to playback a BluRauy movie, but I'm unsure of that since I've never really looked. There has to be some third-party Firewire BluRay drives out there somewhere, and they have to make software to play BDROMs, I just haven't run across it.

[ninjaknate]

Cheers for this video, mate. Question tho: do you think that with the tight space of the mini, a 7200rpm drive would get too hot for it? I mean, the server version has them and things seem to be fine. I'm torn between a 7200rpm drive and an SSD.

[tmdennie]

@ninjaknate Hey there, sorry I really don't know the answer to that. I know some 2.5" drives get really hot regardless of rotational speed because I've accidentally left them in my eSATA dock over night at work. Come in the next morning and they're hot as hell. I'm not really sure about the airflow inside the new minis. You'd think though, with the server version having two HDDs, it would be okay. Just not sure if they're 7200RPM. That does (as you already know) play a role in heat.

[jryLX]

Great video! Thank you.

[sinoperture]

Stop here and uninstall life? You're proud that you can do the same job as someone in India or China? The people you insult aren't the real idiots you do realise right? Go do some more manual labour chump. I'll laugh at you when you're finally off shored as well. :-s

[tmdennie]

@sinoperture Tell us how you really feel! No seriously, were you fondled as a child? Because that's okay and all... I'm just doing some research on people that are assholes to see if they were fondled earlier in their lifetime.

[AloofBeing]

Thanks Travis for posting this helpful video. I also intend to upgrade my hard drive. I don't have a set of miniature torx bits, will you mind sharing some details on torx bits you used, that would help me buying the right set to perform the surgery? Thanks.

[tmdennie]

@AloofBeing Hi there, YouTube doesn't allow that I put URLs in my comments, so I'm adding to the video description. You should be able to find it there!

[friscoltu959]

if you do this, lost warranty???

[tmdennie]

@friscoltu959 I think so... Not 100% sure, but I'd say. :D

[JuicyDBASE]

This video really helps, especially with the close-up stills. Although, watching the part of taking off the adhesive vinyl and sensor on the HD was as suspensful as the inception movie I just saw. eeek! Other than that it looks as easy; if not easier than upgrading the last mini.

Thanks for the good quality tut, so many tut's blow chunks.

[JuicyDBASE]

@jbrige Agree, made me laugh pretty good.

[xeraen]

Thank you so much for filming this and posting it. I've been hoping that the disk replacement was this easy. You've given me the confidence to go ahead and get the new Mini. Thanks again!

[bizzy400]

i dont think mac ever expected that SSD probly cost close to the price of the machine lol (if you got teh cheap verison witch you probly didnt) lol

[tres311]

congratulation your ready to work for best buys geek squad lol no! they arnt that competent

[xiaolnmunk]

@tres311 you can say that again

[eric8181]

Thanks for being the first to share this. I bought this model when it first came out, but I wanted to see how the HD replacement was done before doing it myself. Very nice video.