upgrade iMac hard disk

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BulletproofBob


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Is there anyway to replace the hard disk in the new iMac's with your own? I would like to use my own SSD drives rather than the 256GB SSD option. I suspect it is a slow drive compared to an Intel and Vertex 3 drive. I hear the new iMac has a unique cable that controls the fan.

Anyone know off hand the make/model of the 256GB SSD drive? Most SSD drives are hardly any faster than traditional SATA drives and I am very picky about my hard drives.
 
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The new (mid 2011) iMac models use a proprietary hard drive with special firmware in order to control the temperature and thus the cooling fan. It does involve a different connecting cable - not the normal SATA cable that you might expect.

What I'm getting at, is that you might want to do some research and read through what MacWorld and Other World Computing are reporting before you decide to do anything yourself. You not only run the risk of voiding your warranty, but also may wind up with a cooling fan running at full speed all the time.
 
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chscag said:
The new (mid 2011) iMac models use a proprietary hard drive with special firmware in order to control the temperature and thus the cooling fan. It does involve a different connecting cable - not the normal SATA cable that you might expect.

What I'm getting at, is that you might want to do some research and read through what MacWorld and Other World Computing are reporting before you decide to do anything yourself. You not only run the risk of voiding your warranty, but also may wind up with a cooling fan running at full speed all the time.
Click to expand...

I read exactly that somewhere, I was wondering if there is anyway around it or is it pretty much how it is. I suspect since there is firmware you have no other options.

Is the Mac Pro the same deal?
 
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There are a several work arounds that have appeared, but reading through them doesn't give one a sense of security. In other words, they may or may not work. One suggested method was to install SMCFanControl and control the speed of the hard drive fan that way.

The Mac Pro is not effected since it uses an open architecture. You can use just about any SATA hard drive in the Pro.
 
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chscag said:
There are a several work arounds that have appeared, but reading through them doesn't give one a sense of security. In other words, they may or may not work. One suggested method was to install SMCFanControl and control the speed of the hard drive fan that way.

The Mac Pro is not effected since it uses an open architecture. You can use just about any SATA hard drive in the Pro.
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Thanks, I was afraid that was the case (hence why they did it).
 
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BulletproofBob said:
Is there anyway to replace the hard disk in the new iMac's with your own? I would like to use my own SSD drives rather than the 256GB SSD option. I suspect it is a slow drive compared to an Intel and Vertex 3 drive. I hear the new iMac has a unique cable that controls the fan.

Anyone know off hand the make/model of the 256GB SSD drive? Most SSD drives are hardly any faster than traditional SATA drives and I am very picky about my hard drives.
Click to expand...

Certainly NOT 'slow' on my new iMac 27 and 21'!!:p:)
 
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pedropete said:
Certainly NOT 'slow' on my new iMac 27 and 21'!!:p:)
Click to expand...

I've tested many SSD drives, and at least 50% of them are not much faster than a traditional spindle drive. I will not use anything less than 10K RPM Raptor drives but also use SSD. I only used the top of the line SSD (I have Intels, updating to the 500Mb/s Vertex drives). A good SSD drive (and there are only a handful) are 2-10x faster than typical SSD drives. I refuse to pay $1,250 for a run of the mill SSD drive from Apple over the drives I typically use.
 
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chscag said:
The new (mid 2011) iMac models use a proprietary hard drive with special firmware in order to control the temperature and thus the cooling fan. It does involve a different connecting cable - not the normal SATA cable that you might expect.
Click to expand...
This was a rumor spread by OWC and turned out to be false :)

but also may wind up with a cooling fan running at full speed all the time.
Click to expand...
Also not true, although the Mac can get noisier than you like.

Actually I made a fix for the fact that my Vertex 3 SSD reports a ridiculous temperature of 128C ;)

http://exirion.net/ssdfanctrl

Let me know if it works for you.
 
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I don't know where you're getting your information from... but it's no rumor. That very fact has also been reported by MacWorld Magazine and confirmed by Apple. Check the Apple forums.
 
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What's wrong with just using a good old external hard drive ?:)
 
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chscag said:
I don't know where you're getting your information from... but it's no rumor. That very fact has also been reported by MacWorld Magazine and confirmed by Apple. Check the Apple forums.
Click to expand...
I'm referring to the rumor that they use proprietary and incompatible connectors, and proprietary firmware. Both are not true.

Fact is: Apple uses a normal 15-pin SATA power connector, but they use 7 wires instead of 4. This has nothing to do with temperature measurement as they use the SMART standard for reading temperature data, and this is exactly what goes wrong with SSDs: many don't send proper temperature data and make the system go crazy.

Controlling the fan speeds in software fixes this. But aside from this minor issue, ordinary 3rd party harddisks and SSDs with stock firmware just work.
 
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Exirion said:
I'm referring to the rumor that they use proprietary and incompatible connectors, and proprietary firmware. Both are not true.

Fact is: Apple uses a normal 15-pin SATA power connector, but they use 7 wires instead of 4. This has nothing to do with temperature measurement as they use the SMART standard for reading temperature data, and this is exactly what goes wrong with SSDs: many don't send proper temperature data and make the system go crazy.

Controlling the fan speeds in software fixes this. But aside from this minor issue, ordinary 3rd party harddisks and SSDs with stock firmware just work.
Click to expand...

Exirion:
iFixit did a teardown and disagree too. Can you post links to your source? I'm sure they'd be helpful to many.
 
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mrplow said:
Exirion:
iFixit did a teardown and disagree too. Can you post links to your source? I'm sure they'd be helpful to many.
Click to expand...
Sure, although some of it is in Dutch:

OWC: Choose your new iMac hard drive wisely, you only get one shot | 9 to 5 Mac

The 'Dutch Dude' he refers to is me ;D On the day I bought my 2011 iMac (last month) I built in an OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS SSD which works great.

This is a frontpage article on a major Dutch tech site:

OWC: Apple frustreert opnieuw vervangen hdd's bij nieuwe iMacs - update | Core | Tweakers.net Nieuws

And finally I'd like to help people with fan noise issues, so I made a software fix which is available for free:

http://exirion.net/ssdfanctrl

Let me know if it works for you :)
 
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I called OWC, and wanted to upgrade my 2010 iMac to an SSD. They told me the same thing that chscag posted. They said that there was a work around, but it wasn't easy. Now, I'm sure that they would have loved to sell me an SSD if that was not true.
 
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pokermaniac said:
I called OWC, and wanted to upgrade my 2010 iMac to an SSD. They told me the same thing that chscag posted. They said that there was a work around, but it wasn't easy. Now, I'm sure that they would have loved to sell me an SSD if that was not true.
Click to expand...
You're referring to a totally different reason for the 'difficult upgrade'. Replacing the HDD with an SSD is peanuts, and the fan speed issues can be solved in software. However, if you want to keep the harddisk and add the SSD next to it (as can be done in 2010/2011 iMacs), then there is an issue: the cable for connecting the SSD to the logic board is lacking. So this cable must be added and connected to the logic board in order to install the SSD. That's all.
 
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Exirion said:
You're referring to a totally different reason for the 'difficult upgrade'. Replacing the HDD with an SSD is peanuts, and the fan speed issues can be solved in software. However, if you want to keep the harddisk and add the SSD next to it (as can be done in 2010/2011 iMacs), then there is an issue: the cable for connecting the SSD to the logic board is lacking. So this cable must be added and connected to the logic board in order to install the SSD. That's all.
Click to expand...
Sold my MBP, bought another nice iMac WITH an SSD in it already. It's not the 6gb/s that I wanted, but it will do. No more opening up Macs for this guy anytime soon.;D
 
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pokermaniac said:
Sold my MBP, bought another nice iMac WITH an SSD in it already. It's not the 6gb/s that I wanted, but it will do. No more opening up Macs for this guy anytime soon.;D
Click to expand...
If you're happy with it... that's what counts ;) I replaced the HDD in my 2007 iMac with a Vertex 2 SSD. In my new 2011 iMac I put a Vertex 3 MI SSD, which is a major upgrade compared to the Vertex 2. Actually, avoiding dust between the LCD panel and glass plate is the main challenge. The rest of it is not a big deal if you've ever used a screwdriver on a PC :p
 
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Exirion said:
If you're happy with it... that's what counts ;) I replaced the HDD in my 2007 iMac with a Vertex 2 SSD. In my new 2011 iMac I put a Vertex 3 MI SSD, which is a major upgrade compared to the Vertex 2. Actually, avoiding dust between the LCD panel and glass plate is the main challenge. The rest of it is not a big deal if you've ever used a screwdriver on a PC :p
Click to expand...
I can build a PC with one eye closed ;P I tried getting a 6gb/s OWC SSD to work in a 2011 MBP. Just wasn't going to happen due to the Sandy Bridge Chip (talk to some Apple knowledgeable engineers about it). After what I went through trying to make it work, I'm done. It's not that I cannot open up a Mac, it's just that I don't want to after what I went through. So you can have your faster SSD in your iMac. I'm happy for you. However, I'm sure that I'll be perfectly happy with the Apple branded one (that I'm supposed to get today if FedEx gets their s**t together).;D
 
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pokermaniac said:
However, I'm sure that I'll be perfectly happy with the Apple branded one (that I'm supposed to get today if FedEx gets their s**t together).;D
Click to expand...
I'm sure about that too. I know some people who received their 2011 iMacs with SSD in the past few days, and although the SSD itself is not sensational, it's a major improvement over a harddisk :) Hopefully you'll get it soon!
 
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Exirion said:
I'm sure about that too. I know some people who received their 2011 iMacs with SSD in the past few days, and although the SSD itself is not sensational, it's a major improvement over a harddisk :) Hopefully you'll get it soon!
Click to expand...
Thanks. I got it today, SSD is ok, not spectacular. Faster than a hard disk. Sorry, OT. :)
 

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