MBP Super Slow. Upgrade Options?

[GBPD74]

My wife's 2013 MBP (A1278) has been running obscenely slow for the past several months and has only been getting worse. Apple support had her reinstall the OS which has been a several day process. I am thinking the HD is on its way out and/or it needs a ram upgrade. Does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts on what we can do?

Thanks

 

[pigoo3]

Would be best for us to first figure out exactly what model MBP this is.

- Can't be a 2013 MBP...because there were no "A1278" model's in 2013.
- The "A1278" designation is somewhat generic...since it cover's models from 2009 thru 2012.

It's very possible that this is a 2012 13" MBP...if so...would be good to know it's exact specs. The slowness could very well be the HD failing...or something else from a maintenance perspective.

- Nick

 

[GBPD74]

Sorry, you are correct:

Macbrook Pro 13-inch Mid 2012
2.5 GHZ Intel Core i5
4GB 1600Mhz DDR3 RAM

It took us 6 days to get it back up and running once Apple had us repair the hard drive and reinstall the OS. Each OS upgrade was at least a day if not longer. I am thinking that the hard drive is on its way out, and probably should boost the RAM as well.

Any thoughts?

 

[Rod]

One of our members has published a post with things listed that may slow down your device http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/ap...d-expert-advice-imac-mac-pro.html#post1620100
Check through this list for obvious slow down causes.
If none of these tips seem to apply then you may well be looking at a failing HD or other mechanical issue, RAM chips can fail too.
Upgrades of the OS taking a day is abnormal unless you are referring to download time as well. Once downloaded a macOS installer should complete the upgrade in about 1Hr even with only 4gb RAM.
You did not mention which OS system you are using.

 

[GBPD74]

It is now back on Sierra, which is what it was on when it started running like ****... When it finally restored from the 2 day disk repair, it was on Mountain Lion I believe, and we've had to progressively upgrade it from there over the week. Some updates were faster than others, but each was at LEAST 24 hours, not including download time. I am thinking that I would like to upgrade to 8gb of RAM (or more, I've read both ways that this model can and can't handle more) as well as a solid state drive. Nothing on that list really applies. The machine has the standard apps along with Chrome, Photoshop and maybe 2 or 3 others... I can't imagine any other reason it would be running so slowly.

 

[chscag]

I can't imagine any other reason it would be running so slowly.

It's very likely that your hard drive is failing which is the reason for the slowness. Be sure to keep up with your backups, and change out the hard drive as soon as you can.

 

[Rod]

It would be good to eliminate the HD as a problem first I think before investing more time and effort in upgrading the machine itself.
Have you tried running Disk Utility (in the Utilities Folder in Applications Folder)? In sierra you need to select the Macintosh HD in the side menu then click First Aid.
Unfortunately DU is a fairly basic diagnostic app and will give you a clean bill of health so long as the HD is functional.
A better alternative would be Drive DX available from this site which will give percentage values to disk structure.https://binaryfruit.com/drivedx

 

[Rod]

Oh yes, how could I forget, do a complete backup if you haven't already.

 

[GBPD74]

Thanks. I will try Drive Dx tonight. Backup is running currently

 

[pigoo3]

If this doesn't help...you may be back to the hard drive failing possibility.

Also please tell us how full the hard drive is (gigs used & gigs free). An almost full HD will cause slowness issues.

- Nick

 

[GBPD74]

There are 115gb free on the HD of 400

 

[GBPD74]

Can someone suggest a solid state drive to install?

 

[harryb2448]

Best runs for me have been with OWC and OCZ, made by Toshiba.

 

[harryb2448]

Big business and big bucks rule O.K.?

 

[GBPD74]

I was thinking more specific models. I know certain drives won't work on certain MBPs. Also thinking I may as well up the RAM while I'm in there. Any suggestions on that front ?