Replacing Hard drive (SSD in MacBook air retina 13")

[Simon_ward]

Hi, A friend of mines Mac has crashed can't see hard drive (just shows a folder on boot up), I did cmd R boot and used disk util to delete drive then tried to do a restore. After doing this machine couldn't see the drive, despite numerous reboots into internet recovery mode. So we bought a new chip (Drive), when we bought it we made sure it was compatible with the laptop, when it arrived and I checked the instructions it said make sure machine is on OS10.13 or above. I cant check this and my friend didn't now, we plugged in the new chip and started the machine up (disconnected battery, removed old chip, inserted new, screw back in, replaced battery connection) pressing CMD R, the machine still cant see the drive in drive utils app. can I check if the machines OS was at 10.13 or above or if not can I do anything to update it to this?
Any ideas welcome,
Thanks,

Simon

 

[pm-r]

I'd give the tech support at the place where you bought "the new chip" from and see if they can advise and help you.



- Patrick
======

 

[pigoo3]

Hi, A friend of mines Mac has crashed can't see hard drive (just shows a folder on boot up), I did cmd R boot and used disk util to delete drive then tried to do a restore. After doing this machine couldn't see the drive, despite numerous reboots into internet recovery mode. So we bought a new chip (Drive), when we bought it we made sure it was compatible with the laptop, when it arrived and I checked the instructions it said make sure machine is on OS10.13 or above. I cant check this and my friend didn't now, we plugged in the new chip and started the machine up (disconnected battery, removed old chip, inserted new, screw back in, replaced battery connection) pressing CMD R, the machine still cant see the drive in drive utils app. can I check if the machines OS was at 10.13 or above or if not can I do anything to update it to this?

Some thoughts:

1. Please let us know the exact model MacBook Air this is. Sometimes it helps to know the exact model.
2. Better terminology for this replacement storage device is either "SSD" or "Blade SSD".
3. The macOS 10.13 or above requirement is a bit unusual for a storage device...thus unless some specific reliable info can be found to confirm this...I wouldn't put a ton of emphasis on it.
4. Make 100% sure the replacement SSD that was purchased for this computer is the correct replacement SSD for this exact model. Check out the link below...choose the correct SSD for the MacBook Air in question...then compare the specs, shape of the SSD, and pin configuration of the SSD...to make 100% sure the SSD that was purchased is the correct one.

Apple MacBook Air SSD Upgrade Kits from OWC

One final thought. If this MacBook Air "crashed" with the old SSD...and "crashed" with the new SSD...it is possible that the SSD is not the problem (both SSD's could be good). It's possible that this MacBook Air could have some other problem that's affecting it's ability to read ANY installed SDD.

HTH,

- Nick

p.s. If an external hard drive or external SSD is available with a compatible macOS installed on it...you could try booting this MacBook Air from it to confirm that it is operational.

 

[Simon_ward]

Hi the model is - Mac Book Air Early 2015: A1465

I bought a - INDMEM 256GB NVMe PCIe Internal SSD for MacBook Pro Retina Late 2013 - Mid 2015, MacBook Air Mid 2013-2017, iMac Late 2013-2017, Mac Pro Late 2013, Mac Mini Late 2014

Specification is below - this was also the writing on the advert, I purchased through Amazon, checked reviews and many happy customers for this product.

Exceptional Performance】- 3D TLC NAND Flash supporting PCIe NVMe interface. Capacities up to 512GB with sequential reads/writes up to 1,700/1,200 MB/s. Please must upgrade your MAC to macOS 10.13 or higher before installation
【For Intensive Application】- Ideal for 3D animation, rendering, photo and video editing, gaming, and other heavy workloads applications
【How to Use Brand New Uninitialized SSD】- This hard drive available on macOS 10.13 High Sierra and later, must upgrade your MAC to macOS 10.13 or higher before installation. Need extra USB drive (Portable SSD/HDD) to create a bootable installer or Time Machine to backup, use macOS Utilities from USB drive to Erase new SSD and install(Recovery) macOS
【For Macbook Air】- 11 inch, Mid 2013, Early 2014, Early 2015: A1465; 13 inch, Mid 2013, Early 2014, Early 2015, 2017: A1466

You are correct it could be another problem but I have no way of checking, we did take to an apple store and they said it was the hard drive that was faulty and that it was £300 to replace or we could do it ourselves with a compatible one...


Thanks,

Simon

 

[pigoo3]

...we did take to an apple store and they said it was the hard drive that was faulty and that it was £300 to replace or we could do it ourselves with a compatible one...

Ok...let's assume Apple is correct...let's assume the correct replacement SSD was purchased...and let's also assume (believe it or not)...that since the same issue exists with both the old SSD and new SSD...that both SSD's are good.

Finally (after some additional research)...let's assume that the issue is not user-error or user confusion...but more of a glitch in how the computer works.

Try this...boot the computer using the 3-key combo of...Command-Option-R...until a globe is seen. This is called "Internet Recovery". This can take a while depending on internet speed...thus be patient.

- Once you get to the point of seeing the macOS Utilities menu, select Disk Utility.
- In the menu bar at the top of the screen click on the View menu and select Show All Devices. This should allow the SSD to show up in the left column, if it does not show up quit Disk Utility and reopen it.
- If the SSD does show up you may want to select the drive and click on the Erase tab. You can then name the drive and chose the desired format. Once the format is complete the SSD is ready for the OS to be installed.

Please let us know how things go,

- Nick

 

[Simon_ward]

Hi Tried this using internet recovery and also tried it with a usb startup disk that a friend made me that has catalina resinstall on it, whatever I do the disk cannot be seen in the menu on the left it simply shows no internal disks.

Maybe its a controller board fault rather than a fault with the SSD chip itself????

 

[chscag]

OWC claims that their Blade SSDs for the model that Simon has will only work with macOS 10.13.X and above. Their reasoning is that the SSD is pre-formatted to APFS and will only work with that format. I don't know if that's the same reasoning from the advertisement at Amazon, but I suspect it might be.

It appears to me that Simon is going to somehow have to come up with an installation USB flash drive with at least High Sierra or above and try that way. Of course there could be another reason the Blade SSD he purchased will not work, such as a logic board problem.

 

[ferrarr]

When booting from USB, it shouldn't matter how the internal drive is formatted. Since Disk Utility is included in the installer, the drive can always be re-formatted.

 

[Simon_ward]

So......

A friend of mine leant me his mac and I created an external boot disk with Catalina on it. I can boot the MacBook Air with this disk no problem and it runs although slow..... but disk utils still show no internal hard disk Im starting to think its something other than the SSD Chip :-(

Any other ideas of things to try?

Thanks for any help I can get,

Simon

 

[chscag]

When booting from USB, it shouldn't matter how the internal drive is formatted. Since Disk Utility is included in the installer, the drive can always be re-formatted.

I'm just telling you what OWC and Amazon are stating about that blade SSD he purchased. Why then can it not be seen? Like I said above, it could also be a logic board problem which may have been present all along.

 

[Simon_ward]

As it works with a USB stick as boot and operating system disk I am wondering if I could buy a carrier of some description to turn the new chip (and or the original) into a USB plugged in drive, Does anyone know whether these are available?

Thanks,

Simon

 

[pigoo3]

As it works with a USB stick as boot and operating system disk I am wondering if I could buy a carrier of some description to turn the new chip (and or the original) into a USB plugged in drive, Does anyone know whether these are available?

Yes they are...but they're kind of expensive:

OWC Envoy Pro - SSD Enclosure for 2013-Current Macs

- Nick

p.s. What we're discussing is an "SSD" or "Blade SSD"...not a "chip".

 

[Simon_ward]

Thanks everyone, she’s going to buy a new MacBook as this looks like it is beyond reasonable repair, appreciate all the responses, and education on terminology;-)

Thanks,

Simon

 

[pigoo3]

Thanks everyone, she’s going to buy a new MacBook as this looks like it is beyond reasonable repair, appreciate all the responses, and education on terminology;-)

Wanted to offer up one last suggestion. I came across an article that seems to exactly describe the issue in question. Check out the article (linked below). Scroll down until you get to part 3B...and see if this works.

This is kind of an advanced procedure...if you decide to do it...take your time:

How to Format a New Internal SSD in macOS 10.13 High Sierra

- Nick

 

[Simon_ward]

Thanks for this, tried it but the disk still doesn't show up in the list, its like the logic board cant see it at all.

Worth a try though,

Thanks again.

 

[pm-r]

This is kind of an advanced procedure...if you decide to do it...take your time:
How to Format a New Internal SSD in macOS 10.13 High Sierra

- Nick

Good find Nick.

I wonder why they say this:

Again, these instructions are intended for new internal SSDs only, with computers that have already had their original drive upgraded to macOS 10.13 High Sierra.

And especially the "original drive upgraded to macOS 10.13 High Sierra" part.

Regardless, considering the situation, I would be inclined to ignore that suggestion and just carry-on and do the deed.

Besides, it's pretty hard to break anything when it doesn't even work in the first place I'd say.


EDIT:
Bummer, I was too late and too hopeful it seems:

Thanks for this, tried it but the disk still doesn't show up in the list, its like the logic board cant see it at all.

Worth a try though,

Thanks again.

- Patrick
======

 

[ferrarr]

I wonder if TDM (Target Disk Mode) would work in this situation? Start the MBA in TDM and connect with Thunderbolt cable to the other Mac. The install macOS to the MBA drive. Or if they have an adapter for the blade ssd, they should just be able to connect it and install to it.

 

[pm-r]

I wonder if TDM (Target Disk Mode) would work in this situation?

Odd that you would suggest TDM and I was just wondering the same thing myself.

Unfortunately it doesn't always work as one would expect it to, and especially for any installation stuff, but it sure wouldn't hurt to at least try!!!



- Patrick
======

 

[jga40]

Hi, A friend of mines Mac has crashed can't see hard drive (just shows a folder on boot up), I did cmd R boot and used disk util to delete drive then tried to do a restore. After doing this machine couldn't see the drive, despite numerous reboots into internet recovery mode. So we bought a new chip (Drive), when we bought it we made sure it was compatible with the laptop, when it arrived and I checked the instructions it said make sure machine is on OS10.13 or above. I cant check this and my friend didn't now, we plugged in the new chip and started the machine up (disconnected battery, removed old chip, inserted new, screw back in, replaced battery connection) pressing CMD R, the machine still cant see the drive in drive utils app. can I check if the machines OS was at 10.13 or above or if not can I do anything to update it to this?
Any ideas welcome,
Thanks,

Simon

I recently bought a new MacBook Air so needed an SSD ext drive for back ups. I bought it online (reputable company) but it would not format to APFS.

Luckily the company refunded me, and said not to bother to return the one sent. So it went in the bin. Managed to buy one that formats in APFS.

Good luck with your problem