I'm thinking of buying a mac mini used. How far can you go back in models and still upgrade and run Mavericks? It the mac mini easy to upgrade HD and ram?
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How far can you go back in mini models?
- Thread starter V6Pony
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According to Mactracker, the earliest mini that will run Mavericks is the early 2009 model (MacMini3,1). I am running it on a late 2009 Mac mini Server with 4GB of memory. It works fine, but I think that 8GB and an SSD would turn it into a new machine.
Prying apart a mini is a bit of a hassle, but not hard. Once open, you do have to be careful with small wires and cables. Otherworldcomputing and iFixit have videos which are very helpful.
A.
Prying apart a mini is a bit of a hassle, but not hard. Once open, you do have to be careful with small wires and cables. Otherworldcomputing and iFixit have videos which are very helpful.
A.
Early 2009 model and later.
My mini is listed in signature. Wouldn't update due to poor igp on later models. Waiting on 2014 update personally.
As for updates memory is simple twist and that's it. Hdd requires 30 minutes work but adding an ssd makes a massive difference.
My mini is listed in signature. Wouldn't update due to poor igp on later models. Waiting on 2014 update personally.
As for updates memory is simple twist and that's it. Hdd requires 30 minutes work but adding an ssd makes a massive difference.
Thanks all. Any suggestions where would be a good place to buy a 2010 or 2011 model? I know there are a bunch listed on ebay. Not sure I always trust ebay. Ohh can the mini connect to an older crt monitor until I can get a new one?
Early 2009 is the oldest Mini that can run Mavericks. Upgrading the hard drive & ram is a very simple procedure, I just upgraded the ram to 8GB in my Early 2009 not long ago, it took all of about 30 minutes to do the job.
My 2010 mini just got 8/960 SSD. Wow, what a difference. Consider hooking the drive externally (initially) for a clean install + migration. Gets things nice and tidy and gives you a chance to test it before putting it in.
Mine does media - breathtaking FF and RW speeds!
I wish I could have done ssd in that size! I got the toshiba sshd kit from owc that comes with an external enclosure, so that was my plan. How do I do a clean install of Mavericks? Do I have to install snow leopard from DVD first, then update, followed by migration assistant?
I'm basically doing some fun home recording in Logic and basic iPhoto stuff in addition to hosting my home iTunes library (very large).
My early 2009 Mac Mini is still running the original hard drive for now. After I upgraded the ram to 8GB it made a world of difference, I rarely see a beach ball & it's running OSX Mavericks.
Yeah, I was only going to do 480, but then I realized the extra space would give me a ton of extra capabilties. Ive been quite enjoying Mavericks server as a result.
MacWorld has the best guides on how to install every new OS, but basically...
1) connect the new drive to the outside of your mac (usb, fw, tb)
2) download mavericks and move the installer out of the apps folder
3) run disk utility and format the new drive (extended/journaled/GUID)
4) run the installer
5) install mavericks on the new drive
6) boot with option key, select the new drive / install
7) when it gets to migration screen, select mac
8) at the selection screen, turn off applications
9) finish boot, install all apps from scratch
10) when you are happy with the install, swap drives
11) keep the old drive as is / protected for a few week, just in case
Steps 8-11 are my own design
Forgot to mention
12) step 5 automatically creates a recovery partition. A few days after everything is settled, boot with command R, load disk utility, and repair permissions three times (or until it stops finding stuff).
13) install trim enabler (optional)
I like 10.7 because it's the first OS with a fully fledged App Store
I got my new Toshiba SSHD and 8GB of ram installed. Beachballs seem to have disappeared. System is running much better. Doesn't seem like a new machine or something right out of the store, but it is a 5 year old computer. I haven't been able to run Logic through its paces yet - I'm looking forward to that...
Thanks for the advice. Install was MUCH easier than I was expecting. I think the whole thing - installing ram and replacing the hard drive - took about 20-30 minutes.
Thanks for the advice. Install was MUCH easier than I was expecting. I think the whole thing - installing ram and replacing the hard drive - took about 20-30 minutes.
Go ahead and install it, it will either work or not, and will do no harm either way.
Why not migrate the apps? Finding the installers and serial numbers are the reason I hate to do clean installs.
The mailman is delivering my 2009 Mac Mini MB463LL/A 2.00GHz Core 2 Duo 160GB with 4GB of memory tomorrow. I was planning on putting OS X 10.8.5 on it and solely running this as a mini server for my home. PLEX (maybe) and to do some nightly jobs for my websites.
Anyone see any issues with that? Based on my reading this should be more that capable.
Anyone see any issues with that? Based on my reading this should be more that capable.
Hmm.
1) Unchecking apps doesn't prevent prefs/settings/registrations from coming over. The newly installed apps 'connect' to the old apps info and launch right up. The key advantage of not migrating apps is not clearing out all app info, but providing the opportunity not to reinstall unused apps. I tend to experience through the year or two between big versions.
2) App Store apps are very easy to reinstall
3) I have an installation server, with disk images and the like all ready to go
4) mavericks server may make this even easier
5) im a bit lazy about upgrading. some of my apps need outright replacement regardless