2012 13" unibody has never run right with new SSDs

[landshark2]

A while ago I bought 3 Crucial MX500 SSDs, and I thought getting 6Gb/s drives would be a good thing. Then I created two thumb drive installers; one for Catalina and one for High Sierra. First try was a disaster, with very slow to timed out operation on Catalina. I tried with a 2nd fresh SSD, and the result was pretty much the same, even after replacing the ribbon cable (I now have the OEM and 2 replacements).

So I tried to back down to High Sierra on the 2nd SSD, which gave it slightly faster operation, but still much slower than the original SATA drive, and the years ago bigger replacement SATA drive, which was installed at the same time as 16GB of memory. I went through the steps to reformat from APFS to macOS extended (journaled), but today the MBP gave an EFI firmware mismatch error, and when I dug down I found that the EFI Updater is HFS+ format and the SSD is APFS format.

The first of many questions is; why didn't the reformatting of the SSD take? I know that 2017's High Sierra was the first OS to use APFS, and that it was the default, but since this is a 2012 MBP I thought it might like macOS extended (journaled) better, and WTF on the format of the EFI Updater?

 

[wstewart]

I am tempted to say that you may be overcomplicating things. I have an identical set-up: a 13" mid-2012 unibody MacBook Pro (MacBookPro9,2), which has been my daily driver since I bought it in early 2013. I installed a Crucial MX500 500GB SSD several years ago, cloning it from the OEM HDD using Carbon Copy Cloner; it largely picked up without missing a beat, and with much smoother performance. In Sept 2022, when Apple dropped support for Catalina, I moved over to Ubuntu Linux, and I expect I will never go back to macOS again.

I would start fresh with a new Catalina USB installer (using Apple's command line instructions for that), and a formatted MX500 SSD. I wouldn't bother with anything older than Catalina. And stop trying to use HFS+ on an SSD; this was a big reason why Apple APFS developed APFS in the first place (which, conversely, was not designed to run on a spinning-disk HDD). Look here for more info: https://bombich.com/kb/ccc5/everything-you-need-know-about-carbon-copy-cloner-and-apfs#why

Some of the problems you are experiencing may be due to old/defective bits of hardware (like the ribbon cable you replaced), but Catalina should install on the MX500 (or any other SSD, for that matter) and work smoothly. Recognize, however, that a mid-2012 MacBook Pro is running a 3RD gen Intel Core processor, when the current Intel processors are 13th-14th generation. There will be limits to how much performance you can squeeze out of this machine - and depending on your expectations, you may be disappointed. That said, it should be able to do all of your basic daily tasks without breaking much of a sweat.

 

[landshark2]

Regarding the formatting, I had nothing to do with the EFI Updater having an HFS+ format. For all I know, that's how it always is and came from either the High Sierra installation or a subsequent update.

I don't want a clone of the old drive, I want a fresh install.

Since the error code, I've now read that some 2011-12 Macs had issues with 6Gb/s SSDs.

Are the all updates now included when such a USB installer is used for fresh installing?

 

[wstewart]

I was encouraging a fresh install ... just saying that a clone also worked in my case. But a clean/fresh install is always better.

Regarding compatibility; yes, there are issues, but it is when you are trying to run a 6Gb/s SSD in the second SATA socket, in place of the original optical drive. See here: https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/DDAMBS0GB/#compatibility

I have never had any issues with an SSD in the primary SATA slot, where the original OEM HDD was. I moved my OEM HDD to the secondary SATA slot (using the OWC Data Doubler). Do not try to run an OS from that SATA slot; maybe this is what you were doing? Bad idea all-around. Performance, particularly trying APFS on an HDD in that slot, will most likely be horrible. The same on an SSD in that secondary slot (that is specced only for 3Gb/s at most) will also prove problematic, but perhaps for different reasons.

If everything in your original post only involves the primary SATA slot, then I'd most likely say you've got some bum hardware in the mix there; you didn't really specify if one or two SATA slots were in play here. But if this is about that secondary SATA slot, then all bets are off. Even using Crucial drives (as both you and I are), OWC's warning about that secondary SATA slot's limitations stand.

 

[landshark2]

I am hoping to resurrect this MBP because of the optical drive. The one thing I've accomplished with the current installation is loading a music CD into iTunes, after the CD would only load half the tracks using my Mini and external optical. Theoretically it's the same optical, but only the MBP got the job done.

 

[wstewart]

One other thing that has proven problematic for fresh installs on my two obsolete MacBook Pros (the MacBookPro9,2, and a 2009 MacBookPro5,3) is the USB drives, and specifically their connection to the logic board. This can be a problem when trying to install from those drives, if it loses the connection during the install. And the partitions on that USB installer do use non-APFS file systems (FAT32 for EFI, HFS+ for the main partition), for compatibility and stability, I believe.

Since the optical drive on your machine seems stable, you might try burning the Catalina installer to a dual-layer DVD, which, with its 8.5GB capacity, might just fit the Catalina installer (I've never tried). The OEM optical drive should be able to read that dual-layer disc, and that might give you a better, more stable installation experience? I dunno ... hard to tell without the hardware in front of you.

Logic board issues could also be at play - but if that's the case, then that machine is on the express train to the recycling bin. Replacing a decade-old logic board usually isn't worth the cost - if you can find the part at all.

 

[Fishrrman]

At 12 years old, have you thought of something new (or at least, "new-er") ???

 

[wstewart]

@Fishrrman - Your post may have been intended for the OP, but, if I were to answer, I would simply say that I enjoy keeping old tech alive and running. But, you're right, there are limits. I'm presently keeping an eye on Framework's offerings, but issues like this (https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/202...are-have-been-a-mess-but-its-working-on-them/) are part of why I haven't taken the plunge yet.

I don't think I will be buying another MacBook (Air or Pro) anytime soon. Apple makes outstanding, world-class hardware, but their business practices leave a lot to be desired. Government efforts to force change on that front leave me with mixed emotions ... but we'll see where that ends up. If Apple could keep their hardware at the same level, while adopting Framework's modularity and repairability standards, they would instantly win me back. But I have no hopes of that ever happening; Apple will fight to the bitter end to avoid that. Besides, a significant part of what makes their hardware so good is how it is wired as an integrated package. I wish they would at least go back to socketed memory and storage - if only on the Mac mini, at least - knowning there would be a hit to performance. But, again, I have no hope of that happening.

 

[StoneJack]

I am hoping to resurrect this MBP because of the optical drive. The one thing I've accomplished with the current installation is loading a music CD into iTunes, after the CD would only load half the tracks using my Mini and external optical. Theoretically it's the same optical, but only the MBP got the job done.

man, you are really stuck in past

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"I am hoping to resurrect this MBP because of the optical drive."

Just buy a USB2 or USB3 external DVD/CD drive.
Will cost you about $25 and you can use it with any Mac.

You can KEEP USING iTunes with a new Mac if you want (even though Apple no longer "supports" iTunes).
Just download the free utility "Retroactive" and install iTunes that way. It will run, just as before.

A friend disassembled an old MacBook Pro he no longer used, and gave me the optical drive from inside it. I bought an enclosure on ebay ($20, just wanted to see if I could revive it), and it came out like this: