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MP 1,1-5,1 Got a Mac Pro 5.1 mid-2012! Question about reinstalling High Sierra...

T

thetommyboy2k

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 15, 2020
31
7
Hey there!

I've been lurking on here for a week reading about the Mac Pro in anticipation of picking up a mid-2012 Mac Pro 5.1 today! I got the Mac Pro along with a 27" Apple LED Cinema Display, Apple Bluetooth keyboard and Mighty Mouse Bluetooth, and a decent amount of freebies, which included a pair of 2 GB DIMMS. It's a single quad core processor but has 12 GB of RAM along with two 1 TB hard drives! It's running High Sierra (10.13.6). Guess how much? $350.

My question is, how do I reinstall High Sierra on it? I ask because it was not restored and I want to do a clean install. The previous owner had Final Cut Pro X and Motion on it. Will I lose those apps if I restore the OS?

I haven't been in the Mac world regularly since 2008/2009. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

This Mac screams in terms of speed! It's amazing!

Thanks in advance!
Tommy
 
wakatoola, I downloaded the Mac OS High Sierra installer and it said I would need a firmware update. High Sierra is already installed, I'm just wanting to reinstall it so I can have my own Admin login and not have the previous owners login info on it.

Thanks,
Tommy
 
thetommyboy2k said:
wakatoola, I downloaded the Mac OS High Sierra installer and it said I would need a firmware update. High Sierra is already installed, I'm just wanting to reinstall it so I can have my own Admin login and not have the previous owners login info on it.

Thanks,
Tommy
Click to expand...

Create you own new admin account and then login with it deleting the old account.
 
MacUser2525, how do I create my own admin account and delete the old admin account?

Thanks,
Tommy
 
thetommyboy2k said:
MacUser2525, how do I create my own admin account and delete the old admin account?

Thanks,
Tommy
Click to expand...

System Preferences => Users & Groups option. Click on the lock and put in existing password for the account to add a user with the + button. Choose Admin account. Logout of the old into the new open it again then unlock and use the - to deleted the old account. Answer the yes to removing everything it will ask. If my memory seres me well on the deletion I have not done it often.
 
MacUser2525... I don't have the existing password as I bought it from a woman who's husband passed away a good while back. Without that info, I can't do what you're advising. The only way I'm even able to use it is because he had it setup to auto login.

Thanks,
Tommy
 
thetommyboy2k said:
MacUser2525... I don't have the existing password as I bought it from a woman who's husband passed away a good while back. Without that info, I can't do what you're advising. The only way I'm even able to use it is because he had it setup to auto login.

Thanks,
Tommy
Click to expand...

Search on booting single user mode for password reset in macOS if not disabled then you will be able to do it there. Or I think I saw in the recovery partition booting an option to do it from there too.
 
Macschrauber said:
We should not explain in public how to reset passwords. Do it on a private chat.
Click to expand...
Apple documents the process. It's not a secret.

Mac User Guide

Learn what’s new in macOS, how to get started with your Mac and use it with your Apple devices, and how to control privacy and security on macOS.
support.apple.com
 
Hey everyone!

Just wanted to give an update, I was able to reset the password and create a new Admin username and password. It's working wonderfully!

This is without a doubt the fastest Mac I've ever had in my life. The very first Mac I had was given to me by my best friend. It was a Quadra 650 in 1999. My first new (and only new) Mac was an Indigo iMac in 2000. Apple ended up having to replace it after three failed attempts with a 2001 Indigo iMac, which lasted for many years. My next Mac would be a refurbished Mac mini in 2006 or 2007. It only lasted a year and a half, and I wasn't thrilled about that. Apple wouldn't do anything about it due to the warranty running out on it. I swore off anything and everything Apple for a decade. I've had a few Macs over that decade that were used, but I never used the Mac regularly anymore after 2009.

I haven't really cared anything for Windows 10 and so I decided I wanted to delve back into the Mac world. When I saw this, I couldn't pass it up. For $350, I got the Mac Pro (a mid-2012). It has a single processor "quad-core", 12 GB of RAM, (2) 1 TB hard drives, Apple bluetooth mouse and keyboard, and a 27" LED Cinema Display. It's running High Sierra (11.13.6).

I really bought it as a general purpose computer, although it does have Final Cut Pro and Motion on it. I've never delved into video editing, but it may be something I would want to try at some point.

I've done my fair share of research prior to getting this Mac Pro. To use it as a general purpose computer (internet, social media, possibly iTunes, etc.), what would be some low-cost upgrades that would help it, if any. If I'm right, going by the research I've done, 56 or 64 GB is the max RAM I can put in it. It has 12 in it now. Would I see any benefit to expanding the RAM? Storage-wise, it has plenty of storage. I'm not interested in upgrading the video card. I don't game or do any video editing on it, so I don't see the benefit to upgrading the video card. I don't do a lot of file transfers, but I was thinking about possibly putting a USB 3.0 card in it.

What would be some good, low-cost upgrades that you all would recommend, if any?

Thanks,
Tommy
 
By far the biggest impact will be to add a good size SSD for the system drive.

For not much more money I would consider a PCIe m2. It will max at 1500MB/s but that is still 3X SSD.

I am very happy with this combo:
smile.amazon.com

HP EX950 M.2 2TB PCIe 3.1 x4 NVMe 3D TLC NAND Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) 5MS24AA#ABC

HP 5MS24AA#ABC Solid State Drive 5MS24AAABC 2TB EX950 M. 2 Retail
smile.amazon.com
smile.amazon.com

Aquacomputer kryoM.2 evo PCIe 3.0 x4 adapter for M.2 NGFF PCIe SSD, M-Key with passive heatsink

Aquacomputer kryoM.2 evo PCIe 3.0 x4 adapter for M.2 NGFF PCIe SSD, M-Key with passive heatsink
smile.amazon.com

It boots High Sierra without trouble with the latest firmware. I think High Sierra now installs that. You should be at 144.0.0.0.0. Otherwise the easiest would be a temporary addition of a Mojave install.

Use Carbon Copy Cloner to copy your existing system drive configuration and Recovery Partition.

For general use 12GB of RAM is plenty. But more RAM is helpful for Final Cut and Logic. Look around to find out about the interleave and how to populate the slots for max performance. I stayed with 48GB for that reason.

For most applications CPUs with higher speeds or more cores do not show much improvement beyond stats.

I am running dual 6 core at 3.0Ghz and it is useful for video and audio work. Otherwise it just loafs.
 
Your Mac Pro is at the end of its official, supported life. There are many things that can be done to move beyond that. Nearly all require understanding what you're doing. I recommend going to the Forums and ready the top posts (the sticky posts) for Mac Pro.

FCPX and Logic are very capable applications, with steep learning curves. Thee are lots of resources to help you learn, though. But you should also understand that you will not be able to upgrade them - they are tied to the Apple ID (and password) of the person who installed them. Also not that you are at least one rev down from current levels of both programs.
 
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