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iFixit Tears Down Mac Studio and Studio Display

kkclstuff said:
it would be nice (if engineered properly) a small 'HEPA disc insert' to sit inside the "intake vent" on the bottom cover. once a year just replace—instead of a complete teardown to get to the fan shroud.

I wonder if R&D did any testing on dust buildup. Possible testing could have showed the velocity of airflow sufficiently cleared dust? and/or the elapsed buildup would outdate the unit (ie over the estimated lifespan of 5-6yrs).

Still I like the HEPA filter disc idea :)
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I like the HEPA disk idea too. It wouldn't have to be HEPA, though. It also requires a more robust fan.

I think Apple uses the iPhone model and assumes people will switch out their CPUs before they get too encrusted.

I'm thinking of replacing my 27" 2017 iMac with one of the new 24" iMacs just for the form factor. With a VESA mount.
 
CarlJ said:
You’re assigning intent to their actions that I don’t think you can prove.
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Yeah, Apple just accidentally put in storage slots in the Mac Studio. Or perhaps they just magically appeared?

Why are you making excuses for Apple?
 
Mainyehc said:
I mean, sure, the exposed power supply *is* dangerous, but how often do you need to crack open your machines to clean them? Surely every three years, the first cleaning being performed after any extended warranty expires, is enough, no?

Also, while there are a lot of ports to be unscrewed, it doesn't seem to be too difficult to do. About the only truly hard part in all that process is removing the rubber disc from the bottom lid.
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The PS is only dangerous if it's plugged in.

I would be inclined to open my machines every year. But it depends on how long one wants to keep their stuff.

It's a fairly tedious disassembly. Putting a removable panel on the top would make it a lot easier.
 
deconstruct60 said:
If the drive itself has a total, catastrophic failure then no. The macOS partition gets corrupted, sure can muddle around that . But if iSC ( iBoot preboot volume and Secure Enclave extended storage)and/or 1TR (one true recovery) is borked, it is bricked.

"...
As Howard notes in his article, Apple introduced the notion of the 1 True Recovery (1TR) partition with M1-based Macs. This additional partition, separate from a Big Sur startup volume group, holds the code and data that controls boot-time behavior. On Intel-based Macs, firmware serves this role.

One way 1TR differs from the firmware on Intel-based Macs is that the 1TR partition stores your decisions about startup security policies, the directives you set in the Startup Security Utility available in recoveryOS. You can set a separate policy for each external volume you allow to boot your Mac, but that policy is stored only on the internal drive in the 1TR partition. ..."

An M1 Mac Can’t Boot from an External Drive If Its Internal Drive Is Dead - TidBITS

A little-noticed fact about M1-based Macs has started to get some attention. If the Mac’s internal drive is dead or fully erased, you can’t boot from an otherwise valid external drive. Why would Apple make that choice? Security, security, security.
tidbits.com tidbits.com

Minus hacking around at the iBoot level this doesn't have a 'work around by the Linux guys'. The policy of whether optional Linux bootloader is an option is stored on the Apple drive. iBoot doesn't talk to anything, but the Apple primary internal drive. (not surprising since iPhones/iPads/etc can only possible have one and only one internal drive.)

There is no "Internet Recovery" either. Can't boot to a minimalistic recovery system off the Internet from a minimized sized UEFI 'application'. The minimalistic down to smallest ROM possible is just the power/system management and secure enclave "OS" running shrunk down to just get the DFU process done. But that is about it. If the internal drive is 'lost' then the system just into a deeper , secure mode (not looser).


Apple has hyper integrated the security and boot subsystems here. They are extremely co-dependent.



In part, this "there is always a mac just around the corner" philosophy that probably works insanely great inside of Apple probably contributed to why Apple thinks this set up is a decent trade off. Even if the internal drive drops into a "failing so go read only" mode then still could external boot if had the policy set up in advance. But if the drive metadata is completely screwed up then can start over. And if the NAND chip(s) themselves are the root cause of problem then at least in Studio ( and perhaps some other desktops) replace and start over from scratch.

But for the soldered down NAND chip systems that logic board is done.
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Interesting read. Slowly getting my head around it.

As you mention, there is software on that board already and it's getting loaded after the board was populated which suggests that it may be possible to do this again. Maybe Apple refurb and reload bricked ones?

I can understand why this is done though. It's the totalitarian security verified boot chain and that is in majority best outcome for the end user (unless it's out of warranty). If your device is stolen it's useless. It may also be cheaper for them to just replace the entire board anyway. Not a lot of stuff is repairable on that board. I know it can be done but you can't swap BGA pad NAND out easily and cost effectively.
 
Crowbot said:
The PS is only dangerous if it's plugged in.

I would be inclined to open my machines every year. But it depends on how long one wants to keep their stuff.

It's a fairly tedious disassembly. Putting a removable panel on the top would make it a lot easier.
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It's only dangerous if it's not plugged in and not faulty. I've been zapped by a couple of faulty SMPS before :)
 
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Crowbot said:
I like the HEPA disk idea too. It wouldn't have to be HEPA, though. It also requires a more robust fan.

I think Apple uses the iPhone model and assumes people will switch out their CPUs before they get too encrusted.

I'm thinking of replacing my 27" 2017 iMac with one of the new 24" iMacs just for the form factor. With a VESA mount.
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agreed.

Im also about to upgrade my 2011 i7 iMac (still HUGE life left in this machine). Im going VESA as well.
 
Are iFixit going to do a proper teardown, with pictures, or is this video all we're going to get? Talk about dumbing down.
 
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Feek said:
Are iFixit going to do a proper teardown, with pictures, or is this video all we're going to get? Talk about dumbing down.
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They’ve discovered like everyone else…

Tear down a fish in a day, get clicks for a day.
Tear down a fishing pole and a hook over several days, get clicks for a week with people coming back to see if the next part’s been posted.
 
GMShadow said:
Pros don't work on their own machines. They use them, and replace when the time comes. Any issues are handled under warranty.

iFixit needs to adjust their definitions.
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K, I guess that Blackmagic or audio card that a professional buys will have to be installed by a certified technician when purchasing a new machine.
 
jiminycricket said:
Most of the audio engineers I know don't replace their equipment until they absolutely have to, and they do upgrade them before they are likely to buy replacements. That's mainly because the majority of audio engineering work is no longer done in major studios, and instead is done in smaller 1-4 person operations where they are very cost conscious.
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True about smaller, lower-budget production, but in my experience the slow upgrades are more about compatibility—nobody wants a system that's working perfectly to go down because of software/system updates. Buying the newest, bleeding-edge machine invariably forces some degree of software updating, and with Apple it's particularly bad, since new machines almost always ship with the newest OS and can't boot anything earlier.... :mad:....

(Every audio professional knows a "Snow Leopard was the best" guy... haha)
 
buckwheet said:
True about smaller, lower-budget production, but in my experience the slow upgrades are more about compatibility—nobody wants a system that's working perfectly to go down because of software/system updates. Buying the newest, bleeding-edge machine invariably forces some degree of software updating, and with Apple it's particularly bad, since new machines almost always ship with the newest OS and can't boot anything earlier.... :mad:....

(Every audio professional knows a "Snow Leopard was the best" guy... haha)
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Very true about compatibility. I can't remember what version it was, but Avid didn't release support for a major macOS version for almost a full year after that. I'm pretty sure they don't bother even checking for compatibility until after the GM release for macOS, and then have to rush to make changes, instead of looking when the first betas come out.
 
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Crowbot said:
It looks to me that the entire chassis has to be removed to get to the fans for cleaning. This could be a serious maintenance issue.
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It’s ridiculous. One of the few advantages of it not being part of the display - easy cleaning, and they make it so you have to strip everything out. Apple really do hate their customers.
 
only chance it will ever be upgradable is either someone hacks it (not sure it's possible) or they sell an upgrade program where you bring your computer to the store; probably years down the line; not likely either. The question remains will data retrieval be possible (when your mac is toast but you can still access the drive)
 
jiminycricket said:
Very true about compatibility. I can't remember what version it was, but Avid didn't release support for a major macOS version for almost a full year after that. I'm pretty sure they don't bother even checking for compatibility until after the GM release for macOS, and then have to rush to make changes, instead of looking when the first betas come out.
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I remember bying my first mac and having to install windows because Protools took a year or more to get support on the new system. still a mess.
 
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