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iMac (27-inch, Late 2013) HDD --> SSD upgrade

T

tubeexperience

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Feb 17, 2016
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Do you want an SSD for your iMac, but don't want to pay the Apple price?

That sounds a lot like me, so I upgraded my iMac.

The whole process (excluding time waiting for parts and for installing macOS) took less than 1-hour.










Things you will need:

OWC Complete Hard Drive Upgrade Kit Including Tools for all 27" iMacs 2012 & Later:
https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/DIYIMACHDD12/

iMac Service Wedge:
https://www.ifixit.com/Store/Tools/iMac-Service-Wedge/IF145-224-2

2.5" SSD of your choice

2.5" to 3.5" hard drive bracket

Instructions:

iFixit Hard Drive Replacement guide:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/iMac+Intel+27-Inch+EMC+2639+Hard+Drive+Replacement/19643

iFixit Adhesive Strips Replacement guide:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/iMac+Intel+27-Inch+EMC+2639+Adhesive+Strips+Replacement/24341

MacSales/OWC's How to Upgrade the Main Drive in a 27-inch iMac (2012 – Current) video:
 
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q. Does this void the warranty?

A. No, this does not void the warranty.

From the FTC:

The letters warn that FTC staff has concerns about the companies’ statements that consumers must use specified parts or service providers to keep their warranties intact. Unless warrantors provide the parts or services for free or receive a waiver from the FTC, such statements generally are prohibited by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a law that governs consumer product warranties. Similarly, such statements may be deceptive under the FTC Act.

Each company used different language, but here are examples of questionable provisions:

  • The use of [company name] parts is required to keep your . . . manufacturer’s warranties and any extended warranties intact.
  • This warranty shall not apply if this product . . . is used with products not sold or licensed by [company name].
  • This warranty does not apply if this product . . . has had the warranty seal on the [product] altered, defaced, or removed.
“Provisions that tie warranty coverage to the use of particular products or services harm both consumers who pay more for them as well as the small businesses who offer competing products and services,” said Thomas B. Pahl, Acting Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
Click to expand...

Section 102 (c) of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act

(c) No warrantor may condition the continued validity of a warranty on the use of only authorized repair service and/or authorized replacement parts for non-warranty service and maintenance (other than an article or service provided without charge under the warranty or unless the warrantor has obtained a waiver pursuant to section 102(c) of the Act, 15 U.S.C. 2302(c)). For example, provisions such as, “This warranty is void if service is performed by anyone other than an authorized ‘ABC’ dealer and all replacement parts must be genuine ‘ABC’ parts,” and the like, are prohibited where the service or parts are not covered by the warranty. These provisions violate the Act in two ways. First, they violate the section 102(c), 15 U.S.C. 2302(c), ban against tying arrangements. Second, such provisions are deceptive under section 110 of the Act, 15 U.S.C. 2310, because a warrantor cannot, as a matter of law, avoid liability under a written warranty where a defect is unrelated to the use by a consumer of “unauthorized” articles or service. In addition, warranty language that implies to a consumer acting reasonably in the circumstances that warranty coverage requires the consumer’s purchase of an article or service identified by brand, trade or corporate name is similarly deceptive. For example, a provision in the warranty such as, “use only an authorized ‘ABC’ dealer” or “use only ‘ABC’ replacement parts,” is prohibited where the service or parts are not provided free of charge pursuant to the warranty. This does not preclude a warrantor from expressly excluding liability for defects or damage caused by “unauthorized” articles or service; nor does it preclude the warrantor from denying liability where the warrantor can demonstrate that the defect or damage was so caused.
Click to expand...

From MacSales/OWC:

Unfortunately though, there exists a misconception among some users and even technicians that opening the machine voids the warranty.

We address this topic directly with customers via our support portals and are happy to inform you here of the same fact: upgrading your Mac does not void its warranty.

This consumer protection is owed to the little known Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act of 1975. Put simply, the act states that a company can’t require you to upgrade with only its own branded parts to retain the warranty. This important act protects your rights as a consumer and allows you to install upgrades with peace of mind confidence.

However, the warranty doesn’t cover any damage incurred while installing upgrades.
Click to expand...

Q. I have heard that someone repaired/upgraded his/her Mac somewhere else or repair it himself/herself and Apple voided the warranty. Is that true?

A. It's true, but that's not the whole story. Apple can void your warranty if there are "damages" caused by third-party [i.e. not caused by Apple or by Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP)]. Apple uses quite an expansive definition of this. For example, if you forgot to put back the speaker screws, Apple considered this "user damaged" even if the speaker still works.

Q. Is the "In-line Digital Thermal Sensor Cable" required?

A. Yes, otherwise the fan would spin at 100% all the time.

Note that the "In-line Digital Thermal Sensor Cable" is not required for the 21.5" iMac.
 
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Good job!

I did the same. On a recent trip back into the iMac to replace the thermal compound I broke the screen like a dummy though so you’re doing better than me.

I drilled some new holes in a Corsair bracket so I could mount it lower and keep tension off the wire.

E09EA1C7-C76D-4F16-A0C4-4A62C3F88DA6.jpeg

The sensor on mine had a lot of tension wanting it to flip over annoyingly so I zip tied it to be safe.
 
cynics said:
Good job!

I did the same. On a recent trip back into the iMac to replace the thermal compound I broke the screen like a dummy though so you’re doing better than me.

I drilled some new holes in a Corsair bracket so I could mount it lower and keep tension off the wire.

View attachment 771477

The sensor on mine had a lot of tension wanting it to flip over annoyingly so I zip tied it to be safe.
Click to expand...

I twisted mine to lower the tension

foto_no_exif_5.jpg
 
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tubeexperience said:
I twisted mine to lower the tension

foto_no_exif_5.jpg
Click to expand...

Mine would not cooperate at all, I was probably being a little overly anal too.

What size SSD did you get?

I have a Sandisk SSD Plus I use for Linux on one of the drives in my laptop. I’ve been happy with it. I stuck the Samsung in my iMac because I wanted the performance, although in real life it’s hard to tell a difference.
 
cynics said:
Mine would not cooperate at all, I was probably being a little overly anal too.
Click to expand...

Oh, it required a bit of force.

It did it that way because that's how the OWC's video recommend that it be done.

cynics said:
What size SSD did you get?

I have a Sandisk SSD Plus I use for Linux on one of the drives in my laptop. I’ve been happy with it. I stuck the Samsung in my iMac because I wanted the performance, although in real life it’s hard to tell a difference.
Click to expand...

It's the SanDisk Ultra 3D 500GB.

Reviews have shown that it's as fast as the Samsung 850 EVO.

__________________________________________________

The SanDisk SSD Plus, that you have, is really slow because it's a budget SSD with a DRAM-less design.
 
tubeexperience said:
Oh, it required a bit of force.

It did it that way because that's how the OWC's video recommend that it be done.



It's the SanDisk Ultra 3D 500GB.

Reviews have shown that it's as fast as the Samsung 850 EVO.

__________________________________________________

The SanDisk SSD Plus, that you have, is really slow because it's a budget SSD with a DRAM-less design.
Click to expand...

It’s slow in benchmarks but in use it zips around most Linux build. 60 bucks for 240gb over a year ago from a wholesaler so it fit the bill.
 
Got my upgrade done today!
Taking off the glue wasn’t too bad... but the screen still didn’t want to lift. There was a little glue the tool couldn’t quite reach. I took my time for sure as I didn’t want to put too much pressure on lifting the screen.

Got the screen off. Noticed that this was the second time the HD must have been replaced. There were no torx t8 screws on the HD. Just regular Phillips screws.

Got the SSD and thermal cable hooked up. Then started the process of removing the old adhesive. Wasn’t too bad.

Putting the new ones on seemed to go pretty good.

Layer the screen down and connected it to make sure I didn’t screw up the connector or screen. It booted! And the screen worked!

Took off the adhesive protectors, and then layed the screen down a final time.

Only downside is it is installing mountain lion haha.

3cef4b19340be5aab804afd69202e899.jpg
 
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Tidy job however 500GB is not a huge capacity. I would possibly have taken a different approach. Running macOS and applications from an external 128GB Thunderbolt SSD whilst retaining the internal drive for data.
 
tubeexperience said:
Q. Is the "In-line Digital Thermal Sensor Cable" required?

A. Yes, otherwise the fan would spin at 100% all the time.

Note that the "In-line Digital Thermal Sensor Cable" is not required for the 21.5" iMac.
Click to expand...

there are a number of free software solutions for this

no cable required

i usually use this:

https://www.eidac.de/

there’s also these:

https://exirion.net/ssdfanctrl/

https://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control

istat menus can also take care of it

there may be more
 
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Armendegga said:
Got my upgrade done today!
Taking off the glue wasn’t too bad... but the screen still didn’t want to lift. There was a little glue the tool couldn’t quite reach. I took my time for sure as I didn’t want to put too much pressure on lifting the screen.

Got the screen off. Noticed that this was the second time the HD must have been replaced. There were no torx t8 screws on the HD. Just regular Phillips screws.

Got the SSD and thermal cable hooked up. Then started the process of removing the old adhesive. Wasn’t too bad.

Putting the new ones on seemed to go pretty good.

Layer the screen down and connected it to make sure I didn’t screw up the connector or screen. It booted! And the screen worked!

Took off the adhesive protectors, and then layed the screen down a final time.

Only downside is it is installing mountain lion haha.

3cef4b19340be5aab804afd69202e899.jpg
Click to expand...

Don't forget to enable TRIM.

Which SSD did you use?

Also, post a screenshot of Blackmagic Disk Speed Test
 
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I had a harddrive failure recently. Technically, I can buy a new external ssd and just boot my OS. In that case, I do not have to open my iMac (im worried im not skilled enough). Do you guys advice against this?
 
BuntaFujiwaraaa said:
I had a harddrive failure recently. Technically, I can buy a new external ssd and just boot my OS. In that case, I do not have to open my iMac (im worried im not skilled enough). Do you guys advice against this?
Click to expand...

Well, you probably going to have to remove the failed hard drive because the computer is going to try to keep reading from it.

The upgrade is pretty simple.

Just go over the instructions a couple of times.
 
BuntaFujiwaraaa said:
I had a harddrive failure recently. Technically, I can buy a new external ssd and just boot my OS. In that case, I do not have to open my iMac (im worried im not skilled enough). Do you guys advice against this?
Click to expand...

if you don’t have much computer tinkering experience and are intimidated by opening up your imac than booting from an external ssd is a great option and will work perfectly fine

i prefer to install internally but i am comfortable opening up imacs.
[doublepost=1532529668][/doublepost]
tubeexperience said:
Well, you probably going to have to remove the failed hard drive because the computer is going to try to keep reading from it.

The upgrade is pretty simple.

Just go over the instructions a couple of times.
Click to expand...

i ran an imac with a dead drive inside of it for about a year once off of an external ssd before i got around to installing the ssd and it did not cause any problems at all
 
Loke2112 said:
Hmmmm Ive been using an external SSD is there an advantage to replacing the internal?
Click to expand...

Mine is an earlier iMac but the same principles applied. The internal HD was noisy and even though I ran my main system from an external Thunderbolt SSD, the internal HD would spin up and down until I unmounted it. Even when my iMac was sleeping I could hear the internal HD spin up, poll for a few seconds and then spin down. It would do this regularly. It seems as if this was an issue many had with their iMacs that nobody could fix.

So out came the internal spinner.
 
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