iMac27 late 2014 hdd ssd replacement

[jovannig]

I want to swap my hdd for a data ssd disk (1TB).
Which disk do you suggest to choose?
I would like to harness the full bandwidth of
my data connection (which is not too great).

After this swap, is it possible to make a fusion drive as the one I have now? Does it make sense.
It is not to have 2 hard drives...

 

[barbu]

you cannot go wrong with the Samsung Evo line. I believe the 860 is the current model and is very reasonably priced.

Joining the two SSDs into a fusion drive does not make sense, so don't worry about that. I would try to make the new large SSD the boot drive and utilize the very small Fusion SSD for something else.

Alternatively, you could order a blade-style SSD to go in the PCIe slot where your current small fusion SSD is installed. This would likely be measurably quicker than using the SATA bus. Then you could simply remove the HDD (for improved thermal/noise characteristics) or leave it in as an on-board Time Machine target, etc.

 

[Juicy Box]

I want to swap my hdd for a data ssd disk (1TB).
Which disk do you suggest to choose?
I would like to harness the full bandwidth of
my data connection (which is not too great).

I have used a few different brands of SSD ranging from well know brands, but also some budget brands, and I never had a issue with any of them. But, if I was going to use one internally, I would go with Samsung Evo 860. You can sometimes find them on sale.

It is not to have 2 hard drives...

I am unsure what you mean about 2 hard drives, can you clarify?

After this swap, is it possible to make a fusion drive as the one I have now? Does it make sense.

Joining the two SSDs into a fusion drive does not make sense, so don't worry about that. I would try to make the new large SSD the boot drive and utilize the very small Fusion SSD for something else.

I wouldn't say that it doesn't make any sense.

There would still be a benefit to fuse a SATA SSD and PCIe SSD together, similar to the regular Fusion Drive. The performance benefits of fusing two SSD drives would be less dramatic when compared to the benefits of the regular HDD+SSD Fusion Drive.

SATA SSDs will be a much cheaper per GB and available in much larger sizes than the Apple blade SSDs, so it makes creating a two SSD Fusion Drive would probably be the cheapest way to get large storage while still having PCIe performance.


To the OP: Replacing the PCIe SSD on the 2014 iMac involves more computer "surgery", and it is much easier to replace just the HDD with a SATA SSD. If your PCIe SSD is still has decent read/write speeds, you can Fuse it was a SATA SSD and see some performance gains, but it does make things more complex.

 

[camomac]

I was going to post a similar question, but I think I will just ask here.
I have a 2015 iMac 27" with a fusion drive.
I have no problems performing "surgery" on my Mac -I've upgraded several Macs in the past.

My question is when I install a SSD; and now there are 2 physical drives (the SSD and the PCIe drive), will Disk Utility recognize both physical drives and allow me to format both of them?
I'd like one as boot and one as back up.

Also does anybody know the size of the PCIe drive in a Late 2015 iMac 27". My fusion drive is 1TB.

Thanks

 

[jovannig]

I have 2 solutions:
1. replace the hdd with a sata ssd
2. replace the blade ssd with a 1tb blade ssd and leave the hd into the system using it for time machine

in the first case the OP work is simpler but I need to buy an adapter and a heat sensor
in the second case do I need a heat sensor for the new blade ssd? and what blade disk do you suggest to buy? are they all compatible?

 

[Juicy Box]

Also does anybody know the size of the PCIe drive in a Late 2015 iMac 27". My fusion drive is 1TB.

Your iMac was the first model that got the SSD portion of the 1TB Fusion Drive reduced, most likely for Apple to save a few bucks.

The 1TB Fusion Drive on the Late 2015 iMac sadly only has a 24GB SSD portion.

The good news is that the Late 2015 iMacs has a faster SSD storage, utilizing 4 lanes of the PCIe versus 2 lanes with the previous iMac. This makes the Late 2015 PCIe based SSD very fast.

My question is when I install a SSD; and now there are 2 physical drives (the SSD and the PCIe drive), will Disk Utility recognize both physical drives and allow me to format both of them?

Before opening up your iMac, you need to split the current Fusion Drive. There are directions on how to do this all over the place, but here are some from Apple:

How to fix a split Fusion Drive - Apple Support

If your Fusion Drive appears as two drives instead of one in the Finder, it's no longer working as a Fusion Drive. Here's how to fix it.

support.apple.com

After splitting the Fusion Drive, opening your iMac, replacing whatever drives that you want, they will remain as two separate internal drives.


If you ever change your mind about having separate drives, and decided to create a new Fusion Drive with your two drives, you will need to "fuse" the two drives together to create one drive. Again, there are plenty of places to find these directions, but this was the first to pop up from a something search:

How to Setup a Fusion Drive on a Mac OS X (10.8.2 or Later)

Creating your own performance-driven Fusion drive on your Mac is easier than you may think; it even works on older Macs.

www.lifewire.com

 

[Juicy Box]

leave the hd into the system

Personally, I would never open up one of these Macs and leave an HDD in it.

I need to buy an adapter and a heat sensor

Heat sensor is right, but I am unsure about what adapter that is needed. Do you mean for going to 2.5" to 3.5"? Those are super cheap, and some people don't use an adapter and just use tape.

in the second case do I need a heat sensor for the new blade ssd?

AFAIK, there is not a heat sensor in the Apple blade SSD, although I have never replaced one.

what blade disk do you suggest to buy? are they all compatible?

This thread would probably be very helpful to answer these questions:

A list of successful iMac 27" (2012-2019) SSD upgrades

Here you can find and discuss all the collected knowledge regarding upgrading the HDD, blade SSD and CPU of a 27" iMac 2012-2019, as well as a list of performed upgrades. Here is a list of all 27" iMac models subjected in this thread: Late 2012 - 13.2 - MD095LL/A (2.9Ghz i5-3470S, HDD only /...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[camomac]

@vertical smile
Thanks!
Just what I needed to know.

One last question...
Can I boot off just the PCIe drive and have an SSD as a back up?
I'm thinking about buying a OWC PCIe or getting an adapter and adding a Samsung.

 

[Juicy Box]

Can I boot off just the PCIe drive and have an SSD as a back up?

Yup.

You could also make both a boot drive. Or make neither a boot drive, and run the OS off of an external drive or SD card.

You could make the PCIe the boot drive and use SW like CCC to make a bootable backup with the SATA SSD.

You can get a large SATA SSD, partition it a few times and use it for multiple bootable backups.

I have a drive with multiple old OS versions for trouble shooting and to use old software.

For example, the older version of Apple's Disk Utility app is so much better than the newer versions. It was nerfed around the El Capitain time.

The options with what you can do with the multiple drives are pretty endless.

I know you are looking to keep the drives separate, but making a Fusion Drive out of a PCIe SSD and SATA SSD is an option too. For the OP, the performance difference between the PCIe SSD and SATA SSD on the 2014 iMac is not as dramatic when compared to your Late 2015.

Since the 2015 iMac's PCIe uses 4 lanes vs 2 lanes of the 2014, there is a big speed bump, and making a Fusion Drive out of the PCIe SSD and SATA SSD would give you options for a very large and fast boot drive, but one that is cheaper per GB.

The OP can do the same thing, but there wouldn't be the performance gains of the Late 2015 iMac.

 

[jovannig]

I decided to buy a Samsung QVO 860 2TB for my iMac 27" retina late 2014.
I think it is a good price/performance rate.
Do you think it is good, or better the Samsung EVO 860 2TB (consider that I have a 2014 model)?
Another question is about the system partition.
I think I will do a fusion drive with the 128GB blade and the 2TB sata ssd.
I use photoshop and premiere, so I could also use the sata ssd as boot disk and the blade for cache files.
I could also boot the system with the blade and put system and apps on it, use the sata for the rest (however I will have only 128GB and I don't know if it will be enough for me).
Does it make sense or better the fusion drive?

 

[Juicy Box]

Does it make sense or better the fusion drive?

Before making Fusing the two drives, I would test the speed on both drives. The blade should be faster, but with its age, the difference between the two drive might not be that significant anymore.

If they are close in speed, I wouldn't fuse them. I would only fuse them if there was a significant difference between the two.

 

[jovannig]

Before making Fusing the two drives, I would test the speed on both drives. The blade should be faster, but with its age, the difference between the two drive might not be that significant anymore.

If they are close in speed, I wouldn't fuse them. I would only fuse them if there was a significant difference between the two.

Ok, but the problem is that you have 2 drives very different in size.
Hown would you use the smaller one (blade of 128GB)?

 

[Juicy Box]

Ok, but the problem is that you have 2 drives very different in size.
Hown would you use the smaller one (blade of 128GB)?

I am not sure what you are asking.

Are you asking what would I use the smaller drive for if I did not fuse them?
[automerge]1583016848[/automerge]

Ok, but the problem is that you have 2 drives very different in size.

Why is this a problem?

 

[jovannig]

I am not sure what you are asking.

Are you asking what would I use the smaller drive for if I did not fuse them?
[automerge]1583016848[/automerge]


Why is this a problem?

Yes, I mean, if I don't fuse them, what could be the use for the blade ssd?
Would you use it for boot or for cache files for premiere/after effects?