installing ssd into 2012 - what next after drive install

[heckofagator]

hey guys, windows user here with my first Mac.

I have a 2012 i5 mini from Best Buy and a Corsair 120GB SSD on the way from Newegg. I thin I need to get the OWC data doubler kit ($29.99 from Amazon?) and then follow this video to have the SSD and orig HDD in the mini at the same time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63WL3Q7UujI

I'm hoping this is pretty straight forward, but what I'm most curious about is what I do at power on with this new setup. I think I want the OS on the SSD and the 2nd HDD as a data drive. Will the mini boot up and a wizard take me thru this process (move the OS over to the SSD) or is it more complicated than that? I'm assuming it is....

Edit to add - the min is still in the box. Should I open it, turn it on and set it up first? Or just wait for the SSD to arrive and then start fresh? IOW, is there any reason to register it to me or my Apple ID before the SSD install?

 

[qcmacmini]

What I did was get everything running on the spinner, to make sure the machine is functional, and no need to warranty anything.

Then I used the OWC kit to install the SSD.

You then have the luxury of doing on OSX restore from the spinner, and choosing to load it on the SSD.

Make sure you do a time machine backup, possibly to the spinner, I partitioned my drive to have 500GB for time machine backups.

Then restore the time machine backup to the SSD, and you're all set.

Just be mindful long term you want a backup to an external drive, but I use the spinner for the hourly time machine backups, to save writing that to the SSD.

 

[marclondon]

I thin I need to get the OWC data doubler kit ($29.99 from Amazon?)

I bought this kit and i have to say I don't think it's good value. There are cheaper kits that have the vital bits - SATA flex cable, logic board tool (which is just a bit of bent metal) and the grommets/screws to hold the second drive. The screwdrivers are very poor - far better to get a decent driver set with interchangeable bits you can use for other things. I have such a set and it is much better for the torx screws. The other kits on eBay usually have a plastic spudger but I seem to have about ten of these.

M.

 

[cinealta]

There are cheaper kits that have the vital bits - SATA flex cable, logic board tool (which is just a bit of bent metal) and the grommets/screws to hold the second drive. The screwdrivers are very poor....

How about the iFixIt kit?

 

[marclondon]

How about the iFixIt kit?

Dunno - I don't think it's available in the UK. I do know those torx screws like a high-quality driver. The OWC flex cable is also not great - I think the IFixIt one may be better from the pictures.

M.

 

[newellj]

YMMV. I put the SSD into the primary drive bay and did an internet recovery virgin installation onto the SSD. After it's running, depending on how you use the Mini and how big your drives are, you can set it up for apps on the SSD and data on the HDD, or apps and data on the SSD using the HDD for backup, or...lots of other variations depending on what you run and how much space you have/need.