upgrade 2012 to 2020???

[boulderarch]

I run an architecture firm. I'm setting up a new server to run a VPN network for remote workers, including myself when I'm working remote. I have a 2012 i7 quad core Mac Mini with a 256GB SSD drive. I would have to have some of my files on external drives connected via USB 3. I will also now connect my 2019 iMac to the Mac mini server while I am at work, so the speed of the mini will matter. I'm not sure if the CPU speed will matter that much, but for sure the SSD speed will.

Should I use the 2012 mini for the server? Or should I sell the 2012 and upgrade to a 2020 Mac mini with a 2TB SSD drive?

My main concerns are the 256GB drive is not large enough and the new SSD drive in theory has much faster read/write speeds. I don't know if the SSD read/write speed has increased enough to make a difference. I am sure the CPU is also faster on the 2020 mini, but don't know how much this will matter.

 

[richmlow]

Hello boulderarch,


Sell the 2012 Mac mini.

Buy the 2020 Mac mini. Consider the following specifications:

3GHz 6-core Intel Core i5
8GB RAM
2TB SSD drive (storage)

Good luck in your purchasing decisions!


richmlow

I run an architecture firm. I'm setting up a new server to run a VPN network for remote workers, including myself when I'm working remote. I have a 2012 i7 quad core Mac Mini with a 256GB SSD drive. I would have to have some of my files on external drives connected via USB 3. I will also now connect my 2019 iMac to the Mac mini server while I am at work, so the speed of the mini will matter. I'm not sure if the CPU speed will matter that much, but for sure the SSD speed will.

Should I use the 2012 mini for the server? Or should I sell the 2012 and upgrade to a 2020 Mac mini with a 2TB SSD drive?

My main concerns are the 256GB drive is not large enough and the new SSD drive in theory has much faster read/write speeds. I don't know if the SSD read/write speed has increased enough to make a difference. I am sure the CPU is also faster on the 2020 mini, but don't know how much this will matter.

 

[boulderarch]

Thanks richmlow.

Is it worth paying extra for 16GB RAM and the i7 cpu?

 

[Heat_Fan89]

Thanks richmlow.

Is it worth paying extra for 16GB RAM and the i7 cpu?

It depends on what you plan on doing with it. If you are just doing the basics like Internet, email, etc then the i5 is plenty fast. If you are going to be processing or editing photos, movies or videos then the i7 might work better for you. I chose that option a year ago because it was on sale on Amazon. As far as memory goes, you'll need to upgrade that as 8GB of RAM is insultingly low for macOS Mojave and especially Catalina and I doubt macOS 11 will require less RAM. The minimum should be 16GB and 32GB is better for future growth as macOS releases tend to use more RAM as time goes on. I have the i5, 32GB RAM, 256GB SSD.

I upgraded the RAM myself.

 

[richmlow]

Hello boulderarch,


If you want extra RAM, purchase it separately (say from OWC) and install it yourself. This will save you quite a bit of money. For example, if you were to have 32GB RAM (total) preinstalled by Apple, it would cost you an additional $600 USD. On the other hand, a total of 32GB RAM (16GB x 2, from OWC) would cost you an additional $135 USD.

The i5 CPU is fine for your specified needs.


richmlow

Thanks richmlow.

Is it worth paying extra for 16GB RAM and the i7 cpu?

 

[Boyd01]

I have the same 2012 Mini (2.6ghz quad core i7 with original 256gb original Apple SSD and 16gb RAM). Recently got the top-spec 2018 i7 Mini with 2tb SSD and 64gb RAM and am now using the 2012 as a server on my LAN with 20tb of external hard drives. It is very fast for that, basically saturates my gigabit ethernet LAN (was also streaming video on another Mac on my network when I did this test)

The internal SSD on the 2012 Mini isn't a factor for me, I am only sharing files on the external hard drives (which clock around 170MB when directly connected). Now, I'm the only one using this network and I don't need to share files with remote workers. But I'm not sure how much improvement you would see with faster disks, since the speed of the network would probably be the bottleneck.

However, the internal SSD on the 2018 Mini is certainly impressive. This is what I get from the 2tb internal SSD on my 2018 Mini

For comparison, this is the 256gb internal SSD on the 2012 Mini which is about as fast as that machine is capable of, due to the type of interface

With the 2018 Mini, you can get reasonably priced external SSD's that are pretty fast. This is a 2TB Samsung T7

Anyway, I'm not sure what the best fit is for your needs, because I don't have to support a whole group of workers. But the 2012 quad Mini is still a pretty nice machine for a server and it's quite possible that your LAN and internet connection will be the bottleneck and you won't see much improvement with the 2018 Mini as a server. But there is no doubt that the 2018 Mini (especially the i7) is a much faster computer with a much faster SSD and much faster interfaces. Mine also has the 10 gigabit ethernet port, although my LAN is not fast enough for that to matter.

 

[boulderarch]

Very helpful response. Thanks!

I think you are right, my internet connection will be the bottleneck for remote workers, not the mini.

For myself working on the LAN I can see the read/write speeds coming into play as I will be saving to the mini and not my iMac now. I could upgrade to Samsung, on the 2012 mini, but the 2020 mini SSD is about 3 times as fast! Seems like a good idea sell the 2012 and upgrade for that reason.

Or maybe I take the 2012 home and use it there.

 

[Boyd01]

For myself working on the LAN I can see the read/write speeds coming into play as I will be saving to the mini and not my iMac now. I could upgrade to Samsung, on the 2012 mini, but the 2020 mini SSD is about 3 times as fast!

Minor point.... there really is no such thing as a "2020 Mini". All that happened in 2020 is that Apple no longer offered the 128gb SSD in the bottom of the line model and made 256gb standard. You could have bought the exact same Mini in 2018, it just would have cost a little more.

If you're talking about the internal SSD on the 2012 vs 2018 Mini, it's actually about 5 times as fast (2,600MB/sec vs 500)! But, will that make a difference on your LAN? Gigabit ethernet has a theoretical limit of 1024/8 = 128MB/sec. In reality, I would expect to see something closer to 100MB/sec, and that would assume you are the only user.

So, no matter how fast the server is, you're only going to get ~100MB/sec over the LAN. If you use an external USB SSD on the 2012 Mini, you will get about 400MB/sec performance which is still 4 times faster than the network. This is an external 1tb Samsung T3 USB SSD connected to my 2012 quad mini, it's almost as fast as the internal SSD.

Where the faster computer and disk *might* help is reducing latency (the delay between when you click on a file and when it actually starts opening) or maybe under heavy use from lots of people. Somebody would have to do some actual tests, but I suspect you will see little to no difference between a 2012 vs 2018 Mini as a server. A server really doesn't have to work very hard to just send/receive data on the network and the 2012 quad is still a respectably fast machine. You could upgrade the RAM to 16gb if you haven't already (very easy on the 2012) but I don't even know if that would matter.

IMO, if you want to get a 2018 Mini, use it as a workstation where you will see a huge increase in how quickly files open and have the benefit of the faster CPU, faster ports, better display support, etc.

 

[boulderarch]

Ok, got it. Because the iMac and Mini are connected over a LAN then THAT is the bottleneck inside my office (ignoring remote workers completely). I actually might be connecting them via WiFi.

I was thinking: I click Save on the iMac. It is actually saving on the Mini, so while it is true that data has to cross the LAN at the WiFi speed, doesn't it still then have to save on the Mini and therefore the read/write speed would come into play?

I get that we might be talking seconds here, but when I am working all day, all week all those little short waits for things to save add up. If we are talking minutes for something to save I can go do something else. But if it takes 5 sec. to save I just have to wait. So if if the 2018 Mini will improve save times from 5 sec. to 1 sec. then I'm saving time which = more $ made. At 100 saves a day that is like 40 min. per week.

Does that make any sense?

 

[boulderarch]

Thanks for the advice on the mini as a workstation. I used to use the 2012 as a workstation, but the graphics are very poor and it doesn't work well for architectural work which is graphics card dependent.

 

[Boyd01]

Well, you need to do your own calculations for time savings. I just don't think you would notice a difference over gigabit ethernet. When you save over the network, it will act just like a slow disk drive at 100MB/sec. The server is able to write data to the disk 4 or 5 times faster than it arrives, so it should always just be waiting on the network to deliver more data.

But I think you just want a 2018 Mini, and there's nothing wrong with that! It certainly won't be slower than the 2012 and it will have the advantage of a full warranty, AppleCare eligibility and will be supported much longer than the 2012.

 

[boulderarch]

Ok that makes sense. I don't want a new mini really, rather I want the fastest system possible. It seems to make sense to upgrade the internal HD of the 2012 mini to 2TB. Then I can add externals as necessary.

I think it has 16GB RAM already.

 

[boulderarch]

Ok that makes sense. I don't want a new mini really, rather I want the fastest system possible. It seems to make sense to upgrade the internal HD of the 2012 mini to 2TB. Then I can add externals as necessary.

Working directly on the 2019 iMac is so fast I might get annoyed working with the server.

I think it has 16GB RAM already.

 

[Jro29]

Ok that makes sense. I don't want a new mini really, rather I want the fastest system possible. It seems to make sense to upgrade the internal HD of the 2012 mini to 2TB. Then I can add externals as necessary.

I think it has 16GB RAM already.

I did this to my 2012 MacBook Pro. It does indeed improve performance. I also have 16 GB. I’m in your same boat. The MacBook always sat clamshell. And I wanted a new computer that could run Big Sur. I think the MacBook could probably go another 5 years. It’s a great machine. But it might conk out on me. And I could justify getting a desktop in a way couldn’t justify getting a new laptop to myself.

 

[Boyd01]

It seems to make sense to upgrade the internal HD of the 2012 mini to 2TB.

Upgrading the SSD on the 2012 is not trivial (it was not intended to be user-upgradeable). Certainly possible, but also carries the risk of damaging something, especially considering the age. I would just add a big external SSD, they are not much slower than an internal. I have a 4tb Oyen Digital USB SSD on another Mini that I use as a media server. Or get a 2tb Samsung T7 (or t5 if you can find one at a good price). Then continue using the Mini's 256gb internal SSD for the operating system, that's how I use mine. The external SSD also has the advantage of being easily moved to a different computer if you upgrade later.

Like I said, an external SSD is already 4x faster than gigabit ethernet. Also, you mentioned wifi. I assume the Mini is hardwired on ethernet however? You might want to run some tests to make sure you are really getting the full speed it can deliver. You could just use the free BlackMagic Disk Test like my screenshots, you should be seeing about 100MB/sec if you choose the Mini as the target disk.

Also, what kind of router do you have for the client computers on wifi? You should check that out to make sure your router is delivering all the speed that the clients can utilize. I get around 60MB/sec with 802.11ac wifi on my 2013 MacBook Air.

Needless to say, you will also need a backup strategy for the server with the larger disk.

 

[Jro29]

Replacing the SSD In the MBP was a lot simpler than what is involved with replacing the RAM on the mini.

 

[richmlow]

Hello boulderarch,



I really do think that you should buy a new Mac mini and sell your old one.

"Upgrading" your 2012 Mac mini can only go so far. Besides having a very old CPU in it, the ports, interface, cache are all old and inefficient, compared to the brand-new 2018/2020 Mac mini. Putting in a new drive in your 2012 Mac mini may not solve your speed problems!

Buy the 2018/2020 Mac mini. You won't regret it and it will last you for 10+ years.

That's what I would do. Seriously.

BTW, I have the 2018/2020 Mac mini, with the same configuration that I recommended to you (in an earlier thread). I am very pleased with my decision and have no regrets!

Good luck in your purchasing decisions.


richmlow

Ok that makes sense. I don't want a new mini really, rather I want the fastest system possible. It seems to make sense to upgrade the internal HD of the 2012 mini to 2TB. Then I can add externals as necessary.

I think it has 16GB RAM already.