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Can I safely disassemble my computer?
I heard that some of the new laptops automatically erase their hard drives if someone opens them up. How do I find out if my computer is designed to do this? I want to check on the alignment of my DVD drive, because my computer can not eject a disc - it hits against something inside, and then reloads the disc.
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mayer
121.8k
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This sounds like an urban urban legend. It will not happen on a Mac. Please give us the last three figures of your serial number so we can get you to the correct guides.
It's not an urban legend. I spoke with Apple, and they had to check whether my computer had that feature or not. So, clearly they do make some with that feature. As a nurse, I can understand why it could be seen as a positive safety for computer equipment given to home health care workers who take laptops with them on the job. Remote disabling is also a good idea for such confidential devices. Anyway, my last 3 digits are 1PX. I've tried the "insert a card" trick, but it does not work. If I don't get a better answer, I'm going to unscrew the case and check out the alignment of the device in a few days. Thank you for any help you can provide!
I couldn't find anything on automatic hard drive erasure. I have seen bad disk drive alignment. This usually happens after the drive has been removed. The edge of the drive closest to the screen is usually not seated properly and is sitting up slightly. Just reseat it and check before you close it back up. Here's how to do it: http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook-Core...
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Dan
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Somewhat of an urban legend ;-}
First, Apple does not have an sensors in any of their current or older products so if you had opened the case to install RAM or remove your systems HD if your system had gone bad it would not wipe out your systems HD.
With that said I could see someone adding a sensor but it would still need some logic to be useful and I don't know of any built-in logic by Apple in their systems to leverage such a sensor. IBM & Dell both have some logic in some of their desktop systems to reset the system password but it still does not wipe the systems HD.
What you maybe eluding to is 3rd party software that prevents someone from accessing your data if you have had your system stolen. We call this a time-bomb program so if you fail to access the system with the correct password the drive is locked out or wiped. There is also a different 3rd party product that phones home when connected to the internet that can be programed to wipe its' self by you.
You could also have an encrypted drive so it can't be removed from the system as the systems ID is tied to the HD so it can't be swapped or the data accessed if the HD is thrown away.
In most cases when a HD is swapped out and does not appear to be working in the new system the systems BIOS settings are not correctly set. With serial ATA (SATA) drives this is no longer an issue. The last thing is the age of the system (or BIOS) that can't handle the newer very large drives. So if you have a newer systems HD it may not play in the older system. All that maybe needed is upgrading the BIOS.
Lastly, a loose or damaged data or power cable can make a HD appear as being wiped.
BIOS = Basic Input/Output System Apple calls it PRAM or VRAM In any case it's the boot loader that starts your system with the primitives needed check your system and access your HD.
Dan,
Bottom Line - Nothing to stop you from opening your system Good luck in locating whats blocking the CD/DVD disk from ejecting.
Dan,
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Apple MacBook "Core 2 Duo" 2.1 13" (White-08) Specs Identifiers: Early 2008 - MB402LL/A* - MacBook4,1 - A1181 - 2242
mayer,