iFixit

Remove the single black 6 mm T6 Torx screw securing the upper portion of the logic board to the upper case.

Peel up the orange Kapton tape securing the right thermal sensor cable to the logic board.

Remove the following 15 screws:

• One 4.4 mm black Phillips screw to the right of the ram slot.
• Eight 4.7 mm silver T6 Torx screws securing the logic board to the lower case.
• One 6.2 mm black T6 Torx screw on the right side of the left fan.
• Five 9.4 mm silver T6 Torx screws securing the left and right fans.

Hold the logic board down with one hand and use your other hand to lift the left fan up from its housing. There is a piece of black tape securing the left fan to the heat sink. Carefully peel this tape up from the heat sink as you lift the left fan up.

Place the left fan above the Airport card. It is not necessary to remove the fan from the computer entirely.

Lift the right fan up and carefully peel up the tape securing the fan to the heat sink as you go.

Remove the right fan from the computer.

If you leave the upper 5 orange screws on, the heatsink/pipes come out effortlessly, still mounted onto the main board. That way the thermal connections are retained.

Lift up the left side of the logic board and disconnect the gray and black power cable from the bottom of the board.

• Pull the power cable connector parallel to the face of the logic board.

Grasp the logic board at the left side and at the thin section, and rotate the logic board out of the lower case.

To properly reassemble your MacBook Pro, you'll have to clean off and replace the old thermal compound from the chips on the back of the logic board. Use our Applying Thermal Paste Guide to prepare the processor and heat sink surfaces.

Peel back the orange Kapton tape covering the middle thermal sensor.

Use a spudger to pry the middle thermal sensor off the heat sink.