Use a coin to rotate the battery locking screw 90 degrees clockwise.

Lift the battery out of the computer.

Use a pin to remove the three rubber feet from the lower case.

Remove the three newly-revealed Phillips screws.

Use a spudger or small flathead screwdriver to pry up the three metal rings that housed the rubber bumpers.

Remove the three hex screws using a T8 Torx screwdriver.

The screw in the center is shorter than the other two.

Remove the two Phillips screws on either side of the battery contacts.

Breathe deeply. Trying times are ahead, but we promise the lower case does come off.

Push the thin rims of the lower case surrounding the battery compartment in, bending them past the tabs, and then lift up to free that corner of the lower case.

There is a slot on the wall of the battery compartment that locks the lower case in place.

Use a small flathead screwdriver to pry out the slot's lower rim and pull up on the lower case to free the slot from the tabs holding it.

Run a spudger along the seam between the lower case and upper case on the front of the computer to free the tabs locking the lower case.

Pull up on the lower case and continue to use the spudger as necessary until you hear three distinct clicks.

Continue to run the spudger around the front, right corner.

There are two tabs on the port side of the computer, one near the front corner and one near the sound out port.

Once the front and sides of the lower case are free, turn the computer so that the back is facing you.

Pull the lower case up and toward you until the back tabs pop free.

It may be helpful to jiggle the case up and down.

Remove the small greasy springs with white plastic caps from either side of the battery contacts.

All of the screws in the following step have small heads - the screws with larger heads hold the bottom shield on.

Remove the following 9 screws on the bottom of the computer:

• Three 3 mm Phillips around the battery compartment.
• Three 5 mm Phillips on the left and bottom edges.
• Three 14.5 mm Phillips on the top and right edges (you may have to peel back the foil tape to reveal the screw near the security lock slot).

Turn over the computer and open it.

Pry up the magnet covering a Phillips screw near the middle of the computer.

You may need to peel back the serial number sticker to access the magnet.

Remove the following 3 screws on the edges of the keyboard area:

• Two 6 mm Phillips underneath the keyboard area.
• One 9 mm Phillips above the keyboard area.

On some models, there may also be a screw under the magnet you just removed. If so, remove the screw at this point.

This is a diagram of the ribbon clamp connectors you will disconnect in the next step.

With your fingernails, grasp the locking bar on either side and pull up a small amount (about 1/16" or 2 mm).

After disengaging the locking bar, slide the cable out of the connector.

Loosen the trackpad connector by pulling the top piece up slightly, freeing the trackpad ribbon.

Slide the orange trackpad ribbon out of the connector.

Use a straightened paperclip to open the optical drive tray, and pull it out about halfway.

Don't lift the upper case off the computer yet as there are still two cables left to disconnect.

Lift the upper case from the left side and use your other hand to pull out the right side in order to clear the power receptacle.

The connectors at the ends of the cables are attached very firmly to the sockets on the logic board. Pulling directly on the cable will either separate the cable from its connector or the socket from the logic board.

Lift the upper case enough to disconnect the blue and white power cable from the logic board.

Using your fingernails or a dental pick, carefully pry the connector from its socket.

Make sure you are pulling only on the connector and not on the socket.

Lift the upper case off completely and disconnect the red and black speaker cable from the logic board.

Make sure you are pulling only on the connector and not on the socket.