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Mac won't find SSD.

Hey guys,

Shortly, the internal 500 gb HDD crashed on my old MacBook Pro (early 2011). So I bought a new 240gb SSD as replacement. Problem is that the mac won't find the SSD when booting up from a USB-stick or in disc utility in safe mode. In other words the SSD won't pop up in any modes although it's internally intact.

The internal SATA-cable is functioning well, I connected my old HDD which popped up directly when booting the mac from the USB. Don't understand me wrong, the HDD is of no interest, since it keeps crashing and I've recovered all the files I need.

So, what do I do for my newly bought SSD to show up in finder and/or disc utility --> install OS X --> start using my mac? Is buying a USB-SATA adapter the only option for me to access this new SSD before using it internally?

Many thanks,

Anton

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The hard drive/ IR cable on the 2012 13" MacBook Pro has so many issues that Apple will replace it for free. If the problem goes on long enough with the cable, it screws up the data on the hard drive. Sound familiar?

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It's familiar, I've changed the HDD-cable myself, twice. Is this replacement from apple free outside of the US for any chance?

However though, is presumable cable-related issues the reason why my brand new SSD doesn't turn up on finder/disc utility while the original HDD does. Care to elaborate? :)

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Get a USB to SATA adapter. Hook the drive us externally. Boot from your stick. Use Disk Utilities and format the drive GUID and Mac OS X extended. If it works externally and won't work internally change the HD cable and use the one from the 2012 model. (wider data path.

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Thank you so much Mayer - it was in fact the cable that was faulty! I changed it just now from another MBP 2011.

Just one last clarification: the HD cable from the MBP 2012-model is in fact compatible with a MBP 2011, right? If so, is it worth buying a HD cable with wider data path, or is it overkill considering the price?

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All i will use anymore are the 2012 cables. On some machine I have to make mods to the hard drive retainer bar (break it half. These get damages in two ways. The main way is where the cable comes over that last step. The bottom impacts it and causes the damage. To prevent this I use Kaptan tape to hold down the cable. Then on either side of the cable I use a thick tape (3M Scotch Extreme Mounting tape). This prevents the bottom from contacting the cable.

http://www.scotchbrand.com/3M/en_US/scot...

Polyimide Tape

The second way is is vibration of the hard drive sitting on top of the cable. Some of the machines have rough surfaces on where the hard drive sits. Placing a smooth electrical tape on this surface helps eliminate this issue. Also, when replacing the drive, if the newer thin drives are used (like a SSHD) this problem is alleviated.

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AntonH will be eternally grateful.
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